Weekly Journal
Regular evaluation updates are required, as with every unit. Please
remember to take photos and get behind the scenes footage as you film.
You might find it easier if you note down a record of what you did each day
in a diary form.
Please use the following guidance to help you with each week.
Week 1
What have you been asked to
do?
How has writing the brief helped
you to finalise your idea?
What did you learn from
practising the conventions you
researched?
This week you worked on your research
The options that we could choose from were: Music
video, Documentary, short film or animation. We
chose to do a music video because it’s where we
thought we could present our ideas in the best and
most creative form e.g. Filming skills, the smoothness
and angles we choose and the editing skills such as
colour correction, cutting to the beat. I have chosen
to work with Felix, Alfie and Charlie because we work
really well together as a group since we have the
same sort of ideas that aren’t exactly the same and
that aren’t completely different so they can form
together to make the best productions we can. The
guidelines include: music cannot have any swearing
in, it has to use the whole of the song which should be
under 5 minutes and it should not show the
glamorisation of drugs in the visual part.
Our original idea with the definite song was going to
be someone getting rich off selling drugs, mainly
cannabis, in the end we decided to change it since it
was too cliché and it broke the guidelines since it
glamourizes selling and consuming drugs, the next
idea was to have a euphemism for the drugs such as
selling properties or smaller things we then thought it
wouldn’t work and would be quite confusing for the
audience. The final idea that we have is the main
character was selling drugs and eventually got
arrested and had time in prison, he then changes to
legal operations selling properties, throughout the
video it will have montage of him in the past selling
drugs then him selling properties and proposals.
We learnt how different angles can portray a certain
character, for example: low to high angles can make
the character in the shot look big and powerful,
sometimes a bit intimidating, this could be used in hip
hop videos and make the lyrics more meaningful. I
myself have learnt that keeping the camera moving

Are you on track for this week? If
not, how far behind are you?
What work do you need to
complete outside of lessons to
stay on track?
Week 2
How has analysing videos helped
you to understand the genre
better?
How did making infographics help
you to process your research?
What did you learn from your
planning? How has it helped you
to progress your idea?
makes the scenes way more enjoyable to watch
instead of a mount, this make because you could
pan the camera to something new keeping it
interesting and keeping the audience engaged.
I have finished my task which is making the
storyboard, all I have to do is finish a part of my
secondary research and the second week of my
weekly journal.
Completion of the second week of my weekly journal.
This week you worked on your planning
As I was analysing the chosen music videos I realised
that in all of them majority of camera angles were
about chest height or lower pointing up to the
characters face, This can presents the character as
powerful and maybe intimidating, this is probably why
this angle is popular in hip hop music videos; to make
the character in the scene as big as possible so the
audience literally looks up to them. We will use this in
our music video when the main characters have
succeeded legally and are now investing in
properties, with the throwback scenes when he is
selling drugs we will have a higher angle to show that
he was less powerful and weaker than what he is in
the present. By including this in our music video it will
become conventional to the genre that the music is
in since it will include the conventional angles.
By creating the infographic made the researched
information easier to process and gave just as much
useful information in smaller sentences and in a
simpler, more aesthetic form. I found out about why
certain angles are used in hip hop music videos for
example the low to high angle to make the character
have a sense of importance and power.
By creating a storyboard gives the group a rough
idea of what certain scenes would look like and in
what order when we are filming. Creating a shooting
script shows us what should happen in the visuals and
on what line/verse. By finding out what people we
were going to have as the rappers and main
characters etc gave us time to think and organise
when we should all film and when the people we
were using could film as well, this was a bit difficult
since we couldn’t fully rely on the actors to film on the
specific day since they had other responsibilities to
do, so in the end we filmed quite last minute when the

How has your idea
developed/changed during the
planning stage?
How did you ensure that your
storyboards were to a high
enough standard?
What issues did you have when
planning your production? How
did you overcome them?
How much work did you
complete outside of the lessons?
Are you on track for this week? If
not, how far behind are you?
What work do you need to
complete outside of lessons to
stay on track?
Week 3
people that were featuring had some sudden spare
time.
When we first started planning, our rough outline of
the video was that we were going to base the whole
video around someone selling haze (otherwise known
as marijuana) and how he got rich from it since that is
how the lyrics go. We got told that we were not
allowed to do this since it doesn’t follow the guidelines
because it glamourizes drugs and illegal lifestyle. We
quickly improvised to the idea of a main character
who used to sell drugs then after getting arrested he
converted to selling properties. The before scenes
where he was selling drugs would be in a grey tone
and the scenes where he is legally making money will
be normal tones of colour with different effects.
I was making the storyboards. To make sure that they
were good enough I worked with Charlie who was
making the shooting script, by working with him I
could see if the scenes matched with what was
happening on each line. I also took time on what
should each scene show on a particular line, if the
scene should represent/match what the lyrics are.
Our creative differences held us back a bit when
planning our production and what the storyline should
be. The initial idea we had was for the person to get
rich from selling weed but when we weren’t allowed
to film that; one person’s idea was to have a
particular object as a euphemism for weed (such as
an edible item or drink) but there was another idea
which was someone getting rich from selling
properties. There was some conflict but the idea was
soon developed even more with the properties idea
with flash backs of the younger version of the
character selling cannabis with a bad lifestyle.
I completed things such as some of the weekly journal
and some other written work. I also completed the
storyboard at home and checked if it matched with
the shooting script.
I am mostly on track, I just need to double check the
storyboard if Alfie has done all of the locations on the
storyboard.
I need to catch up on the production schedule and
add a few more things on the evaluation journal.
This week you worked on your production
What practical work have you
done and how helpful was your
earlier planning?
What issues did you encounter
when filming and how did you
overcome them?
What locations did you use and
why did you choose them?
The storyboard helped a lot since it literally showed us
what to film and gave a visual representation of what it
should look like especially for the characters who we
picked from different courses and colleges and who
didn’t know that much about the details such as shot
types and mise en scene. The storyboard showed how
the camera should be moving for the camera man
and it also showed what the character in the shot
should be doing, things such as hand gestures and
dances. The variety of locations were very suitable and
I personally think that they were very important since it
made the video more interesting and some specific
locations told something, for example: inside the
garage showed ‘grimey’ atmosphere since the
younger characters was in there. However, the
locations were very distant from each other which
made it very difficult to film in a short amount of time
since everyone had to walk everywhere because no
one had a vehicle to get around town.
The light we were using was very helpful and made the
shots look much better than they would without it, but if
it was used on the fullest brightness the battery drained
within 5 minutes which happened twice in the dark
and when we needed it most, we overcame this
problem by using headlights of Josh’s car since we
needed that sort of light behind Charlie to give the
effect that he has been stopped by a police car. Some
people that we were using for our video were quite
unreliable sometimes since they had more important
things to attend to such as jobs or driving lessons. We
worked around those times and when they gave late
notice to some free time we met them as soon as
possible to film. Another problem that we encountered
is that the “rapper” who we were using Ironically had a
speech impediment, we overcame this by being
patient and giving him plenty of time to learn the
rhythm and lyrics.
We chose a good amount of locations which
represented both the younger and older version of the
character. We used darker and less glamorise locations
for the younger character who sells drugs, places such
as under a bridge and by these tunnels in Marlow.
These locations connote that he is living very lowkey
and hanging around in bad & sketchy places. With the
older version of the character the locations are more
aesthetic with nice cars behind them and in golf
courses which are stereotypically more posh and are
suited for wealthier people. By showing locations that
are very different from each other presents the contrast

How did you find the editing
process?
What new skills did you learn
when editing?
Upload screenshots of the
editing process and discuss why
you made these changes.
of how the main character used to live and his type of
lifestyle to how he lives in the present legally and
earning a lot of money shown by driving and standing
in front of nice cars.
I found the editing process very enjoyable since it is
probably my favourite part of the
development/making of a project. I finished editing it
quicker than I normally would probably because I
knew exactly where everything was going thanks to
the shooting script and storyboard. Syncing the lyrics up
to the rappers lips was quite difficult sometimes but it
was soon resolved. I am also glad that we filmed a lot
of b-roll since we needed basically all of it to fill up
spaces between some verses that were being synced.
I learnt how to use different transition effects such as
transition swipe which I used just before the first verse
and just after the first chorus. I also used/experimented
with different video effects such as “paint splash”
which places red highlight which moves like paint in
the brightest area in the shot.
As you can see in the picture about, the majority of the
clips are very small, this is because I wanted different
scenes to cut to the beat, the beat here would have
been very fast and regular in this particular frame. I
have made these changes of cutting to the beat so in
the final edit the scenes won’t be prolonged and
become boring for the audience.
In the picture
on the left it
shows a
swipe
transition is
being used
near the
start of the
song at the
end of the
first chorus
and when it’s about to transition to the first verse. I used
this effect since it goes at the same time as the specific
word when it transitions from the chorus to the first verse

What issues did you encounter
when editing and how did you
overcome them?
How well have you worked to
your production schedule?
Are you on track for this week? If
not, how far behind are you?
What work do you need to
complete outside of lessons to
stay on track?
High Grade Tips
which makes it more aesthetic and is in time with the
music.
At the start the music that we were using was about 5%
too fast so we had to slow it down so it could become
normal paced.
For the majority of the development and process of the
production I think we worked on the days that we said
we will work and some extra days when our actors
were free. However there were some days when some
people had to go in for work last minute and left us to
film nothing for that day but we overcame that by
filming on extra days that weren’t originally on the
schedule. Editing didn’t take up much time at all, I
edited on the days I planned and some extra days as
well in and out of college hours.
I am fully on track this week with the filming and editing
tasks I just need to update the weekly journal and
evaluation journal. I also need to find a way to upload
my video to Youtube without it getting copyrighted.
I need to update my weekly journal and evaluation
journal.

Use screenshots to support your analysis – especially when comparing your work to other
pieces.

Considered and capable demonstration of processes – detailed documentation of your

production process – such as still images, and annotated screenshots of your specific
production and editing process – including ‘what’ and ‘why’ and not just ‘how’.

Specific – be specific! Don’t just say e.g. ‘the lighting was good’ – show us where the
lighting looked good and why you think that.

Week 4 This week you worked on your production

What were your production The production strengths that I noticed was the actual filming
strengths? process, everyone became extremely creative and
enthusiastic on how the shots should be taken such as the
angles, low or high, where the specific b roll shot should be
taken and what effect it would give to the audience etc.
There was a lot of new ideas when we were filming even
when our circumstances were limited (stuck in the dark with
no suitable light) we overcame lighting problems by using
headlights for a couple scenes where the younger character

What were your production
weaknesses?
How did you work as a group?
What was your role and how did
you perform?
is getting arrested. Our shots were filmed very well, majority of
them were smooth and some angles were quite creative. The
locations that we decided on were very effective since they
showed the contrast of where the character was to where he
got to now, this sets the overall mise en scene for the
audience because it lets them understand how the main
character has worked his way up. The effort we made to go
into planning and buying costumes was impeccable, we had
to tell the rapper and the younger main character to wear
specific clothing and we had to buy our own suits for the
production to give the best and most believable effect of
success of the group. The choice of actors (and “Rapper”)
were very good, they could all dance relatively well which is
what we needed for a couple scenes. The rapper, however,
had a speech impediment which was a minor setback since it
took a few more goes to get it right but we managed to work
around it and when we eventually did he was very good and
well synced up.
Some of the lip syncing was out of time or some of the lyrics
were wrong because Max (the rapper) Rapped without the
audio or either said it too fast or too slow. I only realised this
when editing and tried to improvise and sync up as best I
could, I also put effects such as paint splash that hide Max’s
lips when he’s rapping so the viewer can’t see the
mispronunciation. Some shots were either a bit unstable or
shaky since we don’t have that much practice or knowledge
on how to keep the camera stable with our own hands and
we didn’t have any stabilisers to keep the shots smooth. When
editing I sped up some shots for aesthetic effects but I also
realised that speeding up footage gives the effect of
smoother shots.
Once we figured out our final idea with going through some
conflict about different storylines and meanings to the song,
we worked extremely well together when filming. We were all
very impassionate about how we should film a specific scene
at what angle, what the character in the shot should do. We
all put a lot of time in to each shot to get the perfect footage.
We all had different ideas that we all put in together to make
the scene look aesthetic as possible, for example: we needed
to film a dance scene with cinematic camera movements,
someone saw near the train tracks that there was these
purple lights shining down this brick wall and when we filmed
there the footage looked great especially with the lighting of
the purple of the lights. Also, when the portable light ran out
someone had the idea of using the car headlights as a police
car for when the younger character is getting arrested.
I was one of the actors, a camera man and decided what
happened what happened in some shots. I think as an actor I
performed quite well, I could have improved with what I was
doing such as dancing. As a cameraman is where I
 performed best out of operating the camera and acting
since I knew what the scenes should look like, what the angles
should be (Low to high, High to low) and what the camera
movement should be like (Panning, moving
forward/backwards). When deciding on what should happen
in the shots I thought I was quite organised with that position
since I created the storyboard and knew exactly what should
happen in almost every scene since I put a lot of thought and
time into the development of the storyboard.
Complete a written comparison of
your work to professional
productions you researched
previously. Use screenshots of both
productions to support your
analysis.

The camera movement and angles of our music video is quite

similar compared to Mobb Deeps – Shook Ones. In the shook
ones video the camera is slowly moving downwards while
keeping focus on the two characters, this makes the scene
more exciting and interesting to watch for the viewers. Our
specific scene that is similar to the Mob Deep scene has
similar camera movements, moving left to right with the use of
the dutch angle tilting left to right also making the scene have
more going on in it and overall more exciting. The positioning
of our characters is quite similar to the Mobb Deep ones
however we don’t have the similar diverse background with
more characters farther back, this is because we wanted to
give the effect with the lights showing our characters are
successful and rich with the use of purple lights which is
internationally known as a royal colour, if we would have used
the same kind of setting for our characters as the Mobb Deep
one it would have given the wrong effect since it is a ghetto
setting which wouldn’t be suited for the characters who are
landlords.

The costumes that are used in our music video and Biggie
smalls music video are quite similar, not in looks but what it is
connoting; By wearing a suit shows that that character is most
likely quite wealthy and has a very professional job since that
is a stereotype for men and women who wear suits. In Biggie
Smalls video – Warning he is seen wearing expensive designer
clothes and a big chain, this connotes that he has a lot of
 money but probably doesn’t earn it professionally or
legitimately since he doesn’t have that stereotypical
formal/professional look and is dressed like a stereotypical
gangster. The clothing used in our video is very obvious how
we want our characters to look like which is a legitimate
business man in properties. The setting in the specific scene in
our music video is quite obvious where we are and very
obvious on the effect that it should give since golf courses are
stereotypically quite posh and are used by wealthy people.

Overall, I think some aspects of our music video is to a

professional standard, things such as costumes since we went
and bought our suits and told the rapper and younger
character what to wear as well, by putting a lot of thought
into the costumes I think made a big difference in the music
video since it looks better and gives the audience a more
obvious idea of who is who and what is happening. The shots
are pretty good up to a certain point considering what
equipment we had and the environments that we were in.
The overall video sort of comes up to the standards of a low
budget UK rap music video, since it has the codes and
conventions of both an Amerian and British music video but
just with a lower budget.
High Grade Tips

Use screenshots to support your analysis – especially when comparing your work to other pieces.

Considered and capable demonstration of processes – detailed documentation of your production

process – such as still images, and annotated screenshots of your specific production and editing
process – including ‘what’ and ‘why’ and not just ‘how’.

Specific – be specific! Don’t just say e.g. ‘the lighting was good’ – show us where the lighting looked
good and why you think that.