Calling the band

     On February 7th, I scheduled a phone call with the band members to get some preliminary ideas of what song they wanted to use and what type of music video they were looking for, among other things.

    Before the call started, I consulted last years media notes on music videos once more

I determined that the most important things for me to cover in this meeting would be:

1. the song (of course so I could get the vibe)

2. the type of video (whether they wanted to focus on promotion or something more artistic)

3. Major themes (in order to make sure any symbolism, mise en scene, etc. is cohesive)

4. Colors to be included/emphasized

5. Any ideas they already wanted for the video

6. Whether they want a CD or vinyl digipak

    I talked first to Alex one on one so that we were able to introduce ourselves and generally break the ice about our plans for this project and what might happen from there if it goes well.

    He informed me that they actually had a brand new album in production that was scheduled for release right around the due date for this project- perfect. He also talked to me about a song titled Home Time that they were considering using as the lead single, as well as a potential video idea based around staying home and messing around having harmless fun. 

    I waited for the rest of the band to be in attendance and for them to discuss their ideas privately before hopping back onto a joined call. This is what they told me:

    They set aside a budget of $700 towards production for any necessary props, location permits, etc. This was great because I was already taking on the project free of charge, knew where to access equipment, and was used to a budget of 0.00, so this was going to serve as a comfortable safety net and enable me to buy any sorts of cool props they wanted to use.

    The song they would be using was called "I Don't Wanna Wanna," and centered around toxic relationships. They wanted a video in which they were each in a scummy relationship that they wanted out of, which would switch between their three separate storylines. From this, I could deduce that we'd be focusing on concept with a promotional approach, and it likely wouldn't be abstract or artistic.

    The main idea they wanted to include was that by the end of the video, they would be performing completely disheveled and getting tomatoed by a crowd. I could work with this.

    Next up, we would have to create a story board, cast "girlfriends," get locations down, and develop a filming schedule from there.