Practice Editing

Pete's Blog

I browsed Pete's Media Blog, and found this presentation:

Rich mix2

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From viewing this, I have gained some extra knowledge about creating a music video. I have realised that I need to be more realistic about my plans, and have a clear concept which is actually workable. I think I might aim for a more simple idea now, and see how it goes. I also gathered everyone's phone numbers so that I can easily contact my actors easily and quickly. Before I go out shooting, I will make sure that the actors know what they are doing, and tell them what to do before hand so that I can ensure it will go right and no time will be wasted. I also need to think about cut aways and perhaps go out and shoot some on my next shoot. I will make sure that I have a variety of shots ad angles. I will also try to get audience feedback at every stage  of the making.

I also found this presentation:

Presentation nov 4

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There are 9 key words that I need to remember whilst making my music video: Research, Planning, Evidence, Ideas, Feedback, Logistics, Equipment, Production, Reflection.
I need to remember to keep thinking of the conventions and existing music video's. I have planned for things to go wrong such as bad weather, unavailible locations, and decided that I can always change the day/location and film the indoor shots on rainy days. When I am editing, I will make sure that I screengrab to show my proccess. At the top of my blog, I have used the lift pitch/25 word pitch, summarising my idea in a few simple sentences.

Existing Album Covers

Album

I started looking at existing album covers to see which ones I liked and to gather information and ideas about what I can do for mine.

PreLiminary Filming

I went out with the camera and tripod, to do some pre-liminary filming in preparation for my music video. I couldn't arrange for the actors to be in it, as it was a last minute decision, so I used Jono instead. The first picture is the first location that I went to do film. I think that this room worked really well and the lighting from the window was a good effect. I will probably use this room for my actual filming. The second photograph is the second location that I tried out. Although this has a better piano, I didn't like it as much as I needed a back shot, and couldn't get one because of the proxemics. Also due to lack of space, I could only get a small range of different shots. However I did make the most of the space and shoot a couple of shots, using the tripod on top of the piano, looking down. Finally, I put all of the shots together on iMovie, and added an old effect to them all. I muted all the sound, so that I could put on top the track as I would for the final version. I used the technique from Adams song -Blink 182 by zooming into a seperate photo, which then once a transition had been added, converted into a video. I slowed down the time as the clip was very short. Overall I think that this video worked well. To improve when I do the real thing, I will make sure that the tripod is steady, and use a better quality camera.

Existing music video

Katy Perry - The one that got away

I have looked closely at this music video by Katy Perry, and explored the narrative in order to make more studies before filming my video. I realised after watching this, that there is a stronger narrative than the audio points out. 

There is a clear establishment between the happy and the sad moments of her life, and these are shown in very different ways. 

There are also 2 different time frames going on at the same time. This is one feature that my music video will have. The older parts which are set in the past have been filmed with a vintage effect, and a brown tint to them, but also a warming tone to connote that they are both happy. There are lots of candles used, and it is set in her bedroom most of the time which connotes a romantic feel.  However, when it switches to the other time period, when they are no longer together, there is a blue tint used to show sadness, and coldness. I will use this effect in my video to show the break up and how the emotions can be put across through colours. 

Narrative ideas

I have looked at many different types of music video in order to gain extra ideas about what can be featured in mine. Whilst browsing, I came across this video by Blink 182, called Adams Song.There is a strong narrative behind this video, with the lyrics hinting towards suicide and the twist at the end showing how effective it is. I would really like to use the montaging photo-video effect that they have used here as I think it is a very good way to show flashbacks of good times, and the contrast between the two time periods. My narrative would fit in well with this idea and I think that I could possibly make it work, with much planning. If I were to do this, I would have to film all of the flashback shots first, then choose and edit them, before printing them out for the use of the present shots and filming. 

The twist at the end leaves the audience on edge, wanting to know the actual story behind it and what happens next. This gets the viewers talking about it, and promoting the video further. The ending shows the camera zooming out from the stage, to show just one big wall full of photographs, including the one of the band playing, and an empty stage. This suggests that all of the song had been a memory, looking back at that time, hinting that they have passed, or committed suicide.  I would like to use this particular feature more than anything as I think it would add more story to the narrative and keep the viewer watching to see how it ends.

Genre Theory

Genre in this context refers to the kind or type of the music video. Each genre has its own set of characteristics which are recognised and identified by the audience. This is reproduced again and again, in every music video.

This is a music video by Ed Sheeran, of the acoustic genre, which uses many typical acoustic conventions. A complex narrative is normally used so the audience can relate to emotions and feelings, and makes the song meaningful. In this particular acoustic song, the homeless girl is sleeping with men, in return for drugs. This is a typical real life story which is what genre is all about. 


Another convention is black and white effects. The video above shows this, but also the video below. Black and white effects create a sense of time and create emotion, as there is no colour to distract the eye from the subject.

Audiences like genres as it develops an understanding where parts of expectations will be fulfilled. For example, they will expect to see a love story because of my song choice, but they also want to see a sense of dissatisfaction; the break up scene and sad ending of my music video will supply this. 

Producers of generic narratives depend on immediate communication with the audience, so I have communicated with my target audience as much as possible before I go on to create my music video. 

However, there are sometimes problems with defining a genre, but I don't think that this will be a problem with my video as I have looked into many different ways in which my acoustic genre can be identified.

Audience interaction - Questionnaire

To gain extra knowledge about my target audience, I have written a questionnaire, and asked each of them to fill out some information to widen my approach and dig deeper into the lives of my audience. From doing this I will be able to understand thier wants and needs more and will be able to produce a product to suit this, and be confident that it will appeal to them.

Questionnaire:
1.How many days a week do you listen to music? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7
2.How many hours a day do you listen to music? 0, 1-3, 4-6, 7+
3.How do you listen to your music? Phone, iPod, TV, Radio, YouTube, Laptop, live, CD
4.How do you buy your music? Albums from stores, Downloads online
5.Do you prefer to watch a music video whilst you listen to the track, or not? Watch video, Just listen
6.Do you prefer music video's with dancing in, or without dancing? With, Without
7.When do you listen to your music? ___________

Luke Rutter, 17 -
1. 5, I listen to music most weekdays, but not so much at weekends!
2. 1-3, I don't listen to music for a lot of my day, as I am quite busy most of the time.
3. iPod, Radio and Live at concerts and festivals.
4. I always download my music from online, because its quicker and easier than going to the shops. When im running around all over the place, I don't often have time to stop at the shops just for a CD!
5. No, I prefer to just listen to the music on it's own, as most of my consumption of music is on the move.
6. I definately prefer them with dancing as I think it's more interesting to watch.
7. I listen to work mostly when i'm in the gym or doing sport because it helps me to keep going and gives me a rythm to run to.

Izzy Stribling, 18 -
1. 7! I listen to music every day most weeks!
2. Umm.. I have my music playing all the time on my iPod so pretty much all day really unless i'm talking to people or listening to someone.
3. I listen to my music on my iPod all day at school, but only on my phone if my iPod runs out of battery. I also listen to it on the TV when I get home from school.
4. I buy music online, and from stores.. I like having a hard copy of albums as well as quick downloads.
5. I prefer to just listen to the music on its own as I can't concentrait on my work if i'm watching the TV as well.
6. I prefer music video's with more of a narrative than dancing, but I suppose a mixture of both is always quite good!
7. I listen to my music mostly when i'm doing my work at school, but also when i'm driving home from school, and also when i'm in the gym!

Phillipa Rule, 17 -
1. I listen to music everyday as I dance everyday of the week, so music is key.
2. I have about 4 hours of listening to music a day with dance, and then I listen to it whilst doing art at school so overall about 6 hours probably!
3. I listen to music through the speakers on my iPod, but also im always looking at the music videos on the TV!
4. I always buy my music from the stores because I like having the albums all on my shelf because its easier to choose what to listen to!!
5. I always prefer to watch a music video whilst listening to the track because then I can look at the dance moves and how they go along to the song playing.
6. Definately music video's with dancing in! - I LOVE IT :)
7. I listen to my music whilst dancing and in lessons!

Claire Essex, 17 -
1. I'd say about 5 days a week! - I dance twice a week so i'm listening to it then and then I always go out at weekends and hear the music in clubs.
2. About 4 hours a day.. if I get bored then I listen to my iPod, and when i'm on the bus home to school but thats about it! -oh and also when im dancing!
3. I listen to my music on my laptop, Youtube, iPod and sometimes the Radio.
4. Always Downloads.. SO much easier.
5. Yeah I love looking at the music video whilst I listen to it, its so much more interesting.
6. With dancing.. i love dancing so I find it good to watch and see the latest celebrities and thier different styles of dancing.
7. Normally when i'm bored and on my way home from school.. and sometimes in lessons when I don't have to be listening to the teacher!

Costume

Costume is a key part in a music video. The costume will identify and represent the actor, and tell the audience about the actors sense of syle and character. I will dress Rachael; The Girl, in casual vintage style clothing. I think that this will go along with the easy going part of the song, whilst she is by the river and in the woods. For the more serious and sad part of the song, I will dress her in darker more boring clothes such as jeans and a black jumper. I have got these pictures to the left which show examples of what she will look like when in costume in the video.  

I will dress Alex; The Guy, in casual clothes also. He will only be in part of the song so won't need as many changes of clothes but they will all be current fashionable clothing which will compliment Rachael's clothes as well. I have got these pictures to the left of one direction, who's style is similar to what I want my actor to look like. One directions target audience is similar to mine, and their syle goes down well with them, so therefore, I think this style will attract my target audience, and look current and on-trend.

Storyboard

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Storyboard Write-up

I have created a storyboard to plan my music video. I have included a picture of each shot showing what will be in the frame, a description of what will happen in the shot, the transitions between each of them, and different camera angles and distances.

In my music video, there will be 2 different time frames. In my story board, I have used two different colours for both time zones;
The red outlines show the current time zone (girl and boy have split up)
..and the black outline shows the past, which I will show by using flashbacks in my video (girl and boy are together).

My music video will start with a fuzzy black screen (as if the camera is being turned on), then cut to the girl walking in the door using a full body shot and a slight high angle to the camera (to show innocence of the girl) - using camera 2.

It will then cut to camera 1, with the girl turning on the camera and a close up of her face to capture the emotion.

Shot 3 will be the girl walking up to the piano, sitting down and start playing. This will be when the music starts playing.

Shot 4 will be a cutaway of the girls hands playing piano, using a point of view shot to show this.(filmed with camera 3)  

The camera will then tilt upwards to look at the wall, showing all the photographs and sentimental objects from when the girl and boy were together. The camera will then zoom into one particular photograph (which will be a freezeframe of the first opening shot of the next video) which is when it will fade into the video of the first flashback.

Shots 4 and 5 are a recurring theme in my video, and are placed inbetween each flashback video to show the contrast in time. All of the shots outlined in red will be set in a dark surrounding room, and I will later edit in a blue tint to the video to connote sadness.

Shot 6 is set in the past, when the girl and guy are together which is why it will be filmed in a park on a sunny day to connote happiness.  This shot will be a two shot/long shot of the girl and boy sitting on the bench talking and laughing. 

Shot 6 is set in the past, when the girl and guy are together which is why it will be filmed in a park on a sunny day to connote happiness. This shot will be a two shot/long shot of the girl and boy sitting on the bench talking and laughing. A jump cut will then be used to cut to shot 7, which will be a close up on the girls face, to show emotion; smiling, laughing, and looking at the guy. Shot 8 will then be a cut away close up of the boy and the girls hands touching on the bench, using a birdseye view shot. The close up shots of hands will also be a recurring theme in my music video as it symbolises their love, and will really highlight the break up when you see the contrast between the close up of the girls hands all alone whilst playing the piano (when they have split up) and the close up of the girls hands when they are together, with the boys hands always holding on tight. Shots 10 and 11 are then played in the sequence again in present time.
Shot 12 is another one of the 3 shots which is repeated throughout. From there it zooms into a picture which fades into a flashback video.
Shot 13 is a two shot of the girl and the boy walking in the woods, shadowed by the colourful trees to create a sense of perfect happiness. A cut away is then used to show a close up of the girl and boys hands together which is another signifier that they are together. Shot 15 and 16 are both close ups of each the girl and the boys faces looking at eachother capturing the emotion.Shot 17 is a long/two shot of both of them facing eachother making eye contact and holding hands.Shot 18 is of the girl flicking her hair, as it is supposed to be a common thing to do to show that you like a guy. Shot 19 is of the girls face and neck exposed. This is a sexual signifier, further highlighting thier relationship together. 
The next 3 shots are again the repeated scenes.
Shot number 24 continues from the shots before, and is along shot (full body shot) of the guy reaching down to the floor.
Shot 25 will be a cut away close up of his hand and the flower, picking it up off the floor. The flower is one of my significant objects in my music video and will be featured a lot more during the rest of my video.
Shot 26 will be a close up of her face, showing her happy expression and really capturing the emotion so that the audience can tell what she is thinking and draw them into her world.
Shot 27 is another cut away, close up of him giving the flower to her, with another one of the reoccurring motifs; their hands together (as he gives the flower to her).
Shot 28 will be an over the shoulder shot of her holding the flower to her chest, and the other hand holding his. The camera will then zoom onto the flower, and then a fading transition will show the flower on the wall in the current time frame, but it will not be alive (which will symbolise their relationship).
Shot 29 therefore will be the close up of the flower dead on the wall.
Shot 30 and 31 will be the reoccurring shots of the current time frame, with the girl playing the piano. 
Shot 32-36 will be of the girl dancing. I originally thought about having the guy there as well whilst she danced, but I then thought that it would be more conventional if she was dancing on her own, going along with the song in perhaps a black and white camera effect. 

Music Video Dance Scene Ideas

I have found these two music video's in which both have a dance scene in, in which the camera switches from different time frames including the dance scene. I have looked at pixie lott's 'Broken arrow' which has a duet dance piece, in a low lit room. I would however like mine to be a solo piece, but would also like to use the lighting from this video (poor lighting) as I think that it creates a very dramatic effect.

I have also looked at Adele's 'Rolling in the deep' music video. This features a solo piece also, but in a very different way. This is filmed in a bright room, but they have made it so that the dancers identity is hidden, which seems to be a re-occurring factor in music videos. I will make my dancers identity hidden by using a darm room to film, only lighting up parts of her body. Both of these music videos are break up songs which fits in with my music video.

Equipment Testing

 

I decided to test out some of the equipment that I will use to create my music video, such as a camera and tripod. I experimented with close ups and long shots, and different angles of the camera. I also found that there were different settings which the camera can do such as black and white, vibrant effect, sepia etc, and brightness can also be altered. Now that I know this, I can use the vibrancy enhancer in my flashback shots to connote happiness, and I can use the duller effects on the other shots to connote loneliness and sadness.

Narrative Theory

The Narrative of a music video refers to the sequence of events which add together to tell the story, and it will act as a way of organising spatial and temporal data.
The basic narrative of my music video will be; Girl meets guy, they have a romantic summer together, then suddenly summer isn't the only thing coming to an end, as their relationship is broken into pieces, with her song describing her previous feelings whilst being sang in the current time frame to contrast with the flashbacks of their summer.
I aim to take my audience on a journey through my strong narrative, which will engage the audience and keep them listening to my song, and watching my music video.
I will use a variety of codes to address my narrative to my audience, such as;
Technical codes- Camera angles, movement, lighting, sound, props, shot framing, composition, design, layout and editing.
Verbal codes- Through the lyrics of the song.
Symbolic codes- Visual sings that will be decoded by the audience.
Structure- My music video will be following the basis of Aristotle's 'Beginning, Middle, End' theory.  He says that the best way to keep the audience engaged is if there is a basic structure to the narrative where a change in fortune of the character takes place. This will be present in my music video as the story of the girl will go through a break up, shifting her emotions from happy to sad, and the video will show the journey she goes on throughout this.
I have also thought about Todorov's Narrative theory. He says that a good narrative should have an equilibrium at the beginning, then a disequilibrium, then a recognition of this, then an attempt to solve the disequilibrium, and finally a return to equilibrium. My music video will be following most of this theory, however there will not be a return to equilibrium at the end.

Media Language

There will be a continuous theme throughout my music video, and this will be Romance.
I will connote Romance through many certain props and shots such as close up on eyes, lips and hands, two shots of both the guy and the girl. I will also use re-occurring motifs of hearts, flowers and bright colours which will also hint towards this theme.


The daisy flowers will be used in one of the flashback scenes, where the guy actor will pick it up, and give it to the girl. There will be a close up of the flower, and also a close up of him giving it to her in his hands, (like the picture).

The hearts will appear on the pinboard in the shots with the girl, inside in the current time frame. They will connote romance and tell the audience straight away what the narrative of my music video will be about.

Cast

Rachael Bayliss - 17

I have chosen Rachael Bayliss to act as the girl in my music video. She will play the main role of which Ellie Goulding plays in the original. I chose Rach because I know her well, which means that I will be able to get on with her, and there won't be any problems. She also wishes to go to dance school next year, which means that she is perfect for the dance scenes in my video, and is used to performing to a large audience. Rachael lives in the same town as me, and so shooting should not be a problem.





Alex Evans - 16

I have chosen Alex Evans to act as the guy in my music video. He will play the role of the guy. In Ellie Goulding's original video, there is no guy featured with her, so I intent to change this and make it my own by including Alex which I think will make the narrative more understandable. Alex is studying drama at A level, and has done many productions for Devon Youth Theaters which means that he is also used to performing and will know what to expect whilst acting this role.

I think that Rachael and Alex look good as a couple, and they get on really well so shouldn't have any problems acting as girlfriend and boyfriend.

Audience Feedback

In order to gain extra feedback, and find out how to improve my music video, I went out and asked a range of people within my target audience a variety of different questions - girls and boys, mostly aged 16-18.

Rob - 17

Rob, What do you think of my Location for my music video?

I think that the river is a great place to film the video, many people go to the river, from young to old.. so they will all recognise the location when it's featured in your video. The river is also a calming place where the people who would go there would normally listen to acoustic music. Likewise, the woods is also a good place to film, as there would be nice romantic sunsets and a good setting overall.

Steve - 17

Steve, What do you think about my story board/plans for my video?

I think that your plans for your video look really good, and you have a range of different shots. However, I think you need to think about timings and how long each shot will last before you go out and film it?! 

Cara - 17

Cara, What do you think about my choice of song?

I really like the song you have chosen; Ellie Goulding - Your song, and prefer that to the other songs which you were going to choose. I listen to acoustic and pop music al lot so this song ticks all the boxes. 

Who do you think that this song will appeal to?

I think the song will attract the teenage audience because of the typical romantic scenes, and break up which teenagers will be able to relate to, but also the older generation because of the fact that it is a remake of an old song, sang by Elton John who they would be familiar with. However, I don't think that the male audience would like the song as much.

Jas - 18

Jas, What do you think about the narrative of my music video?

I really like the narrative, and think that adding the twist to the relationship is a good idea. I like the flashback scenes and how it will be set in 2 different time frames. However, I think that the ending of your video and the current time frame needs a little more work, as at the moment it's a bit confusing!

Chloe - 16

Chloe, Having watched the original music video to 'Your Song' are there any elements of the video that you think I should include/not include in my video?
I really like the bright colours that are used in the video, in costume and in daylighting.

Emma - 17

Filming Schedule

I have created a filming schedule to keep me on track with filming and so I know when I have to take each of my shots, in each of my locations.
I will dedicate different days, to the different locations to save travelling around a lot. I will make sure that the outside shots are taken on a nice day to avoid rain and bad weather. Inside shots I can take when it is raining or when it is sunny so I will leave those shots until last just incase.

Equipment List

Camera









Video Camera

I chose to do all my filming on this video camera as it uses SD cards to store the memory, which is a reliable method, and easily transferred onto the computer. The screen is adjustable, and there are many different effects




Tripod

Piano

Photographs for wall and other sentimental objects for wall

Music sheets

Ipod

Shot list

Start: Camera 2, videoing her turning Camera 1 on, sits down and starts playing the piano.
Clip 1: Look down  on piano, look up to picture         
Clip 2: Picutre/Video- First meeting 1
Clip 3: Zoom Out- Singing and Playing piano
Clip 4: Picture/Video - Realisation 2
Clip 5: Zoom out - Singing and Playing piano
Clip 6: Picture/Video- First kiss 3
Clip 7: Zoom out- Singing and Playing piano
Clip 8: Picture/Video- Playing in the fields 4
Clip 9: Zoom out- singing and playing piano
Clip 10:Picture/Video- Rivers etc 5
Clip 11: Zoom out- Singing and playing piano
Clip 12: Picture/Video- 6
Clip 13: Camera 2, she walks up to wall, pics up the last photo, and looks at it.
Clip 14: Picture/Video- Printscreen freeze frame of hands held together,  video starts and hands part, she then walks into her room (camera switches to camera 1) She turns camera  on, walks over to the piano and starts playing it.
*Music stops playing and song finishes or pauses*
Clip 15: Camera 3 zooms out of picture, right to the back of the room and the piano is empty and the last photo is the only one left on the wall. The music sheets are ripped up.. camera changes to camera 1 and the screen goes black.

Risk Assessment

Risks and Solutions:
-Tripping over trailing wires or leads.
To solve this I will make sure that all the leads are out of the way when filming my video.


- Slipping on the grass and falling into river.
Make sure that the actor and I are aware at all times, and wear appropriate shoes.


- Tripping over uneven ground.
Film on a level ground, where there are no obstacles in the way.

Your Song Lyrics

Your Song Lyrics

It’s a little bit funny this feeling inside,
I’m not one of those who can easily hide.
I don’t have much money,
But boy if I did,
I’d buy a big house where we both could live.
So excuse me forgetting,
But these things I do,
See, I’ve forgotten if that green or that blue.
Anyway the thing is what I really mean,
Your eyes are the sweetest eyes I’ve ever seen.

Chorus:
And you can tell everybody,
This is your song,
It may be quite simple, but now that is done
I hope you don’t mind, I hope you don’t mind
That I put down in words
How wonderful life is now you’re in the world.

If I was a sculptor,
But then you can’t know,
Or a girl who makes potions or a traveling show.
I know is not much but is the best I can do,
My gift is my…
This one is for you.

Chorus:
And you can tell everybody,
This is your song,
It may be quite simple, but now that is done
I hope you don’t mind, I hope you don’t mind
That I put down in words
How wonderful life is now you’re in the world.

Location

'Your song' Screen shots

Your song’ Screen shots

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I have looked many times at the original music video for 'your song' to gain ideas and to look at particular shots which I like the look of and which work well and which don't. Here some screen shots of the video which particularly interested me.

Youtube links

Whilst browsing on youtube, I came across many music videos that have similar conventions to the one I have chosen.

My music video origional:
Ellie Goulding - Your Song

Related Videos:
Jason Mraz - I'm Yours

Colbie Caillat - Bubbly

Bruno Mars - Grenade

Music Video Moodboard

This is my music video moodboard. I have put on here all of my ideas and thoughts at this particular moment and links to theories I have thought about.

Music Video Spider diagram

I then went on to brainstorm, applying all theories to my chosen song.

As you can see I have looked at Genre theory, Conventions of the genre, Audience theory, Narrative theory, blog links, Representation and Media language. I will use all of this information and all of the ideas to produce my moodboard.

The typical conventions of an acoustic\pop music video are that it is normally made in a natural environment such as in feilds, by a river, in the woods, by the sea etc. Props such as Guitars, pianos, flowers are also used to connote the acoustic genre. 

My target audience will be anyone from the ages of 14+ and any gender. Females may particularly enjoy the music video, and the fact that the original song was made by elton john may attract the older generation as well. 

There will be a strong narrative behind my music video. There will be a girl and a boy, who spend the summer together and have a really good time, then break up when the holidays come to an end. The music video will show the girl playing the song which she wrote over the summer, and looking back on the good times she had with him as flashbacks. 

Music Video Spider diagram

I was unsure about which song to use for my music video, so I have created a spider diagram to brainstorm all of my ideas. I thought about looking at a variety of different types of music to widen my approach. 

My origional choices were:

Ray Charles - I got a woman

Ray Charles - Mess Around

The Commodores - Brick House

Ellie Goulding - Your Song

After doing this and studying each of them breifly, noting down ideas, I eventually decided to look at Ellie Goulding's 'Your Song' as it appeals to me the most and I am familiar with the song which could give me a slight advantage. In my spider diagram I have written down some ideas of setting and narrative but will carry on looking into it in more depth.

Brief

The brief for my A2 media project is to create a music video together with two ancillary tasks; to create a cover for the release on CD, and to create a magazine advertisement for the CD.