CF: Contextual analysis (music industry)

The music industry- Contextual Research

Who is responsible for making branding/marketing decisions?

The branding and marketing decisions are made by a number of people. The record company that the artists are signed to will most likely have a marketing department and/or an AR department (artists and repertoire). The AR department is the ‘middle man’ between the artist’s manager and the record company, and are essentially the ones in charge of creating a brand for the artists. The marketing department of the record companies are more in charge of simply promoting this brand, via interviews, magazines, social networking etc. Obviously the manager and/or artists may also have an input on the image they present.

What is the production process of a music video?

At the start of a music video project, the director may work with the music artist to create a treatment and essentially a screenplay for the video. When the treatment is approved by the artist or record label, storyboards are then created to give everyone involved in the production process, a visual idea of what the video will look like. Then a casting director will work with the director to hire a cast. Then a location scout will find a suitable location for the music video to be shot, this is an important job, as often the environment in a music video may have ties to the song itself.  Then, in productions with higher production-values, production-insurance may be taken out, the policy will depend on  the conditions in which the production will take place, as well as stunts, weather, cost of equipment, the amount of people in the cast and crew, third party liability and other external factors. Then the actual film shoot will take place, and is obviously the most vital part within the entire process. In terms of post-production, editing and colouring is also an important process that takes place, as music videos tend to have a lot of cuts, transitions and effects, and it is also important for them to be properly colour-corrected. Then the video will be previewed to everyone involved; the artist, manager, record company, director and others to ensure that the music video is up to their standards.