question about music video

[thirdeye]

im new sorry if this is in the wrong fourm .ok so I know the whole process of making a music video. I know about having a song recorded already I know about the camera I know what locations to use etc so please spare me all of the background info.

my main question is when I am making a rap music video I know I have to play the track out loud while I am filming and rap along to the song . my question is do I rap the whole song in one location? to get the specific scene that I want or do I just rap the part I want in the specific location, stop the camera when I get to the part of the song I intended to record the scene for , and film the other part in the other location I want. i also have a question about cutaway shots (scenes of a music video that cutaway to different scenes to make the story more interesting). do i just film the cutaway while the specific part of the song i want the cutaway for is playing. please answer this has been holding me back because nothing online explains it Cleary. sorry for any bad grammar i was in a hurry.

 

[WhiteOpus]

if you have the time and the band is willing to do it, get the full song at every single location you go to. it can be a total nightmare if you get to editing and you realize that you never got a good take of one of the parts of the song (leaving you with no options other than grabbing more b-roll and trying to stick it in the missing spots). In fact, I would suggest having the band play the whole song at least three times at each location so you can get different angles, camera movements, facial expressions, etc. Don't delete any takes even if they seem like they're bad; you might be able to use bits and pieces of bad takes for b-roll.

 

[thirdeye]

thank you

what if im limited on time can i just film the whole song at every location like you said but not 3 times? i will film the whole song 3 times at different angles on my next video, but this song is only 1:46 seconds so do you think ill be find with filming the whole song at a few different locations since the song is so short? and also for b-roll do i film the b-roll while the specific part of the song is playing. for example if im talking about laughing in a song and i want to get a b-roll of me laughing do i just film the b-roll of me laughing while the specific part of the song is playing.

 

[Will Vincent]

If this is your video, you can do whatever you want.

But if you want it to be good you need to plan, light, shoot multiple takes, etc.

What's your time limitation? Is it self imposed as it seems to have been on your original post?

also for b-roll do i film the b-roll while the specific part of the song is playing. for example if im talking about laughing in a song and i want to get a b-roll of me laughing do i just film the b-roll of me laughing while the specific part of the song is playing.

Why? You're going to lay out the full audio as a single track and edit visuals to it.. unless you absolutely for some unknown reason need that audio in your footage as a guide, don't bother with audio playback for B roll. The audio playback on set of a music video is _NOT_ for use in the final production audio whatsoever.

 

[thirdeye]

as I stated before I know all of the background info lights setup location etc soryboard . I just needed to know if I film the whole song at every location or do I just film pieces of the song at each location. I now know I have to film the entire song at every location but my song is so short its only a little over a minute so the video will be short so im asking if I can just film the entire song once in every location instead of 3, and also I asked if I should play the audio back while filing b-roll because what if the time of the filming doesn't match the length of the b-roll , for example what if I didn't film the b-roll long enough to cover the point I want.

 

[Will Vincent]

I asked if I should play the audio back while filing b-roll because what if the time of the filming doesn't match the length of the b-roll , for example what if I didn't film the b-roll long enough to cover the point I want.

So, are you asking the same question again or trying to convince me that you need to play your music while recording b-roll? You stated you know all there is to know, yet you're asking questions and dismissing answers.

How's this: Do what works for you. Music video's are a great opportunity to really stretch your creativity... go be creative, do what works for you, and call it good.

I don't think you need to run playback during b-roll recording.. but if that doesn't work for you, then roll playback, who cares? This isn't rocket science.

 

[Alcove Audio]

as I stated before I know all of the background info - lights, setup, location, storyboard etc. I just needed to know if I film the whole song at every location or do I just film pieces of the song at each location.

This is one more "How long is a piece of string?" question.

The choices are entirely up to you.

Your song is short. So running through the song three (3) times will take, what, six minutes? If you are the only performer then the set-up should not take too long. You can't lock down your location(s) for three (3) or four (4) hours?

You say you know all about storyboarding; have you done the storyboards and plotted out the entire video? That will answer the question as to whether or not you need to shoot the entire song in each location. Are you editing? If you're an editor you should already know that more coverage is always welcomed by the editor.

There's a lot of information you have left out. How extensive are your set-ups? How accessible are your locations? Is it just you or are there more people in the video? How big is your crew? What kind of gear are you using? And a hundred other questions. We can't give anything resembling definitive answers without definitive information.

 

[WalterB]

It would be silly to take time to set up lights, camera and the rest and than shoot 1 take only, because you are in a hurry. With such a duration of the song multiple takes should be no problem: the percentage of time spend shooting will be miniscule compared to preparing and cleaning up the set. Unless you don't use lights at all and just sneak into buildings and get out before someone comes check out what that noise is...

About playing music with b-roll: when things need to be lipsync or when the timing needs to be sharp on at least 2 actions in 1 shot. All the other stuff you can just shoot without music als long as you know how many seconds you need.