Bag has arrived!

Ordered | Eastpak Bag

My bag has been shipped! I bought the grey one in the end. Its one I like, and its got a phat Eastpak logo on the front of it. It was a fairly reasonable price of £41.98 and still includes the 30 year warranty. Perfect for filming I think - can't wait to begin! I'm chuffed with my ident shown in the previous post. I'm fairly confident about the whole thing so far!

Developments | Ident

Just a rough to show how I've developed my finished outro which can be found below. I spoke to a class mate who introduced cameras and 3D space to me. This is the proper way of doing what i tried to achieve in my previous post. I proceeded to find out ways of rotating the bag so it looked like the camera was pushing it out of the way. I placed the anchor point at the top of the bag and rotated it on the X axis. Once the motion blur was added you could hardly tell that this was an imitation of 3D imagery. I'm really happy with it, and it didn't take that long either! A few tweaks are still necessary but its getting there. See the final version below:



Complete outro for Eastpak Promo!

Development | Outro

I felt that my explanation was rather unclear about the outro I propose to make. Because of this I've made a rough version to support it:

At the moment it lacks pace and timing to the music but it gives me satisfaction to have made something. I am glad I started doing this early on as it will allow for more development over the next 16 days. I think a vignette would be make it more visually powerful, honing in on the products in the centre but without distracting the viewers eye.

Whilst I was making the rough I discovered a tool that will be very helpful. It allows for perspective changes and I think this will be part of the key to success with my motion graphics pieces that are sandwiched in the middle of my video. See below:

Plans | Staging

Src: http://www.thepriorymenswear.co.uk/collections/eastpak

First I will need a bag. One of the subjects we discussed during my pitch feedback sessions was the use of a differently branded bag. The bag I used has a design derived from Eastpaks Pak'r bag, but its still not 'it'. My lecturer suggested I purchase a genuine Eastpak bag. I'm really torn. In my head the original Eastpak Pak'r was a burgundy colour, but I will be using this bag after the video and so I want something I personally like too. They aren't cheap either - starting from the left: £115, £41 and £35. And that's in the sale too!

I think I will probably end up with the middle one. Its a reasonable price, still has the Eastpak logo clearly shown on it, and I can always make it red in post process if I see fit.

First image will be shot inside my old school hopefully, or mock up a school scene using a chalkboard and a desk. A friend of mine is about to leave secondary school and will be the perfect prop.

I have the location sorted for the car repair - A bag, some tools and a willing volunteer to lay under the car and then I'm ready to shoot.

The local recreational park will ideal for shooting some photographs of people playing football. The bag, ball and goalie in focus. The shot will be taken from behind the goal line looking up the pitch towards the other players. They will all be out of focus, I don't want anyone to be recognisable in this production. 

After talking at pitch I am tempted to scrap the idea of the bag going in the washing machine to be washed. After someone posed the questions to be about it being in there, I haven't been able to come up with a decent enough reason. Its not really very important.

After that there I will need to compose a photograph shot from POV at a job interview. The bag being pushed under the desk by the characters shoe. Some important looking documents and a pen out of focus in the foreground. The character will be wearing leather shoes and smart trousers. Looking smart will connote the idea of growing up and maturing. 

Last of all is the commuter shot. Now, I'm not entirely sure where to shoot this. It'd be easier to do on a train due to space but would it be more effective to do it on a hectic bus? Something to think about I guess. The shot is to be taken from the rear of the commuter who's holding onto a grab handle. Only the torso and profile of the face will be shown, with the bag being the focus on their back. 

Extra | Ideas

There is need for a promotional section at the end of the video. Quick cut motion graphics of the different bags you can purchase from Eastpak. Simple white background with a bag over the top and a light vignette would finish it off. I either want the bags to move in a carousel motion, or fly towards the camera quickly. I'd like to set aside 5-10 seconds for this extra part. To finish with the logo hanging for a couple of seconds would be a plus too. Wish I could do a mad good storyboard to illustrate all this... Alas I lack the drawing skills to fulfil this.

Feedback | Pitch

I pitched my ideas to my class on Monday afternoon. I was unorganised as per usual, still tweaking the presentation and making notes right up to the deadline!! This time round we were being assessed on both the content of our presentation, and the professionalism we presented it with. I'm fairly confident I did well by keeping my audience engaged using physical gestures and eye contact. Although I didn't feel that I'd made an amazing presentation, the way I presented it was strengthened by the workshop we'd done the previous week.

In terms of feedback about my work:

There was a feeling that my plans for motion graphics would be challenging. Not due to the technicalities, but the time frame we've got to do it in. I'm fairly convinced I can complete it though. I got positive feedback for my concept, although because not everyone has read the Eastpak brief thoroughly, I'm not entirely sure this is anything to be proud of.

Quick breakdown: I've got 17 days from today until deadline. Roughly I've got 6 second of footage to shoot, 8 stills and a bunch of graphics of the bags to edit together for the promo at the end (NEW IDEA - I will discuss in the next post).

It's just a case of staging the scenes I want and shooting them. I think the putting it all together will be the easy bit (famous last words...)

DEADline | Pitch

Its pitch tomorrow, and I still haven't got on top of which one of my ideas I want to pursue. I keep coming up with more ideas in my head.

Most recent one being a video for each style of bag Eastpak make, and how it can be used. Each video will show a different scienario in which the bag is used. This was triggered by reading through the styleguide again. I found a section which highlighted the 20-24 year old group and detailed them as people beginning to buy more bags for single use, as opposed to the 14-19 age group who buy a bag for multiple uses.

Having a bag for each video would place the idea of one bag for single purpose into the viewers heads. I want them to think "I want a bag for that situation, and the bag I have seen in that video is perfect. I want that bag".

I was also thinking about doing a comparison video. Working with the idea of the 30 year warranty again I wanted to show the development of audio devices over the last 10 years and how the Eastpak bag hasn't changed. Its still as good as ever, so good that it has no need to evolve. This could be a good selling point, and I will be including these ideas in my pitch tommorow. Depending upon what others think of it I may continue/ scrap the ideas completely.

Planning | More ideas, damnit

After shooting the first 3 seconds of my animatic for pitch i've come up with more ideas for motion graphics. Below is a screenshot of the first shot. I have fleshed out more ideas in my sketchbook but haven't had time to photograph or film anything else so far. Only 12 seconds to go, woop-de-dooooo.

As you can see I am laying the bag down on a table. I've deliberately hidden the bag in front of me until such time as I need to put it on the table. This builds a bit of suspense and gives the audience a surprise.  Once i'm disconnected from the bag I don't reappear until the end of the 15 second sequence. Its all about the bag and the brand. The bag gets used in all different places, ruined and abused until I pick it up again at the end. I firstly go for the suitcase next to it, and then put the suitcase to one side revealing the Eastpak bag. I then sling this over my shoulder and leave the scene. This last shot will depict an older, and more professional self. 

This video I found on Eastpak's youtube channel has been an inspiration for a motion graphics based production.

Analysis | Demographic

Important style guide bits I've found today detailing their new target audience 'The Urban Insider':

Demographic He is well educated and has a good income. His bike and public transport are his favorite ways to get around. He has an active social life. His travels include both short and long trips. Attitudinal He is passionate about his city and city life, but he loves calm and green spaces too. He is open to whatever happens and loves the surprises the city has to offer.

Stylistic His style is eclectic and understated; it’s a mix of brands and looks taken from many stages of his life.  and while he is conscious of being cool, he doesn’t want to be seen as “trying too hard”. Behavioral Before shopping, he often does a little research on a brand or product’s story. He may buy different types of bags over the year. Being a frequent user of social media, he often follows and likes his favorite products on digital platforms.

These are taken from the Eastpak style guide. Visual examples of their target can be seen at the end of the video below:

Technicals | FPS etc...

Fps -

15 sec video at 30fps = 450 frames per vid. 180 frames roughly shot in continuous film (6 seconds) rest of the frames shot as photographs.


Found this on Vimeo and thought it was rather cool

Research | Old Campaigns

I thought that it'd be worth while having a look at old campaigns, as well as up to date ones. It seems that throughout all of their adverts Eastpak reiterate a feeling of rebellion and resilience; they always keep it contemporary. Below are some examples of one of my favourite campaigns which included the use of zombies modelling their products. The resistance that the zombies are shown to be putting up in different scenarios fits in well with the "Built to resist" slogan:

src: http://the-satisfaction.com/eastpak-zombies/

src: 
http://the-satisfaction.com/wp-content/gallery/eastpak_zombie/eastpak_zombie_6.jpg

Marketing | The medium of Video

When choosing video as my medium for this project I gave a brief thought to the shareability, and how that could boost the Eastpak's customer base. I think video and graphics will be more successful in terms of becoming a trend on any social media. This is simply because I don't believe people want to navigate away from their platform, only to return a few minutes later to continue using it. I personally find it frustrating and that's a good enough reason for me to believe others will too. I think that because videos and graphics can easily be embedded into Facebook and other social media platforms and are easily sharable people will be more inclined to share them.

Thinking about the content of the video - I've read up a few articles about social media marketing from Medium.com and Socialmediatoday.com and come to the conclusion that I need to provoke emotion in the viewers. Its not just about making other people in awe of your creation; provoking thought and emotions such as anger, amusement and excitement.

Split | Motion Graphics or Film

I'm stuck between two ideas, both entail the same idea of showing a bag deteriorating but they utilise different skills. Motion graphics would allow me to develop a new skill set, as would doing a short film piece but I feel I haven't managed to grasp motion graphics as strongly so far.

I need to concentrate on the pre pro anyway, so either way I can work on the preliminary work for the time being before I choose.

Idea Dev | Time planning etc

15 sec vids. 2 or more videos could be produced using this video to promote the different backpacks and luggage holdalls.

Rough overview of time:

3 seconds of 30fps video
9 seconds of time lapse
3 seconds of 30fps video


3 seconds in will be a school child putting his bag down after school. The camera will then position itself so that the bag is in the middle of the frame. At this point it'll be positioned on a desk. Over the 9 seconds time lapse the bag will deteriorate. Drawings, badges, patches etc will appear on the outside of the bag. It will then be washed and appear on the another desk of another room. As time has past the bag has deteriorated but its still usable. The final 3 seconds will show how the character has aged. He picks the bag up and slings it onto his back, as he does this the camera will tilt downwards revealing a pair of smart shoes and trouser. It could also go the other way beginning at his shoes and ending with the Eastpak logo.


Music choice: Futures

I think this is the perfect 15 second intro for this piece.

Initial Ideas | Eastpak

First of all I thought about what medium I wanted to produce for this project. Its always going to be a split between doing print, web and video. I whittled it down to web and video, eventually deciding upon video. I know our final project this year will entail designing a portfolio website. With this in mind I've chosen to use a mixture of motion graphics and video for this project. This will allow me valuable practise with After Effects once again and also the pre production side of creating a video. After selecting the medium I moved on to think about the subject matter. We've been asked to promote the story of Eastpak. After reading the brief I noticed how the fact "30 year warranty sets us apart from our closest competitors" is a fantastic best selling point. This is going to be the main point of my production. I want to highlight the fact it'll last that long, and possibly even longer! The other challenge is to make sure I reach out to the 3 groups of target audience:

1- Nascent 12 - 19
2- Emerging 20 - 24
3- Established 25 - 40

By creating a video showing the movement from secondary school, to university and then full time work I hope to convey the message that the bag is suited to all these uses, and more importantly all these different age groups. I'd like to aim for either a 30 second ad, or two 15 second ads. At this current moment in time I'm unsure as to whether I want to create a time lapse video, or a motion graphics/ short film video. I was discussing with class mates and the time lapse idea could be great. By starting the video with a few seconds of motion and then a time lapse showing the contents of the bag after that. It would show the different areas in which it would be used and the content related to that place. The end of the video would consist of a few second of motion to end. The actor in the film would begin dressed in school uniform, and end dressed in a suit. Maybe include something comical at the end where the actor goes for his suitcase, and then chooses his Eastpak bag instead. Tossing it over his shoulder as he leaves will show his smart suited physic. (Thanks Andrew and George for your input) Make sure to consider how technology around the bag changes. Musical technology for instance could change from a transistor radio to a walkman, and then eventually an ipod/ipad.

 

 This is in the Eastpak Manual. I really like the visual style here. Its rough and industrial, a style I think would appeal to the first two audiences, but not necessarily to the established group. Its given me ideas for a motion graphics concept. Utilising the bag as a sign of movement through time. It would degrade and get used for different things as it went through its life cycle, eventually ending up haggard but still usable. I'd like to pursue this idea further and make some mock ups. I can imagine using a stock images for the background (left image) and the floor (bottom image) to create different scenes. The pak would remain open throughout showing contents related to the scene it was in. Again scaling from school to full time city job. Another idea I've had is the way it could interact with the scene. Say its in an airport, maybe it could be going across the luggage delivery belt, or if it was on the sea it could get water washing up against it. Throughout all of this it will survive intact.

Chosen Brief | East Pak

I've decided I'm definitely going to do East Pak. I like the flexibility of the brief, and although i'd imagine it's going to be very popular i don't intend on winning the awards.

2014 | YCN Brief

Today we looked at the different briefs on YCN. The brands that initially stood out to me were East Pak and Bear. This is sheerly because I used to own an East Pak bag and the chance to update its branding would be great. I had never heard of "Bear" but the logo seemed intriguing.