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?
How has analysing videos
helped you to understand the
genre better?
What did you learn from
practising the conventions you
researched?
How did making infographics
help you to process your
research?
Are you on track for this week? If
This week you worked on your research
For our next unit we have been asked to create a
piece of work for the rain dance festival. We got to
choose between a music video, a short film,
animation or factual programme. I decided to
create a music video because I haven’t done one
before so I will use this project to learn how to make
an entertaining and creative piece. I will then be
able to use this knowledge when creating other
music videos in the future.
Writing the brief has helped me to finalise my idea
because it has made me write down exactly what is
needed so I could aim my research around this. This
research then helped me to know what makes an
effective music video and what doesn’t.
This has helped me because it has showed me what
works well in a music video and what doesn’t. I
looked at all the techniques that they used and I
will be able to apply this knowledge to my own
video. I also looked at the way they tell the story
and how the costumes help tell this and I will apply
this to mine. It has also showed me editing
techniques that would be helpful for me when
creating a professional looking piece of work.
I learned how they actually work and how to apply
them to the style that I am going for. I also got to
see how it would look if I did it myself. Doing this
helped me because I saw that it looked good so I
know that I will definitely use this technique during
the filming process. It will also help my filming
process to be faster as I have already practiced so
know how to do it.
It helped me to see the results in a simple way so I
can see what people like and what they don’t like
so that I can apply this. It makes the results clear so
that I can quickly refer back to it throughout the
planning and creating phases of the process so it
will save a lot of time.
I am mostly on track for this week. The only thing
not, how far behind are you?
What work do you need to
complete outside of lessons to
stay on track?
Week 2
What did you find out about
promotional campaigns for your
form of production?
What did you learn from your
planning? How has it helped you
to progress your idea?
How has your idea
that I still need to do is finish
researching the conventions of a
music video so that my knowledge of
this is broader.
I need to complete the conventions
work outside of lesson time so that
this is finished before the planning
stages. I also need to practice more filming
methods so that I am prepared for the actual
filming so that it is time efficient.
This week you worked on your planning
At the start of this week I researched promotional
campaigns for artists. This included websites and
social media pages. The two artists that I chose to
analyse were Katy Perry and Billie Eilish. I decided
to do these two women as they are complete
opposites and have very different audiences so
they campaign in different ways. I was able to
compare the two. I found that social media is a big
part of campaigning for the artists and their new
songs or videos. It is good because social media is
very popular amongst young people now so they
are all likely to have it so it is easy to follow and see
what these singers are posting. They also have a lot
of followers so it is easy to get the word across
people quickly. I also learned that the websites are
important as they very clearly show the type of
person the singer is and what their music is like. It
also helps fans to easily access their merchandise
and alums quickly.
This week I have completed almost all of my
planning. I have written a music video shooting
script, a storyboard and production schedule. I have
also done a props list, crew list and a contingency
plan. Doing the storyboards and music video
shooting script has massively helped me to
understand the storyline and get it from inside my
head onto the paper. This has helped me to
imagine what it might look like so I can plan what I
need to film and how I need to film it. It will also
help me when informing my actors of what they
need to do so that they have a better
understanding of their character and how they
behave. The props list will help me to know what I
need to buy or make in preparation for the filming
day and the crew list will inform the actors of when
they need to be available to film and it will help me
to stay on track with everything. The production
schedule will help me to stay on task as I know
exactly when I am doing everything and where I am
doing it. This will also help my actors to be aware of
what is going on. Having the contingency plan is
very important as it means that if something went
wrong such as bad weather, and actor being sick or
a camera not working I would be prepared with a
backup plan so that my music video gets filmed in
time.
Throughout the planning process I have gained a
developed/changed during the
planning stage?
How did you ensure that your
storyboards were to a high
enough standard?
What issues did you have while
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
What practical work have you
done and how helpful was your
earlier planning?
better understanding of how the end
music video will look and I how I will
make it look like that. While creating
the storyboard and music video
shooting script I could finalise my
idea and get a clear understanding of
how the video will look. Originally I
was going to do it as a story in chronological order
however while creating my story board I decided
that I would do it by flashing backwards and
forwards between the time zones instead. I will film
two different scenes one in the bedroom and one in
the field and then I will cut between them both to
make the story seem more exciting and therefore
be more entertaining to watch.
To ensure that my storyboards were to a high
enough standard I made sure that my drawings
were clear so that anyone reading it could
understand what they would see on the screen. I
also made sure that I wrote a lot of clear
information so that I could clearly tell what kind of a
shot I want and what the actors will be doing during
that scene.
The biggest issue that I came across while planning
my production was creating the production
schedule. It was difficult to arrange a day when
both my actors were available to film. Therefore I
was unable to complete the production schedule as
I didn’t know when to film. Eventually I was able to
arrange a date to film and also an extra date in
case something went wrong. I also found that I did
not have enough ideas to fill the whole time so I
had to think of some more to fill the extra time.
Outside of lessons I spoke to my actors to arrange
the day and time for the shoot. I also completed
some of the planning tasks so that I stayed on time.
I am mostly on track for this week. I have
completed most of the planning tasks so that I am
ready to film over the next couple of weeks. I am
slightly behind because I need to complete the
location recces as I have not been to the chosen
locations yet.
Over the weekend I am going to visit my location
and take a picture. I will look at the lighting and
background so that I can complete the location
recce.
This week you worked on your production
This week I completed all of my filming that I
needed to do. I went out to a field with my two
actors. The weather was rainy and cold which
became an issue however we managed to get a lot
done. We also filmed in my bedroom which was
easier and we also managed to get everything done
there as well. The planning that I had completed

How will this be useful as your
production process continues?
What issues did you encounter
when filming and how did you
overcome them?
What locations did you use and
why did you choose 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
before I began to film was very
helpful and made sure that we got
everything we needed to in the time
that we had. The storyboard helped
me to remember all the shots that I
needed to do which made sure that I
didn’t forget anything. This also
helped my actors to know what they needed to do
and how I wanted them to do it. Having a detailed
production schedule was also very useful as it made
sure that both myself and my actors knew when we
were filming so they could keep the day free.
The shots that I got will be very useful for the rest
of the production process. I managed to get all the
shots that I wanted so the editing process will be
easier and smoother. I also got some behind the
scenes footage and bloopers which I will be able to
use for my advertising.
The main issue that we had during the filming
process was the weather. It was rainy and cold
which made it very difficult to film. The rain was
difficult as we had the camera equipment which
couldn’t get wet. This meant that we needed to
hold an umbrella over the camera which made
filming very difficult. The rain also resulted in wet
ground which made dancing very difficult. The cold
temperatures meant that the dancers were getting
uncomfortable so we had to film everything quickly
so that we could get back into the warm. To prevent
this I could have easily filmed on another day but I
decided not to because I thought that the dim
colour of the sky and the wetness of the air and the
ground matched the theme of the music video very
well as it shows sadness which is what the main
character is feeling.
I used an empty field and a bedroom for my filming.
I chose the field because it was a blank location
with not much background which makes you focus
your attention on the dancers and what they are
doing. The bedroom location is the opposite to this
but I decided to use this because it shows the
character in her own space so we are seeing inside
her life. It makes it more realistic to the audience.
I have worked very well to my production schedule.
I made sure that I filmed on the days that I had
planned so that I wouldn’t fall behind. I have now
started the editing process and will continue to do
this as I have planned to do on my schedule.
I am mostly on track for this week. I have
completed all of my filming that I need and I have
almost finished my editing. I am ahead of my
production schedule so I have lots of time to correct
things that might have gone wrong.
I need to go and take a picture of my locations as I
forgot to do that for my location recces. I will then
need to put these pictures into my recces that I
have already written up.
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 editing your production

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.
I found the editing process for my music video
challenging. First I put all my clips into the edit and
added my song. I then moved them into the order
that I needed them. Then I began to cut them to the
beat of the song and make it flow nicer. The first
challenge that I came across was one of the first
clips when one of my actors disappears in the
middle of the clip. I needed to learn how to do this
and how to make it look natural. This was very
difficult but in the end I managed to make it work. I
then put some of the clips in slow motion to make it
look better and more entertaining to watch. Then
finally I added fading into and out of some of the
shots to make it flow nicely and added colour to
them. I added an adjustment layer to most of the
clips making the clips darker to emphasise the idea
of the girl being sad and grieving. However I edited
the last clips to be happier to show that she has
accepted it and moved on and is now happy.
In one of the sections in my music video I needed to
edit carefully to show the male character
disappearing from the shot. I did this by cropping
which I had never done before. I learnt the basic
skills to do this however I need to spend more time
learning this so that I can do it better. I also learnt
how to change the colour of shots by using an
adjustment layer. I learnt how changing the colour
can affect the mood that is being shown by the
images.
In this
screenshot
it shows the
graphics
that I added
to the
beginning
which state
the name of
the song. I
added an
effect to
them so

What issues did you encounter
when editing and how did you
overcome them?
that they slide into the clip. I did this
over the top of a clip showing the
location that I used for my filming to
set the scene for the music video.
In this
photo
you can
see
how I
cut the
clips to
the
beat of
the music. I did this because I think that it looks
nicer and is
therefore more entertaining to watch. This photo
also shows how I edited two clips together and used
cropping to show the male actor disappearing. You
can also see the adjustment layer that I put over
the clips to make them all look similar. The next
screenshot shows how I added fading between the
clips. This makes it flow nicer and it also shows the
change between having the male character there
and not having him there. It also shows how I
changed the colours between two of the clips. I did
this to show the change in mood for the female
character. The darker clips show her being upset
whereas the lighter colours show that she is
recovering from this sadness.
In this final screenshot you can see how I faded to
white in the last clip. I did this to show how he has
died. It makes it a peaceful and meaningful ending
to the music video.
The first issue that I encountered while editing was
trying to get the male character to disappear from
the walking shot but making it still look natural. I
overcame this challenge by using cropping and
spending a lot of time making it look normal and
convincing. Another issue I had was making the
quick still clips cut to the beat of the music. I had to
move them around and cut them so that they fitted

Are you on track for this week?
Did you meet the deadline? If
not, how far behind are you?
What work do you need to
complete outside of lessons?
High Grade Tips
to the beat. I did this because it
makes it more appealing for the
audience to watch.
I am on track for this week I have
completed the edit. I finished before
the deadline so that I had time to
change things and make them better
if I needed to.
I have no work to complete outside of lessons
because I have completed my planning and my
edit.

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 5 This week you worked on creating your site

How did you design your page
and why? (upload screenshots
and discuss)
How did you use social media to
help promote your production?
For my website I decided to create a
site that is about the singer who
produced the song that I used for my music video. I
did some research into him to find out what kind of
style he uses for his work and then I applied this to
my website. I made three pages on the site one
about him,
one about
his music
and one for
his photos. I
tried to
make it as
realistic as
possible so I included all the awards that he has
won and used many photos of his face. This will
attract people to the website and to his music
because
they can
see that
he is
successful so they will want to listen to his work to
see why it’s so good. I uploaded photos from behind
the scenes of the music video. I did this because it
will make people more excited for the release which
will eventually increase the amount of people that
watch it because more people would’ve heard
about it and will want to see what everyone is
talking about. This also makes people feel more
involved with his work so they think like they are
part of his community so they feel special.
I created a twitter page for the artist so that I could
begin to build a community for the artist and his
fans. I also did this as though I was him. I included
pictures of him
and wrote a short
bio about him. I
attached his
website to his
page so that his
fans could have
easy access to all
his sites. I then
decided to use
this page as a
way of promoting
the music video

How effective do you feel your
site is in promoting your work?
How does you site compare to
those you previously
researched?
Are you on track for this week?
Did you meet the deadline? If
not, how far behind are you?
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
for his song. I created some teaser
clips with the release date written on
them. These can be used to make
people aware of the video but also to
create excitement about the release.
I then added a link to my page for the
music video so that people can easily
watch it. Social media is a very effective way of
promoting projects because posts can be shared
quickly so many people can easily see it and share
it with their friends. This helps people to know
about something that they originally wouldn’t have
heard about so it increases the number of views
that the music video will get.
I think that the website that I created is very
effective for promoting my music video. Firstly
because it promotes the artist and gets his name
and face out into the open so people know more
about him. This then promotes the video because
people will know about him so will look at his work
to see what he does. The site is also effective
because it shows behind the scenes photos of the
cast on set while filming for the video. This shows
people who was in it and what it might be about so
it begins to excite them about the release of the
video so they will want to see it when it comes out.
It is also a quick and easy way for people to access
the video because they can follow the YouTube link
which is posted on the site. This will make them
more likely to watch it because it is one simple click
away.
My site is similar to the websites that I researched.
While doing my research I found out that artists use
their websites in many ways. To promote new
music and videos, to sell merchandise, to post
updates and to create a community between them
and the fans. Most of the images are showing the
artists face. This is because they are the image for
their work and people recognise them so they are
more likely to understand and therefore watch or
listen to their work. Therefore on my website I
decided to use lots of images of the artist. I also
found that they have a colour scheme and they
stick to it throughout the website. So I made sure
that mine was like this as well. I tried to stick to the
colours that were shown in the background picture
of him on the front page. This makes it more
pleasing to look at so people will enjoy looking
through the website more. They will also associate
these colours with him and his work.
I am on track for this week. I have uploaded my
video and completed all outstanding work and the
weekly blogs. I managed to meet the deadline.
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.