Final Ideas for Music Video (Instead of storyboard)

Song: Ragdoll by Jennifer Rafferty

• Narrative based music video with some performance shots
• Lyrics of the song shown literally, a ragdoll being symbolic for the actual meaning of the lyrics
• Use of stop-motion: Some stop motion to show the ragdoll getting up after being thrown around by the girl. Also stop-motion at certain points as the girl grows up... Stop-motion shows the ragdoll as more animated and childlike

Narrative:

• A mother/grandmother buys a ragdoll for her daughter/grandaughter and at first she plays with it nicely and gently, which contradicts the lyrics
• After having it for a few weeks, the girl starts abusing and mistreating the ragdoll, showing her not caring, reflecting the lyrics of the song. This continues as she grows older.
• Flashbacks using monochrome effect will happen every so often between the girl growing up to highlight the contrast is the ragdoll's treatment
• End: mother/grandmother sees the ragdoll on the floor and puts it in a box labelled 'charity'/'carboot'/'for sale'...
• Another girl gets the ragdoll and is shown to love it instantly even though it is damaged and torn

Idea:

• Lyrics: "'Cause you want me to be who I'm not", as this line is in the middle 8, use a monochrome flashback of the girl cuting the ragdoll's hair or defacing it, wanting it to look different, mirroring the lyrics of the song
• Calendar to show passing of time, stop motion?
• Shots of posters/toys changing and disappearing to emphasise the change in the girl's bedroom and in her life as she matures.

Setting:

• In the girl's house, in her bedroom -- Most of the narrative shots will be set in the girl's bedroom as she plays with the ragdoll. As she grows older, her bedroom will change to signify the changes she is going through
• End of music video: setting will be a charity shop/garden/carboot sale where the ragdoll gets sold to the other girl
• Performance shots will be set in a well-lit room, (e.g.: conservatory) with a piano as the song only consists of vocals and piano.

Performance shots: Inserted into the video to showcase the artist and associate them with the song. CUs, MCUs and wide shots to show the artist playing the piano and lip-syncing. Panning camera work and zooming in and out to create variety in my camera shots

Transitions: Mostly consist of cross-fades in and out between every shot, performance and narrative. Unfocused to focused shots as well.

Stop motion: Use of stop motion of the ragdoll and calendar to give a more animated and childlike effect to the ragdoll. Mostly live action shots will be used though to make the audience really understand the narrative

Lighting: High-key lighting throughout as it is typical of the singer/songwriter genre, but will become a nit dimmer as ragdoll gets abused. Reflects the mood of the narrative and song, and also to manipulate the audience's feelings into how I want to make them feel. Will become lighter when ragdoll gets bought by the other girl, again to show how the audience should feel. Natural lighting.

List of shots:
Most of the shots will be quite long in length to show the narrative and give the audience more time to watch and interpret the story. Approx. 5-10 seconds long, but may very. Difficult to tell with the stop motion and how long that will take up...
Length of shots may vary, approx. timings...
Length of song: 3:09

• At very start, title of song and artist. Length: 0:00-0:05
• Performance shot, artist as piano. Type: Long shot to medium shot, zoom in slowly. Unfocused to focused. Length: 0:06-0:13
• Mother/grandmother giving ragdoll to her daughter/grandaughter, then child hugs them. Type: medium shot. Length: 0:14-0:21
• Girl plays with ragdoll instantly, very gently and carefully, drops other toys. Type: medium close up/medium shot. Length:0:22-0:30
• Performance shot, artist at piano. Type: medium close up or panning shot. Length: 0:31-0:39
• A few shots of the girl playing with ragdoll nicely again, showing how over time she still loves it for a while, building up a 'relationship', building up something to ruin. Type: Panning, medium close ups, medium shots, tracking. Length: 0:40-0:49, 0:50-1:00, 1:01-1:10
• Performance shot. Type: wide shot/long shot. Length: 1:11-1:17
• Back to girl and ragdoll, first time she throws the ragdoll as she gets annoyed, leaving it on the floor. Type: medium shot to tracking the ragdoll being thrown, slow motion effect? Length: 1:18-1:29
• Stop motion to show ragdoll getting up after being thrown, face changes slightly? Unsure length of shot(s), roughly 1:30-1:45? May be longer/shorter
• Performance shot. Type: panning medium shot. Length: 1:46-1:50
• More stop motion, calendar this time, signifying passing of time, circled dates for birthdays and other events. Live action shots of birthdays or events overlayed or separate? Type: Live action -- zooming in and out, medium, medium close ups, close ups. Length: stop motion -- approx. 1:51-2:15? Live action -- about 5-10 senconds each
• Back to live action shots, showing ragdoll getting more and more abused over time. Various shots. Length: 2:16-2:20, 2:21-2:30, 2:31-2:39
• Flashbacks included in between shots of the girl mistreating the ragdoll to show the contradiction. Length: about 5-10 seconds each
• Mother/grandmother finding ragdoll of floor one day and putting it in a box labelled 'charity'/'carboot'/'for sale'. Type: wide shot, then zoom in on word on box as she walks out the room. Length: about 10 seconds
• Another girls gets the ragdoll and hugs it, walks away clutching it to her chest/ragdoll of her shoulders/holding its hand...Type: medium/medium close up to close up of ragdoll
• Final performance shot, ending the music video. Type: medium close up/close up, focused to unfocused, like the beginning of the music video but reversed.