Planning & Research - Music Video Pitch

Music Video Pitch/Ideas

What song am I using?

I am using the song ‘All Fall Down’ by Onerepublic.

Why am I using it?

The song is quite melancholy and I have loved the song for quite a while. I think it would be a good song to use for my music video. I think the lyrics are good to work with and they can form a narrative easily and the instruments are easy to work with. It’s a song that I would love to do for my A2 project.

The song is also slower and seeing as I found my fast preliminary song ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?’ by Frank Sinatra a struggle because of the fast pace, I decided to go for something slower and easier to manage for my song to use. Especially in terms of editing the video as the because the song was very fast-paced, I struggled with it and I want something slower and more melancholy to work with.

Narrative?

The song could be about a couple who have broken up and it centres on how they are coping with the break. It would open with the man playing the guitar and singing along. It would then cut to the break-up which would end with the woman walking away from him. The shots would follow him and his feelings on the break-up. The story would end with the man seeing his ex-partner with someone else. The song would end with his reflection and him remaining alone.

The song lyrics repeatedly say ‘Know that we all fall down’ suggesting that everything a person does is going to come to an inevitable end. As the song is sung by a man, the song can be about how the man/artist is coping and the song could reflect his feelings on it about how he has gone through ‘love till you hate’, and that despite his efforts to keep the relationship together, it ‘falls down’.

Performance?

There will be a performance within the music video also, either showing someone else playing an instrument or the actor himself playing it. As the track is heavy in guitars, there would have to be one present and I can get hold of a guitar very easily, but other instruments could be quite problematic and I wouldn’t want it to disrupt filming in anyway. Drums do feature in the song and I would like to have drums in there but it is the case of being able to get hold of drums during filming.

Shots?

I want to the video to be quite centric on the male character and what he is feeling so I shall use mid-shots, close-ups to show his facial expressions. With the performance aspect, I want the guitar to be constant as it is the main instrument. The song opens with a moderately long guitar solo and I would like to open the video up with the audience seeing it being played as an extreme close-up of the strings. It could then go on to show him singing, and then goes on to the narrative, alternating between the two. On some lyrics, I could use an extreme close-up to show the mouth. It could show the break-up of the two with one parting ways. Most shots would be showing the actor/artist singing along to the words.

The shots could also have flashbacks shown in black and white about their relationship, showing them laughing and having fun, contrasting with the sadness he has now, now that everything is over. This can be shown in two-shots and mid-shots and perhaps, long-shots, showing her being far away or walking away.

Locations?

Performance and Narrative – I am thinking that Wollaton Hall or Elvaston Castle is a good idea as I have been around and found some good places where shots can be taken of an actor playing an instrument.  There are places, especially in the gardens and grounds that can reflect the mood of the song and it would be a good place to have an actor playing an instrument. They are also good places to show the feeling of the main character.

Performance – The drama room could also be used, the lights turned off and the large lights at the back on. The lights can either be neutral or a blueish colour to show the sad mood of the song and the feelings of the character. He could be sitting on a stool with the guitar, singing along to the words. It would be good to get the studio impression within the video and it would also help to get the room booked as soon as possible because of the school production and the Shakespeare festival, as well as students wanting after school sessions for rehearsals. The rooms can either be DA1 or DA2 as both are brilliant to use for a performance.

Costume?

The costume of the male character can be quite modern and stylish, such as the typical thing someone in a band would wear such as a plaid shirt and skinny jeans. However, they would need to be quite grey or darker as they need to reflect the mood of the song, so bright green skinny jeans and bright shirts would not be appropriate for the video. Perhaps, in other shots, the actor/artist could wear a leather jacket? I want the artist/actor to look young and ‘trendy’ but at the same time,look more emotional and the colours showing the song clearly.