And a list of all the collisions in pong: every time one object needs to collide with another.
Gamesalad is Object Oriented Programming.
There are 4 Main Elements in Gamesalad. Each element will have attributes.
Game – The whole game, everything else is within the game. an attribute of the game could be something like the size of the display screen.
Scenes – Scenes within the game are basically levels. Pong has only one scene/level. One of the attributes of the scene could be the score.
Actors – Actors are everything that goes into the scene. The paddles are actors, the ball is an actor, the walls are actors, etc. All objects, moving or static, are actors. Moving is an attribute of actors. Moveable checkbox can be ticked or un-ticked.
Behaviours – Behaviours are things that Actors can do: the rules. Two behaviours a paddle will have would be ones for moving up and down e.g If button ‘A’ is pressed then move down.
Collisions are behaviours that are programmed into the actors. A rule has to be set up saying that when the paddle collides with the wall it must stop, so it can just go through it.
A key step of developing ideas is writing a TREATMENT. These treatments are then given to prospective clients (labels, bands) who are deciding which directors to hire for their work.
Treatments are about:
Summarizing, a music video treatment is the starting point of every project. It allows the production company to communicate its ideas to the artists and it allows artists to make decisions regarding the direction of their video. The treatment also helps production companies to write production budgets that are accurate and that give artists a complete view of what to expect when embarking on the production of their music video.
(http://www.creando.ca/about_us/treatment.php)
At the beginning of every music video project, there is a need to work with the artist to define a desired treatment. A video treatment, also known as video concept, outlines information with regards to what the music video will be about. Conceptually, a music video could show the artist performing the song in front of a live audience or by itself; alternatively, a music video can also present a story line where certain situations and storytelling takes place. Furthermore, it can also be an experimental exercise where random images are shown to complement the music in a more abstract way. All of these angles constitute the treatment, or concept, of a music video.
However, a video treatment goes beyond this exercise of defining the overall direction of the video. The treatment goes down to describe the kind of locations, situations, stories, images, look and feel, tone and color, pacing and so on of the music video. Even though most treatment writers don’t follow specific guidelines or structures, a well written treatment is one that can successfully communicate complete ideas to artists.
(http://www.creando.ca/about_us/treatment.php)
What I believe to be the 5 most important aspects of a treatment:
1) To get across themes and tone of the video to the artists and record companies.
2) To give an accurate of the budget that will be required to make the video. Pricing up locations and effects and costumes. This should all be in the treatment so it can be priced up correctly. It can also be used to asses what will be possible to achieve; what is feasible.
3) It should contain details of every part of the video, story, location, imagery.
4) Casting, thinking about who will appear in the video.
5) Should suggest story lines, and some abstract imagery. It must properly communicate the ideas so that the reader can visualise the video perfectly in their head, the way the writer intended.
6) Should suit the genre and style of the artist and be appealing to their audience.
Task 2 –
The final video for Beyonce’s song; “Crazy in Love” by director Jake Nava.
The original treatment for the video.
The vibe:
I want to take Beyonce to a new level of cutting edge fashion and knockout sexuality. The edgy styling will mix high fashion with a street sensibility that is iconic and stripped back. An off the hook dance number will be photographed in a fresh and stunning way.
The look:
This will be Beyonce as we have never seen her before. Using high end designers fused with contemporary street style we will amp up the sexuality and attitude in every frame. A variety of looks will give us a chance to explore new styles – enhanced by the fashion influenced photography. Beyonce will be 100% gorgeous (of course) – but with a new and attention grabbing twist. A world class cinematographer will be used to help create the cutting edge style and look – some like a Joe Yakoe, Harris Savides, etc.
The video: We open on close-ups of JAY Z as he delivers the initial ad libs. We cannot be sure where he is exactly (more on that later) but his flow is infectious. This is a mysterious look for Jay that makes us want to see more.
We cut to our camera rushing through the streets – swerving and moving with the frenetic energy of the beat. Edits takes us back and forth between Jay’s performance and the car speeding along. The lens swerves around a corner and finds …
BEYONCE walking down the street. This is a stunning introductory shot – taking us from the speeding POV right into Beyonce’s gorgeous and sensuous close-up. Beyonce moves – her walk transformed into a syncopated dance of flowing hair and clicking high heels. She is performing right to our lens – bold and sexy. We steadi cam along with her – moving freely and transitioning from one perspective to the next – synchronized to and amplifying the groove of the track.
We will also shoot a performance with Beyonce as she drops to her knees on the pavement. A special, hidden pad will be used to allow Beyonce to go all out – completely free and into this uninhibited performance. The camera catches editorial style images – makes this look like a sexy street meets Gucci ad campaign.
Cut to Beyonce stepping into frame in graphic slow motion – surrounded by a circle of a dozen ultra-modern cameras. Each camera is mounted on a platinum stand – creating a circle of high technology around her. The street scene around Beyonce makes this look like a cutting edge photo shoot – with a twist of urban style.
As Beyonce performs we see the flashes on the cameras go off – one by one. Our camera shifts into ultra slow motion – lettings us capture each flash on the platinum cameras as it illuminates the side of Beyonce’s face and lens flares into the camera before it dies away and the next flash ignites. Beyonce’s movements are graceful in the stunning slow motion – her clothes and hair flowing like liquid silk. The flashes flare into the lens again – adding texture and pulsing in time to the beat.
We will also get quick but stunning images from inside the platinum cameras – possibly even textured in modern black and white. The images are strung together – capturing a frozen moment of time.
Cut to a graphic but rugged downtown alley (the graphic location from Se7en) – surrounded by towering buildings. Now we see a huge chrome fan. The powerful fan sends out a blast of air – blowing Beyonce’s hair as she performs. This is another high fashion image – the gritty alley, the sleek metal fan, Beyonce’s beauty and her gorgeous clothes – all combining for a unique look. The fan’s storm whips around her, but her performance never slows.
Now Beyonce’s girls show up (actually her dancers) and back her up on the rhythmic “uh oh” sections. There is a brief bit of choreography here – fun, sexy and right on the beat.
Another powerful set-up shows Beyonce on an empty night-time street. She is dressed in a breathtaking high-end outfit – possibly even a modern fur coat. We realize she is standing on a bold yellow car – a classic muscle car that reads as a blaze of vibrant color in the night. Beyonce hits a few funky steps and …
She performs an acrobatic flip (actually a body double) – off the roof of the car and into a perfect landing on the pavement. A close-up catches her high heels as the hits the street – never slowing her dynamic performance.
On Jay’s verse we see him performing in front of the car. Tiny rivulets of blue flame crawling across the dark pavement (budget permitting). It is as if there are streams of gasoline – slowly catching fire around Jay and Beyonce’s feet. This is not an explosive rush, but a seductive visual – the blue flames edging closer and closer to the yellow car.
As Jay performs we see him alone and also with Beyonce. The two superstars play off each other – sometimes sexy but other times defiant and playful. Beyonce is undeniably her own woman as she showcases her attitude, even during Jay’s performance. The effect is a seductive tease – making us want to see even more of Jay and B together.
The car now completely catches fire. Flames run over the slick yellow surface – adding a new backlight to Beyonce and Jay. The wet down pavement reflects the flames and her passionate delivery. We use slow motion here as well – framing Beyonce in semi-silhouettes as she moves sexily in front of the flaming car. Beyonce’s beauty and the cracked surface of the car – peeling from the heat of then fire – are another stylish contrast.
On the bridge we cut to Beyonce performing on a street corner as a chrome fire hydrant suddenly erupts behind her. Ultra slow motion catches the drops of water as they spray into the air – glistening and hanging in the air like individual gemstones. Beyonce performs as she gets wet – her high end clothes hugging every curve of her body. The effect is stunningly sexual and at the same time artistic – the slow motion water adding a graphic twist. Note that this hydrant set-up is schedule permitting.
Dance performance:
Cut back to the alley as the wind blows, but now we see a group of dancers behind Beyonce. Their moves are street-influenced and funky as they work with and against the power of the wind. The dancers lean into the force of the air – using the wind as part of their choreography. Beyonce is right up front – leading their moves as the dancers fill the frame with graphic movement around her.
This choreography will completely stand out – captured as dance has never been photographed before. The dance will be accentuated with slow motion – catching every rippling bit of wardrobe as the dancers move to the beat. At times the dancers get airborne – almost weightless – motivated by the force of the wind and possibly a simple trampoline effect. The dance starts out as a classic funky breakdown but the wind and our camerawork takes it even farther. We end on a stunning beauty close-up of Beyonce as we …
FADE TO BLACK
Do you believe the pitch was good at communicating the ideas of the director and why?
The video set up the locations and set ups very well, with detailed breakdowns of the locations and action. It also really sets up the style the director wants to go for; a mix between stylish and urban. Designer cloths but with a street look. The locations are gritty but the photography is polished. It also details how important sexuality is in the video, how it should be in every set up and shot.
The pitch creates a very detailed and accurate image of the final video whilst reading it.
Are there any differences between the pitch and the final video?
The final video looks a bit cheaper then the treatment. The most elaborate sections in the pitch have either been cut or modified, for example Beyonce standing atop the taxi and then backflipping off it was completely removed, instead having her inside the car when it explodes.
The slow motion was also cut down alot. Whilst the video did have some slow motion shots, it’s not as much as the pitch suggested. The pitch says that with the slow motion you’ll be able to see the cloths of the dancers slowly rippling, and this is an effect that didn’t pan out.
An fucking boring change was that in the video Jay Z starts the fire with a lighter, something which isn’t mentioned in the pitch.
How do you think the pitch could be improved?
The pitch could have expanded on the themes, explained why the locations and styles being described were there. It was also perhaps a bit overly ambitious, with the backflips and explosion, which the production team struggled to realise.
1) Marketing tool – Music can reach a larger audience as a video. On the television and now with YouTube and viral videos. It’s basically a promotional video for a song, an advert.
2) Creates an image – Music videos can help build an image for the artists. In a lot of cases a striking image is just as important as striking songs. It creates characters for the artists and so makes them more memorable, and identifiable to fans e.g. Lady ga ga
3) Makes songs more memorable – Images really stick in the subconscious, and if a really striking video get’s stuck in the audiences head then the song will be with it. Not all songs get music videos, and the ones that do are the ones the producers are really pushing to be big. This ties in with the marketing tool reason.
4) Artistic reasons – The musicians and directors can add another dimension to the music, expanding on it’s themes and ideas. The music video can be used to go more in depth into the story of the song.
5) Income – Artists get money from selling the music video to different channels and platforms. Money can even be made off of YouTube videos.
How do you know your watching a Music Video?
1) Single song driven – The sound will be driven by the one music track that plays continuously through the video. There will be little to no dialogue or diegetic sound effects.
2) Heightened style – Music videos are usually much more visually stylized then normal films or TV shows. The colours and lighting will be bolder and different.
3) Looser narrative – After a few minutes of watching a music video you can tell it doesn’t tightly follow a story or characters, jumping around in time, cutting to the artist, just generally more abstract.
4) Tight, music based editing – The editing of the video will be very strictly timed to match the beat of the song.
5) Shots of the Music Artists – The obvious sign of a music video; shots of the singers or instrument players inter cut with the rest of the video. These shots will either be within the narrative or outside of it.
Andrew Goodwin theory from his book; “Dancing in the music factory” (1992)
1) Relationship between the lyrics and the visual.
This video demonstrates this point perfectly, as it’s basically just acting out the lyrics. This girl meets a boy she knew was trouble from the start and she literally ends up “lying on the cold hard ground”.
2) Relationship between music and visuals.
In this video the passing of the landscape is based on the music. There are repeating objects that fly past to the beat, and the colours change depending on the mood.
3) Genres are complex and diverse in terms of music videos style and iconography.
This My Chemical Romance video fits into the bands personal style and genre of Gothic rock music. The iconography of the dark funeral and black and blood red colour scheme are very much in this genre.
4) Record companies demand close ups of performers and appropriate representation.
One Direction is a good example of this. All their videos feature them very heavily, with lots of close ups and them firmly in the narrative of the video. But they also have the same representation in all the works, obviously something agreed on with the record companies. That image is of a fun loving and mischievous group of lads, obviously in an attempt to make the band seem relatable. There would never be a one direction video which shows them killing a dog, or setting fire to a house.
And Lady Gaga, to show that when companies build and demand and image, they don’t always mean a good one. Lady Gaga probably would do a video in which she kills a dog or sets fire to a house, but that’s the sort of insane and uncontrollable image that the companies make sure is present in all her videos. They want her represented that way.
5) Voyeurism is present, often objectification. (Voyeurism: spying on people engaged in intimate behavior)
This video has a lot of voyeurism, especially in the hotel bedroom shots. There’s also an amount of objectification on the man, as he’s not shown to have a lot of personality and the main focus is on his body e.g. when he’s doing his boxing training shirtless.
This video is just pure objectification of woman. There is nothing more to it.
6) Intertextuality; references to other texts. (Movies, other music videos, books, games, styles etc.)
This video from “Thirty Seconds to Mars” heavily references the Kubrick film “The Shining”. It doesn’t borrow the whole plot, but takes the hotel setting as well as all the most iconic images; the typewriter, the man in a bear costume. Point one is also true here, as the “shining” visuals match the story and themes of the lyrics.
Whole video is a reference to scenes from “2001: A Space Odyssey” and it’s psychedelic space sequences, and the shots of space reflecting off the astronauts helmet.
PHOENIX'S MEDIA 