Big Issue - Paddington

Firstly, upon looking at the location used in this poster, we see that they have used a snowy street in london - with the big ben visibly in the background, its clock face illuminating the night. I believe they have used this to highlight the fact that london contains the most homeless people in England, and so in weather like this, the beauty of the city is lost by homeless people struggling for survival. On a lighter note, i believe they have used london because the theme is based on Paddington - an iconic British character. Due to this then, with them both coupled together it makes the magazine seem very nationalistic which may push people to buy it. Interestingly, on this predominantly British cover, it is captioned with 'migrant' which is almost then an oxymoron for the cover, but is used to show how the british should accept people being in our country and city.

In terms of the camera, we see that it is a long shot as well as a low shot, meaning Paddington is looking down on us and waving, thus creating the image of him being friendly and drawing in the reader with this eye to eye contact. This friendly image also refers back to the idea of immigrants and the homeless, whoa re portrayed by other media as being violent and to be feared.

 Upon looking at Paddingtons clothing, we see it follows the traditional paddington theme, though still holds a classic British look to it. Furthermore, the deep blue of the coat stands out from the lighter blue in the background, though isn't so vibrant as too take focus off the caption. This blue used throughout also gives across the idea of intelligence, trust and warmth, which again may be done to reveal the true colours of the homeless and migrants in society. We also see, that the one different colour in the post is his red bucket hat which truly stands out from the rest of the poster, and i believe the Big issue were keen to focus on this because it is the staple clothing item Paddington wears - instantly allowing readers to recognise the character. Finally, grouping these colours together we get red, white, and blue which are quite obviously the colours of the union jack. By incorporating this then, it adds to the nationalistic theme of Britain.

 The typography and font of the cover is another key factor which adds to the theme being portrayed. Vibrant gold lettering firstly adds a very upmarket look; which, coupled with the london background almost references to money, contrasting the whole basis of the magazine aswell as working to draw in readers who may be put off by it being to do with homelessness. Aswell as this, it is all written in capitals making it easier for those reading from afar to understand it, and so possibly drawing more people towards it. We see as well that the font used matches the big issues logo font to an extent, so by doing this it makes the cover look more profesional and suiting.

H&M Close the Loop video

Dance genre analysis

Firstly, upon looking a these three dance music videos, we see an instant correlation between the three in terms of their style and flow - along with camera work and misc en scene. A most obvious similarity in the videos is their use of colour throughout in clothing and location. This genre of music appeals mainly to the younger generation, and so the clothing in the video would tend to appeal as well. Due to this then, very vibrant summery clothes are commonly worn by dancers in the video, which works to allow younger people to associate the song with summer and happy times. The way they flow with the music itself, is also rather unique and necessary in the dance genre. When on the slow parts of the song, many shots tend to be slower and almost telling a story of the journey taken by the main dancer, as well as some of it being slowed down slightly. However, when the beat does drop, the video is played at normal speed which therefore emphasis the pace even more. At this stage, many dancers tend to be brought in and the focus is entirely on dancing which caries this energy across to the viewer. Something else to be noted, is the age of all the dancers and actors in the videos. Upon looking, you can see they are all rather young and so it is clear this is done in order to allow the viewer to relate to these people.

When analysing the use of representation in the videos, we see what they try to represent is almost a false ideology of youth life - though also connecting to the main want of their target audience. With 'sweet lovin' it begins using a girl rollerskating on an open road whilst dancing with smoke all around her. There is a shot which shows her dancing in the middle of the road with it all behind her, and this is obviously something very out there, but really represents the freedom that she has which will allow the audience to want this as well. This same idea of freedom and happiness is present in '17' which is interesting because many of the natives in the video look to not have much money, yet they are all smiling constantly with what seems like no care in the world. Finally, with 'cola' it is an interesting one because the video in it is so different and out there. We see all the dancers are wearing very fashionable clothes that are on trend, though some things are incredibly out there (again in vibrant colours) which could almost be representing how you should not let anyone judge you and simply be yourself. Interestingly, i believe the vibrant "trippy" editing and misc en scene of 'cola' works with the lyrics and video to depict and represent the recreational drug culture that is so prominent in young adult lives. From the first 37 seconds of the video the dancers seem rather normal as the beat rises to the drop, though from 35 seconds as the beat drops we hear "she sips the coca cola, she can't tell the difference yet" and these lines are accompanied by shots of the dancers drinking this drink. Though at exactly 0:38 we see once she dips the drink and the bass drops her eyes are suddenly very wide, and now the overall dancing becomes rather frantic and fast. The song may not just be about recreational drug use though, it could be referring to 'date rape' drugs which spike drinks hence the use of coca cola to refer to adolescence and innocence of people drinking something normal, though when spiked can be turned into this nightmare. What we also see, is now the beat is going and it is supposedly in this drug state, the editing is very exaggerated with clips being merged together which again creates this eerie trippy effect.


Finding two of my own videos, i believe that these both come under the genre of dance due to their videos containing some of the key ingredients needed, to create a typical dance video. With 'I got u' the video is incredibly well put together, and even though isn't focused purely on dancing, it still contains the idea of living this idilic life. I believe this follows greatly into the dance genre because many want to appeal to the target audience, and many teens want to live this seemingly perfect life. Also, with 'i got u' it is set in the summer with several cinematic shots which focus on this idea of beautiful weather, which again for many viewing will bring them this feeling of happiness when watching the video - almost bringing them to that place. Now, with 'watch out for this' it focuses more on the typical dance video, which is very similar to the previous three videos. With it, it seems to be set in a hot country and the clothing again is incredibly vibrant. Again now, the focus is on the dance with several fast paced shots, full of dancing being used. Also, the emotions of the dancers in this video suits the dance genre greatly, as they are all happy and this is clear in their facial expressions and body language. This appeals to the younger audience because it makes them want to feel these emotions when listening to the song - it also builds this kind of energy among those watching. To me both these songs fit the dance genre even though they both go about it in very different ways. With 'i got u' it fits the genre because it is representing this ideology to younger people of the perfect life, though it is also up beat when the bass drops because of very quick snappy shots that are all in sunshine with vibrant colours. 'Watch out for this' on the other hand is dance because of the literal dancing in the video. It all works in time to the beat and is very techno and fast paced dancing.

H&M Close the loop video comparison - original v recreation

H&M Close the loop

Firstly, upon looking at the shot involving the brown shoes, i believe it accurately resembles the original video in terms of placement of the camera and the mise en scene used in it. The shot itself is a medium to close up shot and is taken statically with minimal movement in both. In our shot, we like the original have included a small part of the car in the background, aswell as a slightly angled section of the door covering the top of the shot. With this though, we found it in fact hindered the shot slightly in terms of lighting, because when taking our video the flash from the camera focused on and illuminated the door - leaving the rest of the shot to be too dark. Another small yet noticeable difference of the two shots, is that in the original you see the street lighting in the back whereas even though in ours it is visible that they are stepping onto tarmac, there shoes are covered in a wall of darkness - almost missing the original idea of stepping out onto a street at night.  To account for the lighting problems, we used a subtle effect in editing in order to brighten the video slightly and replicate the original more. Finally, we can tell the mise en scene of the shot is also very accurate in all aspects. The shoes share the same pattern in both videos, and the theme of ankles being shown is also accurate to the original. Now, looking at the umbrella scenes we see the key difference is the lighting used because in the original it is night time, though in ours it is light. This is problematic because it really splits up the segment as it doesn't seem like it is the same story with the sudden changes of light. Aside from this, the camera positioning in these scenes is accurate and mise en scene such as cars has been carefully used in the background of ours. Unfortunately, the clothing of the two characters is different with the original being very classy and smart, though ours has very normal clothing.   This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator. 

This is the 'wear a hat indoors' feature, which includes 3 seperate clips of different natures for the one scene - tracking of the girls walking in, followed by a facial close up and then a wide shot with them sat on the seat. With ours, we have acquired the necessary clips with an obvious feel as to which is which, though there are several factors which let this scene down. Firstly, the location which truly sets the scene is very different to the original. In our plan we did set out to film this is a restaurant which would have been very accurate, though accessibility and time restraints withheld that. Ours is still in a cafe though the atmosphere just isn't the same as the original. Looking at lighting now, the original is very dark which makes the women look cool and mysterious, though as ours was in a well lit room in the day it is much brighter so does not get this feel. On the other hand, the mise en scene is rather accurate as we used two similar red hats and had our actors wear glasses.  This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator.  

This is "wear a short skirt after 40" and includes two shots - a close up of the womans face and an aerial shot of the woman with the younger people. In ours, we only acquired the aerial shot though i believe this is the most significant anyway. We really struggled to find the actor to be the elderly lady in this shot, so used props like a wig and dress to recreate the woman in an accurate way. In terms of location the original is clearly on a bed, but we recreated this using a floor with a duvet and pillows which despite not being exact is very similar. The lighting in our video is very similar to the original as it is rather dark though we used a light above to brighten the centre much like in the actual video. Finally, looking at mise en scene, we see the clothing of the actors is different becuse the original used very smart clothing, and even though we got a dress we did not get the same jewellery.  This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator. 

Now, we look at the shot narrated with "dress like a man", which features two clips of a woman walking across a street, aswell as a moving shot of her turning. Firstly, starting with the location which is arguably the most prominent part of the shot, we see the two are reasonably similar. In the original she is crossing a large main road at a cross point, which we have recreated though obviously the area lacking is the fact the road is not visible in the background which in the original shot is almost highlighting a form or freedom and bravery to not care how people see you. Looking further back we see a collection of trees which in ours do appear in the back in a similar way. Unfortunately, with ours the clothing is slightly different in terms of colour, though the principle still applies as it is a male coloured jacket with black jeans. This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator. 

The original clip from the 'H&M close the loop' advert shows a young child, sat in a hallway  wearing headwear and attempting to put on shoes. The shot suggests that the child is trying to tie their laces, or could be trying to learn to ride a bike, however the dressing gown indicates it isn't very likely that they've been outside on a bike. "Don't try at all" is heard on the voice over, which implies the child has given up whatever they were attempting to do, and contrasts to the previous statement heard over the last clip. Despite the camera being at a low position, the shot would actually be a 'full body shot' because the small child is sat on the floor, and the camera is filming it from a straight angle rather than looking up or down on the actor. 
In our clip, we have used a child also sitting in a hallway  and attempting to put on their shoes. Unfortunately, the head gear doesn't match exactly, but we have used the fact the child is attempting to put on shoes and with that we see there is a clear match with the childs confusion. The child is wearing a dressing gown as well, and shows a familiar 'tired' look to the one featured in the original advert. To match the original clip as much as possible, the shot we have filmed has been done at a similar position and angle to the camera in the actual advert. Another issue with the our clip, that certainly differentiates our video to the official video, is that it is filmed portrait, whereas in the actual advert it is filmed landscape. This is an important part of the shot as it leave it looking very unprofessional and odd.   This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator. 

"Wear a short skirt if you're a man". In theory this is a very simple shot to recreate, though because there is so little going on it means every small thing must be the same in the recreation. Ours has the same camera angle and for this we set the camera up in place in order to avoid any movement because the original is completely still. The location of ours is also well done because it is against a blank wall, the only difference being the original has some rectangles on the wall. In terms of props and mise en scene they are reasonably similar. The card being held up is the focal point of the shot, and is exactly the same size with the same writing on it so that has been recreated perfectly. Our actor wears a skirt which is important, though it is a different colour from the original. Looking at lighting, we used studio lights to emphasise the actor standing out which is similar to what is done in the real video.  This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator.

"Dress like a girl" This is a rather complicated scene to recreate due to its intricate details and out there location, as well as the fact it is 3 different snappy shots. With our first scene when she walks towards the camera ours has been redone well in terms of the camera angle as we used a low shot so the girl is looking down. Also, in ours we have the same colourful background though in a low light setting. Unfortunately the wall patterns aren't exactly the same though this is a very minor detail. The net scene is a close up mirror shot which is well recreated in terms of mise en scene as our actor has the same over the top makeup as the original, and the same expression on her face. The key difference in this shot is how the original has a cracked mirror which creates this effect of there being multiple reflections in the mirror. Again though we have the lights around the mirror. Upon looking at the final shot this is much like the first as in the mise en scene is very good, both actors are wearing almost identical clothes, and are entering this place with lights in it. In terms of lighting it is slightly different, as the woman in the original is a silhouette though ours is much brighter.  This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator. 

"Stand out/blend in" This shot is one that is hard to organise because of the amount of people needed to do the same thing. Looking at camera angles we see that a long shot is used which matches the original. We also did not have a tripod so had to ensure that the camera was kept steady. The location is really the focus on this shot, and we see that the original is by a large white house on a london street though we did not have access to this so still managed to do it on the corner of a building. Due to this though, it does lose part of the story of the scene as he is meant to be in an expensive area. With mise en scene, we could not get access to so many different suits so we put our own twist on stand out blend in and had the single character on a phone with a scarf on, then the multiple actors are looking at phones with scarves on. Also we did not have the exact amount of actors as there are more in the original. Finally the lighting is similar in both, as the original used natural lighting and ours does the same.  This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator. 

"Wear pink and red" In terms of finding a specific location, this was the most difficult because obviously the main point is the pink house which is not something easy to find. We did manage to get one even though it is much lighter of a pink compared to the original. Looking at camera shots, ours is clearly filmed in portrait where landscape is needed which once again makes the shot look less professional. Also the shots themselves do not exactly match the original, as the first is meant to be a very far shot though ours is fairly close, and the second is supposed to be a still close up shot of the lady, though ours moves along the girl not particularly close up. In terms of mise en scene, for some reason our actor is holding a plant compared to the letter box which the original is stood next too. This is simply an error of judgement on what is in the video. Also our actor is wearing a red top like the original though not pink bottoms like the original. Finally the original is in sunshine and is well lit with natural light which i believe we recreated rather well. This scene includes only non-digetic sound which is the music and the narrator. 

1. How organised were you as a group? What elements of organisation were vital to you as a production group? I felt that as a group we were organised in the sense that we all knew what we were doing and which shots were 'ours'. The only problem, is that we were not able to meet out of school so shots that needed multiple people out of school were hard to get.
2. What technologies did you use and how did they serve to develop your skills as a media practitioner? I used my phone and macs mainly throughout this project. These helped greatly as i was able to quickly film the shots to a high standard anywhere, and the mac was great for sending and uploading the shots. 
3. How creative do you think you were during this process? What elements of the project required creativity and imagination, even though you were given a very structured brief to 'copy'? I believe we were creative by the way we improvised. Many things we simply could not recreate so we had to be creative in finding other ways to get the shot.
4. How successful do you think your first draft video is? Use examples from the film to illustrate your evaluations. I believe it was very successful even though we were put on a tight time constraint, as our shots were done accurately to a high standard.
5. In preparation for the next stage of your production work, what knowledge of experience will you take with you into the next project? In the next project i will understand the importance of planning everything meticulously, aswell as the ability to get everything done to a schedule. 

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Camera comparison

Top: DSLR
Bottom: Phone camera

Firstly,  upon looking at the DSLR shot we can instantly see a rather obvious contrast in the lighting of the two, with the this one adopting the true colours of our shooting environment which was rather dark lighting naturally creating this orange like tinge. Upon viewing the depth of field on the DSLR camera, we can see due to its wider lens it quite clearly has a better FOV compared to the other two cameras. Next, arguably the most important and noticeable feature on cameras is its sharpness and quality, and we see here the quality is very good in terms of noticing facial features and the fact it is not as blurry as others.