Music Video : Pre-Production

Pre-Production

Music Video

For this assignment we were put in groups of two, I had teamed up with Nathan Hurst who I had worked with on the Documentary I produced.

We first started off with choosing and deciding which music track we should use for the material of our video. Both of us researched on individual songs, which we could create and base a story on.

Our original ideas were to create parodies on the chosen music tracks; we had listed to make a parody of ‘Beyoncé: Single Ladies’ & ‘The Be Gee’s: Staying Alive’. But we decided to make more ideas, as they weren't very strong.

After searching through different types of music genre I came across a cover song of ‘Robyn: Dancing on my own’, by ‘Kings of Leon’. When listening to this track, I had picked up on the idea and meaning of the song; and how the emotion was interoperated through the lyrics and music. I then came up with creating a story that would link between the song and the video, which would portray the story in an efficient prospective.

Kings of Leon

'Dancing on my own'

Music Video Idea

The Kings of Leon cover song ‘Dancing on my own’ portrays a young shy women who was looking for a guy she liked in a nightclub or bar, but finding out he was with another girl. She then would be dancing on her own, trying to get his attention and to acknowledge her; to see if he is interested in her as she is with him. 

The story has a distinctive manner of both genders, displaying that a girl has a crush on a boy, but wants him to chase her; like the old fashioned way of how the nature of both genders flirt (Boy chases girl).

From influencing the lyrics of the song into the video, I had envisioned to have the young women wear a ruby red dress to symbolise love and affection, which she seeks. I thought it would show her intensions and link with the idea of the story and character.

I then came up with the story for the video, from the use of the lyrics. The story would display the young woman enter a nightclub/bar with her friend. As they both enter and begin to look around, her friend then turns towards her and whispers next to her, “He’s got a new friend”. 

The young woman (protagonist) then decides to look for him as her friend goes towards the bar. She then walks through the dancing crowd, and eventually finding him, kissing another girl.

The protagonist decides to then dance on her own in the crowd, trying to get his attention. She then begins to get emotional, so she dances carelessly in your own time and space; focusing on her.

After herself being in her own world, the lights come on and she looks around to see that everyone is leaving. The young woman then purses to see him, and see if he’s seen her. 

She finds him but, see’s that he’s going home with the other woman. She is then left standing on the dance floor, as the building is nearly empty, while she see’s everyone leaving. The protagonist then looks around to see a guy sat at the bar watching her, he then smiles and she smiles back. 

THE END

Kings of Leon – ‘Dancing on my own’ cover Lyrics

Somebody said you got a new friend

Does she love you better than I can?

There's a big black sky over my town

I know where you're at, I bet she's around

Yeah, I know it's stupid

I just gotta see it for myself

I'm in the corner, watching you kiss her, ohhh

I'm right over here, why can't you see me, ohhh

I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home, oooo

I keep dancing on my own

I'm just gonna dance all night

I'm all messed up, I'm so out of line

Stilettos and broken bottles

I'm spinning around in circles

I'm in the corner, watching you kiss her, ohhh

I'm right over here, why can't you see me, ohhh

I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home

I keep dancing on my own

I keep dancing on my own

So far away, but still so near

The lights go on, the music dies

But you don't see me standing here

I just came to say goodbye

I'm in the corner, watching you kiss her, ohh

I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home

I keep dancing on my own

I'm in the corner, watching you kiss her, ohhh

I'm right over here, why can't you see me, ohhh

I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home

I keep dancing on my own

I keep dancing on my own.

Music Video: Option 01. 'Kings of Leon'- "Dancing on my own"

4:24 Duration      Genre: Drama/Narrative.     Set- Night INT.                 

Location- Night Club/Bar.

Although this idea for the music was the strongest, the possibility to pull it off was quiet low; due to the shoot location was unavailable at the time. The location to film the video was in the college theater room and with the time being close with a play which the drama students were rehearsing and the problem needing a high number of extras, it became impossible to do; with it also being a non-budgeted project. We both decided to choose an other option with the first one having a high risk of failing or not turning out the way we planned it. So we decided to choose the song, 'Passenger' by 'Iggy Pop'.

We thought the song would connect with a comedic film, with a slight sense of dark humor. We then came up with a story which would link and indicate a message, and balancing the possibilities of being able to create it.

Music Video – Creative Concept

Iggy Pop – Passenger

The story of the video is to portray the protagonist waking up to a normal or

Unexpected day. Where he decides to leave his house and travel wherever he felt like going.

Although he comes across and encounters a thief which then ends up stealing his shoes. This begins to show a random but uncontrollable situation; which implements the strange aspects of life, where not every day is the same and you don’t know what’s in store for you (you’re a passenger of life).

After getting his shoes robbed he then carry’s on his day, but then encounters other individuals which presume him to be someone else; which a mob boss is after and has put a bounty an the individuals head, that he is presume to be.

Once the thug individual, recognises him he turns to his partner sat in the vehicle, to inform him and plot to kidnap him. As the protagonist walks down the street, the thug grabs him and they both put him in the boot of their car.

They then duct tape him and take him to the mob bosses place. When they go to exchange him for money, the mob boss then notices that he in fact isn’t the guy he is after. The mob boss then decides to not give them the money, which causes the two thugs to just take the money by force (Shootout).

The protagonist then reacts with seeing both sides take their weapons out to kill each other, and jumps out of gun fire. He then begins to crawl out of the firing zone, and takes the duct tapes off of him self. He then reaches in to get his belongings and runs.

He then makes his way up a road, ending up on a hill with good scenery and sits down on a bench to look over the view.

The protagonist is a passenger through all the situations he gets dragged into and has no control over his fate and direction, he is helpless; driven through a story with no hands on the wheel to indicate on where he would go, enhance ‘The Passenger’.

At the end, the film portrays him escaping a situation and being able to have the direction of his life. As he ends up, overlooking a view which influences freedom.

Iggy Pop - Passenger Lyrics

I am a passenger
And I ride and I ride
I ride through the city's backside
I see the stars come out of the sky
Yeah, they're bright in a hollow sky
You know it looks so good tonight

I am a passenger
I stay under glass
I look through my window so bright
I see the stars come out tonight
I see the bright and hollow sky
Over the city's a rip in the sky
And everything looks good tonight

Singin'

Get into the car
We'll be the passenger
We'll ride through the city tonight
See the city's ripped insides
We'll see the bright and hollow sky
We'll see the stars that shine so bright
The sky was made for us tonight

Oh the passenger
How how he rides
Oh the passenger
He rides and he rides
He looks through his window
What does he see?
He sees the sided hollow sky
He see the stars come out tonight
He sees the city's ripped backsides
He sees the winding ocean drive
And everything was made for you and me
All of it was made for you and me
'Cause it just belongs to you and me
So let's take a ride and see what's mine

Singing

Oh, the passenger
He rides and he rides
He sees things from under glass
He looks through his window's eye
He sees the things he knows are his
He sees the bright and hollow sky
He sees the city asleep at night
He sees the stars are out tonight
And all of it is yours and mine
And all of it is yours and mine
Oh, let's ride and ride and ride and ride