Editing: Sound & Matching Visuals

For a clearer visualisation in terms of helping us choose how to position our footage on the time line, we created a tempo graph which allowed us to match certain visuals with the beat and rhythm of the song. For example, when the chorus comes there is a consistent fast paced beat and we decided to create a montage composed with a selection of fast cuts which we placed together during this duration. This is also another one of Andrew Goodwin's theories we followed, conforming the conventional elements within a music video.

Rough tempo graph I created to give a brief insight towards our music video.

Editing: Logo For TV

Original MTV logo.

Existing MTV music channels.

Logo pasted onto timeline.

In the finishing stages of our music video, we needed to apply an MTV logo which would run all the way through our music video, as it would be appearing on a music channel on TV. We decided to choose the original MTV logo, as we couldn't fit the genre of our song within the alternative existing MTV channels.

However, it worked well because the original logo was already composed in a black and white format, which makes it look aesthetically pleasing placed onto our music video. We had to find the MTV logo in a HQ form in order for the image not to pixelate when shown on a large screen. In terms of adding the logo, I pasted the image onto a separate layer above our footage on the timeline and then dragged it along the full duration of our music video. Next, I made sure the size of the logo was adjusted to an accurate measure and placed it in the top left corner, which is expected.

The MTV logo on our music video.

Editing: Layering Footage Together

In today's lesson, I learnt how to do a simple, yet visually striking effect on Final Cut Pro. It involved layering two sets of footage over each other, which composes an outstanding outcome. In order to carry out this effect, you must layer the two clips on top of each other, as shown in the photo above and then you have to highlight them both.

Once you have got to this stage, you must left click on the selected area and go to 'composite mode', where you will be given the option of "Overlay" which will layer the footage over one another. We decided to use this effect throughout our music video, to compose a clear flow and portray continuity within the cuts.



We used the overlay effect in a range of areas throughout our music video, to show a sense of flow. Here are some of the other overlays which we created:

Editing: Letter Boxing

Most music videos include letter boxing, composing a widescreen professional look and it's also seen as a characteristic convention. We had to make sure every frame and cut was under the same size of 2:35:1 throughout the video. Letter boxing also makes sure your shot is in an accurate composition on the screen, making it look visually appealing for the audience.

Applying the letterbox to our footage.

This video explains how to apply the letter box to your footage:

Research & Planning: Target Audience

London Grammar are categorised as an alternative indie pop group as their music is not widely known, given their unique and distinctive sound. Due to this, the target audience is mostly aimed upon teenagers and young adults who enjoy music within the indie pop genre. Our music video needs to match the similar codes and conventions in order to grant the aesthetic appeal from the target audience. This style of indie music would often be played on BBC Radio 1, where the targeted audience for the people who generally tune in revolves around the 15 - 25 age range.

BBC Radio 1

Editing: Black & White Format

As our music video is mostly composed in a black and white format throughout, we had to make sure each shot was colour graded correctly to show a sense of flow. For example, making sure all the shots looked similar in terms of the light exposure levels and tone of shade which is shown. We decided to do this process manually as we wanted to make sure the whites or blacks were not too dark or light. We used the colour corrector tool to match up each shot with the correct saturation adjustments and level of blacks and whites which were expressed on the footage.

Colour Corrector Tool

Research & Planning: Editing & Effects

To achieve the best effects and editing techniques, I did extra research into specific effects and transitions which we may choose to convey in our music video. I mostly found tutorials on YouTube which gave me the opportunity to learn new skills in the process of making these edits and adjustments to our footage. I found this video, which illustrates how you can have the background of your footage in black and white and still have the foreground of the visual image in colour, for example, with our powder paint close up shots, we wanted to achieve this effect as the colour red connotes the artist's feelings.

Video that I found: [Colour Separation]