P1: Produce a proposal for the original media product to meet the client brief
Knowing the client I found out that Cambridge City Council employ around 830 people to work for them.
This is the council's logo.
Below is a map showing the area that the city council controls.
Below is a mind map of all my original ideas. I then whittled them down to create my proposal document.
Working title Food for Thought: An Exploration of Cambridge
Synopsis Food for Thought is an educational journey around Cambridge's favourite museum and market. We learn about what this beautiful city has to offer in both food for our bodies, and food for our minds. Through this short video, we learn about the many cultures Cambridge caters for, and see how cultural art meets the modern day.
Length of work, format and genre I aim to make a 1-3 minute non-fictional audio-visual product and in the form of a promotional video.
My interpretation of 'culture' According to Oxford Dictionary, culture is "The arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively." Source: (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/culture). I agree with this definition and so therefore I will be focusing on art and food for my video.
Target audience My primary target audience is the judges at the regional culture awards, as they will be judging my work and deciding if it will win the culture award. I will appeal to them by using lots of conventions of promotional videos, cinematic shots and by having a high production value. This will make sure that my production is up to the same standard as the rest of the entries.
My secondary target audience is young people ages 14-25 who either live in Cambridge or are interested in travelling to the area. I have created an imaginary entity who I will make this product for. Her name is Katie, she is 17 years old and lives in March. When she needs to go shopping in a city, she always goes to King's Lynn as it is about 20 miles away. Cambridge is about the same distance away from March, so she knows it is a big shopping city but has never been there. She is white British and has a part-time job at Boots working 12 hours a week. She has an average disposable income of £78 per week. Her main interests are photography, shopping, chatting with friends, painting and animals. I have decided on these features because I think the style of video I want to make will appeal more to girls as I will use lots of artistic shots of pottery, fans and paintings - which girls are typically more interested in. I chose that she lives in March because my product is aimed at people who live fairly locally, but haven't been to Cambridge before. I wanted Katie to be white British because white people are normally the least aware of cultures other than their own, as ethnic minorities often stick together. I want my product to open people's eyes about different cultures, so other ethnic groups are probably more aware of the different cultural places in Cambridge. She has a part time job at Boots as I know a few girls my age who work in Boots or a similar shop.
Goal/indended purpose The point of my promotional video is to inform people about the things Cambridge has to offer them, to promote the diversity of cultures Cambridge caters for and to entertain people with the beautiful shots of the city. Another purpose is also to be entered into the regional culture awards by Cambridge City Council, and to win it. This conforms to the brief because it states that the main purpose of this video is to enter the awards show.
Style I want to film my video in a very formal and respectful style in order to promote a message that we should respect all the cultures in Cambridge. In terms of shooting, I want to use lots of close up shots of the food and art I choose to film, as I want to see all of the details. I also want to use some extreme close ups if possible to show a variety of textures. I also want to make sure that I don't over-use panning shots and hand-held camera shots. In terms of writing, I want my voice over to be quite formal but still relatable for young people. I want my script to have a formal tone, but use fairly simple language to prevent young people from getting bored and switching off.
In terms of audio, I want my background music to be fairly calm, but not too generic as background music. I also want my voice over to be free of stammering or misread words. I will need to listen over my voice over carefully, and re-record any mistakes as soon as I notice them. I will also be very careful to make sure the voice over can be heard clearly over the background music. I will check this by listening to it with various qualities of headphones and with speakers. In terms of editing, I want to use mostly straight cuts, but I will probably add a few dissolve transitions and possibly a fade to black. This conforms to the brief as it is more professional and I am making the video for a very professional purpose.
My inspiration I want to use this first video for inspiration because I like the inspiring music and cheerful tone to it. I want to try and re-create the feeling of being proud of your city in my video. I also feel like this is a really good example of how to promote cultural diversity, because the voice-over doesn't directly talk about the specific cultures that are represented, it just talks about how anyone from any age, race or background can find a home in Hull. This implies that they have such a huge range of cultures thriving there that it would take too long to list them all. This video also displays a lot of conventions of a promotional video - like long shots, pans and slow motion shots.
In this second video, I really like the refined, formal music choice. I want to take a lot of inspiration from the cinematography used in this video because I like how clean and simple the shots are, and how the extreme close ups let you see very fine detail - these close ups are also a convention of promotional videos. From watching this video, I have decided that I won't be able to film many shots of food like this as I want to film market stalls rather than a restaurant, but I want to film shots in a museum like this. From watching this video, I also re-considered what type of camera I want to use. Before, I was planning to use an action-style camera, but I have decided that it would be much better to use a camcorder or even film on a DSLR as this would help me create the dream-like style I want.
Soundtrack I want to have some relaxing background music which also has some energy to it to reflect the mood of Cambridge. I want to create the feeling of the city being full of life, energy and productivity, but also not too stressful. I will find this music from a royalty-free website called EMI. In term of narration, I am considering asking my mum to narrate my production. This is because I have a young target audience so I think they would see my mum as someone to look up to and they would trust her opinion. However, it might be better to use the voice of someone around my age, because then my young target audience can relate to them and aspire to be like them.
Personnel ideas I will only need someone to help me shoot my piece and someone to do a voiceover. To help with filming I have asked someone on my course. They have lots of experience with the camera I will be using and know how to use it very effectively. They have produced a similar project before for Unit 17 of this course, and they have been a camera operator for other class member's Unit 17 project. All of this camera work is to a very high standard and I trust that they will be able to help me create my vision. In terms of the voice over, I'm not sure who I want to do it, but I will create a detailed script and tell them exactly how I want it to be performed - with my target audience in mind.
Resources and final personnel To complete this task, I will only need Final Cut Pro in terms of software, as I can do all my editing on there. I may need to use Audacity if I need to do any major audio editing. In terms of hardware I need: a camera, a microphone for the voice over, a tripod, a computer for editing, and good quality headphones. In terms of personnel in a professional film company, there would be at least one person to do each of the roles listed below. However, I will be performing most of the roles as I don't have the budget to employ lots of people. Director - Beth Rands Editor - Beth Rands Scriptwriter - Beth Rands Storyboard artist - Beth Rands Camera operator - Beth Rands Cinematographer - Beth Rands Researcher - Beth Rands Location scout - Beth Rands Voice-over actress - Pippa Rands
Presenters names and role description Pippa Rands - main presenter, she will perform the voiceover for pre-recorded footage.
Distribution and marketing This work could be distributed for free at the regional culture awards, but it might create some excitement if a short trailer for the promotional video was released on social media. Posters could also be created to encourage people to watch the video, and I could even embark on a joint venture with another company to promote the video even more. The Fitzwilliam Museum may want to put the video on their website as it showcases their art and would encourage people to visit the museum to see it in person. Cambridge City Council may want to put the video on their Facebook page to show Cambridge in a positive light. The local Heart Radio may talk about the video and the upcoming regional culture awards.
Context I will be creating a video about culture in order to win the regional culture award. It is important to promote different cultures because Brexit is still a hot topic in the UK. Brexit has brought to light the fact that many people feel that the coming together and inclusion of different cultures is detrimental to the UK. Many people refuse to embrace people from other cultures and countries, so with this promotional video I hope to show people that the separation of culture isn't necessary. I also hope to show people that different cultures are all around us, and have been for a long time, and they may already enjoy food and art from other countries without realising it. I want my video to be a celebration of culture and diversity. Timeline and launch date 21/01/2018 - Have all planning documents completed (i.e. sample materials and proposal) 23/01/2018 - Begin making pre-production documents 06/02/2018 - Have all pre-production documents completed 08/02/2018 - First filming day: at Jesus Green, Grand Arcade and outside the Fitzwilliam Museum 11/02/2018 - Second filming day: Inside the Fitzwilliam Museum 14/02/2018 - Third filming day: The Market 22-23/02/2018 - Possible shoot day for pick-up shots 28/02/2018 - Finish post-production & have final video ready 19/03/2018 - Launch date
BBFC Certificate In my opinion, I think my video would have a Universal BBFC rating. This is because my video will just be highlighting why and how Cambridge promotes cultural diversity, there will be no content that isn't suitable for young children. I think the BBFC insight for my video would be "no material likely to cause offence or harm", this is taken from their website here. My promotional video will be shots of art and food from around Cambridge along with a voiceover, so it will be very boring for children, but not inappropriate for them. My video needs a BBFC rating because at the cultural awards, my video will be shown to a large audience so it is important that people know who it is suitable for, in case there are lots of children in the audience.
P2: Create sample materials to support the proposal
Ideas I have decided to film at the Cambridge Market Place and the Fitzwilliam Museum. This is because I have visited the museum before and I know they have a lot of exhibits from other cultures there. There is also free entry so I don't have to worry about factoring an admission fee into my budget. I have also decided to film a few shots in various popular places in Cambridge because then this will give some context to my piece, rather than immediately focusing on the museum. This also makes it clear that I am making a promotional video for Cambridge as a whole rather than for the Fitzwilliam Museum. An establishing shot is also one of the codes and conventions of a promotional video. The places I want to use are Jesus Green, the Grand Arcade and the MillWorks restaurant. I chose these because they are popular with people who live in and around Cambridge, and the first 2 places are popular for tourists. I will also make sure to make it clear that culture is the focus-point of the video, as this is what the client brief requires. These places all show that Cambridge is culturally diverse as they are popular with people of many races and nationalities, so this shows that everyone is welcome there.
The centre of Cambridge is a very academic place, and the museums reflect the intellectual history of Cambridge and its citizens. Since a lot of the population of Cambridge are linked to the universities, due to the Hierarchy of Needs, people who have more income have all the things they need to survive, so they have more of a need for art, culture and philosophy. Also, since there are a lot of families living in Cambridge, many parents will take their children to museums to help further their education. So for people who live in the heart of the city, they look for cultural places like the market and the museums to spend their time. This is because the market sells food that is fresh and healthy, and it is from a wide range of countries.
Below is the first page of my storyboard (click to enlarge):
Here are some ideas I had for a font style (all of these come from Final Cut Pro):
I tried out different fonts and different text animations, and I like the first text style the best. In terms of animation, I think the 'fade in' option fits the formal style of my production. I have chosen to use the first style because it has a sans-serif style, which makes it more casual and therefore more suitable for my target audience. The purple colour connotes quality and mystery, which suits Cambridge as it is a city full of mystery.
M1: Justify content, distribution and marketing methods identified for the planned production to meet a client brief
Content The main focus of my promotional video will ultimately be the culture within Cambridge. This is because the client brief clearly states that the whole purpose of this product is to enter it into the regional culture awards. The client has given me this brief because if I don't make the product they ask for, I won't get paid. Beyond this key point, there are no other specifications of what I can include in my product, so I have decided to focus on food and art. I have chosen this because these are key parts of what makes up a culture, and there are lots of places I can explore these elements in Cambridge. I have visited the Fitzwilliam Museum quite a few times and I really enjoyed it, and since my target audience is 14-25 year old girls I think they will find the artefacts interesting to look at and learn about like I do. I plan to film this content by using lots of close up shots to show tiny details and textures - and in contrast - establishing shots of Cambridge as a whole, and the museum. These are both conventions of promotional videos.
Although I have this imaginary entity in mind, my primary target audience is the people who will be attending and judging the culture awards show. I will make this product appeal to them by using professional cinematography skills, vibrant colours and an inspiring tone. I aim to stand out from the other competitors by not attempting to tackle Cambridge - or culture - as a whole, but focusing in on a small feature of Cambridge that makes up a huge part of their culture. I hope to not blow the judges away with a really energetic product, but to show Cambridge in a respectful and refined light so they are impressed by my professionalism.
Distribution and Marketing I had the idea to have my video shown on the website for the Fitzwilliam Museum and on Cambridge City Council's social media accounts. I chose these platforms because the main purpose of the product is to be entered into the regional culture awards, but once that has finished it would be a waste not to use it for other things. Since my secondary target audience are ages 14-25, they are the age range that uses social media the most, so by putting adverts on social media it would be a great way to expand my audience reach. The promotional video could even be advertised in partnership with popular events for young people in Cambridge - for example festivals on Midsummer Common.
The Fitzwilliam Museum might like to have the video on their homepage, as currently they don't have an official promotional video. This could be a video file embedded in the website, or it could be a YouTube video embedded, which could link viewer's to the City Council's YouTube channel. By doing this, the attractions in Cambridge would be promoted even more to people looking for things to do there. There isn't a website for the Cambridge Market, but there is a section about it on the Cambridge City Council website, so that might be a good place to show the video to get the market more publicity. The Council's website is the main place for information about the market, so if the video was shown on there people looking at the council's website might be more likely to visit. I would also have no problem asking the council for permission to film because the video is promoting the culture of Cambridge and advertising Cambridge as a city.
I also had the idea to have Heart Radio talk about my video, this would reach my target audience because 58% of Heart listeners are women (source: http://www.global.com/radio/heart-fm/audience/#map). Heart Cambridgeshire has 200,000 listeners per week, out of around 600,000 residents of the county. Therefore, I think talking about it on Heart Cambridge would peak the interest of my target audience as they are young women living in Cambridgeshire.
I could also ask the many language colleges in Cambridge to promote my video by sharing it on their social media or showing it to students in assemblies, as the Fitzwilliam is the only museum in Cambridge to have both paintings and artefacts. It also has the benefit of free entry, so this would be attractive to students living on a budget.
These joint ventures would create more publicity for my product, and for the places I visited in my video, and money for the companies advertising my video.