A2 Media Production: G324
How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
Digipak Feedback from Matthew Shellaker
Something Matthew highlighted was the use of the images in my digipak explaining the storyline in the music video whereby the relationship drifts apart. He suggetsed this was a good thing to have included in my creation because it has linked the two products together making them easily recognisable for the audience. As a reaction of this element making the products recognisable I believe this would make the sales of the digipak go up as well as the views of the music video as the audience will recognise elements from each product and want to see more within the other product.
"I think the most effective form of synergy between the music video and the two ancillary texts is the use of the same location with the artist sitting on the bench in the magazine advert, digipak and music video. The location in the ancillaries is clearly the same as the location that features in the music video, which has created an obvious and effective link back to the music video. There is also an obvious link by having the same characters from the from the music video in the ancillary products, which is also very effective."
Feedback from Katie Harvey
Magazine Ad Feedback from Matthew Shellaker
Matthew suggested that the mise en scene of the magazine advertisement links well with both the music video and the digipak. The location of the bench being the focal point of the magazine advertisement is also key part of the music video which is remembered by the audience, as well as featuring in the implicit storyline shown on the digipak.
The acting has been praised by this member of the target audience whereby it creates a direct link and combines well together with the overall mood of the music video and the song because it possesses a sad tone.
Music Video Feedback from Matthew Shellaker
This member of the target audience explicitly links my music video together with my magazine advertisement: "the reflection of the nature which links back to the reflection on the magazine ad" suggesting this link is very clear and the two products combine effectively and successfully together.
"There is good continuity throughout the digipak, magazine ad and the music video where the main character appears in all three. Continued use of the bench is also very good because the bench is quite a key focal point for the magazine ad and the digipak as well as much of the music video being focussed around the bench - the main character and his girlfriend spending time together there. However, the girl only appears on the digipak, maybe it would have been a good idea to have her and the artist in the top half of the magazine ad and him alone in the reflection on the bottom half with her faded out in the reflection."
Feedback from Luke Tallett
Matthew is part of my target audience due to his age - 18 years old - therefore I have really valued his time and efforts critiquing and praising my creations because his opinion is one that can be generalised to other young males. It is conventional for multiple products promoting one thing to have clear links, from Matthews feedback I can see that my products have fulfilled this convention successfully to create well combining products that promote one another.
Luke has pointed out the element of continuity throughout the 3 products I have created which shows that my products combine effectively. Similar aspects have been used throughout such as the typography on the digipak and magazine advertisement being identical as well as the mise en scene with the bench in a park which is shown over all three products. However, although there has been an effective combination between the digipak and magazine advetisement, Luke has suggested a way to improve this further. This is incredibly helpful for future reference and shows that although the products do already link together well, there are still ways to improve this further for audience satisfaction.
Feedback from Connor Hall
"I really like the use of other locations fromthe music video on some of the panels of the digipak, such as the mini railway. There locations did not play a big role in the music video but may still be prevalent in the audience's mine, so by placing imagery from these locations on slightly less important panels created a good link between products for the more observant in the audience. If you were to put these images on the front panel it would take away the key imagery of the bench, so it was a good decision to put them on the less important panels."
My view on the combination of all three products
One of the common features shown on my magazine advertisement, digipak and music video are the strong use of the location and use of a bench. This was pointed out by Max, Matthew and Luke who believed this was a strong use of synergy between my products. I also think it is a successful aspect of the creations which draws them all together; it allows the audience to recognise the location and images used, allowing them to all be associated as one.
The dark and muted colour palette is a more subtle form of synergy used, it is used in both the digipak and the magazine advertisement however the colours of the music video were filmed using natural lighting and therefore it quite bright. However the dull colours of the ancillary products create a sombre, sad mood which links to the mood created in the music video. Therefore there is continuity of the mood portrayed through the three products which combines them. I think this may be too subtle for the audience to consciously identify, however, in the subconscious mind I believe this would be noticed, especially once viewing the music video.
The typography used on the digpak and magazine advertisement are the same, this clearly links the two products together. However, the typography used in the introduction of the music video is different. I do not like this typography because I believe it looks too uplifting for the mood of the song and music video as well as looking unprofessional, and therefore, I would need to alter this in order to successfully have a clear link of typography combining all three products.
The artist is used in all three products. He is the main focus of the music video because he acts in the storyline as well as singing on the chorus/performance sections, this draws a lot of attention to him. As well as this, he is centre framed on the magazine advetisement, making him the key focus as well as being used on the digipak. He is not addressing the audience on this product and therefore weakens the connection to the magazine advertisement and the music video, however, he is placed on the front cover aswell as when the digipak is opened making the audience focus on him. As the digipak is opened it tells the story of the couple falling apart gradually, this links to the music video very closely as it highlights the story being told in a very simplistic way.
Overall I believe the combination of my three products has been very effective. As seen through the audience feedback, the audience have clearly highlighted and noticed ways in which the products work together to combine as one. Although some features are more subtle than others, the audience are still able to link the factors together which suggests the success of the products. There are no features which have been included randomly to any of my products and therefore the audience are able to identify that they are all linked together in some way.