FMP Context Research

1. Contextual Research
Jack Henderson

2. Vice create informative documentaries about a wide variety of topics from all over the world. They create
controversial and cutting edge documentaries which are accessible to mature audiences of all cultures.
They use their platform to explore themes within the world which are dangerous or potentially illegal.
With a unique and sometimes satirical stance from the their journalists, Vice is widely regarded as a
down to earth, underground media built by real people to oppose mainstream media. From short style
documentaries and formal style articles to Twitter wars and Snapchat stories, Vice has exceeded
conventional media by taking a new age approach. Recently, Vice’s product has moved to harsh criticism
of popular celebrities such as Ariana Grande.[1]. This involved going after the singer for appropriating
black culture and citing “she has worked overtime to remove all of her Caucasian heritage.
Focusing on Vice’s UK branch, their documentary style most commonly features a journalist who plays
the role of host whilst conducting interviews and narrating over the entire piece. This makes the
documentary, and the company overall, more personalised and brings the audiences closer to the
company as an entity. This format of having a presenter style documentary is something I would like to
explore in my own documentary for these reasons. The content of these films are usually raw and gritty
by showing true clips and real life stories of situation. This adds the element of story telling. Vice does not
only deliver information and facts, it tells the story of what happened and who were affected by by it. The
level of personality that is presented through this documentary style cast a wide range of emotions onto
the audience which exceeds the level of regular documentaries that only provide information. A lot of the
content is usually regionally based featuring a strong focus on the specific areas of the country.
Vice’s product is something that I will take a lot of inspiration from due to its level of storytelling and the
content that they choose to investigate and associate themselves with. These are things I will try to
incorporate into my own product through art styles, themes and styles.

3. KaptainKristian
The YouTube channel KaptainKristian provides in depth analysis into different aspects of pop culture through soft spoken narration, fluid animation and
ambient soundtracks which sit below his informative voice. The content is all based on opinion and discusses the effects of different medias such as music,
television and animation. With a total of 23 videos and an extremely rare upload schedule (most probably due to the time it takes to construct each video
and animation) KaptainKristian has analysed everything from comic book characters such as Superman and Batman, to the effect that the band Gorillaz has
had on the world of music and genre.
The thing I like most about KaptainKristian’s content is that he conveys all of his analysis convincingly and clear. Although the content itself is a matter of
opinion, the tone and presentation of his findings are seductive enough for any audience to believe that he is an expert. The animation style combined with
this creates an atmosphere that is hypnotic and immersive, with the effect of being lost in the art style and involved with the subject.
This factual delivery is different to the previous types I have explored as this is analysis or breakdown based on another persons opinion. I would like to
explore this in the future however I do not think I am as talented with crafting and delivering a solid narration at this moment in time.

4. Hip Hop Genius by Sam Seidel
Sam Seidel is an author and content creator who wrote the book Hip Hop genius.
Seidel is currently a motivational speaker and Director of K12 strategy and
research at Stanford university. His first book, [2]Hip Hop Genius: Remixing Public
Education, is not essentially about the genre of Hip Hop but rather a structure to
include inclusion and collaboration into creating a strategy of teaching high school
students. The book is a reflection of American Hip Hop culture; featuring stories of
gang and growing up with the only escape from reality was music and Hip Hop
culture.
Whilst working as a tutor in an American juvenile detention centre, Seidel
struggled to find a connection between himself and his students. It was only until
he introduced the genre of Hip Hop to the conversation that he began to realise
the inclusion that had been introduced through the specific medium of music.
Through the connection made to his students, Seidel realised the beauty of art
and inclusion.
Although the underlying message of the book is to use tools to influence high
school kids to take education seriously, I was more inspired by the passion for art
that the author had.
Upon reading Seidel’s work, I realised that the way Seidel describes connecting to
his audience is in the same way that I would like to connect to mine. Through
creating artistry that is full of character and life. Seidel links his life to art and the
medium of music and vice versa.

5. XXL magazine is a product created in 1997 to promote the non stop rise of the American Hip Hop
movement in the USA. The first cover featured up and coming rapper Jay Z documenting his recent
projects and rap feuds. XXL Magazine thrived during the 00s by overtaking its competition to the be the
go-to Hip Hop publication. In some cases, XXL bought out their competition in hostile takeovers then
cancelling their subsidiaries soon after[3].
In recent years, XXL has been somewhat shunned by the Hip Hop community for moving away from its
original theme of promoting grassroots and old school music, to promoting new age artists which found
sensational fame on platforms such as Soundcloud and YouTube. This is reflected in XXL’s yearly
Freshman class, which promotes a select few artists who have found success throughout the year and
puts them all together to do a freestyle cypher broadcast online. The Freshman Cypher began in 2007
and has slowly progressed to be a staple of the Hip Hop community. The backlash that the program
receives every year only goes to reflect the evolution of the industry and the many branches that art can
take throughout time.
Personally, I do not like XXL Magazine’s product due to its biased reporting and tendency to only report
the popular or trending artists rather than helping pure talent. However I do understand this is
necessary from a business stand point, I feel as though the passion for the product itself has been
compromised by the editors in favour of the finding what sells and makes money. This is not a business
strategy that I would employ for my business, as my passion is in the art and the creation of media
rather than the sale of popular journalism.

6. Emily Kai Bock
Emily Kai Bock is a Canadian director and film maker who is most notable for directing music
videos for the artists Grimes and Arcade Fire. Winning prizes such as the Prism Prize for Best
Music Video (Afterlife-Arcade Fire) Bock has also been nominated for Canadian Director of the
year at the 2014 Much Music Video awards.
Bock cites her biggest inspirations in filmmaking to be directors such as Spike Jonze(Being John
Malkovich, Jackass) and music videos from artists such as the Foo Fighters.
Bock’s work gives off the style of candid insights into what she is capturing. “Oblivion” by Grimes
shows this as the editing cuts frequently to not only the subject, Grimes, but also their
surroundings and the emotions that are conveyed by people in the scene. This makes the
audience feel more and connect to what is happening on the screen rather than just allowing the
video just to accompany the music. This connection to the audience is widely sought after by all
filmmakers to project emotions onto whoever is watching it.
The piece that I will focus on most and take most inspiration from, that Bock has created, is Spit
Fire Under An Empire; a Hip Hop based art piece which was screened at the Sundance Film
Festival.

7. Spit Gold Under
An Empire
Spit Gold Under An Empire is a factual style art piece documenting the vast variety of underground Hip
Hop artists in New York City. Created by Emily Kai Brock, the piece follows several artists as they speak
about music, art and community and its affect an all of them as artists and as people. Each spotlight
shows a person in their own neighbourhood defying convention and showing their inspiration for art
whilst showing a snippet of their music at the end. In recent years the New York Hip Hop scene has
seen an incredible surge of power with artists like Joey Bada$$ and Flatbush Zombies all showing their
artistry after being passed the torch by legendary rappers such as 50 Cent and Jam Master Jay.
The documentary is filmed in a candid style, following the subjects directly behind; with exception of
panning around, as they narrate over their views and inspirations in music. Towards the end of each
section, the subject words begin to blend melodically whilst a track from their own projects slowly
fades into the background and becomes a kind of pseudo-music video.
The audio editing in this piece is something I really admire as the busy sound of the New York streets is
involuntarily contrasted by the subject voice which cuts through the all of the noise. This is symbolic of
the artists trying to make a name for themselves whilst battling with social issues and being in the
cultural capital of the world.

8. Research summary
In my research of existing products, I have found a variety of ways to deliver factual
information to an audience. It has shown me that the delivery of the information
should be catered to fit the information itself and the target audience. I intend to
create my product around a specific music genre which will have a specific target
audience so should be created to fit their needs. I should also think about the culture
of my topic and the stereotypical lifestyle that my audience have. Another thing that I
found important is the purpose of my product; whether it is meant to inform, or
entertain, or both. I found this by looking at the contrast between channels like
KaptainKristian and channels like XXL Magazine. Both are informative however the
main purpose of the product seems different. XXL’s purpose is more relates more to a
gossip magazine rather than an unbiased media outlet; whereas KaptainKristian
focuses solely on the information and the delivery of the product. I’m more inclined to
focus on a delivery system like KaptainKristian’s as this is opinionated, but not stating
said opinions as fact. I do not want to build a brand which slanders character or
reports on gossip, but rather an outlet for the appreciation of art and the inclusion of
opinions. In conclusion, my research has helped me examine the variety of different
products that are available for me to experiment with and look at strengths and
weaknesses of the different kinds. From here I will look at the potentially products I
could create and design an art style to fit this.

9. Bibliography
• [1] Vice. 2019. Ariana Grande's Wax Figure Is Her, Minus Pretending to Be Black.
[ONLINE] Available at: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/mb8pan/ariana-
grandes-wax-figure-is-her-minus-pretending-to-be-black. [Accessed 30 May 2019].
• KaptainKristian. 2016. Childish Gambino – Storytelling Through Hip-Hip. Available
at:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgQ3Hpj-CBU[Accessed 1st May 2019]
• [2]Seidel, S., 2001. Hip Hop: Remixing High School Education. 1st ed. Maryland:
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Inc..
• XXL Magazine. 2019. Home. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.xxlmag.com/.
[Accessed 20 March 2019].
• [3] Wikipedia. 2019. Scratch Magazine. [ONLINE] Available
at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scratch_(magazine). [Accessed 20 March 2019].
• EmilyKaiBock.com. 2019. Home. [ONLINE] Available
at: http://www.emilykaibock.com/arcade-fire. [Accessed 15 April 2019].
• Grimes.(2012). Grimes – Oblivion. Available at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtH68PJIQLE [Accessed 23 March 2019].
• Sundance TV.(2013). NEW AMERICAN MUSIC: Spit Gold Under An Empire (HQ).
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThDpoPFmGc4&t=71s [Accessed
21 March 2019].