Treatment, Location, Props, Costume & Casting

Poster of the event I will be attending to
record the Mojokings on the 21st of
November.

Treatment:

For my music video I am going to do a performance based video. This is what's typical of the Psychobilly genre as it gives both fans and new listeners of the band the ability to experience what it is like to watch the artist live at one of their concerts. It gives them a feels for the people, the venues and the atmosphere of the music scene for that genre; however most importantly it gives them a view of the band members so they can see what they are like. For existing fans it takes them back to past gigs and also might tempt or remind them to go to another event that the Mojokings are playing at. The band will be main feature of the video with the shots being focused on them playing the instruments and the vocals of the song. With fast pace editing in-between shots good lip-syncing will be key. The idea of this type of video is to make the person watching the video feel like they were at that gig, like they are a member of the audience watching the video. Another idea for this video is a performance video with a twist, not only showing the band playing but the people at the gig and what they're doing. The idea of having a live performance also was inspired by The Brains music video 'Misery'. For technical aspects of the video i.e. special effects (SFX), this was rated as one of the most popular technical aspect of a music video in my audience research. I will also use transitions taking inspiration from the Graveyard Johnny video 'Dead Transmission' and the Hellfreaks video 'Godless Girls Fun' I am going to have some shots as though they are on an old fashioned TV with shots going out of focus or being distorted. The general idea is that I am going to attend one of the Mojokings gigs and record them live which is conforming to my audience research as they wanted to see performance of the band for their music video.

Transitions I intend to use in my video include a TV style static as an overlay to footage linking to the idea of a broadcast in the song and also reference to 1950's black and white television. Close ups of instruments are also also a stereotype of the Psychobilly genre being especially heavily featured in performance videos.

How I'm Going To Film The Band:

Important shots such as the initial drums and and lyrics will be recorded when the band play the song, however with some technical match on action with other shots such as generic instrument shots can be recorded throughout the night; it doesn't necessarily need to be that song. With the song overdubbing the footage the shots will match sound. Lip-syncing will also be a key aspect of this video as they need to be correct to make the video believable. To make sure I have all the shots I need for the video the band will perform the track twice, once at the beginning and once at the end. There may be an issue with getting footage of the band if people are dancing/ wrecking at the event however by filming early on I should be able to get all the video I need before people begin and also by filming some later on I should be able to get some good shots of people doing this later on from the audiences perspective.

Location:

Photo of a band playing at the Voodoo Lounge

The place where I will be recording the Mojokings is a venue in Samford, Lincolnshire called The Voodoo Lounge. It is a small and atmospheric venue which is underground. They do many Rockabilly/ Psychobilly gigs and have had well known artists of these genres such as the Graveyard Johnnys and The Meteors. These are all bands which my audience would be familiar with. The Voodoo Lounge itself is a small room underground with a stage in the centre of the room, meaning there is plenty of room to get different angled shots from lots of different perspectives, including ones from behind the band and facing the crowd. The venue is an ideal place to film as it is great conditions for filming a band due to there being no distracting natural light. It is also a small low roofed place which has a great atmosphere when lots of people are all together watching the band. Though it is not a local venue it is one of the better places to record a music video because of it's quirky feel & look. It is also likely to bring in lots of fans from all over the country as the Mojokings are band headlining at the event. People who know them from the Norfolk areas are likely to attend the even as well.

"Hidden underneath Mama Lizs in a vaulted Victorian wine cellar is the Voodoo Lounge. An intimate and individual live music, comedy and dj venue decorated with some unique Obey Giant artwork. Specialising in up and coming bands, playing original material from all genres the Voodoo Lounge has gained national acclaim, attracting acts from the USA, Canada, Brazil, and the Europe as well as home grown artists." - http://www.mamaliz.co.uk/index.php/voodoo-lounge 

Props:

Since I will be recording from a venue many aspects such as glasses of people drinking and instruments etc. will already be there since it will be at a live performance. I will make sure to make a point of features such as the interesting bar and decor of the venue as well as any significant props that are there such as posters for the event.

• Camera
• Tripod
• (Band) Instruments

One key prop for my video is the bands banner which is pictured in the photo (right). It is a large feature of the bands logo and the lyrics from their song "whatever happened to rock 'n' roll?". This would be very good for my video in terms of referencing the song. Many bands in the Rockabilly/ Psychobilly genre have these type of banners to promote themselves at gigs, it also adds to the look of the band and gives the appearance of status. Another key aspect of the props are the instruments, each band have their own signature sound depending on what they play. To conform to technical aspects of the genre I will heavily feature the double bass (slap bass), which is the icon of the Rockabilly/ Psychobilly genre and what the style of music is mainly characterised by. Having this featured in the video helps with identity of the band and recognition of new audience members as it helps them realise the bands genre, if they are in to that type of music then they are more likely to enjoy a video knowing the band have a double bass.

Costume:

Mojokings famous
'Punk 'n' Roll' t-shirt

Costumes will depend on the band but the crowds and the band will both be wearing clothes of the Rockabilly/ Psychobilly style. Typically this consists of deep blue jeans with turn-up's which is the icon of people of this genre. Often people will attend gigs like this wearing the T-shirt of the band or ones similar to them, even ones of the venue or bands that have played there before. Popular footwear for this style include Converse 'Chuck Taylor' plimsoles and Doc Martin boots. The band members are likely to conform to this style and they generally wear their well known stripped T-shirt (which is part of their style and the style of their fans). The clothing fashion style goes for men and women however the women may wear dresses with different 1950's designs on them generally conforming in this sense and with their hairstyles to the Pinup look. This even is likely to be more casual therefore people of both genders are likely to wear simply T-shirts and jeans. This would appeal to my target audience (predominantly males aged in their 40's) as they would want to see people of the Rockabilly/ Psychobilly style featured in the promo as it makes it easy to relate with in terms of genre conventions. I will also use intertextuality in my costumes referencing other bands which is something done in Psychobilly music videos primarily through the band members and audience who may wear merchandise from more well known bands to promote and make link to them.  Below are some examples of the male Rockabilly/ Psychobilly look.

Casting:

For casting of my music video I will actually be recording the band and therefore they will obviously play themselves, since it is a straightforward performance video I will not need anyone specific although I will consider getting family or friends to 'pose for the camera' i.e. singing along to the band and wearing a T-shirt of a different band to give aspect of intertextuality (linking to costume). People attending the event have been notified that they will be filmed prior to the event and will just be generally recorded for the video as part of the crowd. Listening to my audience research where people wanted to see the audience of a band featured in the video, this allows them to gain an element of what the atmosphere is like at their gigs.