Digipak Ideas

In order to help me construct an effective digipak I have researched into bands/songs that have produced similar videos to the type of video I would like to produce, therefore, I feel it is important to blog this progress to help me collate ideas and get a more vivid idea of what I would like my digipak to look like. Having composed a very rough first draft of my video, I understand that there has to be a clear correlation between my digipak and my video to give the artist credibility and to maintain continuity. I will be analyzing digipaks for texts that were either filmed or produced in black and white and that are somewhat similar musical styles to the artist I am producing for. I have produced a first draft of my digipak, however upon analyzing it more meticulously it seems there are some discrepancies between the content in the video and the pictures on the digipak.

Ed Sheeran - "The A Team" Artwork

The cover depicts the protagonist of the video walking with her back to the camera, which connotes a lack of identity, insignificance and hints at ambiguity. The composition of the cover also maintains relevance to the text: the black and white effect that the text was filmed in has been retained and making the the project as a whole more 'neat' which gives the artist more credibility but also gives the work itself an identity, a way in which it can be recognised - using more bright colours on the digipak may have confused fans as it would have been difficult to associate the digipak and the video. This is one of the early problems I encountered in my work - there was a clear discrepancy between what I had filmed and the artwork on the digipak - my first draft featured no photos of the protagonist and all photos of the locations in which I filmed were in colour. Also, the main feature of this digipak is the protagonist who takes up a large portion of space within the confines of the photo and has been sketched in a very dark shade of black - another interesting feature of the digipak and also the artist Ed Sheeran himself. Album covers that feature drawings/sketches have become somewhat of a trademark for Sheeran, as his album "+" features similar textures that look like very detailed sketches.

Depicted above is another example of Sheeran's album artwork, which feature photos that have been cleverly converted into pencil sketches via meticulous editing. The immediate effect of these detailed drawings is that it gives the artist an identity, a trademark by which he can be recognised - an artist or band must be recognised as a brand therefore my ancillary texts (digipak and poster) must be of a very similar style maintaining some distinct features to help get the band recognised. But back to the original cover for the A Team, it features small lettering rather than larger, lavish print which goes a long way in  reinforcing the artists intentions of focusing solely on making music rather than the more lucrative side of the industry, and promotes a healthy image for the artist with connotations that he is leaning towards a minimalist approach to his music. The small text coupled with simple typography goes even further to establish the artist's intentions to focus on the music itself rather than the lavish and luxurious production tools they have at their disposal which is another feature which denotes that Sheeran is a proponent of minimalism. The sketch effect that has been put on the A Team cover also bears similarities to other minimalist art:

The textures used in this sketch feature the bare essentials of the facial features and shading where appropriate, no water colours have been used and the sketch encapsulates the modern day minimalist sketch, this sketch is analogous with Sheeran's album cover which supports the argument that the artist (Sheeran) is striving for minimalism to gain respect from fans and other artists. Another notable feature of Sheeran's work is his logo; his name in typography that features a slightly 'fuzzy' rough-around-the-edges look coupled with a paw print - a symbol that has come to define him and his work in recent years. The paw print has become somewhat synonymous for Sheeran's work since his rise to success - stemming from a sticker used to adorn his acoustic guitar from way back to some of his first gigs that has remained with him today and allowed him to become a marketing machine - it is probably this that the fans respect him for, despite Sheeran's success he remembers where he came from and has remained down to earth still using what looks like a neglected acoustic guitar to perform at gigs with.

Above is Sheeran's acoustic guitar with the famous paw print that now serves as a symbol/representation of his work, used to decorate a seemingly neglected guitar which contributes to his indie image - as I have alluded to previously, many things in the indie genre are 'rough-around-the-edges" such as the camera work used in music videos and also clothing (ripped jeans etc.) and Sheeran has kept this trend going however he embodies this through his instruments. It may seem pedantic, but small it seems small details like this go a long way in producing a successful digipak that gives the artist a brand identity.

Depicted above is another example of how the logo has become a trademark of Ed Sheeran's work, it is one of the first things featured in bright white and bold on the famous 'Carry On' memes which have experienced exponential growth in recent years. In essence, the point is that a digipak needs a number of different features to give it credibility depending on the genre and the target audience/demographic, and a logo that the band can be recognised by is just as important as the digipak it is printed on, it gives the band/artist recognition. This meme has also been done in orange which is, again, synonymous for Sheeran's work.

The fact that the album cover is merely a sketch almost 'simplifies' it, as if it has taken merely pencil and paper to produce the cover (despite the fact it would have taken photos and adequate editing software to produce this look)- another reference to minimalism and also the typography in which the title has been produced - "The A Team" is written in a font that looks very basic and eroded, broken. This embodies many of the themes in the song/video: a sex worker who has very limited resources and has been broken by society, who is relying on bare essentials to get by and earn a living.