Research

Introduction

This page of my project portfolio will present a review of different research sources I have consulted for my project. The page will showcase my research plan and research activities that I have conducted to answer my research question which underpins my project. The evidence of my research includes: Research plan, Research design and methods, Research topic and question, subject research ( literature and resources reviews), target audience research, skills and techniques research and production research. I will conclude with the research report where I will write about my research findings.

Research Topic / Research Question

After having identified my chosen idea through the Context stage of the project, I will now continue with Unit 13 when thinking about the area that I will need to research and the methods that I will carry out when doing so. The basis of my idea follows a Short Documentary which would explore the different eras of Music and how it has evolved over the past few decades. Personally, I find it interesting that different decades inhabited different musical genres and how the music of that era had a large influence on peoples lifestyles and fashion choices. At this stage of the process, I am currently undecided on whether I would like to focus on one particular era of music, or whether I would like to briefly touch on a variety and compare them. In terms of research, I feel that it would be more beneficial for me to focus on one musical decade so that I can go into this in further depth. However, in order to help me determine which era I would like to cover in my final Documentary, I will conduct some research on each possible era to help me decide which has the most potential to discuss in depth and be informative and entertaining for the viewer. I will need to ensure that I am using relevant sources, such as archived footage and news articles, which will back up my research and the points that I am making. I am particularly curious to find out more about each era and the cultural shift that occurred from decade to decade in terms of music that was popular at that time. The reason that I am researching this particular topic is because I am personally interested to find out more about how different decades produced different genres and categories of music and why they were popular at the time. In order to briefly narrow down the topics that I will research, I have decided that I will look into music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s, as I feel that these eras already have some prominent similarities and differences in terms of the music that was produced and the differing genres.

Research Question - How is music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s similar or different?

Research Methods and Research Activities - How will my findings inform my Topic Question

before BEGINNING MY RESEARCH ACTIVITIES, I needed to clearly identify the methods and tasks that I would use and carry out throughout the process in order to gain a wider understanding on my chosen topic. To begin with, we were tasked with creating a mind map of ideas that will help us when forming a research plan. Within the mind map, I included different areas of social, historical, and cultural context that I could explore further throughout my research. I have included a copy of my mind map below.

Once I had created my mind map of initial research ideas, I now needed to remind myself of the different research methods that can be used when carrying out these activities. For example, when conducting research, it is important to consider whether you will use a primary or secondary method. As we have previously learnt, primary research means to gather first hand information directly from a source. This is information that has been conducted by you and has not been discovered of found from an external source. Primary research can be a useful method to use when wanting to find reliable information, or gather personal views and opinions from individuals. Furthermore, secondary research means to gather information from sources that have already been researched previously. This could be information from online articles, books, magazines or journals. Secondary research means that the information is existing and has been explored and discovered by you. This research method can be useful when wanting to uncover archived material or find out more about a past source. As well as primary and secondary research, it can also depend on whether your research will give you quantitative or qualitative information. Quantitative date often refers to numerical figures and statistical information, which can be extremely useful when conducting research on a wide scale and wanting to identify a clear difference in answers that are given. On the other hand, Qualitative information is often more heavily reliant on factual and theoretical information. This method is better suited when attempting to gain information from individuals or small groups as it can allow for a more personal approach. With this information in mind, and the initial research ideas that I have compiled in my mind map, I have constructed a research plan below of the key aspects that I wish to investigate further in hopes that It will allow me to be more informed on my chosen topic.

After Having now created a mind map of research activities, and constructing a Research Plan, I feel ready to move ahead with my chosen research topic. I have been able to remind myself of the common research methods and will implement these into my own work when beginning my research next week.

Analysing Related Media Products - How has music evolved over the decades?

In order to conduct some initial research on the similarities and differences between music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s, I will carefully watch and analyse a music video from each era, and hopefully uncover how they were created, and the impact that they had on people at that particular time. Whilst doing so, I will also think about how each video technically differs and identify how the technology and creative planning has adapted and evolved over the years.

Related Media Product 1 – ‘Daydream Believer’ Music Video (The Monkees, 1967)

Music Video Link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvqeSJlgaNk

In 1967, The Monkees, a popular American pop-rock band, released their single, ‘Daydream Believer’ which rocketed to the Number 1 spot on the US Billboard Chart where it remained for four weeks. Shortly after the song was released to the public, The Monkees recorded and filmed a simplistic music video which showcased their new single, however, it is important to note, that music videos were not entirely common at this time, and so it was a bold and pioneering move for the band. Yet, with this being said, the band originated through their own television sitcom, titled the same as their band name, and so they were therefore familiar with performing in front of a camera meaning that this process would have felt natural to them. When analysing the music video in further depth, it is clear to see that very limited special effects have been used and that it simply portrays the band playing their music in an uncomplicated environment; an aspect that would have been expected for a production of this time period. Although perhaps not as extremely as we see in modern day music videos, we are still able to identify that some artistic and creative choices have been made when staging the set for this piece, particularly through the backdrop and costume choices. Bold coloured strips, featuring elements of red, blue and yellow can all be seen in the background of the video, which also compliment the clothes of the band members. For example, Davy Jones, the lead singer of the band, can be seen wearing a red shirt, whereas other members of the group wear different shades of blue and green, whilst Michael Nesmith is playing a yellow guitar. Through these few simple creative decisions, it provides an aesthetically pleasing and uplifting scene for the viewer which helps to reflect the nature of the music and lyrics within the song.

Continuing to look in depth at the music video for ‘Daydream Believer’, I was intrigued to identify the genre of the song as Psychedelic Pop. Admittedly, I hadn’t previously heard of this genre and so conducted some further research to discover more about the characteristics that it possessed. According to RYM, Psychedelic Pop is a genre that combines the elements of ‘Pop, Rock, and Folk music’. I also uncovered that songs that are produced using this genre are often created to ‘emulate the way music sounds while under the effects of psychedelic drugs’; a point that I found particularly interesting and can now understand having listened to several songs that include those tones of music. As well as The Monkees, other similar bands of this period, such as The Beach Boys and The Beatles, also produced music under this genre. The online article by RYM also states that the genre is often used to reflect ‘surrealism and convey abstract elements’ through the lyrics of a song. It is also interesting to note that the genre saw its climax in 1968, when around 830 psychedelic pop songs were released, and has since remained on a constant decline. This could be due to the shift in how people live their lives in the modern day, compared to the common lifestyle in the 1960s. Overall, in their pleasantly simple music video, The Monkees present their single, Daydream Believer, to the viewer in a way that feels performative and should be watched and enjoyed. I am intrigued to identify how music videos from the decades that follow were created, and whether they hold similar attributes and characteristics.

Related Media Product 2 – Bohemian Rhapsody Music Video (Queen, 1975)

Music Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ9rUzIMcZQ

In 1975, Queen, one of the all-time most popular rock bands, released their single, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, of which followed, possibly one of the most well known music videos of all time. Whilst Queen had many hit songs over the course of their career, which spanned from 1970 to 1991, Bohemian Rhapsody was, and still is regarded as their most popular and signature song. After the song was released in 1975, it held the top spot in the UK Charts for nine weeks, crowning Bohemian Rhapsody as Christmas Number 1 of that year. In comparison to the Daydream Believer music video, the video for Bohemian Rhapsody immediately has a creative advantage in terms of the way in which the video has been shot, and the effects that have been used. The video opens with four silhouettes, each representing a group member, with the camera slowly moving closer in on them. After a few lines of the song, the lighting shifts to reveal only the faces of the band, with the rest of their bodies in shadows. At this point, it is important to remember that Bohemian Rhapsody included a variety of different musical genres within the one song, beginning with an operatic section. With this in mind, the creative decision to open the video in this way clearly matches the mood of the song. As the song continues, tones of progressive pop and rock can be heard, at which point the feel of the music video shifts once more. The song is regarded as progressive as it represents changes in tones, symphonies, and styles, all of which are therefore reflected in the music video. As the operatic section draws to a close and the progressive rock segment begins, the video instantly expresses elements that you would expect to see in a Pop or Rock music video of this era. Some of these aspects include coloured lighting, bright costumes, and the visual playing of instruments. Throughout the song, the music video reverts back to the operatic section, depending on the mood of the song at each varying point. This was clearly a cleverly thought out creative decision that was made to represent the fact that the song incorporated a range of genres.

Thinking in further depth about the genres that were used in Bohemian Rhapsody, I decided to conduct some more research into how this originally frowned upon song became one of the greatest selling singles of all time. The exact genres that the song includes are Pop, Rock, Indie, Operatic, and Hard Rock. Songs that incorporated all of these genres had previously not been thought of, or, alternatively, had not been successful and so Queen were taking a risk when composing this piece, which clearly paid off. Another unique element to this song is its six-minute length – commonly, songs of this era would have had a duration of two to three minutes. Therefore, with all of this in mind, I think that Bohemian Rhapsody is regarded as one of the greatest Rock song of all time due to the fact that it is boldly different and produces a piece of music that had never been done before.

Related Media Product 3 – Take On Me Music Video (A-ha, 1984)

Music Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djV11Xbc914

Finally, in 1985, A-ha, a Norwegian Synth Pop band released their single, ‘Take On Me’, which quickly became one of their most popular hits. In the same year as the songs release, A-ha recorded an interesting and compelling music video which verged on what modern day music videos could look like in the years to come. Unlike the other two music videos that I have analysed from the 1960s and 1970s, the Take On Me video follows a narrative structure, with clear beginning, middle, and end points, taking the viewer on a journey throughout the song. The video begins with a series of sketches, which are later revealed to be a part of a comic in a newspaper. Perhaps also in contrast to the previous two music videos, this video focusses more on the lyrical meaning behind the song and takes that into consideration when thinking about the narrative that is being portrayed. When looking at the songs lyrics, it appears to present the idea that if two people are truly in love, then they are able to remain strong and connected, no matter what obstacles they face. This idea is portrayed within the music video as it follows a theme of unlikely romance between the lady and the character within the newspaper, highlighting the crossover between reality and fiction with a symbolical meaning that love can defy all odds. One of the most interesting aspects of this music video is the fact that incorporates a variety of different creative mediums, in terms of how realistic footage and sketched footage are used conjointly. As the video progresses, each medium can been seen to have been used in a single shot – a technicality of which would have been impressive during this era. Furthermore, it amplifies the idea of being able to transport into another world as an act of escapism and freedom, a theme of which is conveyed through the lyrics of the song.

One aspect of this music video that particularly stood out to me was how it had been constructed in a way that separates the viewer from feeling immersed in the performative element of the song. The first two music videos that I analysed clearly showcased the two bands singing and playing their instruments as the main subject of the video, however, in the Take On Me video, the viewer becomes much more of an audience member who is watching a story unfold. Of course, the video has been created to demonstrate and exhibit the bands song, however, it has been done in a way so that it accompanies a greater, visual motion picture. It becomes clear through the video that the viewer is merely an observer of the music video and to enjoy the piece in its own right. The idea of producing narrative lead music videos became extremely popular during the 1980s and can be seen in music videos such as Dolly Parton’s ‘9 to 5’ and Billy Joels, ‘Uptown Girl’. This would have been done to ensure that the viewer remained engaged with the video throughout, whilst also establishing a clear image in the viewers mind, encouraging them to remember and revisit the song on multiple occasions.

How has my research on the related media products influenced my initial Research Question?

Overall, I have found this research task to be extremely beneficial as I feel I have been able to identify some clear differences and similarities between music videos from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, whilst also carefully considering their creative aspects and why they have been constructed in a particular way to engage the viewer. Whilst conducting the research, I have found that I am especially interested in the different genres that gained and lost popularity depending on the decade. This is definitely an aspect that I would like to research further and possibly highlight and discuss within my final end product. As well as this, I am really keen to look into further depth at how music from each decade was primarily consumed by the listener. This could be through Radio, Music videos, or, when thinking about more recent music, through streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music. These are all sub topics that I am now able to research more into through conducting this Research exercise. When thinking about whether this task has had an influence on my original research topic, I think that it has made me more confident in moving forward with my initial idea as I now feel more informed and feel as though it is a topic that I will enjoy researching and creating a product from that research. I will continue to study this research topic in the hope of uncovering more information that can be used in my Final Major Project.

Subject Research Task 1 - How was 60s, 70s, and 80s music produced to reflect lifestyles of these eras?

Having now completed a Research Plan which consists of all of my Research Questions, I must now begin to conduct the relevant research activities that will help me uncover more information about my chosen topic. For this part of my research, I will aim to explore and discover how music from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, reflected society in each decade. I will ask questions such as, ‘Did music of these eras reflect social and political issues?’ and ‘What genres of music were commonly used in each era?’. This piece of research will mostly be contextual, looking into how and why music of this era was produced in a way to influence the listener and how musical mission statements adapted and changed over time.

1960s-

Viewed as one of the most influential eras in modern day music, 1960s music was placed at the forefront of a huge cultural revolution. It is a well known fact that the 1950s saw the peak of Rock and Roll music with artists such as Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, and Jerry Lee Lewis producing music that is still as relevant and popular today. With this in mind, it is no surprise that the early part of the 60s continued to be influenced by the Rock and Roll genre. As I had briefly discovered when researching three related media products, musical genres began to broaden throughout the 60s, consequently creating sub-genres. Some of the sub-genres that were formed from the Rock and Roll genre were, Pop Rock, Folk Rock, Soft Rock, Progressive Rock, and Psychedelic Rock. By having these sub-genres, it made it easier to categorise different music artists depending on the tones used within their music. For example, artists such as The Beach Boys and The Monkees were better known for their psychedelic melodies, whereas, music by Bob Dylan, Crosby, Stills and Nash, and Simon and Garfunkel would be considered as Folk Rock. Because of this, the 1960s was commonly known as the ‘cross-over’ era within music, as various different genres were mixed and used together in one piece of music. It could be seen that the genre experimentation within the music industry reflected other cultural experiments, such as fashion, during this time period too. The 1960s was prominently one of the biggest pivotal points within music that has influenced the genres that are used, and changed the way that music is still produced to this day.

When conducting some further research, I was intrigued to discover that the 1950s era of music supposedly came to end in February 1959, when three musical greats, Buddy Holly, Ritche Valens, and JP Richardson died in a plane crash. After being described as ‘the day that music died’, music quickly began to evolve once more as a wave of new, younger musicians found themselves leading a revolution that would introduce the ‘swinging sixties’. Inspiring a decade of political protest, 1960s music rapidly became a ‘vehicle’ which drove social and political change, highlighting cultural issues during that era. Some of the key topics that were relevant throughout the 60s included civil rights protests, the use of psychedelic drugs and prominent fashion movements. With Blues, Jazz, and Soul music being popular genres throughout the 1960s, many African American artists who displayed these tones within their music, also had an impact on the Civil Rights Movement, which spanned from 1946 to 1968. Music during this period was often structured with a meaning of motivation, hope, and defiance behind it in an attempt to raise moral and to continue fighting for change and justice. An example of this would be the lyrical structure in Bob Dylans 1964 hit, ‘The Times They Are A Changing’. Researching this further, it became clear that Dylan does not directly address race within the song, however, simply signals that a movement was happening, and that society was changing. This is expressed in the line, “The battle outside ragin' will soon shake your windows and rattle your walls", suggesting that the protests and marches were making a notable impact and were having an effect on how the world was moving forward in terms of equality and acceptance. Some other songs of this era that inhabited a message of change and hope include Sam Cookes, 'A Change is Gonna Come', Nina Simones, 'Mississippi Goddam' and The Staple Singers, 'Freedom Highway'.

Another leading issue of the 1960s included the amplified use of psychedelic drugs, which, as previously mentioned, was highlighted in the Psychedelic Rock genre. The genre was introduced to inspire and mimic the feeling of using psychedelic drugs, therefore, included dream-like sounds that loosely represented the motion of hallucinations. The increased use of these drugs also coincided with the ‘hippie’ movements during this era, and so reflected the way that society dressed and behaved. As the genre began to grow, it is thought that some artists explicitly referred to the use of psychedelic drugs in order to accurately implement the given feelings and emotions within their music. Continuing to expand in popularity, elements of psychedelic sounds could also be heard in some forms of Pop and Folk music, pushing the genre into mainstream music. However, before long, in 1966, the use of psychedelic drugs was declared illegal in both the UK and USA, meaning that the related genre of music saw a rapid decline. Some key events in the 60s, such as a series of multiple murders committed under the influence of drugs, meant that many people became opposed to the use of drugs, and so the music that incorporated these elements became less popular. Although psychedelic music is still listened to in the modern day, it never made a full comeback and so ultimately remains one of the most significant sounds of the 1960s.

Also, as I previously touched on, the 1960s saw various fashion trends, for example, the legendary Hippie movement. As various cultural events progressed throughout the decade, many people used their clothing as a form of statement or protest, allowing them a medium to express their own views. The major, overriding theme of the 60s saw a variety of actions being taken to challenge those of a higher power, and to break down boundaries and restrictions that prevented the public from living their lives in a way that they wanted. This can clearly be seen within hippie clothing as it promotes and celebrates themes such as freedom, empowerment, and the refusal to conform to social norms. As well as the Hippie Movement, the early 60s also saw the introduction of the ‘Mod’ sub-culture. The term derived from the word ‘modernist’, implying that both fashion and music were evolving and growing simultaneously. The Mod culture was widely represented within Jazz, Blues, Rhythm, and Soul music, with many of the culture’s followers dressing in tailor made suits and smart dresses. It is also well known that another important aspect of the 1960s included the notable rivalry between the ’Mods’ and the ‘Rockers’. The two subcultures often clashed over their different views and tastes and would participate in riots that were noticed around the world. Similarly to the use of psychedelic music, the Mod culture is not as relevant today as it was then, but still remains as a key figure which represented the 1960s era.

1970s

Building on the popular genres of the 1960s, the 1970s saw an increase in popularity for all genres, each in their own right. Although Rock and Roll once again dominated the early 70s, a variety of genres were used throughout the decade, equally rising and falling in following. Soul, Rock, Pop, and Jazz were all sounds of the 60s that persisted throughout the following decade, with Funk and Disco also beginning to infiltrate into the mainstream of musical genres, with the latter going on to define the music of that era. After The Beatles, one of the most prominent bands of the 1960s, dissolved and both Louis Armstrong and Jimi Hendrix passed away in the early 1970s, the music industry began to pave the way for new artists, who brought with them new musical styles. Some of these included artists such as Billy Joel, who predominantly produced piano ballads, and Queen, who often incorporated orchestral elements within their music. As previously mentioned, it was the introduction of Disco music which would go on to delineate the 1970s, as nightclubs and discos became a place of sanctuary and relaxation following the frustrations which were felt throughout the turbulent political issues of the 60s. Whilst, as always, music continued to be used as a tool to address social and political issues, the 70s could be viewed as a more calmer and light-hearted period of music production, preparing for the amplified popularity of Disco music that would soon follow in the 1980s. Some of the leading Disco artists of the 1970s include, ABBA, The Bee Gees, Kool and The Gang, Earth, Wind and Fire, Chic, and KC and The Sunshine Band.

When conducting some further research, I uncovered that the 1970s was an era of experimentation, both within music and culturally. As I previously mentioned, the 70s saw a wave of much broader and diverse genres moving to the forefront of the music industry. Similarly, to the 60s, many of the social, political and cultural advances were once again influenced and addressed through music. Some of the key events that took place in the 1970s included the Punk Movement, an increase in Hippie, Punk and Disco clothing, and ABBAs 1974 Eurovision victory. It was during the mid-70s that Punk Rock popularity began to rise and influence the Punk Movement which saw many lower-class youths partake in the subculture which aimed to tackle conformality and to allow free expression. The overriding slogan of the Punk Movement, ‘No Future’ was used to highlight feelings towards government officials, and how punks felt controlled and lacking in freedom. Although only having a music career that lasted two and a half years, the Sex Pistols could be viewed as one of the most popular Punk Rock bands of that era. They produced well known hits such as, ‘God Save The Queen’, ‘Anarchy In The U.K.’, and ‘No Feelings’. Many of their song lyrics included themes such as rebellion, revolt, and civil disorder. Other Punk Rock bands that highlighted similar issues through their music included, The Clash, the Buzzcocks, and the Misfits. Ultimately, the Punk subculture began in an attempt to refuse the music, fashion, and culture of the 1960s, and to introduce a new generation of youths, although both Punks and Hippies fought for similar political issues across the two decades.

Continuing with the Punk theme, this aggressive movement had a key impact on the fashion of the 70s. Punk clothing commonly consisted of ripped jeans, tartan trousers, statement t-shirts, leather jackets, and Dr Marten style shoes. It is worth noting that whilst many Punks wore usual, everyday clothing, it was often customised with paint, tape, and safety pins. This added an extra element to the punk style and symbolically represented their standpoints of nonconformity. As well as this, many punks would also make a stand by dying their hair and sporting mohawk haircuts. This was another form of challenging social norms and taking a stance in protest for individuality. Moving away from the Punk subculture, 1970s fashion continued to grow and adapt, especially when building on inspirations from the Hippie movement in the 60s. I am now aware that the 70s was a decade of freedom and expression and this was also the case when it came to fashion, as many people used it to showcase their own originality and uniqueness. Unsurprisingly, the early 70s continued to be widely influenced by the Hippie Movement of the 60s, with popular items of clothing including tie-dye shirts, miniskirts, maxi dresses, and frayed jeans. Hippie clothing clearly represented the relaxed way of living throughout the 70s, when the fashion style reached its peak. As the 70s progressed, so did the fashion, with the Disco genre taking a more prominent place in the decades culture. Some of the 70s Disco fashion included flared trousers, sequined shirts and dresses, and bright blazers. Disco clothing was tailored to shine under the lights on the dance floor and to reflect the themes behind disco music. Variations of each style of clothing can still be seen in today’s fashion and is clearly beginning to make a comeback in the style of modern day youths.

As I previously touched on, one of the key cultural events that took place in the 1970s was the renowned Eurovision win for Swedish pop group, ABBA. Formed in 1972 and comprised of members, Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, ABBA performed their newly released song, ‘Waterloo’ at the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest which was held in Brighton, in the UK. The song reached the Number 1 Spot in several European countries and remained there for a number of weeks. Going on to win the competition, ABBA consequently formed a career long relationship with the UK, and the rest of Europe, resulting in a variety of European and World tours, as well as multiple television appearances. Their music went on to dominate the 1970s with themes of Disco, Pop, and Synth-Pop. The band would continue to endure success throughout the late 70s with hits such as ‘Mamma Mia’, ‘SOS’ and ‘Fernando’. The overriding success of ABBA can still be felt across the globe today as they remain one of the most popular musical bands of all time. Overall, the 1970s was clearly an era of experimentation, reform, and cultural change, building on the issues and movements that were originally initiated in the 1960s. As well as this, it was also a time for adaptation and preparation for the future, hinting at what the 1980s could look like.

1980s

When entering the early 1980s, Disco music began to retract in popularity and, as seen with each new decade, various other musical genres started to emerge. However, having reached this point, I am now aware of how music genres blended and mixed together, and the 80s were no exception. Although the Disco theme was starting to decline, other genres, such as New Wave, Modern Rock, and Dance Pop all incorporated elements of its ancestral genre. The New Wave genre included themes such as pop and dance, as well as including fragments of Punk music. Some popular New Wave songs of the 80s include, ‘Tainted Love’, ‘Don’t You Want Me’, and ‘Our House’. The complex structure of how these songs were produced clearly demonstrate the mixture of genres that were particularly popular during that era. Furthermore, Modern Rock was a term used in the 80s to describe the rock that was being created during that era, encompassing elements of punk and alternate rock. Some Modern Rock songs included, ‘Forever Young’, ‘Love Shack’, and ‘A Little Respect’. Finally, perhaps one of the most popular genres of the 80s, with hundreds of long-lasting hits being created during this era, was Dance Pop. Having directly derived from Disco music, this genre produced songs such as ‘Billie Jean’, ‘Fame’, ‘Material Girl’, and ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’. It was music of this genre that went on to define 1980s music and many of its iconic songs are still as relevant today. The original intention behind this genre was to be used in nightclubs or at parties, and so understandably, many of the songs that were created during this period have remained timeless.

When conducting some further research on the music of the 1980s, many musical genres had already been tried and tested, and so many artists knew the type of music that their listeners would enjoy. Looking back at the 1960s, I can now identify a clear journey that music went on throughout the three decades, and the genres and artists that were able to last the course of time and adapt accordingly. Once again, like the 60s and 70s, the 1980s was another decade of change, however, music was at the forefront of highlighting fewer social and political issues, as well as modern advances. A few of the key events that took place in the 80s were the dilating movements surrounding social change, the vast shift in fashion, and the technological advances that would introduce the world to a whole new age of music and technology. The 60s and 70s were a time of great social and political protest, however, when the 80s arrived, the anger and aggression that had previously been felt during the past few decades, began to die down. Throughout the late 70s, it had become clear that many people wanted to lead happier and more relaxed lives with a sense of freedom, hence the rise of Disco music. This feeling was only amplified through the 80s when artists began to refrain from using their music to address social, political, and cultural topics. Instead, their music began to focus more so on their own chosen subject matters, and was used to promote themselves as artists. As I had previously discovered when analysing the music video for the 80s hit, ‘Take On Me’, music of this era was produced to follow more of a narrative than songs of a previous era. This is a technique that has continued to grow and has become the norm within modern day music, with many artists using their songs to convey a lyrical narrative.

Although the music industry wasn’t prominent in highlighting political issues in the 80s, it was largely responsible for having an impact on the identifiable fashion of that decade. The early 80s continued to take inspiration from fashion of the late 60s and 70s, however, as the decade developed, it would see a massive shift in clothing choices which would change the way that people dressed moving forward. As I previously uncovered, dance music was a mainstream genre of the 1980s and this was certainly represented in selected items of clothing. Society in the 1980s were not afraid to experiment and continue to express individuality and freedom through their clothing as many people sported bold hairstyles, bright colours, and tight, neon clothing. This could include leather jackets, coloured leg warmers, slogan shirts, latex trousers, and the introduction of preppy fashion. Most of these fashion choices were first introduced by 80s household musicians such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, and David Bowie. Furthermore, as well as having upbeat tempos and rhythmic tones, 80s music also promoted health and wellbeing with songs such as, ‘Girls Just Want To Have Fun’, and ‘Eye Of The Tiger’, therefore this had a huge impact on the way that people dressed and how they took inspiration from their favourite artists of that time. Even though 80s clothing mostly went out of fashion with the music at the end of the decade, it still remains a prominent vision of what that era looked like, and fondly reminds those of the musical hits that were produced and enjoyed around that era.

As I previously touched on, the 1980s saw many technological advances which would have an obvious impact on the way that music was produced, and the new sounds that could be heard. Having discovered that the 1970s was the decade that introduced the world to electronic dance music, it would be true to say that the 1980s was the decade that defined the way it was used. Music was now beginning to incorporate new creative techniques that would change the way that lyrics and instruments were received. Technology could now add effects such as synthesis, echoes, reverbs, and delays, which added a whole new layer to 80s music and would inspire the way that music would be produced in the years to come. Some of the songs from the 80s that included technological elements were, ‘Relax’, ‘What A Feeling’, and ‘Together In Electric Dreams’. All of these songs have distinct, technological sounds that can be related to the 1980s music era. In addition to this, the 1980s also introduced music fans to a new way of consuming their favourite songs with the launch of MTV (Music Television), a brand new television channel which was used to promote new and established artists. It was ultimately during this period that music videos rose in popularity and became a new medium for artists to share their music with their fans. I was able to previously familiarise myself with this when analysing music videos from the 60s, 70s and 80s. It was clear to me when analysing this that music videos of the 1980s were the most advanced and followed more of a narrative structure in comparison to those from the earlier two decades. Undoubtedly, the 1980s was the era that would change the music industry for the rest of time in terms of the instruments and technological equipment that was used when producing new music.

In reflection, I have found this Research Task to be extremely beneficial and informative when it comes to thinking about my chosen topic. I have been able to familiarise myself with a variety of facts that could be directly implemented within my final product, as well as gaining a greater understanding of each era. Overall, I am glad to have completed this task as I strongly feel that it will help me when constructing my short documentary on 60s, 70s, and 80s music.

Subject/Target Audience Research Task 1 - How relevant is 60s, 70s, and 80s music in the modern era?

In order to help me gain some more information on whether 60s, 70s, and 80s music is still relevant in the modern era, and to begin determining my Target Audience, I have conducted some primary research by constructing a questionnaire which will be sent out to people of all ages and backgrounds. This will allow me to receive a true and just response, allowing me to understand the relevance that music of those eras have maintained. I have included the responses that I have received below, as well as my analysis in what the feedback has told me.

When beginning the Questionnaire, I asked each of my respondents to state their age so that I would be able to clearly determine who was answering my survey, and identify which age groups were most familiar with each era of music. When looking back at the results, I can see that a variety of all ages gave me feedback, ranging from 18 to 70+. With this in mind, I will hopefully receive a varied amount of responses.

For the first topical question of my survey, I asked each person to select all of the music genres that they enjoy listening to and was quite surprised by the responses that I received. I had initially anticipated that Rock would be a high scoring genre, as this was a genre that I had previously identified as remaining popular throughout all three decades of music, and so I was shocked to see that it only scored 4 responses. The same goes for Jazz, Rhythm, Blues and Folk music - these were all surprisingly low scorers. However, I was intrigued to learn that the Disco genre was the highest scorer as this type of music was predominantly produced during the 1970s. This tells me that the music has remained relevant and so this chart has given me a clear indication on the genres that would interest my viewer within the documentary.

For the following three questions, I asked each person to rate how familiar they were with 60s, 70s and 80s music on a scale of 1-10. When looking at the 1960s question, the majority of respondents selected 8 on the scale, meaning that many people are still aware of music that was produced during that era. With the overall rating being 7.20, I feel more confident that my audience will be interested to learn more about 1960s music when watching my documentary.

I then asked my respondents the same question, but with 1970s music as the subject, and the feedback clearly shows that more people are familiar with 70s music than 60s music, however, the scores are very similar. With only a 0.40% difference between the two genres, I think that the viewer will also enjoy learning about this era of music. I could cover this era in more depth as the overall viewer might find this the most enjoyable element. I will discuss this in further depth in my future questionnaires.

Finally for this section, I asked my respondents the same question but with 1980s music as the topic in question. Although the average rating stands at 7.30 (a lower score in comparison to the one given on 1970s music), all of the feedback given shows that the majority of people are more aware of 1980s than those of the previous two decades. Overall, by asking these questions, I now feel reassured that my viewers will be interested in learning about how music changed through each decade.

Continuing with the questionnaire, I now wanted to find out more about what music in general means to my target audience, and whether it has an effect on their everyday lives. Every single person who answered this question said that Yes, music does have an influence on their lives and all of the answers were of a positive tone. Some examples given were that music can feel like an escape and fuels the imagination, it allows you to express your emotions, and that it can evoke past memories and can remind you of particular eras or moments in your life. I found the responses to this question interesting and was intrigued to learn more about how music can make people feel. This is an element that I hadn't previously thought about including in my documentary, but now feel that it might be an interesting route to explore.

I then wanted to know whether my audience thought that elements of 60s, 70s, and 80s music can still be heard in music that is produced in the modern day. Most of the responses that I received said that they felt this was the case, and spoke about the genres that modern day music derived from. I also asked my audience to give some examples of songs that they think 60s, 70s, and 80s elements can be heard in and was overwhelmed with the amount of responses. Some of the examples that they shared included, Cold Heart, Don't look Back In Anger, and Mo Money Mo Problems. These are all songs that I will listen to and analyse as my next piece of research, possibly discussing this within my final documentary.

Now that I had found out some more information about my target audience, I chose to refocus the questionnaire when asking my overall topic question - 'Do you think that music produced in the 60s, 70s, and 80s is still as relevant today?'. Every respondent said that yes, they feel that music from these decades is still relevant for a variety of different reasons. Some people spoke about how music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s set the tone for music production forever, and that genres used in those decades became timeless, lasting for multiple generations. They also spoke about the specific topics that were discussed, particularly in 60s music, that are still spoken about within modern music. Some of these topics included equality, freedom, sex, and drugs. However, the overiding point that was made is that many people feel a sense of nostalgia when listening to music from these decades, and can feel reconnected with their past. This is something that I am keen to explore in further depth when learning more about the way that music makes people feel.

The final question that I asked my target audience was, 'How often do you listen to 60s, 70s, and 80s music?'. I asked this because I wanted to gage an overall view of how relevant this music really is to people, and although they are familiar with it, do they actively listen to it? Everybody chose the three most recent options being, daily, weekly, and monthly, clearly demonstrating that people do still listen to music from these decades on a regular basis.

Overall, when reflecting on the responses that I received from my questionnaire, I feel much more knowledgeable on how my target audience feels about 60s, 70s, and 80s music and feel more confident in moving forward with the topic. I have been able to uncover which music genres are the most popular, what music means to people and the influence it has on their everyday lives, as well as whether music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s has stood the test of time and is still listened to today. Through conducting this primary research task, I have gained a collection of first hand information that will ultimately prove useful to me when structuring my final documentary piece. In addition to this, through carrying out this questionnaire, it has also prompted me to think about some further aspects that I could research which I hadn't previously considered. As the project progresses, I will conduct another questionnaire which will help me to find out more about what my target audience would be interested in seeing within my documentary, as well as listening to and analysing modern songs that incorporate 60s, 70s, and 80s musical elements. Overall, this task has proven to be successful and I feel that it has helped me when thinking about my final major product.

Subject Research - Which music artists have remained relevant through multiple eras of music, and why?

As I previously discovered when conducting a piece of subject research on how music reflected lifestyle within the 60s, 70s, and 80s, a large amount of 'musical greats' were produced throughout these periods of time. Now, over 60 years ago since the start of the swinging sixties, I am keen to discover which music artists are still as popular and relevant in the modern day, and how their music is translated to a modern audience.

Hailed as 'the Greatest Rock and Roll Band of all time', The Rolling Stones have undoubtably lasted the course of time, releasing their first single in 1963, and still touring Europe in 2022. Covering Chuck Berry's, 'Come on', The rolling stones released their own version of the single which would ultimately set them up for a career spanning over six decades. When they emerged, The Rolling Stones were seen as a breath of fresh air as they began to break the mould of artificially created bands in the 60s, such as the monkees, who derived from a television series, and was viewed as having their own sense of individuality. Although they mainly produced Rock music, they were able to incorporate various popular genres of the 60s into their music, such as Blues, Jazz, and pop. They did experiment with a few different genres, such as Psychedelic Rock, however, made the decision to abandon these genres and return to their roots of classic Rock N' Roll. Throughout the decades, they have released a wide amount of number one hits, including, 'The Last Time', 'Honky Tonk Women', 'Paint It Black', and perhaps most predominantly, '(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction'. The latter single was released in 1965 as part of the bands 'Out Of Our Heads' album, and has remained the groups most popular and well known song to this day. Over the past six decades, the song has been covered by numerous artists, including Otis Reading in 1965, Aretha Franklin in 1967, DEVO in 1978, Britney Spears in 2000, and Sambo in 2009. This clearly shows the impact that the song has had on various generations across the years, with each artist taking the lyrics and putting their own stamp on the song with a genre that is most personal to them, whether that be pop, soul or Funk.

When Researching into more depth as to why and how The Rolling Stones have maintained their popularity throughout the years, I discovered that this is mainly due to the band having a deep connection with one another. The bands leading men, Keith Richards and Mick Jagger were said to have 'understood' each other and were able to play on each others strengths and work creatively from that. As a band, they always knew what music they wanted to create, and the messages that they wanted to convey, which was always clear through their use of lyrics. Like many fresh bands of the 60s, The Rolling Stones were not afraid to address taboo topics within their songs, such as Drugs, Sexual Relationships, and Violence. As I had previously uncovered, all of these topics were particularly common within the Rock and Roll genre and conclusively defined what the genre was all about - making a stand and conversating key issues. Whilst searching for the reasoning behind how and why The Rolling Stones have maintained longevity, it appears to me that the answer is simply because they want to. Over the years, they have built such a momentous repour with their audience, and have assembled a colossal catalogue of songs that they enjoy performing. The audience wants to hear the music, and the band wants to play it, giving them very little reason to stop. Whilst many musical artists of the modern day produce music to gain fame and celebrity status, The Rolling Stones have very obviously always remained true to the music, and bringing joy and entertainment to their fans, leaving them with a lifelong legacy.

Boldly arriving on the music scene in 1970 with his hit single, 'Your Song', Elton John has remained at the forefront of the music industry for the past 50 years. Although his career came to halt after just a year when his first album didn't take off as planned, he quickly made a comeback with the song which explored themes of romance and innocence. When researching this as a listener, I was surprised and intrigued to learn that this was John's first single, as even to this day, it remains one of his most popular songs, with multiple artists recording their own covers, including Billy Joel, Rod Stewart, Ellie Golding, Lady Gaga, and Boyzone. As well as this, Elton John has also produced an array of highly admired songs, such as 'Honky Cat', 'Rocketman', 'Crocodile Rock', 'I'm Still STANDING', AND 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'. Although he initially began to produce Rock music, Elton John would also infiltrate elements of Pop and Blues music into his songs as well. Having established his career in the 1970s, he has maintained his Legendary status by continuing to produce new music and tour the world, performing more than 3,500 concerts in places such as London, Canada, Africa, New Zealand and the USA. Over the course of his musical career, he has amassed a broad range of titles, including having 1 Diamond Album, 40 platinum albums, and over 50 Top 40 hits. Across 5 decades, he has sold over 300 million records across the globe, produced a best selling autobiography, and has even earned himself the 'sir' status after receiving a Knighthood in 1998.

When thinking about how Elton John has stayed at the top of his game and has dominated the music industry for the past 50 years, I am intrigued to know what has stimulated his popularity for so long. Unlike my research into The Rolling Stones, I have discovered that there are actually multiple factors which could have contributed to Elton Johns success. Firstly, the genres of music that he has produced through his songs have ultimately remained timeless and have endured the course of time, therefore, his music has never really gone 'out of fashion'. In addition to this, Elton John has of course gained himself a very large following of fans over the years, which could be mostly due to his extensive tours, allowing him to cover most of the world. As well as this, he has also set up the AIDS Foundation which has helped millions of people over the years. Elton John considers himself a survivor and so it could be that many people have a great amount of respect for the musician, and have always remained supportive of him and his music throughout his life. With all of these elements considered, he has always been an advocate for change, and has himself ensured to keep up with changes and adaptations within the music industry. In recent years, he has engaged with his fans through social media platforms such as, Instagram and TikTok, allowing him to remain a constant figure in the modern world. perhaps one of the biggest reasons that John has remained so popular is because he is not afraid of reworking his original classics and giving them appeal to a younger audience. This is clearly demonstrated in his 2021 single, 'Cold Heart', which he duetted with Dua Lipa. Although the melodies and pace of the song were slightly different, he incorporated some of his most favoured lyrics from his past songs such as 'Rocketman' and 'Kiss The Bride'. When embarking on his final tour titled, 'Farewell Yellow Brick Road' in 2018, Elton John announced that he would be taking a step back from performing live, however, he will undoubtably continue his legacy when creating new music and appearing as an advocate for social and political change.

Dubbed as the 'Queen of Pop' for her musical contribution in the 1980s, to this day, Madonna remains one of the most popular figures of the decade. after releasing her debut single, 'Everybody' in 1983, Madonna went on to produce her first self-titled album which featured songs such as 'Physical Attraction', 'Borderline', and 'Holiday'. The latter song went on to become one of the artists most celebrated musical creations and incorporated one of the most popular genres of the decade, Dance-pop, as well as hinting at elements of Psychedelia. Following her initial success, MADONNA continued to build on her discology when producing hits such as 'Like A virgin', 'Material Girl', 'Stay', and 'Ray of Light' in the following years. As I previously uncovered, the 1980s saw a strong cultural movement in terms of music, fashion, and lifestyle, and Madonna indisputably had an influence on the world at that time. During this period, women were still considered as being inferior in many aspects of society, and Madonna challenged this through her own fashion choices and lyrical meanings. She would often dress in rebellious clothing and address key issues through her music. A song in which this is often missed or overlooked is in the lyrics of 'Material Girl'. Upon listening to the song, the words invite the audience to form a negative opinion on Madonna, however, after conducting some further research, I discovered that she purposefully structured the song with this in mind. At the time, she was fully aware of how society operated and was keen to challenge the norms that had been set by society. The literal meaning behind the lyrics depict the artist as a self-centred and materialistic woman who lives off of her husbands wealth, however, symbolically, the song highlights the wrongs of society and questions why women of that time conformed to social norms. The song angered many people of that generation because they disagreed with the ideology that men were superior to women, as did Madonna herself, therefore, this contributed to an increase in individuality and personal expression, portraying Madonna as a pioneer for change.

Whilst to many, the 1980s do not seem a world away, I am keen to learn how Madonna has managed to maintain her title as the reigning queen of pop music, and how she continues to reach her audiences in the modern day. Over her 40 year career, Madonna has toured various locations across the world, including North America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania, where she has performed and promoted her most recent music. Throughout the entire 4 decades, she has remained consistent in producing new music when releasing albums in 1983, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1992, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2012, 2015, and 2019. Like many artists, she has remained relevant by keeping up with technological changes within the music industry and producing sounds that will interest a variety of generations. Furthermore, her 2022 album, which was titled 'Finally Enough Love' features some of her best-selling hits which have been remastered and re-recorded to appeal to a younger audience and structured specifically for a nightclub setting. As with Elton John, Madonna also keeps her fans updated through her social media platforms where she shares archived footage and images from her career. In 2023, she announced that she would be returning to the touring scene when beginning a two year long stretch of global performances in 2023 and 2024. Similarly to the other artists that I have researched, it is clear that Madonna is still keen to perform and to share her music, both old and new, with her audiences, proving that she has lasted the course of time and continues to act as an icon of both 80s and modern day music.

Through conducting this piece of research, I feel that I have been able to gain a deeper understanding and respect for the musical artists that have remained consistent for a number of decades, and have been able to keep up with changing trends. The intent behind this aspect of my research was to uncover what it is that keeps these artists at the forefront of the music industry, especially so many years after they originated their skills. Whilst there are many factors, such as producing engaging melodies, inspiring lyrics, and iconic fashion choices, it mostly comes down to one aspect - and that is the desire to perform. Through researching all of these artists, I feel that I am now able to understand why they are so popular and why they do it. Ultimately, These two things go hand in hand - the artists' passion is to produce and perform music and as long as their audiences will listen, they will continue to do so as they find great enjoyment and pleasure from it. I believe that the aspect that gives these artists their legendary statuses is the fact that they have honed their act and remained true to their authenticity throughout their careers. They understand what their listeners want to hear and so continue to produce music that reflects that. When looking ahead to the future, I am sure all of these artists will remain popular, with their music becoming timeless, however, I am also intrigued to see how new musicians and artists of younger generations will rise to the same level as these artists in the years to come. We are already beginning to see artists such as Adele, Beyonce, Bruno Mars, Harry Styles, and TAYLOR Swift who look set to follow a similar path to their ancestral music greats.

Target Audience Research - How can music have an effect on society?

Having completed a varied range of subject Research on music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s, I now want to find out more about how music in general can have an effect on society. Through my research, I have been able to understand how and why musical artists continue to produce and perform new music, however, I also want to know how and why their music is consumed by their listeners. In order to help me uncover the social effect that music can have, I have constructed a Questionnaire which will ask my TARGET audience QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MUSIC THEY ENJOY, AND HOW THEY THINK IT EFFECTS THEM, EITHER POSITIVELY OR NEGATIVELY. I have attached screengrabs of my findings below, as well as my analysis for each question.

When beginning the Questionnaire, I asked each of my respondents to state their age so that I would be able to clearly determine who was answering my survey, and identify which age groups were common within my Target Audience bracket. Through doing this, it would give me a greater understanding of who my documentary will be aimed at, ultimately helping me to decide how to structure my end piece in a way that will interest my viewer. Whilst the survey shows a mixture of age categories, the highest group was those that fell into the 18-20 section, encouraging me to think about how I could create a piece that will resonate with people of this age.

Secondly, I asked my Target Audience how often they listened to music, and gave them the options of Daily, Weekly, Monthly, and Yearly. As my data shows, an overwhelming 9 out of 10 people selected weekly which clearly shows that music plays a big role in peoples everyday lives. I felt it important to ask this question generically because, although my documentary focusses primarily on 60s, 70s, and 80s music, I know that many people enjoy different genres and have their own musical taste.

Now that I knew how often my Target Audience listens to music, I wanted to know more about the reasoning why they choose to listen to music on a regular basis. When conducting some prior research I discovered that the common reasons for listening to music include to relax, focus, distract, reflect and motivate. I found this particularly interesting and wanted to find out how this effects my respondents personally. I was intrigued to receive a varied response, however, I was not surprised that 'To Relax' was the most popular answer as this is something that I had already discovered earlier in my research.

Continuing on the subject on why listening to music is important, I wanted to understand the specific genres that my audience listen to in given situations and try to identify if there were any running themes within the collective of answers. To begin with, I asked about the genres that they listen to why choosing to relax, and although some answers were similar to each other, the overall result was mostly varied. Some genres that were given include Jazz, Pop, Hip-Hop, Acoustic, Slow Rock, Heavy Metal, and Motown. When analysing the mixture of answers, I have concluded that this is due to the fact that when wanting to relax, people are inclined to listen to the genre that they most prefer and that they internally feel the most relaxed listening to. Everybody has different tastes in music and this is clearly demonstrated in this element on the survey.

Once gaining an understanding of the genres that my Target Audience listen to in order to relax, I now wanted to understand the genres that make them feel the most focussed. Unlike the previous question, this question followed more of a trend when it comes to similarities in answers. Many of my respondents said that they listen to slow Jazz, Country, Reggae, and Ambient music. As I having previously uncovered in other aspects of my research, these genres are the most common for this reasoning, therefore, I was not surprised to receive the responses that I did, which now support my original thinking.

I now wanted to learn more about the genres that my Audience listen to when they are wanting to distract themselves from a situation. I found the answers to this question very interesting as many people suggested that they listen to upbeat dance, disco, Rock, and Pop music. They share that this helps to distract their mind and encourages them to focus on different things when they are not in the correct headspace to focus on something else. Of course, the genre that you choose to listen to, does depend on the situation at hand, however these sets of answers follow a similar suit with one another.

Continuing with the same theme of questions, I also asked my target audience about the music they listen to when reflecting on a given situation. Again, this of course depends on the situation, however, I was intrigued to hear about the genres that they felt represented Reflection. The responses were once again relatively varied due to a difference in music taste, however, the overriding theme included genres that were Mellow, calming, Soft, and chilled. One respondent suggested that many love songs inhabit these genres and so they commonly listened to these, with another sharing that they listen to music from the era that they are reflecting on. I found this interesting as it directly relates to the topics that I am aiming to cover within my documentary.

Finally for this section of the survey, I asked my audience about the genres of music that they listen to when wanting to feel motivated. Many of these responses were similar to each other with genres such as Rock, Pop, Heavy Metal, Dance, and Rock N' Roll. These are all genres which usually feature high tones and melodies, and so can make a person feel motivated and encouraged to do something or complete a task. A few of my respondents also suggested that this genres make them feel energised and productive. I will keep this in mind when thinking about how I would like my audience to feel when watching my documentary.

CONTINUING WITH TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW MUSIC CAN AFFECT SOCIETY, I asked my audience how they feel that music has affected their own mental health. The majority of people suggested that they felt that music effects them in a positive way and can help to lift their mood if they are feeling down and sad. Others describe it as a comfort for when the are feeling lonely and suggest that it helps to fill silence in dark moments. Some people say that it helps for them to channel their thinking and can often open their minds to different scenarios or ways of thinking. Overall, my respondents believe that music can have a positive impact on mental health, which backs up the point that music is a body that can be universally enjoyed and connected with.

For the final question, I asked my Target Audience, 'How do you think that music has an effect on society?'. For this question, I wanted to address society as a whole as I wanted to understand how my audience thought music influences lives around them. All of my respondents suggested that music has the ability to bring people together and can help them connect with their families and friends. they say that music has helped them to build upon friendships as it is a topic that they can discuss and share interests in. One person also suggested that music can often provoke emotions, which I think is a powerful message, as it can help to understand your thoughts and give you clearer piece of mind. In slight contrast to this, some people suggested that music with particular lyrics can sometimes be seen as offensive and have a negative effect on the public and society. However, with this being said, the overall idea is that music is able to connect and unite society as it provides comfort and joy to many people.

Overall, when reflecting on the responses that I received from my questionnaire, I feel much more knowledgeable on how my target audience feels about music in general and whether they believe that it has a positive influence on society. I have been able to understand more about the different genres which are commonly listened to depending on the given situation, whether that be to relax or to reflect. I also discovered how music can have an effect on mental health and society in general and how it can influence the way that people behave and live their lives. Through conducting this primary research task, I have been able to gain a deeper understanding of my Target Audience and the music that they listen to, as well as why they think that music is important. With this information in mind, I can now carefully select which genres of music to cover within my documentary so that it will relate to my audiences interests and that they will hopefully find enjoyable to watch. In conclusion, this Target Audience research task has proved to be very beneficial as I now feel more confident about how I will structure my final Documentary.

Skills and Techniques Research

In this part of my Portfolio, I will focus on the Skills and Techniques that I require for my project. I will research the attributes and characteristics of a good Documentary Maker, whilst researching several methods of Documentary Interviews, Structures, and similar examples. I will record all of my findings to ensure that I am including the skills and techniques that I learn and practise when it comes to producing my final product.

Documentary Interview Techniques –

When completing our Documentary Making unit earlier in the year, we learnt about the basic aspects that are required when structuring a Documentary. One of which included looking at Interview Techniques. Interviews are often an essential part of conveying information and personal opinions within a Documentary, and so it is important that they are structured carefully in order to be successful. For my Final Major Project, I intend to film some interviews which will hopefully add depth to my documentary and will allow for a more personal touch on the topic that I am discussing. In order to ensure that I execute my interviews correctly, I will revisit some of the work that I have previously conducted on Interview Techniques which will hopefully give me a clearer idea on how my interviews should be structured.

When looking back on my previous work, I discovered that, before recording an interview, it is important to prepare several key aspects first. One of which is to conduct some research into the subject or the interviewee that you are discussing. This will help to give you a brief, background idea on the topic, encouraging you to generate relevant questions. It is essential to have prepared your questions before beginning the interview, so you know what you want to ask the interviewee and have a basic vision of what you will talk about. In my case, I intend to ask my interviewee about their taste in music and how they feel that music has an effect on their everyday lives. I will also ask them about their opinions on 1960s, 70s, and 80s music and will aim to interview people who have lived through all three of those eras and have experienced the changing music industry. Throughout the interview, it is also often common for the interviewer to ask supplementary questions if necessary to the point being made. This would help to gain more information and knowledge from the interviewee, allowing for more footage to be used in the edit.

We also learnt about the importance of having an interesting and appropriate backdrop for our interview. It should be relatively basic, not drawing attention away from the subject, however, could include some objects or backdrops that are relevant to what is being spoken about. Once deciding on a location, it would also be sensible to do a recce to evaluate the surroundings and identify any possible problems and how they could be solved. A location recce would also give you the opportunity to test the audio quality in the surroundings, allowing you to understand if the audio quality would be suitable when it comes to recording the interview. When recording the audio, it’s important to remember that the audio levels should be between -6 and -12 on the recorder, allowing for some possible sudden, loud sounds. It is worth noting that it is important to have audio samples before recording any pieces of audio for an interview.

Some further things to consider when preparing for and filming an interview are the varied shot types used, the setup of the interview (whether the interviewee is standing or seated), and to set the White Balance appropriately to the setting. When thinking about how my interviews will be staged, I would like to have my interviewees seated to give a relaxed and informal feel to the documentary, which will hopefully imply that the interview is much more conversational than interrogative. Another point is to ensure that the camera is focussed and aligned with the eyeline of the subject. It is common for the eyeline to be the particular focus in interviews so that it creates an intimate tone for what the person is saying. In order to check this, you can look through the viewfinder on the camera to ensure it is focussed and to analyse the framing of the scene and decide if there are any background distractions. It is also important to think about filming 'noddies' when recording the interview. Noddies are short clips of the interview reacting to what the interviewee is saying. These can be filmed with the interviewer showing a range of different emotions which can then be used in the edit to help make the interview seem like a normal conversation. Although Noddies are a common technique when it comes to interviews, I personally don’t think that I will require them, as my interviewees will only be sharing their own views and opinions, and the audio of the interviewer will not be heard, therefore, very little reactions will be necessary. Like with many TV and film scenes, it is essential to consider the lighting and sound, particularly so when filming interviews. When setting up for the interview, neither person should be placed in front of a bright background as this will affect the contrast and cast a darker light onto the subject. The person should be stood or seated in front of a dark background and be well lit so that they are clearly visible. It is also important that they are not directly positioned closely to the background, however, are further forward allowing for some depth in the shot. Finally, it’s wise to leave a few seconds after the interview has finished, not cutting the filming immediately. This allows for a more effective end result when the interview is being edited together.

Having reflected on all of the information that I have learnt, I now realise that it would be a good idea to practise my interviewing techniques before conducting my final interviews. I will record and film a mock interview which will demonstrate an example of how my interviews will ideally look in the end result. Before conducting the practise interview, I will compose a series of practise questions, as well as watching several tutorials on Interview Techniques to ensure that I am confident and fully aware of the skills that are needed to film an interview successfully.

Documentary Green Screen Techniques –

After having learnt about how to successfully conduct a Documentary Interview, we were then introduced to how the Green Screen can be used to expand and improve the possibilities of an interview. By using a Chroma Key background (often green or blue), it allows for the backdrop behind the interviewee to be removed and replaced with a different image; usually one which represents the subject that is being discussed. However, when filming a Green Screen interview, there are several aspects that need to be considered to ensure that the end result looks as clean and as professional as possible.

Firstly, one of the most important points of filming a Green Screen interview is to ensure that you have good lighting. Whilst it might seem that there is little surroundings to actually be lit, it is essential that the backdrop is fully lit, evenly on either side. This is due to the fact that the Green Screen colour can then be easily and smoothly removed during the post-production process. Before filming the interview, it is important to ensure that there are no shadows casted on to either the backdrop, or the subject, as this can cause issues when it comes to editing the footage together at a later stage. As well as the background being lit, it is of course also necessary to make sure that the subject is also lit and that the temperature of the lighting is matched to the potential background which will replace the green screen. For example, if the backdrop was to be an image of Antarctica, it would be beneficial to use a cooler coloured light when lighting the subject. This helps for the scene to appear more natural and believable for the viewer, making it seem less artificial.

Furthermore, another aspect to consider when filming with a green screen is where the subject is positioned on camera. In many cases, it would be advantageous to have an idea of what image or video footage will replace the green screen so that you are aware of where to place your subject on screen. Also, if you are interviewing multiple people, it would be sensible to alternate where they are stood or seated, as this will help to avoid jump cuts when editing the final piece together. Even by having a slight shift in positioning, it implies to the viewer that the scene has changed and cut to somebody else. As well as this, it is also important to inform your interviewee that they should be aware of their clothing choices. For example, if they are wearing something which is green, blue, or has a similar tone to the background, this could cause a major issue when it comes to removing the colour in post-production, as it could also remove the colours on their items of clothing. This is an issue that I have previously encountered beforehand, and so it is essential that I practise this to avoid making the same mistake. This can sometimes also be the case with patterned clothing or clothing that has various fabrics and so it is useful to wear bold colours which oppose the background colour on the colour wheel. I will conduct a screen test with my interviewees items of clothing before beginning to film to ensure that it will not affect the video quality once the background colour has been removed.

When thinking about using a Green Screen for my own interviews, I don’t believe that it is a necessary aspect, however, I do believe that it will add to the quality of my final piece and will give me an opportunity to improve on my skills and experiment in further depth. In terms of what I will replace my green screen with, I intend to focus less so on replicating a setting, but rather including an image which represents the topic that I am discussing. For example, this could be a record, a concert setting from the 60s, 70s, or 80s, or a background image which represents musical evolution. I am aware of the importance of not having a background image which is overly complex and that will distract from the main subject in the foreground of the shot. Therefore, when editing my documentary together, I will consider slightly blurring the backdrop so that it is not as prominent to the viewer’s eye. Having now reflected on the reasoning behind using the Chroma Key Technique, I will practise using a green screen when filming my mock interviews. I will ensure that every aspect of the green screen is lit as well as possible so that the overall end result looks smooth and finished.

Production Research

As I am working individually on my Final Major Project, it is essential that I am aware of all of the key roles which I will need to take on to ensure the smooth running of the production. For example, some of these roles include Director, Cinematographer, Audio Recordist, Editor and Archivist. In order to fully understand in depth the qualities and attributes that these roles require, I will conduct some research into each role and gain knowledge that I will then put into practise when filming my Documentary.

Director –

When thinking about the role of a Director within Documentary Making, or any aspect of filmmaking, it is important to know that they are the person that has overall artistic and creative control, and who oversees the visual creation of the production. It is also worth noting that the point where a director is required can depend on each individual production. For example, sometimes a director will see a production through from the Pre-Production stage, all the way to the post-Production stage, however, on the other hand, they are sometimes only needed for the Production stage when the film is being shot. A key attribute that a Director must inhabit is good Communication skills as this will prove essential when working and collaborating with other members of the team. In order to produce a successful piece of work, every crew member should be aware of the creative vision, and it is the Directors responsibility to ensure that this vision is clear and has been shared with the rest of the team. Furthermore, during the pre-production stage of a project, the Director might like to create a storyboard which will allow them to visually refer back to their original idea for how they would like the shot to look. This can also be helpful to other members of the crew when it comes to staging, costume and set design. Directors are most predominantly known for working closely with actors and talent and ensuring that they are aware of what they need to do and where they need to be positioned. In many cases, Directors also work closely with the editors during the post-production process to give notes and watch rough cuts of the final piece to ensure that their overall vision is being translated through the screen.

Some key attributes that a Director must inhabit include;

Good Communication Skills
Identifying the tone and mood of the scene
Working with department producers (Casting, Camera, Sound)
Consistently communicating with Producers to ensure the project is on track
Working closely with Editors when editing the film together

Audio Recordist –

In many modern Films and Television programmes, Sound is often sourced artificially from sound libraries, or through recording using the Foley Technique. However, for my project, I need to understand the requirements of recording live sound, on set. For this piece of Production Research, I looked into the different equipment and techniques that can be used to try and identify which would be appropriate and the most beneficial to my project. When recording sound, one of two devices can be used – single recorders or double recorders. A single recorder device would mean that audio would be recorded simultaneously on the visual recording device, which in my case, would be a camera. Whereas, with a double recording system, the audio would be recorded on a separate device to the camera, and would be synced up with the visuals later on in the post-production process. When thinking about which technique will be better suited to my project, I would like to use the double system technique, as this will allow for a higher quality audio track, even though this will need to be synced with the camera footage at a later stage. Furthermore, as an audio recordist, I must ensure that I am recording in a quiet location where possible. As I will only be filming interviews for my project, this shouldn’t prove as too much of a problem, however, if I were to be recording in an outdoor setting, I would need to be aware of any unwanted noises that could not be controlled. Through conducting some further research on different microphone types, such as Shotgun and Dynamic microphones, I have decided to use a Lavalier microphone which will be clipped onto my interviewees item of clothing. This will allow for the microphone to be close to the subject, ultimately capturing the best quality sound.

Some key attributes that an Audio Recordist must have include;

Having an understanding of which Microphone will be used
Being aware of surroundings and uncontrollable noise
Working closely with the subject to ensure they can be heard
Checking audio levels before recording
Communicating with the Cinematographer/Camera Operator consistently.

Editor –

Primarily, a TV and Film Editor joins a production during the post-production phase when collecting footage and materials to edit the project together. The Editor is the person responsible for taking all of the resources which have been filmed or compiled during the production stage, and creating the end product with the help and guidance from the Director. In some cases, films can be edited together and finalised, having completely missed the overall message of the story, therefore, it is essential that the Editor regularly communicates with other members of the team to ensure that the end result will execute their original vision. Depending on the size and budget of a production, the word ‘Editor’ can be used as an umbrella term for various different roles including an audio editor, a VFX editor, and a colourist. All of these people are responsible in contributing to the overall edit of a film and so must work closely with one another. When thinking about how I will take on the role of an editor for my project, I will be responsible for cutting my shots together, syncing footage and audio together, as well as using the Chroma Key technique when using a green screen for my interviews.

Some key attributes that an Editor must inhabit include;

Regular communication with Directors and Producers
Being able to collaborate with other creatives
Have a deep, technical understanding of Post-Production
Being able to creatively make decisions which will affect the overall feel of the film
Compiling footage which will represent the message behind the film

Archivist -

When thinking about the role of a film Archivist, I am intrigued to understand how archived footage is sourced and where it is kept when not being used. After conducting some research, I uncovered that once every British film is complete, the final copy, script, production schedule, and production images are all sent to the BFI (British Film Institute) where they are kept in storage if they are needed for any future reference. It is the Archivists job to ensure that these items and digital files are kept safe, as well as helping to source them should they ever be required again. Often in Documentaries, archival footage is used to back up a point being made and to visually demonstrate an idea to the viewer. This is most commonly used within historical documentaries when referencing old pieces of footage, however, more recent footage can also be used, depending on the topic that is being discussed. When acting as an Archivist for my project, I will need to carefully search for relevant pieces of footage and images which will amplify the points that I am making within my Documentary. This will be a task which I will carry out during both the Production and Pre-production stages as I will need to have a brief idea of what the end result will look like, however, I may require additional resources after I have conducted my interviews.

Some of the key attributes that an Archivist must inhabit include;

Excellent attention to detail
The ability to understand and work with different formats of media
Organisation skills when sorting through archived footage
Having a passion and interest in historical information
Being able to concentrate fully on the task at hand.

Having now researched all of the roles that I will need to take on when producing my FMP, I feel that I have a greater understanding of the attributes and skills that are required for each job. I will ensure that I continuously refer back to the points that I have made which will encourage me to carry out each job correctly and remain on track to create my final piece of work.

Cinematographer –

As with any production, every role plays a key part in ensuring that the end piece of work comes together smoothly, however, perhaps the Cinematographer is one of the closest people that works alongside the director. The overall aim as a Cinematographer is to capture the Directors creative vision through the camera. Through having an understanding of what the Director wants to portray to the audience, the cinematographer, who can otherwise be known as the Director of Photography, can begin to think about how screen motion can be used and manipulated to convey a message or story. Similarly to Directors, Cinematographers often create storyboards and shot lists so that they have a clear, visual understanding of the task that they are carrying out. It is the Cinematographers priority to ensure that all aspects that are seen on screen, such as framing, composition, and lighting, are equally correct to result in a successful shot.

Some key attributes that a Cinematographer must have a deep understanding of include;

Camera Placement
Lens Choice
Aspect Ratio
Lighting
Camera Focus

Research Findings and Data Analysis

Having now completed the Topic, Target Audience, Skills and Techniques, and Production aspects of my Research, I must now think about what I have discovered and how it has contributed towards my project. In this section of my portfolio, I will present my Research Report for Unit 12, an overall Research Report, my Data Analysis on the Research methods that I have used, as well as a conclusion. Each of these reports are presented below.

Unit 12 Research Report –

When beginning Unit 12, we were tasked with formulating three initial ideas that could possibly be developed into our Final Major Project for Unit 13. In order to initiate this process, I started to compose a Mind Map which detailed some of my interests and passions. Having completed this college course over the last two years, I am now aware of the importance of enjoying the project that you are working on. I am more likely to be successful within my work if I am focussing on a topic that I have a genuine interest in, therefore, I considered the subjects that I enjoy, and that would also make an intriguing end product. My three initial ideas included focussing on ‘The Evolution Of Music’, ‘How our own family history has an influence on us’, and ‘How nature can effect our mental health’. These were all topics that I would have been interested in developing further and learning more about, however, in order to determine which one I would choose, I filmed a short ‘Who Am I?’ video in which I answered questions that were personal to me. Some of those questions included, ‘Who or what are the biggest influences in my life?’, ‘Who influenced my taste in film and music?’, and ‘Are there any key experiences that I feel has shaped me as a person?’, all of which encouraged me to think further about my passions. After doing this, I then completed a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis on each idea, prompting me to consider which idea would be the most viable to explore further. Once I had completed this task, I finally discussed my three ideas with my peers and lecturers and gained their personal feedback, before deciding that I would move forward with the idea on ‘The Evolution Of Music’. I chose this idea because it interested me the most and I knew that I would enjoy researching the topic in further depth throughout the unit.

When beginning my research, I needed to first identify my research topic and key question. The first thing that I needed to find out was, ‘How is music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s similar of different?’. I intended to keep this question broad as I not only wanted to research the music of each era, but also the fashion, political issues, and the way that society lived. I would then uncover how these topics were represented through the music of the decade and identify how music had an effect on society. Our first research task was to select and analyse three existing media products which would relate to our project. With this in mind, I chose to watch and discuss a music video from each decade and pinpoint how they differed. The music videos that I selected were ‘Daydream Believer’ by The Monkees, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ by Queen, and ‘Take On Me’ by A-ha. By completing this task, I was able to clearly identify how the production of music videos advanced throughout the years and how the narrative behind song lyrics developed. Following on from this, I wanted to research each era in further depth and so, for my next piece of research, I thought about how 60s, 70s and 80s music was produced in a way to reflect society and lifestyles of each era. I did this by researching each era in depth, with the premise of music evolution at the forefront of my research. I continuously ensured that I referred back to how music influenced fashion choices that I was discussing, or how it was used as a tool to represent social and political issues. I found this piece of secondary research incredibly informative and now feel I have a greater knowledge on the music of each era, placing me in a good position to research this topic further throughout Unit 13.

Overall, through completing these initial research tasks in preparation for my FMP, I now feel confident when moving forward with my chosen idea. I used this research opportunity to learn more and to educate myself in further depth on my chosen subject and have discovered many aspects that I hadn’t previously considered. I am now more aware of the music genres that were either common or uncommon throughout the 1960s, 70s and 80s, as well as having some contextual background on each era, which will undoubtedly prove useful when constructing my FMP. When thinking about the research that I conducted, I am pleased that I chose to follow a route of Secondary and Qualitative research as it allowed me to feel confident in the true facts that I was learning, however, when moving forward, I will need to also conduct some Primary research when learning more about my target audience. To conclude, the next steps that I will take when beginning Unit 13 will be to ensure that I am aware of the context of my project, and to continue researching my chosen area of study.

Research Findings and Data Analysis –

In this part of my Portfolio, I will reflect on all of my Research Findings that I have gathered over the course of the project. I will discuss which research activities I felt helped me in forming my final piece, and why. I will also talk about the new skills that I have learnt through conducting my research, and how they will prove beneficial to my work, going forward.

When it came to conducting my research, it was extremely important to me that I continuously referred back to my Research Questions, which I detailed at the beginning of the project, to ensure that I was collecting research that would prove relevant to my project. When creating my Research Questions, I wanted to include a variety of research options, such as using primary and secondary techniques, which would allow me to gain both qualitative and quantitative data. I found it helpful to break down my research questions into several different categories, being, Subject and Topic research, Target Audience research, Skills and Techniques research, and Production research, so that I had a clear vision on what I needed to research, and to ensure that I was covering the appropriate and essential aspects of what I needed to uncover in order to move forward.

Having begun my Subject and Topic Research as part of Unit 12, I already had a brief idea on the routes that I needed to take in order to learn more about the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. I had already been able to identify the similarities and differences between music videos that were produced during different eras, as well as learning more about the social, political, and cultural events which occurred throughout those decades. These two pieces of Research gave me a much clearer understanding of the genres of music that were the most relevant and popular during those times and gave me a newfound confidence that this topic could be developed further into an informative and entertaining Documentary. However, I knew that I still needed to find out some more information on the topic so that I felt fully informed when eventually producing my final script and sourcing the relevant archived footage. In order to do this, I revisited my Research Plan and identified the Research Question, ‘Which music artists have remained relevant through multiple eras of music, and why?’. This is a question that was particularly important for me to research as I wanted to understand the ideology behind how a specific artist or band could last the course of time, and strongly remain at the forefront of the music industry. In order to do this, I selected a musician(s) from each decade of the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, and delved deeper into their career paths and journeys throughout the years. For the 1960s, I chose The Rolling Stones, for the 70s, I selected Elton John, and for the 80s, Madonna. Each of these artists are rightly household names, however, many people, including myself, would be surprised to learn about the reasoning behind their successes. Personally, I found this final aspect of my topic research incredibly beneficial and eye-opening as it reinstated and defined why I had chosen this as my project in the first instance. I was able to conclude that the motivation behind each artist was their joy for music, and the thrill and passion that they felt from producing and performing their material. This was a piece of information that I needed to understand and will make sure that this message is conveyed within my Documentary, particularly during the conclusion when identifying how music has changed, and how it has an effect on society.

Whilst my initial piece of Target Audience research was combined and influenced by ‘how relevant 60s, 70s, and 80s music is in the modern era’, I was able to understand and gain information on the types of music that my target audience enjoy listening to, and how familiar they were with music from my chosen decades, when constructing a Questionnaire. Having already identified which genres of music were the most popular during each era, I wanted to know which genres of music are popular today, and whether my audience would feel a connection with the genres that I am discussing in my Documentary. I was surprised to learn that out of 18 choices, Disco music was chosen as the most common answer. I was intrigued to discover this as this genre led music that was produced in the 1980s, and it is clearly still as relevant and as enjoyed today. This gave me confidence that my audience would be interested in learning more about this topic within my documentary, as well as other common genres, such as Pop, Country, Jazz, Rock, and Soul. I also wanted to know how familiar my audience were with 60s, 70s, and 80s music as a whole to ensure that it would be a topic that they would be interested in, and every decade scored over 70%. I found this to be an ideal response as it implied to me that my audience are aware of and enjoy music from these decades, however, there is still more for them to learn and understand, which backs up the idea behind my Documentary. Furthermore, I asked my audience whether music that was produced in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s is still relevant today, with every response answering ‘Yes’. This highlighted to me that music from these eras is still popular and would prove an interesting subject for my audience to watch and learn more about.

Continuing with my Target Audience research, I created an additional Questionnaire which focussed on how music can have an influence on society. This time, I wanted to draw away from 60s, 70s, and 80s music, and focus on music as a whole in order to understand the overall effect it can have on our everyday lives. By conducting this piece of research, it would help me to identify the tone of which I would set my Documentary – for example, if my audience mostly listen to music to relax, how would I convey that within my end product? I began by asking how often my audience listen to music in general, with 90% answering the ‘Daily’ option. This immediately told me that music is a vital aspect of our lives and that we often need it to feel certain ways, or to reflect on the situations that are currently happening around us. I then wanted to understand why my audience listen to the music that they listen to – is it to relax, focus, distract, reflect, or to feel motivated? Continuing with this area of discussion, I then asked each individual to explain what genres they would listen to when feeling different emotions, which highlighted to me the effect that each genre has and represents. To conclude, I asked whether my audience thought that music has an effect on society, as well as their own mental health. The majority of responses that I received were positive and in praise of music for having the power to lift spirits and portray joy, as well as being used as a tool to evoke key issues. This piece of research allowed me to think about music as a whole, and how my audience felt when listening to music. I decided to conduct this research so that it would give me an idea on the mood that I would like to be felt throughout my documentary, and whether it would change when discussing varying genres and eras – I think that this will be the case and I will need to carefully select the footage and music that reflect this.

When conducting my Research for the Skills and Techniques aspect of my project, I felt it important to revisit some of the skills that I have learnt over the course of the past two years. There were several techniques that I had learnt about, such as camera angles, shot types, Lighting, Sound production, and how to use Avid Media Composer. However, I knew that it was important to focus on the skills that would prove the most beneficial to my own Documentary, and so I decided to look in further depth at Interviewing Techniques. This was an area of learning that we had covered earlier in the year, and so I felt that I still had a relatively clear understanding of the attributes that conducting an interview entailed. However, in order to remind myself of these, I revisited some of my previous work and refreshed my knowledge on some of the essential techniques that must be considered, particularly when it comes to Lighting and Framing the scene. With this in mind, I was also keen to learn more about the skill of filming interviews, and so conducted some further Secondary research on the subject. I learnt about how it is often useful to film ‘Noddies’ which are shots of the interviewee standing or sitting still, which could be used when wanting to present the interviewee without them saying anything, or when a voiceover is being used. I also learnt more about how the background of an Interview should be staged, and how it is important that it is interesting, but not so much that it distracts the viewers eye from the interviewee. Having completed some online research, I decided to go a step further by watching various YouTube tutorial videos on how Interviews should be conducted, and the aspects that should be considered. I found this task extremely beneficial as it refreshed the knowledge that I already had, as well as informed me of some further details on the subject.

Continuing with my Skills and Techniques research, I had initially decided that I would like to incorporate a Green Screen within my Documentary, as this was an aspect that I particularly enjoyed learning about earlier in the course. The ability that a Green Screen can have has always amazed me and so I was keen to find out more about how it can be used to its full potential. I once again began my Secondary research by revisiting and refreshing my memory on the skills that I had already learnt, with one of which being, the importance of light. Light is one of the essential key factors that is required when using a green screen as having either good or bad lighting can depend on the overall quality of the scene after the post-production process. If the shot is poorly lit, then it can cause issues when trying to chroma key the green screen at a later point. Another aspect that I looked into was how the subject should be positioned within the frame and the distance that they should ideally be between the green screen and the camera. I discovered that it is important to keep the subject at a suitable distance from the green screen so that they do not cast a shadow onto the background, as this could also cause some editing issues as it will affect the chroma colour. Furthermore, I also watched several YouTube tutorials on how to successfully set up and light an interview using a green screen, as I wanted to ensure that I was fully aware of how this works so that I clearly knew the skills and techniques that I would use when starting to film. This task was extremely beneficial and informative as it refreshed my memory whilst also allowing me to uncover some further information about these specific skills and techniques. I will continue to work on my skills and techniques when conducting a mock interview as part of the Problem Solving section of my portfolio.

For the final aspect of my Research, I focussed on the Production element of my project as I began to look ahead at how I will progress into the next stage of producing my final product. To begin with, I identified all of the roles that I will need to undertake throughout the Production stage, including, a Director, Cinematographer, Audio Recordist, Editor, and Archivist. As I am working individually on this project, it is essential that I have a clear understanding of what each role entails so that I can carry out each position effectively. When conducting some qualitative research, I was able to understand in depth the qualities and attributes that are a necessity to inhabit when wanting to work successfully for each role. For example, I learnt that a Director must have excellent communication skills when working with a large team, whereas, an Archivist must have an outstanding attention to detail and good organisation skills when working with delicate and important formats of media. I found this piece of research extremely interesting and felt that it gave me a greater understanding of how to multi-task and inhabit different roles at the appropriate moments. It also encouraged me to think about how I could transfer my skills and techniques between each role, as well as prompting me to think carefully about which role I feel I would be most successful or least successful at and why.

When thinking technically about how I analytically used Data as a way of conducting research, I feel pleased and greater informed through my findings. At the beginning of the Research section, I detailed ways and techniques that I would use to carry out each Research activity, whether that be Primary, Secondary, Quantitative, or Qualitative forms of research. When thinking about my chosen Topic research, I knew that, as my documentary would rely on factual and historical information, I would need to conduct a variety of Secondary research. This would be research that has previously been conducted by industry professionals, therefore, I would be able to take pieces from it that were relevant to my project and analyse that information accordingly. Alternatively, when conducting my Target Audience research, I knew that I wanted to focus on conducting a range of Primary research which incorporated both Quantitative and Qualitative aspects. By doing this, I would be able to retain data that is relevant to my own project, and would allow me to learn specifically about my own audience. Having completed the Target Audience research in this way, I strongly feel that I have a greater understanding of my audience and now have a clearer vision of the way in which I will produce my final Documentary.

The Skills and Techniques aspect of my Research required me to use a mixture of both Primary and Secondary research as I needed to remind myself of the skills that I had previously learnt, as well as considering ways in which I could improve those techniques to build upon my skills. I feel that I was able to use these Research mediums to refresh my knowledge, whilst also looking at various forms of research, such as online tutorials, to inform me of the skills that I would require to be successful with each method. Finally, I conducted a range of Secondary and Qualitative research when thinking about the roles that I will take on during the Production stage of the project. I was able to research online articles in depth at what each job entails and the attributes and skills that are required. Overall, when looking back and analysing the data methods that I used, I feel that I selected the appropriate options for each section of the research, allowing me to gain the most information out of each topic.

In conclusion, the Research section of my Final Major Project has allowed me to develop my initial idea into a project with contextual depth and meaning. I now have a greater understanding on my chosen topic, target audience, production roles, as well as the skills and techniques that I will require to produce a successful end piece. My Research will prove to be a massively informative element of my project and will ultimately contribute towards the theoretical and visual mediums which will be included within my Documentary. I have been able to learn and understand more about my subject and how to structure my end piece in a way that will interest, inform, and entertain my viewers. I discovered various amounts of information, such as, how music was produced in different eras, and the genres which have remained relevant and lasted the course of time, all of which, I was not previously aware of. Overall, my research will act as the backbone of my project, and I will continually refer back to the information that I have discovered and collected when moving into the next stages of the project.

Research References -

Below, I have included a list of Research References which I have used throughout this section of my project.

Top Musical Genres of the 1960s | Mental Itch mentalitch.com. (2022). Top Musical Genres of the 1960s | Mental Itch. [online] Available at: https://mentalitch.com/top-musical-genres-of-the-1960s/#:~:text=Top%20Musical%20Genres%20of%20the%201960s%201%20Beat.

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1960s Music History including Sixties Styles, Bands And Artists (thepeoplehistory.com) The People History (2022). 1960s Music History including Sixties Styles, Bands And Artists. [online] www.thepeoplehistory.com. Available at: https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/60smusic.html.

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The evolution of music: The music revolution of the 1960s - Reader's Digest (readersdigest.co.uk) Goodier, M. (2017). The evolution of music: The music revolution of the 1960s. [online] Readersdigest.co.uk. Available at: https://www.readersdigest.co.uk/culture/music/the-evolution-of-music-the-music-revolution-of-the-1960s.

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25 songs for Black History Month: James Brown, Billie Holiday and more (azcentral.com) Masley, E. (n.d.). 25 songs of social justice, freedom, civil rights and hope to honor Black History Month. [online] The Arizona Republic. Available at: https://eu.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/music/2021/01/12/best-civil-rights-protest-songs/6602985002/.

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Psychedelic era - Wikipedia Wikipedia. (2019). Psychedelic era. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychedelic_era.

www.wob.com. (n.d.). Sounds Of The Sixties By Phil Swern | Used | 9781911346821 | World of Books. [online] Available at: https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/phil-swern/sounds-of-the-sixties/9781911346821?cq_src=google_ads&cq_cmp=18082217234&cq_con=&cq_med=pla&cq_plac=&cq_net=x&gclid=CjwKCAjw5pShBhB_EiwAvmnNV4MpmyGUP2p4KqB-ZgQajqAerl9ws7u7_NKJTs-rV0LdDXMzWCi9JhoC0TEQAvD_BwE#GOR009221363 [Accessed 30 Mar. 2023].

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1970s in music - Wikipedia Wikipedia Contributors (2019). 1970s in music. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1970s_in_music.

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The Evolution Of Music: How Have The 70s Changed The Way We Play Music » IDIOTEQ.COM Kamiński, K. (2021). The Evolution Of Music: How Have The 70s Changed The Way We Play Music. [online] IDIOTEQ.com. Available at: https://idioteq.com/the-evolution-of-music-how-have-the-70s-changed-the-way-we-play-music/.

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Music in the 1970s | History, Artists, Songs and Equipment (retrowaste.com) RetroWaste (2014). Music in the 1970s | History, Artists, Songs and Equipment. [online] Retrowaste.com. Available at: https://www.retrowaste.com/1970s/music-in-the-1970s/.

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1970s Music History including Seventies Styles, Bands And Artists (thepeoplehistory.com) www.thepeoplehistory.com. (n.d.). 1970s Music History including Seventies Styles, Bands And Artists. [online] Available at: https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/70smusic.html.

Wikipedia. (2020). ABBA. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABBA.

Gola (2019). The key trends of the 1970s that influenced today | Gola Classics. [online] Gola Blog. Available at: https://www.gola.co.uk/borninbritain/the-key-trends-of-the-1970s-gola/#:~:text=The%201970s%20was%20all%20about.

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Wikipedia. (2023). Eurovision Song Contest 1974. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest_1974#:~:text=The%20winner%20was%20Sweden%20with [Accessed 28 Mar. 2023].

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