Rough Drawn Plan for Print Production and Initial Ideas

When thinking about ideas for the print production, I decided to roughly sketch out some of my ideas on paper, based upon some of the photos that we had already taken and some of the screenshots that we could take from the music video itself. The main aim of the print production in regard to the music video and the track itself is to represent the ideologies of the band as well as reinforce and represent the events that take place in the music video. Thus, drawings and screenshots/photographs were chosen based on their ability to not only represent the music video, but to also reinforce the dominant themes behind the music video, such as binary opposition and social inequality.

Rough drawing of the inside of the digipak/CD case (panels 2 & 3)

Drawn version of a rough plan for the album front cover (panel 1)

This is a quick mock up of a potential front cover for the album done in Photoshop. When planning the music video we also had some basic ideas regarding the album cover and print production; with these ideas in mind we took some photographs whilst shooting on location to use for the album cover(s). These two shots were taken outside the American Embassy in London, an appropriate location for the print production as it represents the corruption, social inequality, power and protest movement that we aimed to show in the music video. I cropped both photographs in half and lined them up in order to show a full face of the actor/characters, however, one side is the businessman and the other the protester. This was done to continue the recurring theme of split screen as well as to show the split in society. In the final version I would swap the sides of the photographs in order to match the split screen footage used in the video, as the switch of the image could, not only confuse the audience, but look messy and unprofessional. Another idea that we had in relation to the physical properties of the album was to have the front upon up from the middle, exactly down the split between the two charters faces to again further reinforce this split in society. The image could be improved by grading either photograph in order to make sure the tones match up, and to provide better symmetry the railings in the background could have been framed to meet up. This image would be appropriate for a front cover because it immediately conveys to the audience the style of the music video and the ideologies that it aims to present. Additionally, it is simple and uncluttered due to the use of a shallow depth of field, creating emphasis around the characters that will ensure focus from the audience. 

I considered using this screenshot from the music video for the two inside covers of the album, with one building on either side. By using this screenshot, I would be reinforcing the problem of inequality in society by showing the distribution of wealth. Furthermore, it is important that these two panels compliment each other, therefore I chose to use shots that were used together in the video. The right side is a photograph of the J.P Morgan building in the docklands, London. This building has a tremendously large amount of wealth running through it, with only a small percentage of society actually seeing the benefits of this money, particularly the '1%'. On the other side would be a photograph of a rundown building, in this case we chose an abandoned factory/mill in Norwich that acts as a visual metaphor for how large parts of society have been left to ruins. The abandoned building also acts as symbolism for lack of wealth due to its rundown state. I had also considered replacing the shot of the abandoned building with a closed independent shop instead, indicating how small business' are being made redundant by large conglomerates and corporal companies that control the wealth, much like J.P Morgan. However, if I choose to have the album open with the split in the middle, I will have to add two extra photographs of graphics. A possibility to fill this space would be to use the figures '1%' and '99%' to reinforce the social equality theme, with the number on either side of the photographs. This would also keep the inside simple without looking cluttered from too much detail. Developing on using the numbers, I would also like to experiment with overlaying the percentages on top of the corresponding photographs and lowering the opacity to see what effect this gives. 

This screenshot is the final shot in the music video and its purpose is to act as a wake up call to both characters as well as the audience. This is the first time that the characters meet each other and see how the other version lives, whilst also noting how easy it is to follow different paths. When thinking about this idea, we decided to use large mirrors in order to reference the theory of Jacques Lacan; when an individual looks into a mirror, they split in to two different identities. The individual is able to see themselves as an object that can be viewed by the person outside of himself as well as being subject to a permanent structure of subjectivity. I would consider this an appropriate image for the front cover, however, I do not feel the image is as strong as the already proposed front cover image because it isn't explicitly clear what the message is. This photograph is also slightly more cluttered with background detail and so focus is detracted from the intended subject. I have also considered using this image for the back cover, but it could be slightly repetitive using two similar images for the front and back cover. 

I picked this screenshot out from the music video because it acts as symbolism for the two mindsets of society; the 1% littering and the 99% cleaning up after them. This acts as a metaphor for society in general, where the top 1% make the decisions that affect the 99% and often the rest of society are left to pick up after mistakes made by powerful individuals go wrong. Certain groups of society are often used as scapegoats by the 1% in order to shift the blame away from themselves, such as using youth as an empty category in order to blame any problem on. This scene works well in the music video, but as a still I would worry that it doesn't create an immediate impact, in other words the screenshot doesn't pack enough punch. However, in saying this, this screenshot does fit in with the band's (Fold) ideologies regarding social equality and their aim to make society more equal. Therefore this image would work well in terms of capturing what the band stands for but it could be executed in a way that makes the meaning slightly more obvious. This image would work for the back cover or even the inside as both sides of the split screen compliment each other. When figuring out this scene we made sure to use a Starbucks cup in order to connote the corporate greed associated with the company; I was considering taking some new photographs surrounding this idea of symbolism in order to create panels that were simple but convey meaning. 

This screenshot would work most ideally for the back cover/panel 4 as it isn't as striking as the other photographs and images I've chosen, although it does convey meaning. Additionally, the above screenshot would work best for the back because it's composition wouldn't be effected by the addition of track names and other institutional information. The binary opposition is still kept as a strong theme with this image through the protesters and the 'Gove Out!' message on their placards in comparison to the business types that line the docklands. Furthermore, the placards are headed by the 'Socialist Worker' which is well known for its views on austerity and equality in society. Both of the photographs could possibly be cropped in order to focus more on the message that each shot is trying to convey, particularly centring around the protest placards.