Filming Blog

 The filming process for this commercial took much longer than expected. I began filming a day later than planned on 10/27/2020 and finished on 10/29/2020. The main reason for the initial delay in filming was that my phone, which is my only camera, broke and I had to get a new one. While that was an incredibly inconvenient and expensive problem to fix, my new phone has a much better camera, which I think is reflected in the commercial. I began filming on the morning of the 27th, I had curled my hair the night before and that morning I laid out all of my planned costumes and did my make-up for the first scene. The first scene took several takes and I ended up having to significantly shorten the scene in order to account for the 30 second time limit. Then I did a costume change and prepared for my next scene. I didn't know if I could film this scene on my own as I do not have a tripod or a table high enough for a long shot. While I was filming the extreme eye close-ups I came up with the idea of taping a flat Tupperware lid to my window blinds to create a makeshift tripod. This worked surprisingly well and I was able to get the long shot I planned for without any help. In between scenes I filmed the tilt of the mascara tube. When my mom got home from work we filmed the fourth scene. I had to explain to my mother how to do a low-angle and a tilt, which took her quite a few tries. Our first takes ended up as duds as they either did not tilt up or start at a low angle, or as our first take was, were not videos at all but instead awkward photos. The third scene was probably the easiest to film as it involved no camera movements. However we did have to adjust the camera placement to avoid accidently filming the camera's reflection. By the time we were done we had run out of daylight and it was too dark to film the last scene. On the 28th I did my make-up and put on my costume only to find a large hole in my leggings. The rest of my leggings were in the washing machine and I only had a little time to film so I put on basketball shorts, which still felt appropriate as I was trying to convey the "athleisure" trend of the 2010s. I taught my mother how to do a tracking shot and we filmed the last scene with no real trouble. I though I was done on the 28th but while reviewing the footage I noticed how badly lit some of the close-ups were. So I re-filmed them and added a dutch angle to one of the eye close-ups. The only thing I need to do before editing the project is to dump all of my footage onto my computer.

                                                       My makeshift tripod.

                                              An accidental picture taken while filming.

Planning Storyboard for my Maybelline: Great Lash Commercial

 Scene 1: We see a woman dressed in 1970's inspired attire applying Great Lash Mascara. She places the mascara on the table in front of the camera and turns to leave. Before she is completely out of frame she quickly turns back and grabs the mascara and places it in her purse before going completely out of frame. This scene will be filmed as a medium shot, in order to see both the actor and the mascara in question. The goal of this scene is to show how Great Lash is a mascara people have kept coming back to even nearly five decades later. This scene will be filmed in a bathroom.

Scene 2: In a long shot a woman dressed in clothes inspired by the 80's walks towards and then to the right of the camera. The scene cuts back and forth between the long shot and an extreme close up of the eyelashes with mascara on them. The extreme close up will be shot from both at eye line level and at a high angle. The goal of this scene is to 1. Show how the product will look on eyes, and 2. Show the confidence this product can bring. This scene will be shot in my bedroom, to show the actress passing through the house as the product passes through time. 

Scene 3: In another medium shot a woman dressed in 1990's clothing walks to the right and past the camera. For this scene I wanted to incorporate my favorite part of my house, a big window wall, into the shot. So the actor will pass in front of the window wall. The goal of this scene is to show how Great Lash will keep on through tears, water and smudging, just as the woman carries on past the camera. 

Scene 4. In this scene we see a woman in y2k inspired fashion walking down in outdoor staircase. This scene starts out a low angle but gradually tilts up to an eye line level angle as she walks down the steps. Like in scene 2 this scene cuts between two shots. The second shot is an extreme closeup of the bottle of mascara filmed using a tilt.  The goal for this scene is to draw a point of comparison to the fashionable woman and the iconic pink and green mascara tube by filming them in similar ways. 

Scene 5: The woman is now dressed in contemporary clothing and is walking towards a door. The camera follows her in a medium tracking shot as she walks towards and opens the door. As she stands in the doorway the camera cuts to a close up of her face, then she winks and closes the door behind her. This scene will be filmed in my courtyard by the door. The goal of this scene is to once again show the product up close while also showing how it is a fun product and brand through the wink. 

Scene 5:  The door fades to black and shows the Maybelline logo. A slogan, like "Maybe she's born with it, Maybe it's Maybelline." or "5 decades strong" will appear under the logo.

*Each scene should last approximately 6 seconds. 

Planning Blog

  Planning blog 

  Props: 

I am producing a commercial for Maybelline's great lash mascara. Thus my main props will be tubes of said mascara. I will also be using a hairbrush and a purse.

Costumes : 

For my project I will be using five different costumes. Great lash is one of Maybelline's oldest products debuting in 1971. My plan is for the commercial to showcase the product through the years, so I want a different costume for the 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, 2000's, and 2010's. For the 1970's I will be wearing a Jumpsuit. For the 1980's I will be wearing a button up shirt and high-waisted jeans. The 1990s, a mini skirt, tights and a black t-shirt. For the 2000's I will be wearing low-waisted jeans and a tank top layered over a t-shirt. The 2010's it will consist of an over-sized t-shirt and leggings. Each costume will also have relatively period accurate hair, make-up, and accessories.

 

  Schedule:

On 10/22/2020 I researched the codes and conventions for cosmetics commercials, specifically Maybelline.

On 10/23/2020 I established the commercial's props, costumes, schedule location and backup plan.

On 10/24/2020 I will create a storyboard for the commercial.

On 10/26/2020 I will film all of the necessary shots and dump the footage onto my computer to be edited.

On 10/27/2020 and 10/28/2020 I will edit my commercial and add any necessary final touches.

 

Location

My first location will be in my bathroom, and here I will film the mascara application. Then I will film in my bedroom and living room, filming myself walking towards the door. I will also film close-ups of the mascara on the eyelashes. After that I will film on my stairwell, cutting between footage of me walking down and close-ups of the tube of mascara. My final location will be in my house's courtyard, here I will film myself walking out of the door. Any footage needed of just the mascara will be filmed on my sewing table, because of its solid color.

 

Back-up Plan

 

If it is raining but there is still good enough lighting for filming, I will incorporate an umbrella into my props. However, if it does rain it will likely be too dark outside to film. If this happens I will include my closet and film two sections of the commercial in my bathroom. Additionally, instead of walking out of my front door, I will walk out of the door to the courtyard. 

 

   

Research: Commercial Conventions

 For my project I will be doing a Maybelline commercial. Maybelline commercials are some of the most common commercials I see on television. Most of the commercials follow a standard formula.

-Show gorgeous  models walking around a glamorous set wearing your product and perhaps applying it.

 

-Smooth voice over tells you about the incredible product being sold. Listing the benefits of using it.

 

- Show brief images of the product without the models. This is often done in the beginning and near the end of the commercial.

 

-The score of these commercials is somewhat sensual. Sometimes it will be smooth but intense orchestrations. Other times it will be a softly sung pop ballad.

 

- The camera cuts between close-ups and wide shots. Extreme close-ups are also prevalent when the product is being applied or needs to be shown off.

 

 

Conventions in Maybelline commercials include the following.

 

1. Saying the name of the brand and product out loud. Almost all maybelline commercials are for a specific product rather than the entire brand. So it is important for the commercial to make sure the audience is aware of what product is being sold. Maybelline does not have a simple, commonly recognized logo like the bitten apple or the nike swoosh, so in order for the audience to recognize the brand it must be said aloud or shown on screen.

 

2. Maybelline commercials make heavy use of ethos. By using models the commercial makes the audience feel insecure. Which would prompt them to buy the make-up in order to look like the beautiful women on the screen.