Question 2 - How effective is the

combination of your main product with

ancillary texts?

It has become increasingly important in recent years to market and promote bands and/or artists as a brand which, it could be argued, is mainly due to the proliferation of illegal downloading. Advertising and marketing an artist/band as a brand assists in forming a fan base, which in turn increases revenue from gigs and festivals, merchandise etc. as this then becomes something an audience will want to become a part of by buying into. It could be suggested that this is utilising the idea of collective identity; audiences are expressing and forming their identity by outwardly showing their loyalty to this fan base. However, in order for this brand to be established, each production, be it a music video, advertisement or digipak, must be linked by theme and/or style. A good example of this would be Frank Turner, who uses the same font within all of his advertisements and album covers, forming a motif which is then associated to his brand. Due to this, it was important for me to ensure I kept to a continual theme and style within all of my productions.

Frank Turner’s album covers use the same font in order to create a brand.

As my music video follows the narrative of the travelling artist, I felt this was an important theme to bring forward into my print productions. The main motif within the video is the vast outdoor spaces, so I utilised this idea and researched locations that could be used for my print productions. As the artist is based both in Norfolk and South Wales and the music video was filmed entirely in Norfolk, I felt that the print production should be reflective of the Welsh countryside. I chose to carry out a photo shoot on the mountain of Cadair Idris, as the vast open spaces and stunning mountain images are not only eye-catching but also link to the theme and appeal to the target audience through a love of the outdoors. I also felt this would be an interesting location to use due to the myths and legends associated with this mountain; some nearby lakes are supposed to be bottomless, and anyone who sleeps on its slopes alone will supposedly awaken either a madman or a poet. This tradition (of sleeping on the summit of the Mountain) apparently stems from bardic traditions, where bards would sleep on the mountain in hope of inspiration. (source: wikipedia) This relationship between the music video and print productions will strengthen the fan base as the constant reference to travel and the outdoors communicates the artist's personality, and in turn the brand.

An image from my photo shoot on Cadair Idris

It is expected that an audience member who buys the album will have seen the music video and subconsciously makes the link between the two texts, adding depth to each. Without my music video, the images I used within my print productions would still have an impact and a role in creating a brand due to the appeal of the images to the target audience, however it would be less effective as there would not be anything for the audience to compare and link it to; the brand image would not be as clear.

The links between my music video and print productions is clear as both use the idea of idyllic outdoor locations.

As for the links between my digipak and magazine advertisement, the images used in both were taken during the Cadair Idris photo shoot. This creates a clear link between the two as it is easy to see they are in the same location.On the magazine advertisement, I placed a small image of the album cover in the lower right hand corner. I chose to do this as the audience would then find it easier to identify the album when seen in a store. I placed this image in the lower right hand corner due to the direction in which an audience reads a text; the image of the album cover would be the last thing the audience sees, and therefore it would stay in their mind. Both my digipak and magazine adverts have been edited to a slight sepia tone, which is reflective not only of the UK weather but also makes reference to folk artists from the past such as Woody Gunthrie and Bob Dylan.I used the same font for both my digipak and magazine adverts, to create a motif that makes reference to that of Frank Turner which I mentioned previously, as this artist was one of my artist's main influences.

As for the links between my digipak and magazine advertisement, the images used in both were taken during the Cadair Idris photo shoot. This creates a clear link between the two as it is easy to see they are in the same location.On the magazine advertisement, I placed a small image of the album cover in the lower right hand corner. I chose to do this as the audience would then find it easier to identify the album when seen in a store. I placed this image in the lower right hand corner due to the direction in which an audience reads a text; the image of the album cover would be the last thing the audience sees, and therefore it would stay in their mind. Both my digipak and magazine adverts have been edited to a slight sepia tone, which is reflective not only of the UK weather but also makes reference to folk artists from the past such as Woody Gunthrie and Bob Dylan.I used the same font for both my digipak and magazine adverts, to create a motif that makes reference to that of Frank Turner which I mentioned previously, as this artist was one of my artist's main influences.