Research
To properly conduct this research, I looked up external sources, including websites (such as Genius) and social media (such as Twitter & Instagram) so I could better understand the themes of each album and the personas of each artist
1. This Is How Tomorrow Moves by Beabadoobee
Camera
- Close up: This puts focus on the star's slightly fierce facial expression. Beabadoobee describes this album as being about "becoming a woman" and "accepting that there's an inevitably of my fault in there too" regarding her past. Perhaps this connects with the fierce expression, as though she is defending herself.
- Eye level: This makes the shot feel more personal and brings the viewer into her level, making them feel connected. This suits her album as the album presents themes that are personal to her.
Mise-en-scene
- Bright blue background: Blue is often associated with sadness, however perhaps the vibrancy of the colour could symbolise the peace she's made with her faults (how her life has grown 'brighter'), aligning with the album's themes. Additionally, the vibrant colour conforms to the conventions of the pop genre which allows fans of the genre interested in her content through similarity.
- Expensive clothing (fur coat): Fur coats are typically associated with luxury as they are often an expensive piece of clothing. This could highlight her success as an artist; a physical representation of her growth.
How does this reflect the artist's persona?
- Beabadoobee often depicts herself as a strong woman yet sweet. She is shown making a fierce expression with elements that show her growth (coat, vibrant blue) being included. This reflects her persona as it shows her as a strong woman thriving to be a better person
Does the artist have a logo? Is it consistent with their other media?
- Beabadoobee does not have a logo however she keeps her content recognisable by including her name (or the letter B). Even if they're often in different fonts, her unique artist name becomes a branding opportunity as it stands out from other artist's names. In this digipak in particular, she includes her signature which makes her digipak feel more homemade and personal
How has the album cover influenced you?
- Our artist's album will be exploring similar themes so it is good for me to consider how these themes can be represented. I like the inclusion of items that can act as a symbol for growth and change so I want to include similar things in our digipak
- Additionally, this album cover has also made me consider the facial expressions our star could make on an album cover and what her expression would say about her including how she's grown from her past
2. Tell Me That It's Over by Wallows
Camera:
- Low angle: The low angle approach makes the band appear more confident. This makes the overall image appear cooler, which is typical of boy bands.
- Long shot: The long shot leans into the cool image of the band by giving the viewer a full view of the members in confident poses. The long shot also makes the album cover feel more spacious therefore more casual and relaxed.
Mise-en-scene
- Outdoor setting: An outdoor setting offers a natural and familiar vibe to the viewer. Posing them in a low-budget outdoorsy setting, rather than in a more luxurious one, allows audiences to feel more connected with the band
- Casual clothing: The band states that the common theme across the songs is generally relationships, perhaps the choice of casual clothing highlights how relationships are a common thing that happens to everyday people rather than something that happens only to specific kinds of people which makes the band more relatable to a general audience.
How does this reflect the artist's persona?
- Wallows often depict themselves by conforming to indie pop stereotypes. They use low budget productions and warm filters which remains consistent in this digipak thus helping them build a reputable brand identity
Does the artist have a logo? Is it consistent with their other media?
- Wallows does not have a logo, however they make each album recognisable while remaining unique by using different fonts (on the title and band name) for each album. This way, whenever the band releases content that relates to a certain album, fans can recognise which album it relates to by rcognising what style the album follows therefore maintaining consistent brand reputation
How has the album cover influenced you?
- I feel like the usage of fonts can help make an album cover appear more recognisable. I want to consider how different fonts can be used to convey meaning.
- I like the use of a border. I think it isolates the image and gives it more focus which may be able to create a more lasting impact on the audience. Additionally, different coloured borders could be used to emphasize different meanings. For example the Wallows album cover contains a pastel yellow border which could be correlating to their usually more energetic songs
3. Sling by Clairo
Camera
- Close-up: A close up effectively brings a viewer emotionally closer into a subject by providing with a perspective that highlights the expression of a subject. Here, it makes the shot feel more intimate as we see Clairo looking fondly at her dog, Joanie, who was a huge inspiration for this album.
- Slightly unfocused: Clairo states that this album is about domesticity. The slightly blurred shot makes the shot feel more candid and therefore more domestic
Mise-en-scene
- Warm colour palette: The warm colour palette makes the scene appear more comforting as warmer tones are associated with emotional warmth which suits the album as it includes comforting themes.
- Natural scenery: The scenery depicts a natural winter. Paired with the warm colour palette, it creates a contrast of physical coldness and emotional warmth that may symbolise finding comfort despite hardships. Winter is also often a comforting time for a lot of people as it is associated with familial events such as Christmas and New Year's therefore making the shot feel nostalgic and cozy.
How does this reflect the artist's persona?
- Clairo heavily conforms to the indie pop genre. Most of her content uses a soft warm filter and slightly blurry camera lenses which give her content a homemade feel. This follows the theory of stardom as she presents herself as relatable to her audience which is consistent in this digipak. She also presents herself as soft and quiet which is apparent in how she often has album covers that appear more candid, such as in this one.
Does the artist have a logo? Is it consistent with their other media?
- Clairo does not have a logo, however she maintains consistent reconisability by using images of herself in her album covers (+ other content). Rather than just making her brand recognisable, this makes the star herself recognisable to fans too which is beneficial as it makes content including her more valuable to fans.
How has the album cover influenced you?
- I like how nostalgic and homey the cover feels. I feel like this would apply well to our star as her album focuses on her past. This makes me consider how we can use technical elements (such as camera and mise-en-scene) to effectively evoke a nostalgic feeling in our audience
- Clairo also includes a literal representation of the inspiration of her album (her dog) and depicts them in an intimate moment. This makes me consider how we could create an intimate album for our star and how we could depict her inspiration in the album cover if we decide to do so.
4. The Rise and Fall of a Midwestern Princess by Chappell Roan
Camera
- Eye level angle: The shot establishes a direct mode of address by using an eye level shot that brings the audience into the star's perspective and by having the subject directly stare into the camera. This makes her feel more serious and confident.
- Medium shot: The medium shot adds to the direct mode of address as it stimulates the distance people have when interacting with each other. This makes it more immersive for the audience.
Mise-en-scene
- Highkey lighting: Highkey lighting puts focus on the artist. It makes the shot feel more theatrical. Chappell Roan describes this album as being about awakening so the the highkey lighting may connote how moments of realisation can feel like having a spotlight on you
- High budget: The star is shown using an fancy outfit in a luxurious set. This further emphasizes the theatrical feel while also maintaining audience attention on her through the shot's high quality
How does this reflect the artist's persona?
- Chappell Roan is an alternate persona created by the artist which means that she is deliberately acting as a different person as part of her stardom. This persona is unique as rather than being a reflection of the star herself, it is a character she is playing. The character is meant to represent the struggles the star experienced as a queer woman. Her persona is often portrayed as extravagant, authentic and vulnerable. The album cover reflects this through its high budget shot and highkey lighting which makes the star seem vulnerable yet maintain an air of confidence and style
Does the artist have a logo? Is it consistent with their other media?
- Chappell Roan has no logo but she keeps her content consistent using similar makeup styles and similarly theatrical outfits. This could be her unique selling point as her style makes her stand out from other artists. Not only does this make it easier for fans to recognise her and her content, but keeps them engaged.
How has the album cover influenced you?
- I like the more theatrical feel of this album cover which aligns more with the conventions of the pop genre (high budget) than the indie genre (low budget). Since our star is in the indie pop genre, it will be hard to balance both conventions. Chappell leaning more into the pop side allows me to consider whether this is realistic for us to do as students, which, in my opinion, is unrealistic as we have a very limited budget. However, we could keep a balance by keeping other conventions of the pop genre such as vibrant colours and highkey lighting which is more achievable.
- This is not really related to the album cover but I noticed the digipak contains a picture of the star with a signature. I feel like this would be interesting to add in out digipak as I think it would be a good way of including added value to our product as this would give fans another item included in the digipak, encouraging them to purchase it. The signature and exclusive picture adds a sense of personalisation that could fulfill the social relationships aspect of uses & gratification.
5. Underdressed at the Symphony by Faye Webster
Camera
- Cowboy shot: The cowboy shot shows the audience her actions, body language and expression. Through this we see the star holding up a dress, as if trying to fit, and she does not display any strong emotions. This makes the shot feel domestic and somewhat intimate which also fits the album's theme of the mundane.
- Eye level angle: The eye level angle makes it appear as though the viewer is seeing the scene for themself; as if we are looking in on a mundane moment.
Mise-en-scene
- Predominantly blue colour palette: The album explores feelings of heartbreak and inadequacy so perhaps the blue is meant to reflect this as blue is often associated with sadness. Additionally, blue is often associated with gentleness which matches the album's theme of domesticity.
- Dresses: The star is shown as if trying to fit a blue dress to herself, in contrast to the currently white shirt she is wearing. Faye Webster describes that the album is inspired by her feelings of inadequacy when facing things that feel 'too good' for her. Combined with the idea that blue is associated with melancholy, perhaps this implies that she applies this melancholy herself and that (through the entire closet being made up of blue hues) it is the only thing she feels she can do.
How does this reflect the artist's persona?
- Faye Webster often portrays herself as relatable yet formal on her social media accounts. For the most part she posts in a professional manner, using formal typing and usually posting about her work but she occasionally creates passionate posts of her interests in fictional characters (such as minions, Hatsune Miku and Pokémon) which allows younger fans to relate to her. In this digipak, her more formal side is takes prominence. She also often portrays herself as gentle through retro filters that give her posts a 'soft' feel which is seen in this cover
Does the artist have a logo? Is it consistent with their other media?
- There is no logo but Faye Webster keeps this digipak consistent with her branding by including using filters that make her shots appear more 'retro' (vignette, warm overlay etc). She also makes this album stand out and gives it its own 'identity' by using the colour blue as a theme that reflects back to the album in posts where she promotes/discusses it.
How has the album cover influenced you?
- It taught me how using a prominent singular colour could be used to communicate the strength/abundance of a certain meaning. It allowed me to broaden my considerations for how I could use mise-en-scene to allow audiences to understand our product's preferred reading.
6. plum blossom (revisited) by mxmtoon
Camera
- Eye level angle: An eye level angle stimulates a sense of stillness fits the album's theme of loneliness as the lack of exaggeration makes the shot appear more boring or uninteresting.
Mise-en-scene
- Predominantly pink colour palette: Pink is most often associated with love and romance which aligns with the album's theme of romance. The abundance of this colour could also imply an abundance of romantic feelings or just love in general.
- Plum blossoms: Blooming flowers could symbolise blooming romances which further strengthen the romantic themes. Additionally, this album is a remaster. In the original cover, the plum blossoms are depicted as a stylised artwork but here, they are depicted as a realistic image instead. The change in style could symbolise an increase of quality in the reworked version.
- No animate objects: Unlike most covers, the star is not present at all in this cover. This gives the cover a sort of solemn and disassociated feeling as the lack of human presence makes the cover feel absent and empty (which again aligns with the album's theme of loneliness)
How does this reflect the artist's persona?
- Mxmtoon often depicts herself as relatable and funny through her social media pages (Twitter, Instagram) by using lowercase and posting jokes. Although the album cover does not represent her as funny, it does imply her relatability to the audience through themes such as loneliness and romance which are reinforced through the cover's camera (eye level angle) and mise-en-scene (pink palette, plum blossoms)
Does the artist have a logo? Is it consistent with their other media?
- It does not have any logo but, since this is a rework of a previous album, this album keeps itself recognisable to audiences by referencing back to the original cover of the album while keeping itself fresh to long-term audiences by switching to a realistic photograph of plum blossoms instead of a stylised artwork which makes it feel like the quality got 'upgraded'
How has the album cover influenced you?
- It made me consider how inanimate objects can make a strong form of indirect storytelling simply just through the associations it has. It makes me consider using inanimate objects in my digipak as a way to relate back to our narrative.
Development
After I conducted research, I finally felt comfortable enough to start our own digipak.
Front Cover
The front cover is the most important part of a digipak as it is likely to be the audience's first impression of the product and the artist which why is why it felt important to put most of my effort into this.
I started by brainstorming some possible ideas for the front cover on paper.
My initial ideas
I then included this in the screen test audience feedback form so that I can understand which made the best impression on the audience.
Audience Feedback Form Results
According to the results, it seems as though the idea with our star holding flowers was most popular. Through this cover, I could imply that the star won the competition from the music video's narrative which expands our storyline. However, upon attempting to do this I realised that it might not be possible to do. This is because flower bouquets can be expensive which means that we will not be able to have this crucial part as our prop. I discussed this with my team and we decided to go with the second most popular idea, the one that used childhood drawings.
To do this, I created doodles with my left hand to simulate child-like artworks. I also linked the drawings to things children may draw (such as nature) and family. The family theme was especially important as it was the core theme of our music video. I also kept 2 of the drawings similar as it is common for children to draw repetitive art.
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However, I realised that I was missing the music sheets for the photoshoot and couldn't print any as my printer is broken so I asked my friend to bring me a copy of their old piano sheets to school. After receiving it in school, I immediately took the pictures I needed during our project lesson in media with my teammate, Cheryl. In the photo taking session, Cheryl helped me by being a second opinion for the angles and composition of our work which ensured that our product was in good quality. During this, Regine also requested us to take a 'behind the scenes' image that can be used as a teaser for the star's social media page.
Me taking pictures for the front cover
The main issue that arose from this was that it was hard for us to pick between 4 and 7. We liked 4 it had negative space that made it a good place to include text (making it easier to read) but we also liked 7 as the white border made the association that the viewer was looking back in time through picture frame or a polaroid which fits our themes of childhood and nostalgia.
While developing the inside of my digipak, my teacher suggested that we use the picture we had intended to be for the inside to be for the front cover instead. This was because vibrant colours help it conform better to the pop genre and using our star's face on the front cover is advantageous to new artists as it puts their face out there and allows them to gain recognition in the industry.
So I used Canva to create these drafts
In the end, I felt like the image on the right was more suitable for the digipak as it was brighter and had more space to include the album name and artist name. After that, I experimented with different colours to see which one would suit best.
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All the different colours I experimented with for the front cover
Then, I asked my teammates for their opinion in order to gain a fresh perspective.
From this, I decided to use the blue colour for the album name on the front cover. From here, all I needed to do was input our album name and artist name into the preset. However, due to lack of space had to make minor adjustments to the positioning of the text.
At this point, I selected this as the final product.
Update
My teacher's feedback suggested that I change the font for the star's name to match the handwriting font in the back cover. After some consideration, I decided to follow through with his suggestion which resulted in this new front cover:
Digipak Content
To be honest, starting the contents of the digipak, I was unsure of what I could do for it. I wanted it to relate back to the music video to strengthen our narrative and brand image but didn't want it to feel repetitive. I thought that maybe I could do an image of the star with her childhood dolls in her room and Regine suggested that I do something similar to these images:
Inspiration Regine sent from Pinterest
After discussion, I started doing some sketches to get my ideas across. However, my lack of inspiration limited the diversity of my sketches.
After this, we needed to take pictures. However, an issue that arose from this was the issue of scheduling. If possible, we wanted everyone to be present so we can give each other suggestions but this made it hard as we all had our own person events, including Vina. We had to postpone by a week as many of us weren't available at the time. Cheryl was not available at this time either but she kept involved by checking on our progress via WhatsApp chat. Even by the time we had to take the pictures, we had a very limited timeframe as Vina needed to study for her mocks and I had to go somewhere with my family.
During the shoot, we came up with an alternate image where Vina lays on the bed with her dolls, creating a childish feel to the image. Additionally, the image is upside down as it gives our star a unique sense of quirkiness and fun.
Regine & I taking pics of Vina
I decided to try using these pictures as the smiling expression on our star's face helps her appear more friendly and the other because I liked how the star is looking at her doll, directly connecting her with the themes of childhood. I also wanted to use pictures Regine retook after I needed to leave as it had more space in the background so I experimented with both.
However, I felt unsatisfied with the results so I asked my teacher for feedback. This is where he suggested that I use the pictures I intended for the front cover for the inside.
We also took some extra pictures that connote our star's passion for music to include in the inside of our digipak. However, after some experimentation, I felt like none of it felt suitable since it didn't transition smoothly with the other side of the digipak's inside.
Draft based on teacher's suggestion and unused pictures
I thought about this idea and discussed it with my teammates. We decided that it was worth a shot. However, this means that I would need new pictures as the ones on the front cover was not the right size. I tried this at home but the lights in my house are broken, causing them to be dim causing the result to be unsatisfactory.
First reshoot attempt
As it was late at night I decided to reattempt this at school with Cheryl the next day. However, as the sky was a bit cloudy and it was hard to see what I was taking a picture off with the sun reflecting on my phone, I also found this attempt to be lacking.
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Second attempt
I decided to use the leftmost picture as it doesn't show the table's stains and the music sheets don't cover the table too much, making the space feel more intentional and spacious.
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I then replaced the digipak inside's with this image.
I was satisfied with this result as the lighting and colour palette suited our brand identity better.
Update
I also received some minor feedback from my teacher for the inside of the digipak. He suggested that I should add an arrow to the QR code and some text as a call to action for the audience. I also decided to follow through with this. I decided to use the Linotype Feltpen handwriting font to match with the rest of the digipak and added a smiley face to connote friendliness, in hopes that it would encourage fans to scan the QR code more effectively.
I also experimented with different sizes for this but in the end decided to go with the larger size for readability.
Back Cover
By this time, we were already reaching towards the end of the product and I was starting to feel burnt out so I had a hard time gaining inspiration. All I knew was that it was going to be where the tracklist was and I wanted it to have a childish feel, like the rest of the digipak. I came up with these drafts in Canva to try and hopefull gain some inspiration on the way.
While I was doing this, my teacher suggested the idea to use the image we intended to be for the digipak's inside. Following this idea, it meant that the back cover would be the extension of the rest of the image so I created these drafts.
In the end, I decided to use this one as it was more vibrant and the arrangement of dolls allowed for an easier to follow arrangement of tracklists
Update
The last feedback I received for my digipak is regarding the font colour. My teacher suggested me to experiment with darker hues instead of pure black and different whites.
Initially, I felt like white would suit better as it would match the white colour of this font on the rest of the digipak. However, I noticed that white was too light, making it unreadable. So, I opted for the darker shades instead. I chose blue as it is a complementary colour to yellow, offering an eye-catching contrast, and would match the front better.
Self-reflection:
- I really enjoyed doing research as I found it interesting to understand how different effects can be utilised to achieve certain meanings in the production of a digipak
- Throughout development, I often found myself losing inspiration or motivation. Next time, to combat this I would start my work earlier so I can space out the time before each section in order to be able to rest and prevent burnout.
- I needed to reshoot my images often but this has in turn taught me a lot such as how I can achieve quality images using natural lighting or good composition which allowed me to create a better final product
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