For my critical review, I decided to do something a little more creative this year and create a Podcast persona- a frequent reviewer of music videos, films, books and generally the arts, called “K Reviews”. The podcast works just like any other, with a speaker, above 10 minutes in length and with music.

For the content of the podcast, I made use of the questions asked in the syllabus and developed a script with answers to the questions (drafted based on prior research that can be accessed on this blog’s previous posts, regarding conventions of music videos and related trivia) that works as an entertainment reviewing podcast script. A few sources I used are linked below:

Slideshare on Conventions of Music Videos

Slideshare of Conventions of Music videos #2

List of songs about Cities (For further research of the Podcast content)

After recording the podcast on Logic Pro (the music used in the podcast was composed by me on the same DAW, making it easier for me to sync up the two, export and upload onto the listening platform.) with the help of a Rode NT1A Condenser microphone, Scarlett 2i2 Soundcard and the Macbook Pro used.

I uploaded the podcast on the online platform Soundcloud.com: Listen to the podcast here!

The Endhan Madras music video was scheduled to be completed by the 1st of March. However, using an Apple Macbook Pro with a software such as Filmora9 for the main editing task proved to be difficult as heating issues and numerous other glitches occurred throughout the editing process.

To ensure that the file remains safe, I transferred it to a different system (the latest iMac) in hopes that if any unpredictable circumstances arise and my laptop cannot be used to export the final video- I could use the newer system after downloading the software.

On 16th March, I decided to take the plunge and purchase the software to see if it would make things better. After spending about 45$, I was able to export this video as of 17th March, 2020, without a large watermark and without any other technical issues. This purchase would prove to be useful as I can work on newer projects in the future and hopefully, improve my skills when it comes to editing.

Comparing last year (AS Level) to this year, my editing skillset has improved vastly.

1. I got to experiment with using 50+ shots for one media product, as opposed to last year where there were less than 15-20 shots.
2. I had the opportunity to add 2 versions of subtitles into one video, making sure they are visible and in sync.
3. I had the opportunity to create a song, visualize the entire music video and execute it in just a few months. This was exhilarating and proved to be the most helpful during the post-production progress, as I learnt that not everything I visualized would come out looking as imagined. This learning experience pushed me to my creative boundaries while editing and I was able to improvise placement of shots, plan a reshoot upon editing, etc.
4. I was able to experiment with montage or dynamic editing styles, as opposed to last years linear/continuity styles.

There are many other things I learnt during the editing progress- especially improving in speed and efficiency as someone working in post-production of a film.

However, certain skills that I was hoping to develop this year such as

1. colorgrading
2. Using more interesting transitions.
3. Avidly trying to improve the quality of footage.

I was unable to experiment with these skills due to the technical difficulties seen in previous blogs- editing in the software for more than 15 minutes at a time resulted in overheating, glitches and sometimes even loss of progress. I decided that I had to choose the safety of the file over experimenting with these three things to the fullest.

Now that the official music video has been exported after 20 days of production and a reshoot, this blog will be updated with the video, complete digipak, updated artist website and podcast link, in following posts.

In the first blog post dedicated to the Digipak Design (linked here), I had done research on digipaks, their types and variants and drafted around 2 simple Digipak designs (front panel).

However, I felt like I had to come up with a better design that resonated with the artists brand and song more and had more of an impact. Using an iPad Pro, Apple Pencil and an art application called Medibang, I completed drafting different versions of the final design I had decided to use.

For the album art or the face of the song “Endhan Madras” on streaming platforms, I used the same software along with photographs I had taken to create a Filter Coffee cup (Traditional south-indian coffee, usually consumed in the tumbler and cup pictured below) with the ocean waves of Marina Beach (Chennai’s most popular beach) inside it. After using this album art for the AKRK Music website, I decided to add it to the final digipak design as it perfectly represents Endhan Madras as a song; delivering the same emotion to the intended audience. I also made use of the online photo editing platform Picmonkey to help me find the English font used. The Tamil font was handwritten and the overall design was drafted in the Medibang art app.

The final design, drafts and process images are attached below:

The final digipak design is attached below; a brightly colored four paneled CD case that includes a small insert with additional details.

The full insert found in a slit on the inner-left panel contains content that speaks solely about the Drought and how people should make changes to save water. As for the CD Itself, a plain simple iridescent texture with small text consisting of the song’s name is the idea as the rest of the digipak is so colorful, the CD Itself could be a simple one.

After completing the rough assembly cut of the Endhan Madras music video, I decided, upon reflection, that the sequence depicting water loss and conservation needs to be more dramatic in order to deliver the desired effect of the lyrics. Because of this, I had to schedule reshoots and plan the sequence thoroughly in order to film and edit the final music video in time.

A few ideas occurred to me for the sequence- the most interesting one being the use of split-screen editing, inspired by a sequence in a Tamil film called “Kathi”- this type of sequence would deliver the desired dramatic effect as it would include various relevant shots playing in an overwhelming, crowded manner at a point in the music where tension increases to indicate conflict.

To carry the shooting and editing of this sequence out effectively, I decided to perform research on the exact type of sequence I hope to achieve. While this is a setback in terms of my original schedule, it would allow for my final product to improve and be closer to the vision I had for it.

The following are resources used to understand split screen editing, different frame rates and their incorporation, as well as other effects that might be effective alternatives to my idea.

A blog post about editing techniques and aspect ratios (linked)

After looking through these sources, I hope to achieve such an effect with the right shots for the bridge of Endhan Madras where the lyrics speak about the water crises and the music builds up after an emotional break- I intend to use Filmora9 for this sequence as well.

Re-doing and completing this sequence will mark the end of post-production for the Endhan Madras music video.

UPDATE:

After attempting this shot, I realised that my editing software’s heating problem and glitches might not allow for me to cleanly execute this. Instead, I made use of pre-existing shots and the shots from my reshoot to create the desired dramatic outcome I was hoping for.

Various artists sell Merchandise in the form of Apparel, records, CD’s, Cassettes, Notebooks, etc, with their brand or references to their music on them. This would be to generate revenue from other sources all year round as opposed to only from live show tickets and albums/single purchases.

I decided that the AKRK Music website should have such a product featured as well; it would represent AKRK Music as an established music duo and in the music promotion scenario: the target audience of Chennaite’s or Tamilians that relate to the ode to Chennai would enjoy owning merchandise of Endhan Madras.

To create one of the 3 products I chose to sell on the Artist website (The other two being the digipak/CD and the Digital Track of Endhan Madras itself), I decided to source images of Hoodies in the colors I selected and then altered the images to turn them into Endhan Madras Merchandise. I used an iPad Pro and apple pencil, paired with the art software Medibang to execute this task.

The final website (Linked in this blog post) would have these images accompanying the product name and description, complete with a choice of colors, size guide, price, etc.

The digipak/CD design has been created with the same electronic hardware and software and will add a touch of professionalism and originality in the final website.

In my previous blog, I chose Wix.com after researching on website building platforms.

With Wix.com, I am able to pick from a varied selection of themes curated specifically for artists who wish to maintain a blog, sell merchandise and music through a website. The theme I chose allowed me to pick and choose different widgets or sections of the website, including Online Store and payment setup, a blog and allowed for me to personalize the desktop and mobile versions of the site.

Everything ranging from the images or colors used to the type of content displayed on the website is totally customizable and easy to navigate through during customization. The website allows for fast file transfers and clearly communicates any requirement for any widget- it is fast, reliable and easy to use.

After creating Merchandise and other images necessary, I was able to publish the final website and have it ready for blog updates as the artist; teasers, posters and promotional posts. The vision I had for the website was simple, clean, but bold in color. The artists being represented and the music being sold can be considered lively. However, cleaner colors make a website more attractive and easier to get through. The template I selected for the website also reinforced this notion, with its minimalistic block-like layout for each section of the webpage.

The final website link is attached below:

Click here to view the final website.

Screenshots of the website are attached below:

As seen in on of my previous blogs (linked here), various musicians and artists create websites for numerous reasons including making announcements, maintaining an online presence, communicating with listeners, making business contacts, selling music and merchandise, etc.

Endhan Madras is a single written, composed and produced by a friend, AKR, and myself for the purpose of the media studies music video. However, I decided to create a website that establishes us as a pre-existing duo called AKRK Music. To execute this sort of presence (that will add more value to the song Endhan Madras) and allow for me to publish promotional material for the single’s release, I needed to create an artist website.

The website must be constructed on a platform that allows for a professional yet simple setup and gives options for merchandise sales, song sales, blogging, etc. To find a platform to create this website on, as I do not wish to create a website from scratch without any guidance or template, I researched (Source linked Here) on some of the most popular Website building sites online.

1)Squarespace– This site has some lovely templates that could suit the purpose extremely well. However, the interface requires a lot of patience to work through and edit content. This site is very useful and well known and is a site I’d be willing to use for the AKRK Music Website.

2)Wix– Wix is a platform that is beginner friendly, intuitive and offers gorgeous templates curated for musicians and various categories of different professions as well. However, the interface is a little confusing at first and without purchase of a domain name, the Wix watermark can be considered too prominent in the website and domain address.

3)HostGator– This site seems to be aimed towards intermediate-advanced website creators hoping to publish websites for more commercial businesses. The tools provided and the templates available do not seem suitable for an Artist website.

4)Network Solutions– While this site is supposed to be one of the more popular ones and even offers a free domain, the templates it offers seems to be targeting an E-commerce or more commercial website than a creative Artist website. Additionally, the interface itself is not as friendly as previous options.

After exploring these four options, I decided to choose Wix.com as its musician-friendly templates and easy-to-use interface was extremely attractive to me. In the next post, I will speak about my experience navigating the website building platform and add the link of the final, published website once all updates have been added to it by the 1st of March.

In my previous blog, I decided I would make use of different editing softwares to help me complete the post-production of Endhan Madras. As Filmora9 seems to have the simplest interface (in comparison with Premier Pro or Final Cut Pro) and intermediate functions, I decided that it would be the appropriate next step in improving my current skillset.

Hence, I decided to use this software to finish my assembly cut; crop all my raw footage, align them with the lyrics and the music, adding any extra diegetic audio as well as adding title/outro cards. The next software I would use would be Davinci Resolve for color grading and the final render.

On January 19th, I started the assembly cut on Filmora9 and took the help of some online sources and practice edits to get familiar with the important tools Filmora9 has to offer. These sources are as mentioned below:

Website link: https://reviews.financesonline.com/p/filmora/

Some of the features I am looking to make use of from Filmora9 for my rough and final edits that I have not (at a proficient or adequate level) had experience using before are as follows:

• Split Screen Presets
• Advanced Text Editing
• Video and Audio Controls
• Layer Multiple Video Clips
• Audio Mixer
• Chroma Key
• Audio Separation
• Video Stabilization
• Color Grading Presets
• Speed Controls

These are the features of Filmora9 that I hope to explore and have a comfortable grasp on by the end of the editing process.

After a few editing sessions, I have learnt that Filmora9 may have issues with speed and lags. However, the simple interface and fast rendering/saving compensate for these issues.

After completing the production stage of creating the Endhan Madras music video (Last day of filming: Jan 10th), I decided to do further research on the film editing softwares in order to select and purchase/download the one I find to be most suitable for music video editing.

There are numerous good quality video editing softwares out there; Premier Pro, Final Cut Pro, Davinci Resolve, Filmora9, Etc. I made use of this informative website to compare the available features of such softwares to help me decide which one to download. Being a MacBook Pro user, I was leaning towards Final Cut Pro as it is optimized for usage in Apple Technology and is likely to be efficient. However, after doing a comparison, I decided that as a beginner, I should try softwares such as Premier pro, Corel VideoStudio, etc as it is more likely for me to get better results from platforms that beginners can get accustomed to in a shorter period of time.

Picking A Software:

My aim for this project is not only to create an appealing music video for Endhan Madras but also to get a comfortable grasp on a video editing software and improve my skillset.

Filmora9: Based off the website and trial version itself, this software seemed the most beginner friendly and I found its practical, well spaced and clear to use interface extremely attractive. However, this software is only a little more advanced than iMovie (the software I used for the majority of my AS Level 2 minute Film Opening Coursework) and I was hoping to improve my skillset vastly this year by experimenting with and experiencing more advanced video editing softwares.

Adobe Premier Pro CC: This YouTube video helped me understand the user interface of Premier Pro. This software seems to be well rounded and extremely advanced compared to my current skillset. Experimenting with this software would allow me to learn a lot more about the different tools and options available to edit and enhance a visual product. Understanding this interface would help me get comfortable with various other professional video editing softwares in the long run.

Final Cut Pro X: Final Cut Pro is one of the most well renowned video editing softwares, especially amongst Apple computer users. However, other applications do share most of its features for better prices.

Corel VideoStudio Ultimate: This award winning platform seems to be a great one for both beginners and advanced editors as it offers numerous features but is easy to learn. However, This software’s crowded interface was something that I thought I would not be able to work efficiently with.

DaVinci Resolve: This software specializes in color correction and audio mastering. My idea for Endhan Madras was to use one software primarily (such as premier pro, filmora9 or final cut pro) for the assembly cut or rough cut of the music video and then move it to an application such as DaVinci Resolve for color correction and final incorporation of music and diegetic audio before rendering.

I decided I would continue my research and experimentation with video editing softwares for the post-production of Endhan Madras using Premier Pro, Filmora9 and Davinci Resolve.

Schedule: January 10th, 3:30-5:30 pm

Location: Kodambakkam

Equipment Used:  Canon EOS 1300D Camera, Wide and Zoom Lens.

Shoot Details:  The aim of this shoot was to spend a few hours in populated locations of Chennai and find suitable shots. I was able to travel to Kodambakkam and comfortably spend a few hours shooting; flexibility in time was vital as there were no particular shots planned for this day.

The plan for this shoot is to film misc. shots required for fillers or during choruses. This included more road shots- for example, shots of crossing the road, people walking on the streets or sitting outside their houses, people selling tender coconut and vegetables, etc. The aim is to capture shots of typical things found in Chennai.

Learning Experience: As this was the last day of shooting, the shoot was a very laid back one and depended on improvisation, allowing for me to point and shoot as I walked around the chosen location, Kodambakkam, which was once considered the heart of Madras; it is the typical embodiment of North Madras lifestyle. The shots taken on this day would mostly work as creative embellishments and add more aesthetic appeal to the music video.

Lyrics and Storyboard for Reference:

These shots would be used in Choruses and as fillers for the verses.

Storyboard Used For The Shoot:

Photos From The Shoot:

Numerous other shots such as these were taken on this final shoot; wrapping up production on 9th December.