Planning - Storyboard frame by frame rough plan

Storyboard plan from Luke Tiplady on Vimeo.


Frame 1/2:
These two shots will consist of a medium shot of Liam, the protagonist, looking out of his bedroom window. This shot will be edited to coincide with the initial chord strum of the song; additionally I have also considered superimposing a shot of a guitar strumming the guitar on top of the base shot. Following this, the next shot will be a close up of Liam's Stone Roses ticket, coinciding with the opening lyrics 'The Hardest Thing In The World'. Symbolizing the challenging he is about to undertake to reach the concert he has waited his whole life for.
Frame 3/4:
The first of these two shots will be a variety of shots; the first being a medium shot of Liam walking down his stairs, with the camera being placed at the bottom. Other shots will be a quick tracking shot of Liam's feet as he is walking down, a behind-the-back shot with a crane position being taken. I will use editing techniques such as action matching and the 180 degree rule to sync these shots as Liam is walking down the stairs.
The second shot will show Liam exiting his house through the front door with a low angle behind-the back shot showing his shoulder in the forefront of the shot and the sky in the back. This shot will match up with the lyrics, 'Searching for a perfect day, it never happens that way, a hey, hey, hey'.
Frame 5/6:
This shot will be a medium shot from within the car, showing Liam getting in the car. This will be a fairly short shot and will continue with the song in the background, with no direct link to the songs lyrics as seen in previous shots.
The second shot(s) will most likely be the longest sequence in the entire video. It will consist of shots varying in type and movement; an extreme long shot will be used from inside the car looking out the window, various close-ups of the protagonist with quick editing to match the quick drum beat in the song. This would ideally also feature a superimposed shot of the neck of a guitar playing the song above the base shots.
Frame 7/8:
The next two shots will take place at The Angel of The North (or Penshaw Monument) and will show the protagonist climbing the steps to the monument with a crane shot following him, followed by a low angle of the monument. The camera will then cut to a long shot of Liam at the base (or middle) of the monument playing the guitar; I chose to do this as it adds a sense of performance element, yet keeping the narrative in place.
Frame 9:
The shot will then cut to handheld footage of The Stone Roses concert I captured on my phone, perhaps with more superimposed shots of guitar playing or even the use of quick cuts to actual guitar playing in between the concert footage.
Frame 10/11:
These two shots will center around travelling on the road; the first will be a variety of medium shots of various road signs etc. to provide a sense of progress of time and distance in the video. The following shot will be a POV of the driver looking directly out of the front window, preferably with a GPS at the forefront of the shot. Once again I would like this shot to include some superimposed guitar playing.
Frame 12:
This shot will again be POV footage I captured from a Stone Roses gig.
Frame 13/14:
The next two frames will include a variety of shots. The first of which will be a close up of Liam's phone saying that the Stone Roses gig has been cancelled, this shot will include an action match edit of Liam opening up his phone. The following shot(s) will show Liam's distressed reaction to this news, however for this shot I would like to use some superimposed images of Liam's face on top of one another reacting to the news.
Frame 15:
The following shot will be a medium-long shot of Liam walking through a forest path, using pan movement. As Liam is walking, superimposed guitar playing will be used in tune with the chord strums in the song.
Frame 16:
Multiple shots of Liam playing the guitar, with close-ups used on the neck and body of the guitar.
Frame 17:
The final shot will be a static medium-long shot of Liam approaching the arena that the Stone Roses are playing at, Liam will be shown walking around the arena with quick cuts of guitar playing.

Planning - Change of Plan

I've had to rethink a majority of my scenes for my music video, particularly those that revolve around driving and going to places that require a form of travel. The person who I am filming with and who will be driving is having problems with insurance on his car, thus he cannot legally drive, hindering various scenes. I plan to still record footage of driving, just not with the protagonist. As for travelling to various locations I will have to find an alternative form of transport, or revise my ideas. I don't think this will cause a massive obstacle for me, but it is certainly a frustrating one.

Planning - Storyboard

Planning - Props and Costumes

I have wrote down the main props and costume I will need for each scene. I have chosen a very simple outfit for the character, however the use of the Pretty Green jacket creates a link to the style of the mid-90s as this was very common of bands such as Oasis and The Stone Roses to sport this sort of clothing. In addition to this, the brand itself is directly related to Liam Gallagher, front man of Oasis, thus creating a sense of nostalgia for the audience. Furthermore, the use of Adidas shoes is reminiscent of Ian Brown's style as he is almost always seen wearing Adidas.

Planning - Locations

These are some of the locations I may use for my video shoot:

House - Liam's House (Newton Hall)
Various Misc Roads
Angel of the North
Forest - Durham Woods
Etihad Stadium - Stone Roses Concert Footage
Undecided Arena/Stadium - Possibly Metro Radio Arena/Stadium of Light
Penshaw Monument

It won't take long to scout these locations as a majority of them are fairly nearby and have been visited before by myself and my cast member. I also have been able to take a picture of the bedroom which I will use for the introduction of the video. This will be ideal to shoot in, not only because it suits the narrative of the video, but it is accessible and will be easy to shoot in. Furthermore the decor in the room is very typical for a 17-18 year old who acts as the protagonist.

Planning - Shooting Schedule

Here is shooting schedule I will be following whilst I am filming my video. It is a slightly rough plan but gives me a clear idea of what shots I will be doing and where.

Planning - Casting and Lyrics

For my music video project, I have asked my friend Liam Bell to star in my production (he also starred in my movie opening sequence last year). I don't feel as if I need to cast any other people in this music video as I have envisioned it to be a solo performance by Liam.
Initially, I didn't want my music video to take a narrative approach; however with the issue of not having the appropriate equipment or musicians to perform a performance-driven video I must change my initial course of action. I will, however, incorporate some performance into the music video with a few shots of Liam playing the riffs in the song.

The song I will be doing is 'The Hardest Thing In The World' by The Stone Roses.
My initial plan for the lead track was the song Elephant Stone, however I changed my mind because I believe this song and its lyrics provide a greater structure for a narrative. Furthermore, Elephant Stone has been released as a single meaning that it is accessible as a song; yet using The Hardest Thing In The World, which was released as a B-Side to Fools Gold, allows for a 'rare' track  to be exposed to the audience.

The hardest thing in the world

Holland fades, it don't please
I never wanted to leave
Searching for a perfect day
It never happens that way, a hey, hey, hey

I'm sick and tired and so obscene
Will Heaven help me be clean?
Searching for a perfect day (a perfect day)
It never happens that way, a hey, hey, hey

Cut away
I know your world wants you around

You never heard a word I said (a word I said)
It seems simple to me
That if you knew you wouldn't say (you wouldn't say)
It never happens that way, a hey, hey, hey

And the impression I get as the story unfurls
Is that you're the hardest thing in the world

Cut away
I know your world wants you around

What you feel it might not be
It seems suffer to me
I cannot climb to touch your spire
I'm getting higher and higher

Cut away
I know your world wants you around

The hardest thing in the world