After watching all my raw footage and deciding which was the most effective and best shots to use to conform my general idea of my narrative, I edited the shot into a sequence. By doing this I am giving myself a structure to work from, a foundation which I can then change and build upon.
Next, I added the soundtrack which I am going to be using for my music video, this can allows me to change my shots syncing them up to either be non-diegetic or diegetic to the soundtrack. This is the simplest way, in my opinion, to edit footage as it gives the editor a clear plan on which direction the final product is heading.
Once, I was finished moving around my basic shots and footage into the sequence parallel or contrapuntal from the soundtrack- i begin to layer up my shots, for a more professional and complex feel to my final product. Overlaying the shots took most the time, as I wanted their to be a symbolic connotation and connection between the shots and the soundtrack making them parallel and synchronous to the images.
By overlaying the shots, it mean't that the shot underneath was invisible, therefore to ensure that both shots can be denoted in one scene I decreased the opacity of the overlaying shot. After doing this i am able transform and move the overlaying shot, moving it into a place where both shots are visible. This is a simple and professional looking technique when creating any production, however, must make sure not to go overboard with this effect as the audience won't be able to tell the shots apart and will only cause negative confusion.
Having overlaid shots throughout the duration of my production, may bore my target audience. Therefore, in terms of post-production, a good way to break down and change my production is to add different effects to certain shots- keeping my demographic engaged throughout. For certain parts of my production I made the choice to slow down certain shots. By doing so i'm creating and connoting the effect of slowly down time, this technique works perfectly for my music video as the lyrics are very slow, therefore the slow shot is able to be synchronous to the music.
As, another technique to break up the shots. I wanted to divide my footage into present and past. Allowing my audience to encode a sense of memory against the reality. Therefore I decided to use a handheld camera technique in order to film the shots- where they are signified as self made memories that audience are now being brought into and shared with. To ensure that my demographic make this division, in post-production, I have also added a black and white effect over the shot- where the change in colour, presents and connote a change in time. My target audience will be able to make the like that the footage is the past and not the future, as black and white effects symbolise and connote the past, where the brain immediately remembers in human history colour TV wasn't a thing. This also signifies how old the shots are.
For all my shots, I turned the volume down to 0 in order to ensure that only my lyrical soundtrack would be heard.
Lastly, towards the end of my production, I added a fade in between certain shots. This happens at certain point of my non-diegetic soundtrack, in order to act eyes closing from scene to scene; parallel with the slow dips of the pace in the soundtrack. By slowly introducing these brief fades throughout the ending of my production acts as iconography for the ending- where they are setting up the audience and foreshadowing the near ending of my music video.
The last step to editing my production was to take one final check of all my work, ensuring that is conforming my needs and up to the best standards before exporting my final piece. To do this final check, I just played through my production viewing it from beginning to end a couple a times, watching carefully at each shot.
