Musicians and Reggae masters unu stop it

[JamBoy]

Mr music man dem; your music is <U>fantastic</U> among the best in the world. Your videos are shown all over the world. So stop showing shanty towns, brok down walls, and mashup places in the backgrounds of your videos. I was washing a show on BETJ over the weekend called WICK'D, they show Jamaican music and videos; every one of the blasted video was showing rundown trash dump mashup rubbish, don't you realize people will begin to think thats all Jamaica is about. Stop it, Stop it, Stop it, Stop it, Stop it, Stop it, <U>SHOW SOME FIX UP PLACE INSTEAD,</U> CHO,WHA DO UNU.

[Lazie]

RE: Musicians and Reggae masters unu stop it

Oh please! This was brought up before and people see nothing wrong with it. Then again .... Anyway, how I see it, music making social commentary such as Welcome to Jamrock, Hungry etc I see no problem with those videos being shot in those areas. However a song about vanity, girls, etc ... whey nuh have nothing fi duh with poverty, it is beyond me why they would shoot a video in those areas.

[Tilla]

RE: Musicians and Reggae masters unu stop it

Lazie (10/16/2006) However a song about vanity, girls, etc ... whey nuh have nothing fi duh with poverty, it is beyond me why they would shoot a video in those areas.

The people in charge of producing these videos only think locally, not globally.

[Historian]

Exactly!

The people in charge of producing these videos only think locally, not globally.

So true….

[Lionpaw]

bait unnuh a bait we(directores) up. u know how much it costs to rent a decent venue to shoot a video? let's just say it's frickin exorbitant. hope gardens a 70 grand but mi normally sneak in and shoot video and run before security ketch mi.

[Assasin]

They have no idea how much it is fi rent people place, pay video man etc. to make a video. In most case if a song hit it big then they get their video reshoot but some man just a try a thing and them have to use what they have.

[Historian]

Missing JamBoy's Point?

They have no idea how much it is fi rent people place, pay video man etc. to make a video. In most case if a song hit it big then they get their video reshoot but some man just a try a thing and them have to use what they have.

For a country that has made the immense musical impact that Jamaica has, why are we having the scenario today of “some man just try a thing”? Are we in Jamaica cursed with underdevelopment in every phase of our endeavors, including our awesome reggae music?!

By the way, I deliberately re-activated this October 2006 post simply because I felt it is still relevant today, and so merits further discussion. Secondly, I can assure you that I do have an “idea” of how much it costs to make music videos in Jamaica today!! Having said all of that, I must also say that this comment, Assasin, about “renting place” and “paying video man” explanation does not in any way even begin to adequately answer poster JamBoy’s question! Read, once more, his second and third sentences!!

[TDowl]

There are so many places in Jamaica to shoot a video, that is a very sorry excuse. Just about all the Ja videos or horrible, nothing name artistic.

Let me take you back in time - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=644od...eature=related

[Assasin]

Well it maybe indequate to you but I know that the number ONE consideration in doing a video is the cost in Jamaica.

Most producers, and singers don't recover the cost. If you notice the difference between the quality, effect and the setting of most of the bigger artists you will realise what I am saying. I speak to producers who artist ask to help them with a video and the will tell you off the record 'mi nah spend them money deh and nuh mek it back" since oftentimes they have to lay out their own cash and they don't manage the artist.

As you say you don't know the cost and the cost is one of the reason why you have so many unprofessionals videoman who just have a camera and will do a "ting" Again if you notice even the bigger dancehall artists them have some good videos just like any American rap video or R&B.

Maybe you can do some research as you normally do but I guess you just make up your mind that a just something cultural or ghetto fabulous about it but most artist I know want a good quality video but many will take a bad video over none at all and that is part of the norm.

[Assasin]

Music video booms in Jamaica

By Soutik Biswas
BBC News, Jamaica



M.I.A (middle) flew from London to shoot with Jay Will (right)

It is a sunny morning and a group of rakish young men are dancing to music on a boom box in the shadow of rusty containers and a moored ship at Kingston's Port Royal.
The dancers are rehearsing a curious mix of dancehall, hip hop and Bollywood under the watchful eyes of a young local music video-maker.
Not far away, inside an air-conditioned trailer van, British-based singing star M.I.A is putting on make-up for the video of her latest song in which the dancing boys will feature.
Why is M.I.A shooting her latest video on a faraway Caribbean island?
"Hey, the Jamaican cats are the best dancers any day," says her assistant, a young girl in a frilly pink dress who sashays away to check out the young dancers gyrating under a scorching sun.
M.I.A is just one in a long list of musicians who are flocking to Jamaica to shoot their latest music video these days.
The island, home to reggae and dancehall, has become the music video destination for stars as diverse as Willie Nelson, Wyclef Jean, Alicia Keys, Shaggy, Sean Paul, and Damian and Ziggy Marley, children of Jamaica's reggae superstar Bob Marley.
Thriving industry
Jamaica exploded as a music video hub three years ago as digital film technology drove down costs - the island, birthplace of reggae, already had the music and the jive.
Some two dozen music videos are shot on the island every week, all produced for anything between $5000 and $15,000.


As long as the music thrives, the music video industry will boom


Carleene Samuels, producer


It also helps that there is a clutch of popular local music video channels - Hype TV and Reggae Entertainment television are among the most popular- on the cable, which fuel a raging local demand.
So sought after are directors that Jay Will, who has shot a Shaggy video and is now shooting the latest M.I.A one, has shot some 60 music videos in the past two and a half years.
Will says Jamaican music videos, which borrow heavily from hip hop videos and are imbued with a colourful local feel with great dancing, have reached a wider audience today thanks to play on youtube, myspace and popular dancehall and reggae music television channels in the US and UK.
The flourishing industry also keeps a lot of trained film-making talent employed in a country where feature film-making is still in its infancy.
Employment
"Music videos sure keep a lot of people employed. Many of these people are talented people trained in international schools," says Brian St Juste, president of the Jamaica Video and Motion Pictures Association.
Carleene Samuels, Jamaica's top music video producer, is one of them.
She says that half the music videos made every year on the island are of top quality, while the rest need to do a lot of catching up.
Video-makers like Will and Rasa Kassa are much in demand for bringing a particularly Jamaican verve and feel to their work.
Jamaica is trying to build on its music video success

Most of the videos are shot in a day on gruelling 12 to 14 hour shifts, and on the waterfront at Port Royal, there is hectic work as the sun appears and then vanishes behind the clouds.
"As long as the music industry thrives here, music videos will thrive as well," says Ms Samuels, sitting in her trailer and furiously replying to work proposals on her Blackberry.
The explosion in the music video industry in a way has emboldened the local film industry to try make more features in a country where money is expensive to borrow - this year the island will produce five feature films, up from one feature a year.
"People here like stories around music, and gangland tales," says Natalie Thompson, a local producer.
Jamaica is also trying to woo big budget Hollywood to shoot their films here. A Disney production, Cool Runnings, was partly filmed on the island in 1993. Recently, a Hollywood comedy License To Wed, starring Robin Williams, was shot extensively on the island - the film is scheduled for release in July.

[Me]

Most videos will be filmed in the areas where the folks are from or that are cheapest. Furthermore, there are a good number of quality videos out there with scenes of nice places in Jamaica. Tarrus Riley, Jah Cure, Konshens, Beres, Mr Vegas, Richie Spice, Iwayne and many more.

Nothing wrong with showing the reality of Jamaica. If you are ashamed then try and help the people so that they do not have to live that way.

[Assasin]

High price on music video

by Andre Jebbinson, Staff Reporter

( L - R ) Nordia Rose, [COLOR=blue !important][COLOR=blue !important]music [COLOR=blue !important]video[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR] director. and Beenie Man - File photos
Music [COLOR=blue !important][COLOR=blue !important]videos[/COLOR][/COLOR] these days seem to resemble what looks like excerpts from movies. High priced sets and cutting edge equipment are now being used to assure the finest quality. Part of the reason is the extent to which music is being consumed internationally.
With local artistes such as Sean Paul, Shaggy, Beenie Man and a host of others taking dancehall around the world, music video directors are now trying to make the visible side of the music even better.
"It's always good to have good quality because you don't know where it reach. Good standard is always good," said music video director, Asha McHail.
McHail has worked with the likes of Lutan Fyah, Yogi & Jovi, D'aville among others. He adds though that limitations in the local market cannot be overlooked. McHail said a low budget often results in much lower quality than what is preferred. "Sometimes you have a great idea but you can't really do what you really want to do. A lot of the times, the budget caters for only one day but the video need more than that," he said.
The cost of making music videos ranges from $150,000 to about $600,000. Director Nordia Rose said that any budget above $300,000 can earn a client a decent video but it also takes some level of creativity. "We are reaching where we need to be but it depends on the director and how they see it. If they just want to eat a food, it not going to work," she said.
Rose has shot videos for Beenie Man, Shaggy, Bling Dawg, Vybz Kartel and a few more artistes.
A big part of the problem is also proper equipment. McHail said the American films a lot of movies. Jamaican shoots mainly videos and commercials, so the two cannot be justly compared. Instead, the industry can only aim to get to the point where the discrepancy is not that obvious.
He adds though that things are getting better. "We have equipment coming into the island. You also have youths who are going away to study and are coming back to work," McHail said.
Rose also said that the introduction of some of the newest cameras to the Jamaican industry is making the job a little easier. New products such as the Sony and Panasonic Hi-Definition cameras are some of the equipment that are being used overseas and now, about five such cameras exist in Jamaica. Another fixture becoming more popular is the HMI Light, which replaces the sun when the set becomes too dark.
But Jason "Jay Will" Williams thinks it has to do with more than just budgetary limitations but more about following proper procedures. To ensure he makes all the right moves, he incorporates some of his American counterparts' habits.
He said whereas some shoots have just one person who serves many different jobs, he has different subdivisions with different functions such as make-up, art, lighting and audio. "I am not just a man who take up a camera and seh I am going shoot a video. It's more of a team work rather than one man doing it himself," said Willams who has made videos for Shaggy, TOK, Tammi Chynn and others.
He said too often other directors only look at the handsome payday they will get from a video. But, "it comes down to preparation and goals. Some people will go the extra mile to and use all on the budget on the film instead of worrying about how much money they will make," Williams said.
He admitted though that thinking outside of the box is limited by the lack of resources in some instances. So the overall attitude is that the industry is on a rise with new equipment and fresh minds setting out to work. This should be a welcomed change since Jamaican music now seems limitless.

[Assasin]

They will always try to ignore the line of reasoning and but everything in one. For most part Beanie man, Ele, Sean Paul etc have good quality video. Most of the poor quality videos are from young artist etc. who don't have the funds or just use the cheapest man them can find to put something together.

[Lionpaw]

but mi a one a di cheapest director dem and nuff man bawl bout mi price high so we end up affi do videos without nuff resources.

[Assasin]

Historian I know you just ignore the thread now.