Post Production Evaluation

There is a large contrast in the skills used during the post production of my AS Thriller and A2 Pop Promo. The basic skills I acquired during my AS production consisted of simplistic cuts and pan shots. In progression from this I acquired more complex skills through post production for example more complicated cuts and use of after-effects.

There is a clear difference between the editing of the opening of a thriller and a pop promo. The editing of the opening to a thriller can have flexible lengths of shots and can flexibly be cut. The primary aim of this style of opening sequence is the creation of suspense. The general editing to my thriller conformed to the conventions of its genre. Our editing had a slower pace, to create more enigmas, therefore forcing the audience to ask more questions and finally create suspense.

On the other hand, shots in a pop promo can have different lengths yet; they must be cut/ edited to the rhythm or beat of the music. The slow and melancholy feel to the music appealed us to the idea of reflecting this in our editing. Therefore we used many cross-dissolves to create a soft continuous flow of shots. We further used After Effects to blur the edges of several shots to create the image of illusion of a memory or fantasy. This generally subverts the stereotypical conventions of a pop promo; of fast pace jump cuts. We also felt that the performers fitted the genre perfectly, with their scruffy yet organic look. The narrative also follows this style; which therefore compliments the performance. We thought this would therefore generate a watchable music video.

To further this point our aim was to sell Leo Faulks as a package through this video. For this reason we dressed the set in ‘vintage’ style posters and pictures, alongside a retro telephone and a vinyl player. The naturist location shots also complimented the organic feel to the artist. With the strong theme of nature and organic; it made it easy for us to create synergy between the video and the poster/digipak.

All these choices were very important in terms of audience appeal. The primary thought should be ‘how do we appeal to our audience?’. We decided to sell Leo Faulks on his music rather than on his looks. Although, fans of this genre would find him attractive; in his own way.