Evaluation- Question 3

I believe evaluating your work is very important as it shows you what you need to improve upon to make your products more successful. By evaluating my work audiences was able to give me feedback on what conventions and features I needed to improve upon in my music video for it to be more successful which was beneficial to me as I could make my video more successful and appeal more to my target audience. Also by receiving feedback I was able to gain a better understanding of what the audience expected to see in my music video therefore I gained more knowledge of the genre and was able to appeal more to my audience. Positive comments are also beneficial as you can see as a producer where you have been successful which shows your strengths.

I uploaded my rough cut of my music video onto YouTube. I uploaded my video onto YouTube so that I could receive instant feedback about my video and see how and where I can improve upon to create a more successful video and how to appeal more to my target audience. I used YouTube as my platform as it’s a very accessible site which millions go on each day therefore I could receive many comments about my music video which would tell me where my strengths are and where my weaknesses are. The comments I received from YouTube were from a global audience meaning that I could understand how to appeal more to a wider audience and how to make my music video more conventional therefore my music video would be more successful. The benefit about uploading my video to YouTube is that my music video could be seen in many different countries meaning that my music video is globalized and would receive many different unbiased comments. I also uploaded my video onto YouTube as people are able to share my music video therefore its more likely more and more people are going to view my music video and evaluate my production through posting comments.

I and my group mainly gained feedback through a focus group screening from a group who watched our rough cut. This was very beneficial to us as the screening was a group of people the same age as our target audience 13-25 which told us how we could appeal better to our target audience and what conventions we should add to make it more appealing. It was more beneficial than the YouTube comments as it was direct feedback from our target audience therefore we knew they wasn't lying in anyway.

As a group we received positive and negative comments. One negative comment we received was that the shots were too dark and could not be seen properly specifically at the beginning of the music video. This was easy to improve as we had advance software to brighten up the shots. We used Final Cut Pro X to brighten up the shots at the beginning of the music video. We clicked on the shots we wanted to brighten and increased the brightness by 20%. This greatly improved the visibility of the shot and the beginning of the music video became more clear therefore appealing to more audience as they could understand what is going on at the beginning straight away. This comment was very beneficial to me as I learnt how to brighten up shots if this was to occur again.

Another bad comment we received was that in some shots the lip syncing was out of time. First of all we tried to resolve this issue by re positioning shots on Final Cut Pro X so that the lip syncing shots were in time, this worked for a few shots however we couldn’t resolve it for all the shots we repositioned therefore we had to go and re film again. We went and re filmed again the shots that the lip syncing was out of time and made sure the artist said the words properly so we didn’t have this issue again. By improving the lip syncing it made my music video look more professional and appealing, it also built a relationship between the audience and artist as he looked more realistic.

Another negative comment we received was that some shots were shaky. There was no way of resolving this by using Final Cut Pro X. The only way we could resolve this is by re- filming therefore we had to re film once again the shots which were shaky. This comment was beneficial to because as producers we could now see that re filming again takes up a lot of time so that if we filmed something again we know to get it right the first time so that we don’t have to go back and waste time.

A positive comment we received was that our mise en scene which includes costume, lighting, setting, iconography, body language and facial expressions were successful. This was beneficial to use as we could see that our music video was appealing to our audience through the use of mise en scene. I believe it was successful as we conventional mise en scene such as realistic locations, simple clothing and different types of lighting therefore the audience could relate to my artist. It was also beneficial to us as we didn't have to change a location or costume which meant we would have to of start the music video from scratch.

Another positive comment we received was that our time lapse was successful. This presented to us that the audience was interested in our music video and our time lapse helped the audience understand the narrative better which is what we wanted as a group. It also showed us that our editing skills were successful which was beneficial to us. The feedback was beneficial overall as we would have had to re film the time lapse if it wasn't appealing to our audience or successful.

Another positive comment I received was that we used a good variety of shots. This was beneficial to us as it showed us that our music video shows creativity due to the amount of shots we used therefore the audience would engage more with our music video. It also meant we didn't have to film any more shots which takes up time. I was particularly happy with this comment as it was my responsibility for the cinematography which showed me my strength when filming a production.

Through receiving feedback it made me feel like a producer rather than a consumer as I was able to improve upon the negative comments without any issue. By receiving feedback I was able to improve the comments and make my music video more successful. The positive comments made me feel professional as I felt like my music video was successful. I accepted the criticism as its realistic you are going to receive negative comments about any piece of work however I used the negative comments to my advantage and improved upon them. I found it very beneficial to me when I received feedback as I could see clearly what I needed to improve upon and what was successful. I have learnt more about the indie genre due to the feedback and what audiences want to see in a indie music video.

Feedback would be beneficial to me if I was working within the music industry as it would ultimately help me make my music video more successful through improving the negative comments I would've received. I would also experience new technologies when trying to improve my music video. Through receiving feedback I would also have a greater understanding of what an audience expects to see within an indie music video. It would help me as a producer to make my music video more appealing to an audience.