Ground News Pt. 2

So here is the second post, a tiny delayed.

Second topic: Snapchat

I'd like to start by describing Snapchat as a continuous self-documentary made from a smartphone. Now, before moving on to anything else, I want to say why I am focusing on Snapchat for this post. When I first started working with the band, they already had a Twitter and Instagram account (we don't talk about Facebook. Facebook is dead. Let's never mention Facebook), which they don't use that much, but they still had it. Because I want to make the band available on any social media, so that ANYONE can find them on their preferred platform, here's Snapchat!

Now watch this video really quick and we'll ponder for a while after it.

Remember when I told you to hold the thought of "ephemeral"? Right. "Snapchat is about now.(...) It's about sharing stories from your life with people who are interested" -video above. Sooooo... I guess Snapchat is giving a better connotation to the word "ephemeral". Yes, it is something that doesn't last that long, but it's also something more real. It's not a calculated picture posted on Instagram or a highly thought out post on Twitter -it's just a spontaneous snap. It's personal like no other social media before, and it offers truth like no other social media before.

Of course, my idea wasn't that deep when I decided to create the Snapchat for the band. It was more like: okay, what are we missing? But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. My main goal right now is to expand the band within my community and that starts in my high school of 4600 students, who belong to Generation Z.

I talked in the first post about how Generation Z-ers likes to feel connected, have a one-to-one relationship established. They also "care less about material items than they do experiences they can share on social media platforms" (Arthur, 2016). They like people who look like them, who they can relate too, hence Snapchaters, Youtubers, and Viners (even though Vine is dead now). Their attention span is estimated at 8 seconds, which is PERFECT for Snapchat.

My goal with the doc video is to create the profile of the band members, to establish a relationship between band and fan. Snapchat is about that as well. I can have behind the scene pictures and videos, "on the road" type of material, or simply them being silly during rehearsal. The amazing feature of an app such as Snapchat is that it incites people to follow you on a daily basis so they can create the bond and always be posted on what's happening, and that is even more powerful with celebrities, whom we admire so much. You can always scroll through an Instagram or Twitter feed, but not Snapchat. Instagram has even adopted an original feature from Snapchat, the stories, which shows just how much people love it.

First, of course, I need to get them followers on Snapchat. Today the band is performing at the school's Lightning Oscars (I'm too lazy to explain it), so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity. The idea is: creating a graphic with their snapchat username and showing it during the performance; to get people hyped the bass player is going to hold the phone up and yell out "say hello to Snapchat", and because I know my peers very well, I know every one is going to scream back at him. My expectation is that by literally calling out attention to the Snapchat and filming the people present, they would feel compelled to follow SOS to see the snap of themselves right there. We'll see if it works.

I don't want to give the impression that I won't be using other social media platforms, because I will. But as I said, this was the one that needed immediate care, and I believe that Snapchat was the one that connected to my first goal -to make this band friendly to fans- the most. All platforms have different uses and are meant to post different types of content, which is why I'll go in depth into each one.

For now, that is it. Don't spend too much time on your phones.


P.S. Add them on Snapchat (@SurfingOnSaturn)



http://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelarthur/2016/03/16/generation-z/#224614af4ba4
http://www.adweek.com/digital/if-you-want-to-really-reach-gen-z-snapchat-is-the-way/
http://www.adweek.com/digital/heres-what-gen-z-and-millennials-love-and-hate-about-instagram-and-snapchat-174318/
http://www.adweek.com/digital/3-things-brands-should-know-about-gen-z-and-its-not-all-about-snapchat-173785/

Ground News

I will be covering two topics in this post, and I'm saying this right now so that no one is confused later on. The topics are very different, but they are related and need to be addressed immediately, considering I am working on both at this instant.

First topic: 'Doc' Video

When I first started on this project, I was concerned about the image of the band. How do I want to portray them? How do I want the fans to think of them? What do I want to make unique? What do I want different from mainstream/well-known bands? So I thought of other bands I know, and found one thing in common: most of them focus on the vocalist. They use the lead singer as the brand, the face of the band, the image for marketing. But when you think about it, all members of a band have a balanced input on what they produce, which is, after all, what they are selling. I know marketing is a thing, and there are certain rules that need to be followed, but it's sad to think we can just dismiss artists like that (poor Jamie Cook. Don't know who that is?... Exactly).


In Almost Famous -which is set in the 1970s-, a big critique throughout the film is the futility and moral corruption existent in the music industry, and one of the ways this is portrayed is by the band using the "better-looking" guy as the face of band. There is a specific scene where the manager is showing the band's shirts, and Russel -whose "looks have become a problem"-, is clearly highlighted on the picture and the vocalist FLIPS OFF. The movie (which is, by the way, my favorite movie ever, go watch it NOW) makes me think of the nature of bands. They are supposed to be a unit, a family, but the truth about rock and roll is that its bands rely on dynamics.


Even so, back then, up to the 1980s, the relationship between band and fan was extremely different. People would be devoted to their bands, to every single member. Groupies would gather in concerts with only love -and sex- to give to artists. When we think about it now, we couldn't imagine Pink Floyd without David Gilmour, or Led Zeppelin without John Bonham, and I'm sure the fans back then couldn't either. Many of my own friends could probably name all the Beatles before they could name the lead singer from Coldplay. There was a distinct sound to each band -not simply combining sounds in computer and creating music like it is today- and each member had its part, its IMPORTANT part. More than that, "you were not only sold the superbands, but their personalities as well" (Catalano, 2013).

Why has that changed? Nowadays, music is being overproduced because of technology and streaming services, and as a result, managers and public relation people have to just make it out there. New artists are just POPPING UP all the time, anywhere. Music is shared, tailored for you, divided into categories, words, moods. People are not putting that much thought and time into what's on their playlists, and they often change for "something new". It's, to say the least, ephemeral (save this thought for later, by the way).

"For young people of the 60s-70s, music held a similar power as the Internet holds today's young people's lives," says George Howard, and we're not trying to regain that power.

The industry has to follow the demand. Rock bands have always relied on albums, and even if they're purpose is still the same today, 21st century bands have less personality than 60s-70s bands. The main reason: there is no time to create a bond between the consumers and the members, because on the process of establishing that, a new band has taken over. The most successful ones can be classified into two categories:

1. The mainstream rock/alternative rock bands, such as Foo Fighters, Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys, use the lead singer as the face and that's it. They star on music videos, are in the front in pictures, they are the names people know.

  Arctic Monkey's "Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?"                  Foo Figher's "Walk"                             Coldplay's "Scientist"

2. Smaller bands, such as Cage the Elephant, use the whole band, and yet fans don't really have a connection with any of the members, but to the music. But as a mentioned, they are smaller bands.

                                "Come a Little Closer"                                                                      "Cigarette Daydreams"

The trend is real, but a reality of Millenials and Generation Z is that we like to feel connected to what we consume, and if it's music, to whom we're consuming. Maybe some people will argue that that's just the way the industry is going and it's not necessarily a bad thing, but I believe that to some degree it is. (Since this is my project, I have the right to be the change).

That brings me back to the beginning of the post (remember that one wayy up there?). The one-to-one relationship has been lost, which I believe is a big deal (in my so very humble opinion). So what I'm trying to do is find the middle ground: I set the ground rule that this is a band, a unit, a family. I will make their face four faces, and still build the connection between each member and the fans. It's not one, and it's not the music, its each member. Of course I am not trying to sell sex-drug-rock'n'roll like the 70s, which was the main appeal of those bands, but I am trying to find another way to engage the audience into feeling that music is part of their lives, touches their souls.

Back then, it was scandalous writing on Creem about Stillwater's most recent tour, making groupies envy and die to be part of the magnificent, glorious, careless world of rock gods. Now, it will be something different. What exactly?

FINALLY, THE ACTUAL REASON I HAVE BEEN WRITING FOR THE PAST THREE HOURS. I know Surfing on Saturn personally, as I have mentioned earlier, meaning I am friends with each of the members. They are great friends between themselves too, which I find amazing. Originally, my idea for the music video was to do a sort of documentary, while incorporating characteristics of a promotional video (like playing on a nice studio while the lead singer yells at the camera). That way, I would capture the dynamics of the band as well as promoting it for the public -meaning, selling their image. I want to include the fact that they are fun, unique, young, talented people, because the audience NEEDS TO KNOW. I admire their band so much not only because they're good, but because I know they are amazing people and I want them to thrive, and I know many other people feel the same. That's the beauty of local bands. I know that if they ever become big the real connection will never be the same, but if we start from here and just build on that, always maintaining the image of a family, it's sure to stick.

Buuuuut I talked to my teacher, who advised me to consider other options for the music video, and have the "documentary" in a section of their website, to which I said: cool.

So that's what this was about, uff. For the "documentary," I will be collecting footage from various concerts, the going to the place and setting up, as well as rehearsals, and even behind the stage scenes while filming the music video. It's been pretty cool. I'll release a sneak peak soon *winky face*.

I know I said this post would cover two topics, but it ended up being so LONG (trust me, not what I was going for), that I'll just do a second post. And I'll be pithy.


P.S. I'm listening to Led Zeppelin while writing this and feeling completely inspired.


http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FaceOfTheBand
http://www.forbes.com/sites/michelecatalano/2013/02/28/where-have-all-the-rock-stars-gone/#9cbeb0f5c190
http://www.craveonline.com/site/1042711-rock-stars-then-vs-now-or-why-music-totally-sucks-today
http://elitedaily.com/music/how-one-generation-was-able-to-kill-the-music-industry/593411/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hello_(Adele_song)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/25_(Adele_album)

Art of Planning

I probably have mentioned this before but just to reinstate: I am extremely perfectionist. I like everything aligned and measured to millimeters and centered and proportional. I have always been like this and always will. Why is that important? It just is. But also it makes me very organized. Are these two things really correlated? I don't....

Okay, let me start again. I am an extremely organized person. I like everything dated and programmed by the seconds and in order and predictable.  I remember last year, during the production of my Foundation Portfolio, Stoklosa told us to make a weekly planner stating the goals we wanted to meet each day so we wouldn't fall off track. I have always sorta planned out long term projects, but it was nice to be reminded that this is a good practice. So for this year, I am being even more organized.

My idea came from different organizational methods from different industries.

                                 Mood board (1)                                                                              "Spider-web" (2)

1. Mood boards are composed of many images, color schemes, words, fonts, all which connect to a certain theme. Their purpose is to collect ideas, creative information, to guide you through a new project. Many fashion magazines and fashion brands use this method to brainstorm for an upcoming edition or a new collection. It's a great way to keep your concrete ideas and clear direction throughout the duration of the project.
2. Another method I was inspired by is the stereotypical "spider webs" detectives create while working on a case -I don't know if they do it on real life, since I've never been involved in a crime case, but they are a thing in films. These spider webs (by the way, I do not know if this is the correct term, but I'm using it anyway) are used to connect many different pieces of a case, finding links where it would be hard to find before, without a board.

These two organization methods look very different, but when you think about it, they are rather similar: both bring details, pieces, small parts of something together to get to a final result. So how did I use this?

This was the first draft. I just got a piece of paper and started writing everything I needed to do -trust me, this was very spontaneous, even though it looks neat. The project itself requires three components: a music video, a website, and a digipack.  Put those three titles in a page and BAM, words will just flow out. It was a truly great way for me to get all my ideas and plug them together, like pieces of a puzzle. Before this prototype, I only had words bumping around my head - "Snapchat", "Doc video?", "Spotify"-, which didn't really mean anything. Point being: you won't understand the power of visualization until you try it (arrows are helpful too).

But did I stop there? No, sir/madam/whatever your title is, I did not. 

*aweeeee* (choir singing)

This is the actual version, in all its glory, organization, and color!! I have everything I need, and also want, to do here, and some important details to start it off. The idea is that I will add on to it as time goes, take pieces out as I finish the task, and maybe edit details whenever I change my mind (trust me, that happens annoyingly often). 

Isn't it beautiful? *crying face*

P.S. If you're wondering, Camille is this really artsy friend I have, who is always in cool places engaging in cool activities -perfect human being to give me ideas of where to do a photo shoot.

"The Purpose of Mood Boards." 522 Productions. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2017.

New Things!

level of excitement

I. Am. BACK! I am so excited, more than ever, type of excitement I can't even contain.
I have a feeling that this project is going to be oh so good for me, as in it will help me grow as a media producer, it will build my portfolio for college/career/the future, and it will just be SO MUCH FUN! So please excuse me for all the very extent, intense, in depth, and full of exclamation marks posts that will fill this blog for the next... Well, this is due in the end of March/April (I can't really remember when exactly, even though Mrs. Stoklosa said it many times already -sorry T. Stok)... for the next four months? Woah, that sound like a long time. But you know what? That is okay, because I promise right now that each post will be just as good, if not better, than the previous one, and I will make this journey your journey (mostly because I will probably need some emotional and psychological support).

Just a little reflection on the past before I get into this. My Foundation Portfolio last year was an AMAZING experience, and as I said many times in my last blog posts I was very proud of the result and... I think I had all the right to be, because I got an A! Yay!! I swear I'm not bragging, but when you work so hard for something and you put your heart and soul into it, getting that type of result really does something for your self-esteem and sense of accomplishment. So I have high standards to meet this year, which I will work even harder and put even more heart and soul into to reach, but I do believe I can.

So what exactly am I doing? This year we had not only two options of project, not three, but FOUR. Yes, it is exactly what it sounds like -a whole lot. Because giving 17 and 18 year-olds all these options of projects that they will be stuck with to the end of the course is not a big deal. No major indecisive feelings involved. Please. Okay, maybe I am being a little over dramatic: I was very sure of what I wanted to do since the moment my teacher displayed the options on the board. And what was it? Drum roll, please.

MUSIC PROMOTION. *Plays super exciting rock tune on the background*. Yes, yes, yes, I went that route, and I have so many ideas and wishes and goals that AHHHH. (reason why I'm starting so early).

I'm going to be working with friends of mine that formed a band about one year ago. The lead singer, Rafael, was always very passionate about music -and very talented as well-, and when he moved to the US he decided to chase this passion of his. He formed a band with two other friends, a bass player and a drummer, and just did his thing. Later on they added a new member, a piano player, and are now called Surfing on Saturn. SOS is a rock/alternative rock band widely known in our school but not so much in our entire community, which is what I hope will change by the end of this project. I am close friends with all of them and they are extremely fun, honest, talented people, which is contributing for all this EXCITEMENT of mine. I will go into further detail in later posts, but I believe those are the basics.

From now on, let's rock and roll.

Creative Critical Reflection

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2uRVmjml1qJWUI0dUdVZG8wN00/view?usp=sharing

(I apologize for my accent)

In case of any difficulties, here's my script:

Introductions first: my name is Larissa Martins, but I’d rather be called Lari. During these 5 weeks I have created a literary magazine, which is a very different kind of magazines. They are created for and by writers and artists, usually unknown or little known, who want to share their art with the world and even find a way of earning recognition. Being a writer myself, I identified with this genre very much, and thought it would be interesting and rewarding to produce it. Lit mags, as they are also called, don’t follow all the conventions of other magazines, but rather have their own rules. 1867, my magazine, follows but challenges some of these. I went for a clean, classy look, but while most lit mags have blank pages with written things, no art nor color, I decided to have both. I think that way the magazine engages with the readers, and guarantees they won’t be tired of reading after a while -because if you are reading page after page after page, a little image here and there is nice to entertain your eyes. But this decision wasn’t made by myself alone, I had the help of some lit mags, such as Elysium (which I have mentioned on my blog) -Elysium incorporates colors and artworks in the pieces’ pages. For my cover I tried to be very artistic, and included no cover lines. This might seem like a challenge to conventions, but actually literary magazines don’t usually have cover lines, which reinforces the idea that all the works inside have equal importance.

The main social group being represented in my magazine is the bohemian, underdog society of writers and artists that exists in our world. We all know the big names -J.K. Rowling, Stephen King, Nicholas Sparks, being them good or bad, but we forget that there is more talent than that in our society. 1867 showcases the work of these writers and artists, getting them by submission, and gives them a voice to yell at the world that “WE MATTER AS WELL”. And because my audience is, hypothetically, adults from middle to upper class, I believe that the message will get across and achieve its goal -which is to make society aware of the underground art world. The magazine itself would rely on subscription -that is made abundantly clear through the lack of cover lines-, since it is made for people committed to the arts. With that being said, distributing it to this audience would be the tricky part, since they are usually strict and picky with what they consume. But, being smart, I would start and focus on where to find them.  And where do I find them? Art galleries, concerts, art walks, cinemas, other literary magazines. So the marketing would be made using places where I know for sure I can find the audience I want -and I can have posters, flyers, ads.  After that, people will do what people do. It starts with one reader, who presents it to a friend, and a friend of a friend, and next thing I have a chain of people reading 1867 -oh the beauty of mouth to mouth. Isn’t it amazing? Yes, indeed.

But literary magazines are not about the money, and that is what I think, the most beautiful part. Of course, that aspect makes it hard for me, as the (hypothetical) editor in chief of 1867, to make a living out of it, but not to worry. The idea is that I start small and grow. If it doesn’t work, then it can always be a hobby -since it will only be published 4 times a year, anyway. If it hasn’t been clear already, I plan to continue with the production of the magazine. That is why I took this project so seriously -and of course, because I am a good student who likes to do her best, oops. I went after the best software on the market -which I found out to be the Adobe collection. Good thing about Adobe: they have a 30 day free trial for each of their products, so I was able to use it to work on my project. I used Photoshop and Illustrator, plus Audition, which I am using to edit this podcast. Why didn’t I use InDesign. Well… a little backstory. I am an editor in my school’s literary magazine, and we use InDesign to create it, so by the time I started this project, my free trial was already over. Sad, indeed. But it worked out fine with Photoshop and Illustrator. At first it was hard to figure out how to work with them -I was always googling, how to do this, how to do that, how to change the measures of a document -it was painful, really. But I eventually got the hang of it and it’s all flowers and rainbows from there.

Using these products I also grew as a magazine producer. When I first started, a line underneath the title to indicate the section seemed perfect to me, but as I explored the tools I found out the the brush could give me the artsy look I was going for. I learned how to use my space, and that changes are always good, because it means you are recognizing that you’re choices might not have been the best. Also, I was constantly asking my peers for their opinions, help whenever I needed, and just inspiration in general sometimes -because I had to. Before this project I would never ask for people’s opinions on anything, partially for fear of criticism but also pride. But one thing producing this magazine has made me realize is that having support and teamwork is always a key for good producing skills. People can see mistakes on your work that you probably won’t ever see; and most importantly, a magazine’s audience is, regardless of gender, race, sexuality, economic status, people. So asking for opinions is, ultimately, you asking others if your decision sells. Dealing with feedback and criticism is one of the most necessary skills for any person, and I am happy to have learned that.

I just wanna clarify that I have chosen to do a podcast because the magazine is just visuals and visuals and more visuals, and I am a little overwhelmed by visuals. So I’m adding variety and presenting sounds. And I believe that wraps up this creative critical reflection.

The 1867

Without further ado, here it is. Five weeks of work paid off, and I have to admit to be proud of my final product. I would just like to add some notes about my two page spread: since my story was too long (and I have published it before on the blog), I only produced the first two pages, but it would naturally continue on the following ones.

The very first issue of 1867, a literary magazine:

Cover Page

Table of Contents

Two Page Spread

The Deadline Desperation

This is a short post I decided to do before I publish my FINAL TWO POSTS! Yes, this journey has come to an end, but it was an enriching one. I have grown as a student, artist, and writer, and I am 100% sure that will carry this experience to the rest of my life. I don't regret any decision I've made, because I know that all of them led me to this final product. I am a little freaked out right now because the deadline is coming closer and closer, which makes me feel like I could still be making tons and tons of changes. But when the clock strikes midnight -that's it.

For all the readers of my blog, thank you for following it. My struggles, epiphanies, passions and voice were exposed in this blog, and I wouldn't have done it any other way. All the work I've put into this project reflects my own, real tears and sweat.

The best part of this process was finding out that I have a way with magazines, and that I love it oh so very much. I have decided to continue with the blog (as soon as November comes, when I can touch it again), and make 1867 turn into something real.

Remember when I said I would find my cause? Well, I have, and it is more than beautiful.