Entertainment Design: Week 7 (Final Submission)
2 March 2017
Lecture
None
Assignments
Assignments 2A + 2B
The Rebelz (Underground Hip-Hop Music Concert)
Concept
The problem with the younger generation is that they accept the status quo without question, creating a passive mindset where they do not understand the reasons and implications behind their actions and the actions of others. Such a mindset is dangerous because the audience becomes numb to important issues in the world. Due to oversaturation in the media, things like war, injustice, and corruption become business as usual and nobody bats an eyelid to it anymore, much less takes action against it. Not only that but it limits human creativity, whereas people who contribute to art are always challenging and questioning the “norm” in their society.
The Movement, as it is called, strives to bring the youth of our generation together and engage them to question the norms of our society as a collective unit by reevaluating rules followed by appropriate action, which is the whole meaning behind the name “The Rebelz”. These actions may not necessarily be destructive in nature, rather it is revolutionary in a positive way and strives for society’s improvement, creating a generation with heightened awareness and galvanising them into action.
As a form of art, music can be utilized as a medium of self-expression. The genre of rap and hip-hop specifically is more personalized than other genres due to its honest lyrics, which are usually inspired by real-life experiences and are story or poem-like in structure, involving rhythm and diction.
In recent years, hip-hop has been in the rise again ever since its Golden Age, which happened during the 1980s to the 1990s. One possible reason behind this newfound popularity is the need for self-expression and sending important messages to the masses, and hip-hop being a suitable platform for such subjects. The younger generation, being in close touch with music, are no strangers with this stream of music.
Storyline
A secret organization known only as OBEY strives to control people’s minds through the media and technology by using certain phrases, words, and images to send subliminal messages to the masses. Their goal is to brainwash people into believing in the ideas OBEY are planting in their heads without question, essentially leading them to become mindless zombies that accept the status quo and never take action.
Since artists and creative minds tend to think in a more unconventional way, people with such characteristics are able to notice the otherwise secretive influences of OBEY. These people are the beginning of The Rebelz, and the event timeline is all about bringing them together in a movement to overpower OBEY in order to retain their creative minds and “wake up” the others who have fallen under OBEY’s influence.
May: The Usual posts up a link to The Rebelz mobile app
Mid-May: Logos start appearing in strategic places
June: Posters suddenly appear, website can be accessed
Mid-June: People walking around wearing merchandise towards the venue of art demonstration
Venue: Middlesex University London
July: Open mic rap battle
Venue: Southbank Skatepark
Mid-July: Flash Mob
Venue: Trafalgar Square
Overall, not only has this module introduced me to different aspects of design in the entertainment industry, but it also improved my performance in a group and technical skills.
Lecture
None
Assignments
Assignments 2A + 2B
The Rebelz (Underground Hip-Hop Music Concert)
Concept
The problem with the younger generation is that they accept the status quo without question, creating a passive mindset where they do not understand the reasons and implications behind their actions and the actions of others. Such a mindset is dangerous because the audience becomes numb to important issues in the world. Due to oversaturation in the media, things like war, injustice, and corruption become business as usual and nobody bats an eyelid to it anymore, much less takes action against it. Not only that but it limits human creativity, whereas people who contribute to art are always challenging and questioning the “norm” in their society.
The Movement, as it is called, strives to bring the youth of our generation together and engage them to question the norms of our society as a collective unit by reevaluating rules followed by appropriate action, which is the whole meaning behind the name “The Rebelz”. These actions may not necessarily be destructive in nature, rather it is revolutionary in a positive way and strives for society’s improvement, creating a generation with heightened awareness and galvanising them into action.
As a form of art, music can be utilized as a medium of self-expression. The genre of rap and hip-hop specifically is more personalized than other genres due to its honest lyrics, which are usually inspired by real-life experiences and are story or poem-like in structure, involving rhythm and diction.
In recent years, hip-hop has been in the rise again ever since its Golden Age, which happened during the 1980s to the 1990s. One possible reason behind this newfound popularity is the need for self-expression and sending important messages to the masses, and hip-hop being a suitable platform for such subjects. The younger generation, being in close touch with music, are no strangers with this stream of music.
Storyline
A secret organization known only as OBEY strives to control people’s minds through the media and technology by using certain phrases, words, and images to send subliminal messages to the masses. Their goal is to brainwash people into believing in the ideas OBEY are planting in their heads without question, essentially leading them to become mindless zombies that accept the status quo and never take action.
Since artists and creative minds tend to think in a more unconventional way, people with such characteristics are able to notice the otherwise secretive influences of OBEY. These people are the beginning of The Rebelz, and the event timeline is all about bringing them together in a movement to overpower OBEY in order to retain their creative minds and “wake up” the others who have fallen under OBEY’s influence.
Timeline
The Usual is the most well known of all the artists in the roster, to the point of treading the line between breaking from the underground and into the mainstream. He is the recruited into The Rebelz and uses his influence to plant the first seeds of the “revolution”, encouraging others to join the movement and introducing the first wave of information about The Rebelz. The Rebelz app contains some information about the movement and a “Do you OBEY or REBEL” quiz, which is meant to gauge how far the quiztaker has been “brainwashed” by OBEY’s messages. However, even for those who have been affected by the brainwashing, the quiz draws their attention to the reality of the situation, calling out to them to snap out of their influence and join The Rebelz. The app will continue to update the user on upcoming events held by The Rebelz as well as other new information. Meanwhile, people (paid by us, although the audience will not know this) have begun spreading rumours about the emerging movement.
Mid-May: Logos start appearing in strategic places
Logos (on stickers) begin appearing in strategic locations as the movement grows, for example, in alleys or subway tunnels; places that people are unlikely to linger in, but would pass by every day on their way to work or some other location. In other words, the logos are hidden in plain sight. People would slowly begin to notice the cryptic logos and, provided they are of the right mindset, would become curious as to their purpose. Those who have heard of the movement before this (through the rumours or The Usual) might be able to put two and two together and realise that this is the logo of The Rebelz.
June: Posters suddenly appear, website can be accessed
Posters suddenly appear en masse as the movement continues to grow. OBEY has begun to take notice of the Rebelz and is determined to stomp them out before they rise into power, and so the Movement is retaliating by calling out louder than before for people to join them, no longer relying on hush hush rumours and mere cryptic messages. The posters still hold a degree of mystery to them though, and viewers must figure out that they must scan the posters with the app to access the website (in doing so, disobeying the posters command “Do Not Scan”). Tickets will also be available for purchase through the microsite for the first time as well as some merchandise, though some will be made exclusive and only available at the concert.
Mid-June: People walking around wearing merchandise towards the venue of art demonstration
Venue: Middlesex University London
Where previously The Usual was the only real known member of The Rebelz, now more of its members have come out of hiding, wearing merchandise sporting the logo and attracting the attention of those who have gained wind of the movement. The members will tell those who express interest more about The Rebelz and get them to download the app, but mostly they will be walking around and leading people to the location where a public art demonstration held by The Rebelz is being exhibited. Public is the keyword, showing that while The Rebelz are an underground movement they are large enough now that they are no longer afraid to merely stick to the shadows. The art and the messages it sends acts as both a way to encourage creativity and curiousity in the viewers as well as a way to plant the seeds of new ideas in their minds, ideas that oppose the ones that OBEY has been upholding. Tickets to the final concert will also be sold at these venues, one of which is Middlesex University London.
July: Open mic rap battle
Venue: Southbank Skatepark
In Southbank Skatepark, members of The Rebelz emerge and begin rapping and encouraging others to join them, initiating a rap battle of sorts, rapping as a form of self expression and calling others to do the same. Through this people are able to tell their stories and speak their mind, and even those who don’t join in on the rapping and only listen will be inspired to “follow their own path”, so to speak, breaking through the brainwashing OBEY has instilled into them. Tickets will also be sold at this event.
Venue: Trafalgar Square
The final mini event The Rebelz holds before the concert itself is their loudest one yet and comes in the form of a flash mob held in Trafalgar Square. It begins with a loud alarm like noise, and members of The Rebelz emerge from the crowd and begin their dance. The performance acts as one final “wake up call” to the members of the public that have been brainwashed by OBEY, reaching out to them through music and dance. At the end of the performance, OBEY members appear to chase away the flash mob, but the damage has already been done. Soon after, videos and retellings of the event will be spread on social media, along with information about the movement for a last chance for people to join.
Visuals
 |
| Sitemap |
 |
| Thumbnail sketches for individual pages |
 |
| Event floorplan |
 |
| Logo process |
 |
| Final logo |
 |
| Typography process |
 |
| Applied typography |
 |
| Applied typography |
 |
| Background key art |
 |
| Applied background (mobile app) |
 |
| Applied background (microsite) |
Reflections
On Thursday, 2 March, my group along with the rest of the class finally submitted our work for the Entertainment Design module. It has been a really hectic semester despite only spanning for seven weeks and having two modules. This class in particular demands not only technical skills in design, but also exploration and attention to detail, even if what is required is not the usual design brief since it has heavy traces of event management.
Adding event management to the mix results in an exciting yet confusing experience. Fortunately yet unfortunately at the same time, the event that we picked (The Rebelz) was very unusual in its nature and it requires different execution, especially compared to other mainstream events. The whole underground characteristic of the music concert forces us to brainstorm new ideas on how to promote the event as a whole, which is both interesting and hard, as we were not able to treat or compare The Rebelz to events that we are used to in real life.
With the addition of weekly presentations we were supposed to give in a group, I feel that this semester is the hardest I have ever worked compared to the other semesters I have been through. Our group met up a lot of times, and each meeting always had different agendas to complete: presentation discussion, presentation rehearsal, assignment discussion, doing assignments together, etc. I used to think that all-nighters can be avoided as long as I time manage well; if so, then I must say I fail to time manage well this semester because there are three occasions in which my groupmates and I did not sleep for an entire night. Surprisingly, all-nighters are new for me, despite me being a design student for almost two years.
The process is even more grueling and tiring than we expected, but in the midst of doing assignments and staying up all night, we found that we understood each other a little better. Group projects are always intriguing since it gives us an opportunity to get to know different people and different methods of working on the same subject matter. That is not to say, however, that it is all rainbows and butterflies—we had our share of trials and tribulations among group members as well, though we managed to solve the problems professionally.
Overall, not only has this module introduced me to different aspects of design in the entertainment industry, but it also improved my performance in a group and technical skills.