Final Digipak Designs - Ancillary Artwork

I settled on the blue background so that the motif of the red scarf and red kind handle would standout further in the artwork. The red standing out is paramount as it illuminates feelings of love and lust surrounded by cooler colours suggesting that the love is surrounded by sadness. 

The idea of the antagonist clutching the red kite handle suggests that she is clinging onto the love that she once had despite being revealed in the music video that it is lost. The use of the black nail varnish suggests mourning and death, juxtaposing the red. 

Draft Designs Ancillary Artwork - Blue

Draft Designs - Green

Creating Artwork - Ancillary Production

First I chose the picture that I wanted for my artwork out of the many images I took whilst filming. The image I chose was at the kite flying location - avon dasset - where she is looking directly at the camera with an emotionless face. The colour of the bright red scarf stood out next to her ashy blonde hair and black clothes to create an eye catching centre piece in the image. The colour red connotes love and desire as well as anger, while the cooler colours connote a sense of darkness and possible mourning. 

I began by using Adobe Illustrator to outside all of the basic outlines of the image I had chosen. I started with the centre facial features and worked my way outwards. I decided to keep it as minimalistic and simple as possible so that the block colours would work in conjunction with this style. I used the curvature line tool so I could follow the curves of the different features. 

I used different line widths throughout the artwork for different features, for example the hair and facial outsides were bolder because they had a width of 3, whereas the eyes and facial lines were less prominent because they had a width of 0.5. 

Smaller details such as the necklace were also done in a smaller width.  

I then tested what the artwork looks like without the image in the background to see if there were any missing lines and that the artwork looks right on its own. This way I was able to check what needed adding to etc. This was a common procedure as i wanted to check the lines were looking good whilst creating the artwork rather than finding out i'd done something wrong at the end. 

I saved the design in a PNG format so that I was able to keep a translucent background when I edit my design in photoshop. 

I kept the photo in the background so that I could use the 'eye dropper tool' to select the right colours to use in my artwork. When colouring in the illustration I kept the layer hidden to come back to later. 

I used the paintbrush tool in various different widths to fill in the illustration in different layers with the intention of colouring outside of the lines. Layers such as the scarf, her body and her hair are towards the top to make them stand out against the background. 

I tried the images with various different background colours for the final artwork piece settling on the blue. 

Creating the Digipak

Firstly I needed to download a template for the Digipak, so I downloaded one from discmaker.com and opened it up on Photoshop. After opening up the template into photoshop I unlocked the layer and began by creating 3 squares that fit the front cover, the inside cover and back cover. i then added my digital illustrations that i had coloured on photoshop into photoshop and unlocked the layer so I could drag it onto the template.

After creating the main art for my album, I realised I needed to create a band name. For this I used a random band name generator online that came up with 'undercover brotherhood' which I then used for my band name. I then added this as text to the front of my album using a simple font and creating the title using various sizes, stroke and spacing.  

After completing my main design for my front cover, I began working on the back cover and track list. Here I used a random name generator to make up names of songs and used a text tool to position the names in the centre using simple and smaller font - following the common conventions of other indie style digipaks. 

Once I added a track list I also needed a bar code which I found online and downloaded in a JPEG format. After it was positioned in the bottom right corner where the conventional bar code tends to go. 

I then removed the outer sides of the image where the disk tray is, to show what the disk would look like.

Creating the Digipak - Screen Recording

Ancillary Artwork Ideas - Planning Moodboard

In order to collect image ideas for my artwork I went on Pinterest to look at 'outline' artwork. This is what created my interest in the idea for a piece of artwork involving outlines. These ideas are much more detailed than I would like and they have no colour. 

Ancilary Research - Magazine Advert Research

The main functions of an advert placed in a magazine is to be eye catching to promote that artist to the desired target audience in order to sell their product - eg, a song or album that they have produced. Whilst doing research I have found several conventions that many magazine promotions/adverts tend to have:

• The artists name - this is so that the audience reading/fans know who the artist is
• The title of the album/song - in large letters depending on the artist and genre (some may have a larger image than text)
• The release date of the upcoming song or album being advertised - this is so the target market know when the song/album are able to be bought
• Image of the album cover - this is what usually grabs the readers attention/people are able to know what the product looks like
• Where you can purchase it - this is often if there is a particular deal with a specific super market eg, "get this exclusively at Tesco - this week only" however the common audience/reader knows that the music more often that not will be available to stream online via spotify/iTunes. 
• Social media links - this is important for the band as it makes them appear more human and available to interact with their fans and receive updates. 
• Tour dates - some adverts for albums/songs can include tour dates to remind fans/readers that they can buy tickets to see them live
• Price - this is useful for readers so they know how much it will cost before they buy it
• Information about record label - this isn't reoccurring with every advert however it gives the reader a good impression of what kind of music the band may play if they have never heard them before. 

Examples:

• This advert is from the band Bastille and it includes many of the aforementioned conventions, including a main image in the background of a car rather than the band creating an enigma. This form of breaking the conventions is allowed as they are a well established band - performing at Glastonbury etc. and this is their third tour 'bad blood part 3'. The name of the band is at the top of the page so that readers' eyes are immediately drawn to it followed by the product they are selling beneath - their tour. This is then supported by tour dates under the main image with the date and city in bold and the venue in large letters. In smaller letters at the bottom it tells the audiences where they are able to get tickets and contact information. 

• This advert is from the rock band kings of leon. This advert has the album artwork as the main attraction which is a common convention with rock bands and their albums. It has their name at the top and the album name across the bottom in the same font. It has the information at the bottom about the record label and where you can stream the album and when it is coming out. 

Response to class feedback

I was happy with the class feedback I received because my classmates are the same age as my target audience. There was particular focus on the success of how powerful the narrative was. This illustrates that I have produced an accurate portrayal of emotion that I wanted the audience to feel - generating feelings of sympathy to relate to my protagonist.

Furthermore, the feedback on my editing techniques and my camera angles illuminates that my adjustments throughout the editing process has been successful as in the initial stages of editing, some of the shots weren't as powerful due to weather conditions on the day. However overall the constructive criticism helped expand and develop my ideas further.

Class Feedback

Rory: Really like the reverse section of the music video, it really grabbed attention. It was really clear that it was an emotional narrative through the various camera shots. Maybe add more flashbacks.

Emily: Shots are good. Camera control is very good and the narrative is very clear.

Skye: Flashbacks were creative, especially with the warmth filter overlaying them.

Megan. I really like the opening shots and how the protagonists boyfriend disappears

Rossi: Excellent Camera shots and it has a clear powerful narrative.

Research Ancillary 2 - magazine advert

Kasabian are a band of a similar genre to the band that I have chosen for my music video which is why I thought it would be a good idea to research into a music magazine advert. they are an english rock band formed in Leicester in 1997. with music being described as a mix of the stone roses, primal scream and the Oasis 'swagger', they have released 6 studio albums and won several awards including a brit Award in 2010 for Best British Group. 

The main image consists of black and white monotone colours that stand out vibrantly against the dark background. The original image is a man in a balaclava however the picture has been inverted to create an enigma and a point of focus that is ambiguous. The sans-serif font creates impact and a statement as well as the white colour choice and capitalisation. The 'S' and 'B' in 'KASABIAN' is slightly quirky as they look graffiti like relating to an indie genre.

The main artwork is centred in the middle with the name of the brand directly above and details beneath - following common conventions of a magazine advert. The layout of all of the fonts are centralised and line up in the centre like album art. Repetition of the word 'limited' creates enticement from the target audience as they find out that the product is in high demand and limited supply - a popular marketing technique to make more sales.