Description of intended product
For my Final VFX sequence, I have decided to create a short music video using a combination of text and visual effects as well as filmed videos. The mission is to use this production piece to convey a possible political message within the style of propaganda. My intention is to use various images and text combined with my choice of visual effects effectively in short burst to create this outcome. This product will be developed inside of Adobe After Effects and will use a collection of videos filmed by myself as well as effects customised to suit my video using the features inside of the Adobe software. In addition, any extra assets I feel will expand my piece that have been found externally will be used providing I can correctly attribute them to the original creator.
Research & Inspirations
The 1975 – Frail State of Mind (Music Video)
One of the biggest inspirations for my chosen piece was the Frail State Of Mind music video by the pop rock band ‘The 1975’. Within the music video there is multiple different use of VFX that I would like to explore such as the use of motion tracking on faces as well as the use of overlaying silhouettes on top of fast paced visual art. In addition, the use of grain and glitches throughout the video is something I would like to include as I believe it will fit the aesthetics of my initial idea perfectly.
Green Day – American Idiot (Music Video)
Another video I looked at when deciding on my effect style and media choice was American Idiot by Green Day. One reason why I have included this is their choice to record multiple screens to achieve a distortion effect. This is something that can be overlaid with other distortion effects to really amplify the message you’re going for which is why I think it’s a good characteristic to carry over into my final product. In comparison to Frail State of Mind there is definitely less visual effects present throughout, however the general style has definitely inspired aspects of my ideas.
Bring Me The Horizon – nihilist blues (Music Video)
To conclude the music videos I researched is nihilist blues by Bring Me The Horizon which is shot digitally and acts as a lyrics video. There is multiple aspects of this video that inspired my final idea such as the outline effect of the characters as well as the distortion seen throughout. In addition I found the uniformed use of blue fitting to the song and really amplifies the distortion effect thats ongoing within the video.
Call of Duty Black Ops Campaign
Another product that has stuck with me is the various cutscenes seen within the Call of Duty – Black Ops campaign. These scenes feature various visual assets such as gameplay, real life videos as well as animated documents that are paired with text overlays. In the above video there is examples of this from the intro cutscenes to the game. There is also multiple different subtle effects that although may be easier to replicate, they are still very much effective when a part of a finished product.
Effects to explore in final piece
Below I have listed a range of visual effects I would like to include or at least explore when developing my final piece. Some of the effects are simple but will be used in conjunction with other visual styles to further enhance the project, such as added film grain or lens flares.
- VHS Glitch Effects
- Dynamic Grain
- Motion Capture (Face Tracking)
- Film Grain
- Animated Numbers/Words
- Figure Outlining (Words included)
- Video Layering (Added effects)
- Gradual Drawing (Lines etc)
- Fire
References
The 1975 (2019) The 1975 – Frail State Of Mind (Official Video). YouTube. Available online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOkUE0OB7V0&ab_channel=The1975VEVO [Accessed 12 Jan. 2023].
Green Day (2012) Green Day – American Idiot [Official Music Video]. YouTube. Available online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ee_uujKuJMI&ab_channel=GreenDay [Accessed 12 Jan. 2023].
Bring Me The Horizon (2019) Bring Me The Horizon – nihilist blues (Lyric Video) ft. Grimes. YouTube. Available online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwzfR7-33Wc&ab_channel=BMTHOfficialVEVO [Accessed 12 Jan. 2023].
Sosa, E. (2010) Call of Duty: Black Ops – Intro and Campaign gameplay (part 1) HD 720p. YouTube. Available online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-mlpl0B9dM&ab_channel=EmilianoSosa [Accessed 12 Jan. 2023].
