Manipulation of Images - Album Cover (ANCILLARY TASK)

Here is the original image that we took of the lead singer. We chose to have it as a close up of the artists face as too fit into the typical conventions of a album cover for a pop artist. We thought it would be important to do this because we wanted the audience to be able to identify straight away what genre of music would be on the album.

The first thing we did to this image was too open it in photoshop. We changed the size of it to 12cm by 12cm so that it was the appropriate size for an album cover. The next thing we did was use the spot healing tool to even out her skin and to remove any spots or blemishes.

As you can see here, we have removed the mole that is on the artists neck. We also removed any spots and red blemishes that are on her face. We then decided to put a slight blur on the image which effectively is airbrushing the image. To do this we clicked on the filter tab in the top bar, went down to blur and clicked on Gaussian Blur.

We then used the rubber to rub out the blur on the artists hair, eyes, eyebrows and mouth which helped to create a flawless/airbrushed look. By doing this, it helped to define the artists eyes and mouth making them stand out in the image.

After this, we used the Polygonal Lasso tool to select the artists mouth. We then changed the saturation of the mouth so that the lips became a brighter pink.

We then used the dodge tool to brighten the eyes of the artist. To use this tool we just selected it and then clicked the area that we wanted to lighten. Using this tool helped to define the eyes so that they would stand out abit more.

After this was complete, the only thing left to do was to delete the background of the image and enter it onto a new background. To do this we used the Polygonal Lasso tool to select the artists head and then used the rubber to rub out the background. We then used the rubber to go around the edges of the artists head carefully to ensure there was none of the original image left on the final image of the artist.

We then coloured in the background a dark grey. We chose to use this colour for the background as it is quite dull so that the image would stand out and also the text that we would add would also stand out. We chose to use pink text for the album name to match the bright pink lips of the artist.

Once this was created, we then realised that we were not allowed to use Diana Vickers name as all our work needed to be original. We accidentally saved the image as a JPEG which meant we could not edit the text as the layers had been merged together. This meant that we had to use the clone tool to remove the text but still keeping the artists hair in place. We then replaced the name with 'Katie Cooper'.

Here is the final front cover that we have created.

Practice with Photoshop

 As I have to create an album digipack along side my music video, I decided to practice with photoshop before creating the real thing. Here is the original image that I took of the singer.

After taking this photo, I opened it in photoshop and used the rubber tool to delete the background of the photo. This left me with just the singer which I could then put onto any other background that I wanted.

As this was a practice, I went onto google and saved an image of a sunset. On my real album cover I will not do this as it will break copyright laws and all of the images I use need to be taken by me.

I imported the sunset image into photoshop wear I could then place the single image of the artist on top of the sunset. I adjusted the size of the person so that it fit into and looked realistic on the background of the sunset.

I then used a exposure tool that I ran over the top of the image of the singer that made the image darker. This helped to give the effect of shadow that would really happen if the person was in this surrounding. She is also too big to fit into the sunset image effectively.



Here is the final piece, as you can see it is not perfect. It does not look as if this is real as the singer has still got slight white edging surrounding her.

As a practice, this has been successful as I have learnt the main skills in how to use photoshop. I know how to remove a background from an image and how to insert one image on top of another.

Settings, Costume, Make Up and Hair

Here is my settings, costume, hair and make up board. I decided to make a video explaining all of the reasons for choosing the different settings and costumes because it would be easier to show the setting through using some of the footage that features in my music video. By creating this I have understood why I have used certain costumes for the artists to wear and why the settings I have used are appropriate for the style of the song/video.

Institutional and Exhibition Research

Institutional

Silvertip Films is a small UK business based in London that create music videos, corporate/promo videos and film live concerts or events. The artist or company that want a video created for them will approach the company and set up an initial meeting to discuss ideas. Silvertip charge for every meeting and obviously for the actual filming of the video and this is how they make their money.

They believe it’s important for the artist to have a say in what they want in their music video, but they do also help the artist to develop a clear idea. Their music videos have been broadcasted in the UK and elsewhere in the world, and have even been nominated for awards. They have filmed music videos for both signed and unsigned artists, and their videos have helped some upcoming artists to be signed.  

Silvertip tends to only film narrative videos as this keeps the budget low. As U have not completed my music video yet, I can not say how my text looks like a 'real' product. But because I know I am creating a video with a narrative, I know that this is similar to the type of videos Silvertip create. My video is also slightly different to their videos as I am using more locations than they would tend to use.



Exhibition

 

 If my music video where to be broadcasted in the 'real' world, it would be shown on music channels such as MTV or Viva. It would fit with other media products that are shown on these channels because it is a mainstreme song that would be in the top 40 charts. Artists such as Nicole Scherzinger and Katy Perry (similar to the artist in my video) both often feature on these channels.

Music videos are very important to the music industry. They help to 'advertise' the band/artist by allowing the audience to identify with them, it helps to give them a brand identity. It also maximises the awareness of the band, by being played on a channel such as MTV every day will increase peoples awareness of the song and the band meaning people are more likely to buy the song.

The internet has made a big impact on the music industry. Sites such as Youtube and Vevo have allowed music videos to be easily accessed through the internet. These sites are extremely useful for amateur filmakers to allow their work to be shown. Anyone can upload a film onto YouTube and it can be viewed by millions of people accross the world. If a video gets a certain amount of hits (how many people have watched it) then YouTube will pay the filmaker for the video. Also, if a video does well on YouTube it is likely to gain the attention of large businesses who will then contact the owner of the video.

From doing this piece of research I have learnt how my product would be produced in the 'real' world. I understand what I would need to do if I was to approach a company about producing my music video. I have also learnt how important music video sites such as Vevo and YouTube have been to not only an artist but to amateur filmakers. When I create my music video I will try to use different conventions of the video to my advantage that will help it become popular on YouTube. As the song I am using is about a relationship that has ended and that it is aimed at a young teenage audience (similar to the target audience of YouTube). I will use this to my advantage by making it clear in my video that this is what the video is about so that the audience of YouTube can relate to my video. I will also use young, good looking actors in my video, to possibly increase the views I would get if it was to be uploaded to YouTube.

Second Music Video Storyboard

I created a second storyboard for my music video because I wanted to ensure that my idea was clear in my head. I wrote down the exact type of shot I wanted to use and a brief description of what I want to happen in each shot. I can take this sheet to the location when I am filming so that I remember what I want to film.

Practice Ideas

We practiced the idea of changing the colour of the artists lips on each 'oh' and then practiced inside and outside to see how different shots would work and how they would look. Here is a short video of each practice idea.

In this video, you can here the actor singing along to the song. In our actual music video this wont happen, but we didn't feel it was necessary to play the track over the top of these clips as these are just practices to get an idea of how the video will look, not how it will sound.

Practice idea 1: Our first idea was too use a mixture of different bright colours on the artists lips, and then edit the shots so that on each beat of the 'oh' of the song, the colour of the lips would change. When we edited the shots together, it didn't look as effective as we thought it would. The cuts wern't smooth as the artist moved slightly in each shot. It was also a lot harder to edit than we thought it would be and was also very time consuming.We decided not to use this in our music video because it didnt look proffessional.

Practice idea 2: The second idea was to film the artist indoors. This meant that we could control the lighting in the shot, and also stop different weather conditions from spoiling the shots. We liked the second idea and thought it looked very effective. But because the song we are using is very upbeat and about the summer, we both had pictured the video as being filmed outside. We didn't think that the song would suit being filmed indoors.

Practice idea 3: The third practice shot was outdoors. This helped to give us an idea of what the shots would look like. The natural daylight fitted nicely with the style of the song. Before we could film the music video, we had to ensure that the white balance on the camera was correct as in the practice shots, the artist is 'glowing'.

Actor Profiles

Here is a picture of the actor I will use in my music video. As you can see, she is a young, fashionable girl. She is part of the target audience of our text, and we thought that it would be a good idea to have the lead singer of the song within the same group as the target audience. This will help and encourage the target audience to engage in the text and want to watch it as the artist is similar to them. The type of clothes that the actor wears is mainstream fashion which is the type of style that would be expected to be worn in a pop music video. The style is also similar to what the target audience would wear, which will also help them to relate to the music video.

As I am working in a pair to create the music video, this actor is actually the other person in my group. We thought that by using her in our text would be more practical as the location that we want to film in, is in a place that we will need to travel too which would limit the amount of people that could be in the video. As she has been involved in the development of our idea and concept of the music video, by using her as our actor, she will understand exactly how we both want the shots to look.

There are only going to be two actors in our music video: The lead singer, and the ex-boyfriend. The actor that we will use as the ex boyfriend, is a good looking, fashionable young guy. This fits to the typical conventions of a music video, the textual analysis I did on Eliza Doolittle - Rollerblades had a good looking tanned young guy as the boyfriend. The actor also is within the same age range as the target audience, which will again help them to relate to our music video.

First Music Video Storyboard

To be able to understand fully and create a clear image in my mind of what I want to happen in my music video, I decided to make a storyboard. The storyboard was just a quick way of making my ideas clear, I will later create a timeline where I will go into more detail of what shots I want at what time in the song. The storyboard does not have every shot that I want to use in my music video, I made it just to help me create a clear idea of the sort and type of shots that I wanted.

After making my storyboard, I needed to upload it as a film to vimeo so that I could put it on this blog. If I had just taken a picture of the A3 sheet, then the detail of what type of shot I had written at the top would not be seen. I decided to use Stop Motion ProV7, where I used a webcam to take pictures of each individual shot on the storyboard.

The basic idea for our music video, is to show happy flashbacks/memories of a relationship that the lead singer was once in. The artist will be in real time, in a woodland area with photos of the relationship surrounding her. She will look at one of these images and then the flashback will begin. I think this idea reflects the lyrics of the song well as the lyrics are in a happy and positive tone about a past relationship.

Audience Targeting

To make sure that my music video reaches the target audience, I need to clearly identify in my mind who the target audience is. To do this, I decided to look on Diana Vicker's fan site, twitter and facebook page to try to get an idea of the type of people that follow and like Diana's music.

After looking on all these sites a discovered that the majority of Diana's fans are young females aged between 13 and 25. The majority of her followers on twitter and facebook are females so therefore I must target my music video at this gender. I would think that the majority of her fan base are females because she could be seen as a role model to many young girls. As she was only 17 years old when she shot to fame by auditioning for the X factor in 2008 and released her first album only a year later at 18 year olds. Many of her fans will see her as an inspirational figure as she was so young but had achieved so much.

As Diana Vicker's music and style is very quirky and fun, it is likely that the target audience will also be quirky and fun. The music video I create will need to be a bit quirky and upbeat to help fit in with this trait of the target audience. Diana's music is also slightly romantic so I think the target audience would probably like the idea of a 'fairy tale' ending and romance. The song I am using in my music video has a sense of romance and happiness in it, so it is important for me to reflect this tone within my music video.

Target Audience:

• Female
• 13-25 years old
• Any social economical class
• Quirky
• Fashionable
• Romantic

All the things that I have identified about the target audience in this research I will try to satisfy them with my music video. I will use a young pretty female as the lead singer as the audience will be able to identify with her. I will also make sure that the boy I use in the video is attractive so that I will entice the audience. I will keep the video upbeat and happy, and keep the theme as quite romantic. The two actors that I use will be wearing fashionable clothing, so the audience can identify and relate to the video.

From doing this piece of research, I have learnt the exact type of person I am aiming my music video at. I have learnt that the target audience are females that are quirky and fashionable. This will effect the text that I make as I will ensure that the video is suitable for this type of person. I will do this by having the artist wearing fashionable clothing and acting in a quirky and fun way. This will let the target audience relate to the artist, meaning they are more likely to want to watch the video and buy the artists music.

Heart Animation

At the beginning of our music video, we decided that it would be a good idea to create a small animation clip of multi-coloured hearts. The first 4 lines of the song go 'oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh' and we thought that if we had a new heart enter the animation on each 'oh' that this would look effective.

To make this animation we took a series of still photos on a digital camera of the hearts entering and leaving the page. We then uploaded the photos onto Coral (the editing software) and edited the photos turning it into an animation.

After creating this short animation, we were not happy with how it turned out. We thought that it looked unproffessional and tacky. We realised we needed to change and come up with a better idea to ensure our music video would be effective.

Research on Meaning of Lyrics

As I wasn't completely sure on the meaning ot these lyrics, I decided to research this. I posted the question on an online forum site called video maker, where people reguarly ask questions for an educational purpose. I asked for some advice on the meaning of the lyrics and I gained both some helpful and unhelpful responses. I found out that the song is basically down to how an individual interprets it, but I also was told how it was about an easy-going  and laid-back relationship.

Here is a link to the site that I postest my question on: http://www.videomaker.com/community/forums/topic/help-with-the-meaning-of-lyrics.



Diana Vickers, Jumping into Rivers Lyrics Analysis

ho oh oh oh oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh
ooh ooh ooh ooh


This is the first sang words of the song, which helps the audience to identify what type of song it is before listening to the actual story/lyrics. It creates the effect of a happy, positive and upbeat song through a light, cheery tone.

Back of the scooter
I cut your waist
We rode away into the night
Were reality breaks

These lyrics identify the initial story line of Diana (the singer) with a boyfriend or love interest. The last line says "were reality breaks", giving the idea that the couple are riding on the scooter, away from reality. This gives the sense of "riding off into the sunset" e.g. a happy ending.

I look at you
and take a picture with my hands
Not much to do oh oh oh
Sit and laugh away at things

The relationship that Diana is singing about is portrayed to be a happy and fun relationship. Its as if threre is no problems or worries when they are together, and they can just "sit and laugh away at things" without a care in the world.

We're on the run
We're still jumping in and
We're on the run
We're still jumping into rivers
Into rivers oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh
Into rivers oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh

This is the chorus, and this puts an emphasis on the upbeat and happy tone of the song. The idea of "jumping into rivers" normally makes the audience think of the summer, when its hot and everybody is having fun and messing around. It keeps the emphasis on the laid-back and happy tone of the song.

There's no fight,
and there's no challenges with you.
Just a night
The gray cent sunshine right on queue

This verse proves what the audience already thinks about the relationship. "There's no fight, and there's no challenges with you" shows how there are no troubles in the relationship; they are just having fun and are very easy going about their relationship.

Down inside,
Though we don't need anything, or need anyone or any place
Just the sun
Just the sun

This also suggests that the relationship is in the summer, giving the impression of a "summer romance". These lyrics are saying how nothing matters when the sun is there, emphasising the "summer romance" that won't necessarily last.

We're on the run
We're still jumping in and
We're on the run
We're still jumping into rivers
Into rivers oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh
Into rivers oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh

Everything's changing colour
So everything seems so perfect
We won't know each other tomorrow
Then every day's been worth it.. oh oh oh

I think this verse is vital in understanding and identifying what this song is about. Diana says how "everything seems so perfect" but "we won't know each other tomorrow". This leads the audience to believe and confirm that their first thoughts on the relationship being a summer romance. As she says "we won't know each other tomorrow then every day's been worth it", gives the impression that she know the romance will come to an end, but she doesnt need to be sad about it because the summer is over and she has the memories of having a good time and having a good summer.

We're on the run
We're still jumping in and
We're on the run
We're still jumping into rivers
Into rivers oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh
Into rivers oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh
ho oh oh oh oh oh oh
ooh ooh ooh ooh

Overall, I believe that this song is about a summer romance that Diana had. She understands that she will not see this boy again, but can be happy about the situation because of the memories she has with him. The song is upbeat all the way through, confirming Diana's view and opinion on the situtation, she is not upset, but happy and pleased with the memories she has of him and the relationship.

By analysing and understanding the lyrics of this song, it has allowed me to start to develop and storyboard some ideas for my music video. After doing some audience research I have realised it is important to have a link between the video and the lyrics and therefore I think it is important for me to create a music video based on a light-hearted relationship between a boy and a girl.

Audience Research - Online Survey Results

Here are some of the results from the online survey that I posted.

As you can see from the chart, 6 people out of 7 think it is important for a music video to have a story linking to the lyrics. I have decided from this research that my music video must relate to the lyrics and tell some sort of story.

A: Yes             B: No              C: I don’t think it matters

On question 7, the results were split. People did not necessarily think it was vital for a music video to feature the artist/band singing the lyrics of the song. In my music video I think I will feature the artist singing as this will keep to the typical conventions of a pop music video.

I have taken into account all the results from the online survey, and in my music video I will ensure that I use bright colours in the costume/mise-en-scene/props because it is important to listen to the audience research I have received. I think that by using bright colours will confirm to the audience that the video is for a pop song rather than an indie or R&B song.

Audience Research - Online Survey

For my second piece of audience research I decided to created an online survey. I made sure that I kept the questions simple and tried to keep the survey as short as possible. I decided to do the survey online as it was an easier way of getting more of a response. I emailed the link of the survey to many people I knew within the target audience, and I uploaded it onto a social network site so that people I did not know could also have their input.

Audience Research

Here is my first piece of audience research. I wrote on a forum asking what would be expected to see in a pop music video and what people liked/disliked in pop music videos.

I found the replies that I got very helpful, and that most people prefer to watch a “story based” video than watch a video of just the band/artist performing without any narrative or story line.

I will apply what I have learnt from this piece of research by making sure that my music video consists of both the artist performing and a narrative. This should create a happy medium so that the target audience is happy with the mixture of the two.

Textual Analysis - Lenka Webpage

This is the homepage to Lenka’s official website. I have chosen to analyse this website as Lenka creates similar music to Diana Vickers. The site has a girly and upbeat feel. The background is a deep pink, with slight twangs of red. Lenka’s name is written out in a modern/futuristic font in different colours. There is a slight “electrified” feel to the homepage with the white spikes which create the feel of electricity. Underneath the title, are 6 different links to different pages on the site: “Latest”, “Media”, “Shows”, “Forum”, “Shop”, “Info”. These links are in the same 4 different colours that are used in the title which show continuity. The image of Lenka on the homepage is a simple, close up picture which helps the audience to immediately identify with the artist. Featured on the rest of the homepage is: a direct link to Lenka’s daily blog where the audience can see the latest three posts/updates about the artist, a music video of Lenka’s latest released song, a link to more photographs of Lenka, and links to her Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and YouTube page where the audience can “like” or “follow” her.

This is Lenka’s “Photo’s” page, where as you can see, the main image has changed. This helps to keep the audience interested and helps them to identify which page they are viewing.

Lenka’s photo page has two different sections: “Official Photos” and “Fan Photos”. The fan photo’s option allows members that have signed up to the website to upload their own pictures of Lenka from recent concerts/tours. I think that this is a very clever idea as it allows the audience/members to feel involved in the website and within Lenka’s fan base.

This is the “Latest” Page, where, as you can see is similar to a personal diary. Lenka personally writes entries to notify her fans on what she is up too. This allows her to upload her own personal photos that she wishes to share with her fans when telling them about something she has done that day. This helps to keep a close relationship between Lenka and her fans.

When I create my website homepage, I will try to encourage the audience to feel as if they have a close relationship with the artist. I will do this in a similar way to Lenka, through keeping an ‘online diary’ where the artist can regularly update the audience on what they are doing. I also like how Lenka has allowed fan’s to upload their own pictures onto the site, also allowing them to feel close to the artist which I believe is very important in creating a successful artist. I will also do some things slightly differently to Lenka’s website. I think I will use brighter and more vibrant colours as to get the attention of the audience straight away. Although the colours used on Lenka’s site are bright, I would use more of the “rainbow” colours to create a slightly happier and fast paced mood to the site.

Textual Analysis - Album Covers

Eliza Doolittle is an artist that creates similar music to Diana Vickers (the artists who song I want to use in the music video). Her album cover is very brightly coloured with famous landmarks being taken over by “her world”. Eliza is seen holding on to a large tower that looks as if she is pulling it to an angle. Her leg is around the famous London gherkin building and the floor she is stood on has stone henge and other landmarks surrounding it. This is to imply her takeover of the world. Other parts of “her world” are surrounding the landmarks, including and ice-cream that has been splattered across the London gherkin. I have also noticed that the all the landmarks and part of the normal world are in black and white and Eliza’s entire world that seems to be taking over the normal world are in bright random colours.

This is the back cover to Eliza Doolittle’s album. This isn’t a conventional back cover as the track titles are all in different fonts. The style of the different fonts continues from the front cover keeping continuity between the two covers. An image of Eliza in the middle, with the titles surrounding her goes against the normal conventions. This represents Eliza as unique and different. The usual conventions of a pop artists back cover, has a close up of the artists and the track list is written down either the left or right hand side.

Olly Murs - Conventional     Leona Lewis - Conventional

Marina and the Diamonds – Unconventional



The photo that is used on Eliza’s back cover is a long shot, showing Eliza’s individual fashion sense. The photo can also be argued to fit into Laura Mulvey’s male gaze theory. Eliza is wearing shorts exposing her long legs; this could be argued to be a sexualisation of Eliza through the ‘male gaze’.

Through the front and back cover of this album, Eliza has been represented in many different ways. The front cover shows her as being dominant as her world is taking over our world. The audience also see her child like attitude through the different parts of her world that our shown e.g. ice cream, toy aeroplane. The back cover then goes on to represent her slightly differently. Eliza is shown as a sex symbol through the positioning and dominance of her image and her costume. The way Eliza is posed in the image helps to show her flirtatious side and helps to give Eliza a unique identity.

On the album cover that I create, I will use Laura Mulvey’s male gaze theory, and use an image similar to Eliza Doolittle’s, with a girl with a short dress on. I think I should stick to this theory as it will help me to create a conventional looking image. I also like the unconventional track list covers like Eliza Doolittle’s and Marina and the Diamonds. In my album cover’s track list I will try to be less conventional helping to emphasise the artist I am using as modern and cutting edge.

From doing this piece of research I now have many ideas of what I want on my album cover. I think it is important for the type of artist I am making the album digipak for that some of what I do is very conventional. This is important as although challenging the conventions is a good thing, I do not want to confuse the target audience into thinking that the artist is something she is not. I think I will do a conventional front cover, using a close up image of the artist, but may create a slightly less conventional back cover.

Laura Mulvey and The Male Gaze

Laura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist. She identified the theory of the ‘male gaze’ within film and television. She argued that in classic Hollywood films, women were represented to provide visual pleasure to men, and the audience was constructed in a way where they were all expected to be heterosexual men. Mulvey also argues that females are only ever given passive roles, and women characters are never given roles that will directly change the outcome of the plot (e.g. the man always gets to “save the day”).  Here are some examples of the male gaze:

This image was used as an advertising campaign for a new perfume by Chanel. Keira Knightly is a famous actress who has always played roles that would fit into the “male gaze” theory. Here she has been photographed topless with a hat covering her modesty. This is a perfect example of Laura Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze. Although the perfume that is being advertised is for women, this proves how the male gaze has been used so much that women aspire to be like the women who are objectified by the male gaze.

I thought it was important for me to look at different music videos and identify if the male gaze theory applies to them. I decided to look at Scouting For Girls – She’s so Lovely.

The first image of a girl in the video, shows just the bottom half of a womens legs wearing high heels. This automatically sexualises the women without the audience actually seeing who or what she looks like.

The audience knows that the women has arrived at the bowling alley (can tell this from mise-en-scene, bowling shoes) and is walking through, and the camera shows the man who is cleaning the shoes stop what he is doing and directly look at this women. Also emphasising how good looking the women is.

The camera then finally shows the women, who is in slow motion. This also sexualises this women by lingering for longer than is necessary. This gives the impression that everyone around her is looking at her too.

In my music video I am going to use Laura Mulvey's male gaze theory. As the lead singer is a female, she will be wearing a dress which shows off her figure, this will obviously fit into the male gaze theory. The two ancillary tasks that we create will also fit with this theory as the images we use will be of the singer in a dress exposing her legs.

After more shots of the lead singer staring at the women, the shots then change to close ups of different parts of her body. This is clear evidence of Laura Mulvey’s theory. Many music videos, films and advertising campaigns use the sexualisation and exploitation of women as a selling point.

Reply from Sony

After sending two emails that came back undeliverable, I decided to ring RCA Records to see if they could give me an email address that I could contact in regards to copyright issues and permissions. They gave me an email address for a lady called Shirley, who was a separate legal adviser that worked for Sony (RCA is a label on Sony). I then emailed Shirley asking for permissions and this was her reply.

 

I then emailed Shirley back thanking her for her quick reply, and promising that I will stick to the things she has said (e.g. not allowing anyone else to view the video besides me, my teacher and the exam board).

Regulating Bodies

What is OFCOM?

OFCOM stands for the “Office of Communications”. It is an organisation that regulates TV and radio sectors, ensuring people who watch TV and listen to the radio are protected from harmful or offensive material. OFCOM also protects people from being treated unfairly in television and radio shows.

Under 18s – sexual content, drugs and language

OFCOM feel it is very important to protect under 18’s from harmful and offensive material. They understand that younger viewers can be easily influenced by what they watch on TV so have created laws that programme makers must abide by.

• They believe that programme makers should always consider the impact that the representation of the use of illegal drugs, the abuse of drugs, smoking, solvent abuse and the misuse of alcohol, may have on younger viewers.
• OFCOM would not expect programme makers to allow frequent occurrences of material that condones, encourages or glamorises the use or abuse of these substances

OFCOM also regulate the amount of violence that can be shown within a programme. They are concerned in areas with the use of accessible domestic implements such as knives, or other offensive weapons.

Offensive language is also an area of concern for OFCOM. They understand that it is a feature of British life and in certain contexts it has an appropriate place in broadcasting. However, there is a concern with the harm it may have to young children who may be watching. There is a concern that children may imitate this offensive language even when their parents or carers have told them it is wrong.

A variety of music videos are watched by children. However, OFCOM are concerned where song lyrics may cause offence, and ask broadcasters too possibly use track remixes or edits. Some videos will only be shown after watershed if OFCOM believe the video will cause serious harm and offence to young watchers.

Under 18’s – employed in film/video

OFCOM takes extreme caution and has rules that all broadcasters must comply with if any under eighteen appears in or participates in a programme. Broadcasters must always take into consideration the child’s welfare. If a participant is under sixteen, OFCOM asks broadcasters to ensure that there is consent from a parent, guardian or other person over eighteen. When given consent by parents or guardians, OFCOM believe it is the broadcaster’s duty to make sure the parent understands the full implications of their child’s participation. Programme makers are told to highlight both the positive and negative likely outcomes from participating in programme.

Flashing Images

Flashing images can cause seizures in people with photosensitive epilepsy. This is why OFCOM have specific guidelines for broadcasters who use flashing images in their programme. OFCOM say that all broadcasters should give a clear warning before the programme starts that flashing images may occur.

My Music Video

After reading through OFCOM’s guidelines, I have realised what I can and cannot put into my video. I was not planning on showing drug use, violence or sexual content in my video so these guidelines don’t apply and have not changed my plans. As the song I plan to use has no strong or offensive language, these guidelines also do not apply. I will be using under 18’s in my video, so I will have to ensure that no harm can be done when filming. I will also not be using under 16’s so will not have to worry with asking for their parent’s written consent. I will also need to be careful to comply with guidelines regarding to flashing images. In my video I want to have a series of patterns of change of colour, so I will have to ensure that the speed of the changes complies with OFCOM’s rules.