Research into similar Media texts Music Videos

Aerosmith ft Run DMC - Walk This Way


When the song was released it was very different to every other song; it combined two very different genres of music into one song, Aerosmith were a very popular rock band and Run DMC were a very popular Rap group, when the two joined it was very unexpected because they were the opposite of each other, this is highlighted right at the start of the video by the split shot of both sides of a wall, on one side Aerosmith are playing their guitars and on the other Run DMC are shouting at them to turn it down, this shows the contrast between the two bands and almost indicates that they are rivals.



Just as Aerosmith are about to start singing their song in one room Run DMC start singing it instead in their room but they do it in a rap style, you can see Aerosmith are shocked by this as the camera gets a close up shot of the lead singers face and the band stop playing, they get angry and start throwing things at the wall which was typical of this rock band anyway however it tells the reader that there is a definite conflict at the start between the two groups. There is a smokiness in both of the rooms and posters on the walls which indicates that they are either in a small run down venue or in a flat, this contrasts to the second part of the video where they are playing on a big stage in front of lots of fans.
One great shot in the video is when the lead singer of Aerosmith breaks through the wall with his microphone stand and starts singing along to the chorus of the song, the whole in the wall that he came through could represent him breaking the barrior between the two genres of music, it also looks like he has come from a completely different world; the bright light behind him and his big shaggy hair along with the high pitch of his voice really contrast with the darker room that Run DMC are in and their deep tone of voice and all black suits and hats.
There is another very clever shot after that in which another member of Aerosmith pokes his head through the whole in the wall from his room and then when he reappears out of the hole the room has completely changed into a big stage with lots of big stage lights and all of Aerosmith are playing on it. This image contrasts with where the band were originally playing and shows that the band are more famous that the video made out at the beginning, the red lights in the background and the costumes of the band all indicate that Aerosmith are a successful rock band, the open top and tight pants of the lead singer were a trademark outfit for him throughout the bands career. The long microphone is also a stereotypical instrument for a band of this genre, likewise the big guitar with the pointy end on it and the shaggy hair of each member of the band. This all contrasts with Run DMC when they come on stage, which highlights the difference between the genres of rock and hip hop. Run DMC have a much more relaxed manner and the matching suits with the black hats are all demonstrations of how the costumes of the two bands separate them into different genres. The main trademark item of clothing for Run DMC is the Adidas trainers with no laces in them, the importance of them is highlighted by the close up of the shoes when the group are on stage, they are tapping along to the hip
hop beat, whereas Aerosmith are dancing more to the sound of the electric guitar.

The main Narrative of the video is the “coming together” of the two bands, at first they seem like rivals and are competing against each other however towards the end of the video it is made clear that they have joined together and are no longer trying to out do each other, the shot of the lead singer of Aerosmith singing with a member of Run DMC either side of him shows the bond that has been made between the two bands, and that the genre of rock can be mixed with hip hop and sound good. This means that the target audience of the two videos could either be rock fans or hip hop fans, I think the age of the target audience would have been for the younger generation because neither rock or hip hop would have appealed as much to older people. The audience could be either male or female; in the crowd there are a mixture of both genders which could be because of the difference between the two bands, because Aerosmith was attractive to females whereas Run DMC was predominantly listened to by males.

Fatboy Slim - Weapon Of Choice

The music video for this song stars Christopher Walken who is a very famous actor, he normally plays quite serious roles in films and is often the villain in lots of films. I think that Is what makes this video so iconic because of the fact that Christopher Walken is normally very serious however he is dancing around the empty hotel.
The start of the video shows him sitting in a chair in a room by himself, he looks very bored or maybe even depressed, the fact he is wearing a suit shows that he may be quite well payed and a respectable business man, the hotel itself looks very luxurious which would also indicate that the man may be of a higher class. You can tell by the luggage cart that he is in a hotel and the shiny marble floor and various different plants inside the building indicate that it is an upmarket hotel. The luggage that he has on the floor next to him could show that he is about to leave or has just arrived, and the way that he is slouched in his seat shows that he has been waiting in the same chair for quite a while by himself. The costume he is wearing is a stereotypical view of a boring business man; the fact that the suit is a boring grey colour and his matching black socks and shoes all contrast highly with his actions in the video.
When the music starts to kick in at the start you see the man look over to the radio and then look back again, he looks annoyed at the noise and fed up. But as the song gets a bit louder his breathing become more and more erratic, then, as there is a tune starting to play his head starts moving along to it, it is still stereotypically fairly boring but he stands up and starts walking towards the middle of the room. What makes all of this so effective is that the man keeps the same emotionless facial expression as he is dancing. When the song starts to play properly he quickly jumps straight into a highly energetic dance which is completely unexpected, this shocks the reader and adds a comical effect to the video.
Even though he is in exactly the same shot as he was at the start of the video, his actions give a completely different feel to the shot, it is no longer boring or depressing but now makes the viewer feel good and shows that the character in the video is much more energetic and happier than the first impression of him. I think that his actions match the mood of the song to indicate that the music is causing him to dance rather than himself, and shows that he is no longer in control of his own body.
I think a good shot of him is when he is going up the escalator dancing, the camera is moving slowly along with him and then takes a stationary position which makes him get further and further away whilst doing the same dance, at this point it is still a bit of a shock that this man is doing a funny dance and it highlights how important he is by keeping him in the center of the screen even as he is getting further away. Then when he starts to run back down the escalator it shows him being immature, and could be a metaphor for the music causing him to stop following the rules and do what he wants to do.

My favourite shot in the video is of the man jumping on top of a table, and kicking a pile of different sheets of paper into the camera, I think that the fact he is jumping on the table firstly shows his rebellion against the boring stereotype of a high class business man and that he is letting out the childish side of himself. He then kicks the papers right into the camera almost covering it, and the other sheets scatter into the air, I think this is a really clever and original shot and would be a really good concept to work on in my own music video. He then remains standing on the table and dances again, this shot is a good example to show why the video is very effective because there is so much symmetry used with the mise-en-scene which gives it a really professional feel and makes it easier to focus on the main character who is again right in the centre of the shot. Nearly everything in the shot is symmetrical including all the pictures on the wall behind him and the chairs either side of the table he is standing on, it gives a really good clean shot without making it look like the room has been set up specifically for the music video. The various different props used give more indication that the hotel is very luxurious and expensive which makes the characters actions seem much more shocking and unusual.
The editing in the scene where he dives head first off the balcony makes it seem like he is going to fall to the bottom and die but instead e appears to be flying, when he appears to be standing horizontally on one of the balcony walls is a good use of visual effects and camera postioning, it makes him look like he is sticking to the walls. I think this video could be related to Chemical brothers video “do it again” because of the fact that the music is influencing people to act in strange ways and is also the same type of music.
The target audience of the music video is adults, I think that the video shows a typical business man doing what all adults like him would dream of doing, it shows him breaking the stereotype of people like him being very boring and dull which relates to lots of people in boring office jobs who want to have fun and let themselves escape from their day to day routine. I think that is why the end shot is exactly the same as the beginning because the man knows he has to go back to being himself once the music finishes.

Utah Saints - Something Good 08

This is similar to the Fat Boy Slim video because it concentrates mainly on one person dancing.
The storyline to the video is a strange man doing a particular dance in a bar starts to get recognised, and gets more and more famous, he starts to make the news and more people join in with the dance.The above shot is good because it shows the pub setting, and shows that everyone in the pub is looking at the main character in the video. the placement of the pool table at the front of the shot makes it look like the camera is in the point of view of the other person playing pool, indicating that he is also staring at the main character.
The clothes that he is wearing make him stand out from the rest of the pub, they seem to be a little bit out dated along with his big gold jewellery which seems a bit tacky or fake. These clothes all relate to the rap star MC Hammer because the dance which he performs in the video was the trademark dancemove of MC Hammer.



The initial reaction from everyone in the pub seems to be shock and confusion, the camera zooms in on the different sets of people in their places around the pub, the women sitting together all seem quite confused at what he is doing however one of the women gives a facial expression which might indicate that she fancies him. There is a shot of two stereotypical men in the pub, both are overweight and one is bald, it goes in slow motion as one of the men spits his beer out in shock whilst the other looks totally bewildered. I think this is a great shot because I think they do exactly what every stereotypical pub dweller up and down the country would do if someone actually started dancing like that in the middle of the pub, it also shows the mood that the man dancing has set and contrasts with the mood by the end of the video. I think the slow motion capture of the beer spraying out of the mans mouth is a very nice effect and would be good to concider doing in my on music video because it is simple and easy to do. The costume of the two men is very important because they are stereotypically boring coloured jumpers which shows that they do not make much effort with their own appearance. The storline progresses by newspapers flying onto the screen with different titles showing that the man has became famous for his dancemoves, more people start to dance with him. The performance side of the video includes a dance routine from lots of the locals in the town and the bar maid is filmed in slow motion in a tight top; which is a common thing to have in the dance genre videos. There are short comments from the locals in the pub who were at the pub when it first happened, the welsh accent gives it a comical edge to it and makes it seem like they are on a regional news channel being interviewed. The tone in each of their voices shows that they now enjoy the mans dancing and think that he is talented. The clothing of the old man is very stereotypical of his age and he quotes "Me and the wife came in for a nice quiet pint" the word quiet is stereotypical of the old man wanting some peace and quiet, however the dancing man was there and by his facial expression the old man isn't very happy about it.
There are lots of fast cuts between the people getting interviewed and the dance routine, which highlights what the people are talking about in the interview and what is actually happening with the main character. When he is made to sign the contract about the dance the camera zooms right in on the sheet to show what he has to sign for and then when it zooms out a different hand picks up the sheet and folds it, when he turns around you see that he is wearin a bright gold suit which shows that he is wealthy and the camera focuses on the writing on his back which says MC Hammer. I think this is effective for the band because it could show the viewers that they know really famous people and may be liked by other famous pop stars.

Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit

This video is all performance based and contains the whole of the band Nirvana, at the very beginning there is a close up of on of the band members shoes, which are a pair of old converse, these were trademark shoes for the grunge bands at the time. The room is dark which fits the mood of the music and the fans.
There is no storyline to the video and it is pretty much all based on the performance aspect which goes with the song because you can see the band playing all of their instruments which makes it look like they were playing live. There are lots of shots of all the crowd headbanging and it has been put in slow motion, this is a good effect because all of the crowd and the band have long hair so you can see it going all over the place.

I think it is aimed at teenagers who like rock or grunge music, because of the way the band and the crowd are dressed and the style in which the band play their instruments. They are quite aggressive and seem to take their music very seriously. In the crowd their are many people crowd surfing and jumping around which was typical of a live gig of this genre of music, there is also a trademark mosh pit shot in slow motion and lots of fast cuts between the different members of the band and the crowd.

Nirvana - When The Lights Go Out (DVD BOXSET)

The DVD cover for Nirvana is quite basic, with a black and orange colour scheme. I think they use these colours because they go with the genre of music. The black and white photo of the band on the front of the DVD cover looks very effective, and the fact they are wearing suits makes it even more effective because it keeps with the black and white theme and also makes it symmetrical.

On the back it has the three discs split into seperate sections, this makes it look formal and professional and also easy to read and understand. Nirvana is written in the same font all over the cover because it is the name of the band, the spine also has Nirvana written on it in the same style along with the name of the DVD. This makes it look professional and not too over-crowded.

I think that the grey box at the top right of the front cover looks effective on the black background and makes the writing seem a little bit more subtle than it would be if it had just been written straight onto the black background.

Introduction

As part of our A level media we were asked to create a music video to accompany a song of our choice. We were put into groups based on how well we worked together and by what the teachers have observed of us as individuals. Our group consisted of, Jake Newstead, Scott Shannon, Rebecca Houghton and Victoria Collings. We researched into songs by artists that we all enjoyed such as Pixie Lott and Kings of Leon, we then selected one that didn’t have a video, the song we have chosen is ‘Cant stand me now’ by The Libertines, this song is well-known and very popular. Once we had selected our song we then began to think of names, we came up with ‘The Youthemisms’ the spelling of the name is a play on the word euphemism which relates to our band well, as it contradicts our storyline.

Analysis of current music videos

I chose to analyse 3 music videos to give me some insparation into the media market.

Lady gaga – Bad Romance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrO4YZeyl0I - Youtube link

Lady Gaga’s bad romance video features many elements of symbolism such as the wax work used on her figure to show how ‘plastic’ the modern day artists seem to be. Lady Gaga uses many shocking ideas to wow the audience and to freak them out. The image that Lady Gaga has in the media currently is enhanced by her wild videos and strange clothing. The dance moves are also quirky and shows this ‘strange’ side to Lady Gaga. The long distance shots show the dance moves and allow the Mise en scene to be seen properly.

The lighting used at 1.00 in the video emphasises the dark and eerie atmosphere to the lyrics and links to the overall theme. The close ups used in the video are used to show Lady Gaga’s expressions and make-up which is what her fans would be interested in. The overall storyline of the video is clearly about a relationship that isn’t working and follows Todorovs theory which says that a video must start well then have a problem and then it to be reconciled. There is no performance shots in the video and is all based on the singer and her narrative.




Beyonce – Ego
Youtube link- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQgIxAreK0I&feature=channel

Ego is a continuation of the video ‘Single Ladies’ which features the same dancers and background to the video. This video is very much based around the image of the celebrity, it shows Beyonce and her two dancers from single ladies with a plain brick background and a chair, they dance consistently, and the video shows many good shots. The majority of the video is shot in black and white which gives it an interesting look and emphasises the mise en scene. The video has proved to be a great success as it showed a new sexy side to Beyonce and has been used by many other musicians.


The video shows intertextuality as it is heavily based upon ‘single ladies’ also by Beyonce. The target audience for this song is people who enjoy pop and Rnb music. The main shots used are long shots to show all three dancers and the image they portray as Rnb woman, many close ups are also used to show the artist, this video is also very image surrounding and focus’ on showing Beyonce to her fan base which is very wide. Beyonces videos are largely based around her appearance and sex appeal, this wasn’t always showns in earlier videos such as irreplaceable but as she became a wider known artist the videos became more image conscious and she became more as a sex symbol rather than a normal modern day RnB artist.




Pink – So what
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XKZh3vWeGc - Youtube link
Pink creates a narrative in this video as you see her progress and ‘get over’ her ex in a rebellious way. It is also very much focused on the performer herself and how she spears after the media created such a stir about her divorce, this is shown in the way in which she got her ex, Carey to appear in the video. The overall concept of this video is to show that she doesn’t need a man and has moved on. The video features many great shots and camera angles, the beginning of the video shows pink on a garden mower, the camera is focused on a parking space and Pink rides into the shot, and this is effective and also edgy.


The camera is often placed low and filmed upwards to show the power that pink now has over Carey. A green screen is used in the bridge of the song where Pink is stood with her ex and headlines that papers actually wrote about her break-up are shown in the back ground. I believe the video to be extremely successful; Pink had been off the music production scene for a long time and to then come back with a video that shows her back to her normal rebellious self is relieving. The video shows a typical side to pink that she is well known for. The target audience for this particular song is pop and rock listeners. This video uses many different shots and angles to portray the storyline.

Music Video Analysis - Florence and the Machine

This music video by Florence and the machine begins straight away with and effective, extreme close up in which her mouth becomes the main priority of the shot. This makes the audience focus on the lyrics of the song, which is then taken over when the shot switches to a medium shot to reveal the location and other members of the video.



The video is mostly based on a narrative with Florence taking the main role with a number of actors alongside her. The storyline of the video is all to do with religious sacrament. It ends where Florence is in a coffin, which goes well with the lyrics of the song – ‘We raise it up.’


The costume and props included also back up the spiritual theme of video. The pale pastel coloured floaty dresses, with sequins and pearls help back up the fairytale effect of the video. The harp featured in the video also gives the audience of a fairytale impression.
Most of the shots of the video are at a medium or close up angle. This makes it clear that although the storyline is important, Florence (being a new artist) is the make focus of the video.

Music Video Analysis - Katy Perry

This Katy Perry video concentrates mostly on the narrative that the video gives, as it does have a very important meaning behind the lyrics of the song.
The beginning of the video starts with an array of different of establishing shots to show the location of the video.



Throughout the whole of the video, the lighting seems to be darker than a normal music video. However this then creates a bigger impact and contrast when the special effect of the fireworks begin to show, which is necessary obviously because of the name of the song. The connotations of the fireworks are positive as they begin from each of the stories in the video when a fear has overcome. The fireworks also begin when the beat of the song begins to kick in, which also gives a bigger impact.
Each storyline is personal and can be related by many different people suffering.
A lot of close up shots are used in the video as facial expressions are an important factor to show the difference between the negative to positive reaction.
High and low angle shots are also used frequently in the video to show the different views of the fireworks being set.
The video gives off that the people are struggling with their problem alone as close ups of just the one character are shot, with only a minority of other people blurred out in the scene. However, by the end of the video when all the struggles are conquered, there are a lot of actors using a lot of happy movement.
This video uses the theory of Todorov, as it goes through an order of a starting problem which is then resolved.

Music Video analysis

Scott Shannon

Bad Day- Daniel Powter.

This is a video about a man and a women who seem to be failing in love and resent there current lifestyles. The opening spilt screen shot show the pair waking up alone in their own beds. The shot shows a distance between the two characters as they have never met, and shows there lives running simultaneous as they both do the same mundane things. As the video continues it shows the pair often sitting in the same place but at different times, the shots cut regularly from one character to the other and back again, this shows they have common ground yet have never met. The medium shots of both character on the train shows both of the characters longing for companionship, this is compounded by the affect that everywhere they look there are couples sitting together. As the video continues there is a quad screen close-up this creates the image that the characters life’s are in pieces and they are trying to fit it all together. The frequency of the cutting between the performer and the character of the video is something we wish to emulate in our music video. The video finished with a two shot of the characters standing together under an umbrella to show the conclusion of the video and that they have finally found each other.

Don’t look back into the sun- Libertines

This video has a larger percentage of performance shots, these shots cut quickly between on and another to create a feeling of intensity, as if you were actually there standing watching them live. The shots of the performing are performed with a dark background this places emphasis on the band as that is who you are forced to look at. The small sections of the video which are not band performance a filmed as if they are done from a hand held camera, as if they were a group of friends out sight seeing or on a day out somewhere. This effect allows the viewer to relate to the band members as they just seem like normal people out having a good time rather then world wide superstars. The whole video is meant to show how they are different, and don’t care about it. This is perfectly represented by the shot when the band are walking down in their war style blazers the middle of the road and are getting funny looks from members of the public.

The Scientist- Coldplay

This video is performed conventionally, as the lead singer sings the song forward, and in normal time. However, the events of the video are entirely backwards. This style is key to the video as the song seems to tell the story of the events he is performing in a vague way as the events aren’t necessarily what is singing about, however they represent the meaning of the song.

CD Covers.

The Libertines- The libertines
This albums cover has no real clear meaning, however it does seem to have several connotations accompanied with it. One of the main connotations is the drugs references which seem to be apparent. This is shown by the way Pete Doherty seems to be rolling up his sleeve to expose the veins near the middle of his arm. Also they are both covered in tattoos which creates the feeling that they are rebellious and do what they choose.



Michael Jackson- Thriller

This album is a clear attempt to be scary yet stylish. This is done by the use of the “zombies” standing with Michael Jackson on the cover. While the Zombies are scary, and so is Michael Jackson, he was a very popular musician at that time and would have been perceived as stylish in his own way. The use of black and white in all of the characters on the front cover apart from Michael Jackson draws your attention to him as he is dressed in colour, this also help to catch your attention as red is a bright and vibarant colour.



Queen- Live at Wembley

The image on the front cover of the album has been chosen as it is an icon pose struck by Freddy Mercury. It has also been used as he was such a powerful performer he could entertain people all by himself, this is reflected by the image on the front of the DVD. His brightly colours jacket catches the eye of the person looking. While the camera angle allows you to look out to what he was seeing and it shows what a massive occasion this was therefore you will want to buy this DVD.

Music Adverts

The Stones Roses



The use of large lettering for the title of the band is an eye catching feature of this poster, while the reviews for all of the genre relevant magazines saying how good they think it creates the image that this album will be a must when it is released. The background takes on the appearance of a piece of wall or stone which has been splattered with paint of graffiti-ed. This stone links into the title of The Stone Roses therefore is important to the advert itself.

All Time Low- Put up or shut up.


This advert is very basic yet effective, this is a style our group would like to emulate as it make the advert clear and easy to understand therefore expressing our point easily. The use of the hand appearing the squash the name of the band links nicely in with the title. This is done by the fact the hand is grabbing, or taking control of the band, this says that the hand is finally putting up instead of shutting up. While the background is bright and catches the attention of the on looker before they actually read who it is for.

Matt Darey- Nocturnal

This album advert is a differing style from the other two, this is due to the fact it actually shows the performer in it. His deep stare creates the feel he is looking directly at you. In doing this it make the viewer feel they are sharing something with the artist therefore it is personal to you, therefore you must buy it. The colour scheme is dark and mysterious, which links to the name of the DVD nocturnal.

DVD cover analysis

I also analysed 3 DVD covers to gain an insight into the existing market and to retrieve tips for making my own advert.

The DVD cover for Eminems DVD E features many conventions that I would like to use In my own DVD cover, although eminem is from a different genre to the one which I have used to create a video based around I still believe it has many features that are useful and obviously popular in the market. The plain black background with the luminous E on the front is very eye catching and would stand out if placed next to many other DVD covers on the shelves. The parental advisory sign on the front cover is something that will be featured on our DVD and is featured in a prominent place on the cover, this may have bad effects in terms of the adults buying DVD’s for their children but may also make children more likely to buy the DVD as it seems naughty and more adult. The back of the DVD cover features many weird and quirky pictures of Eminem and other things that relate to the genre. The white writing on the back of the DVD cover makes the writing stand out and also enhances the ‘spooky’ theme of the songs on the DVD. The green glow that is featured on the front cover follows onto the back and also onto the inside DVD, this gives a constant feature that relates to the DVD. The barcode is positioned in a clear place on the back of the DVD cover which is another feature which I would like to show on my DVD cover.

Beyonce – I am yours

The main image of this DVD cover is of Beyonce, it shows her in a performance setting which is relevant to the DVD itself, the DVD shows Beyonce performing live to her audience, the genre of the music is not similar to the genre I have chosen but uses conventions that my DVD cover should also feature, the lighting on the front image is relevant as a spotlight is associated with big stars and performing on stage. The spine of the DVD has very intricate detail such as a small picture of the artist and the font of the writing has been continued onto this section of the cover. The back of the cover continues the font and the theme of the purple background with the silvery writing, a copy of the album and poster are also featured on the back of the DVD, this gives the audience something to directly link the DVD to. The introduction to the DVD on the back cover is another feature that I would like to use in our own DVD.

R Kelly – The light it up tour

This DVD cover is for R Kellys live tour, the front cover shows R Kelly in many different positions; the main image is of him singing which relates to the purpose of the DVD. The front of the DVD cover is one which I would like to incorporate into our own music video but with our own band members into the five sections on the front. The spine of the DVD cover is very relevant to the genre of the music. The back of the DVD shows the artist with his name in lights, the introduction is clear and written in a story book manor.

Analysed Dvd Cover - Nirvana

Nirvana - When The Lights Go Out (DVD BOXSET)
The DVD cover for Nirvana is quite basic, with a black and orange colour scheme. I think they use these colours because they go with the genre of music. The black and white photo of the band on the front of the DVD cover looks very effective, and the fact they are wearing suits makes it even more effective because it keeps with the black and white theme and also makes it symmetrical.
On the back it has the three discs split into seperate sections, this makes it look formal and professional and also easy to read and understand. Nirvana is written in the same font all over the cover because it is the name of the band, the spine also has Nirvana written on it in the same style along with the name of the DVD. This makes it look professional and not too over-crowded.
I think that the grey box at the top right of the front cover looks effective on the black background and makes the writing seem a little bit more subtle than it would be if it had just been written straight onto the black background.

Analysed Dvd Cover - Fatboy Slim

Fatboy Slim - DVD cover
The colour scheme goes with the genre of music on this DVD cover, the bright yellows and purples give a lively feel and the way that Fatboy Slim is written on the front indicates that the music is played in the night time because it is dance music, the contrast between the dark blue of the sky and the yellow brightness of the crowd makes it stand out and look as if the stage lights are shining on the crowd.
The back is quite crowded however it is still put into sections and is easy to understand. I like the pictures of the different sets that Fatboy Slim played in brazil, it also gives the audience an idea of what happens in the DVD. I think that the gold writing on the dark background gives it a sort of magical feel as well as on the spine where the font is quite messy but also seems magical.
I think that this would be aimed at young adults who like dance music because of the colours and the party atmosphere that is depicted on the front and back of the DVD cover.

Initial Ideas - Spider Diagram

After choosing our song 'Can't stand me now' we had to come up with initial ideas to create and complete our music video. This included thinking of a storyline and a choice of theory to follow, which we studied in a previous media lesson. It also involved including a band performance, and the choice of characters and roles within our video. Another important factor to make our video successful, is the setting and location of each of our scenes. We also thought of a band name and motif to represent our music video.

Initial ideas - Lyrics

We got a copy of the lyrics and annotated some of our storyline ideas next to where abouts in the song we planned to put it in. This helped us keep organised and gave us a clearer idea of the order of our video.

Initial Ideas - Moodboard

We created a moodboard with a variety of ideas that represented what we wanted in our video and what influenced us. We included print screen shots from previous music videos such as Daniel Powter and Radiohead. These videos had certain shots - such a split screens, and slow motion effects . We also included images of The Libertines performing live to help with our band performance of the video.

Narrative Theory Work

There are a huge variety of ways in which a music video can be presented. There are many theorists who each have their own narrative to a successful and rememberable music video.


Levi-Strauss

This theorist talks a lot about binary oppositions such as fast/slow and good/bad. Another example of binary opposition is the colours black and white, where black is used as a sign of darkness, danger, evil and white as purity and goodness.

Within our video we have very little evidence to back up this theory as there is no real battle between the couple. There is the possibility that the boy who cheats could be considered evil and the girl is good as she has done nothing wrong. However in the video the boy makes it clear that he knows he is wrong and bows down to his former partner.

Todorov

Another theorist is Todorov, which gives a narrative with a particular order. It usually starts with a problem, which occurs because of a certain event, which will then create a new equillibrium.

Our music video appears to agree with this theory, as our story is based on a couple who split up after the boy cheats on the girl. At first there is an equilibrium as both sides of the relationship are being faithful and seem happy. Then the boy cheats creating an imbalance in the relationship. This can only be resolved by the couple breaking up as it appears near impossible for the girl to get even.

Andrew Goodwin
He believed that music videos demonstrate genre and characteristics. While also showing a clear link between the lyrics and the visuals of the video, which is shown by voyeuristic treatment of the female body. As well as in textual reference to films and TV programmes.
Andrew Goodwin has identified a number of key features in music videos, these include:
-Multiple close-ups of the main artist or vocalist.
-A relationship between the music/lyrics and videos

Our video agrees with some of this theory but not all of it, in our video there is a clear link between the narrative and the lyrics, this is shown by our story being based around one of the characters showing a clear disliking for the other character, and the song being called can’t stand me now. However our video does not offer any points to prove that we show women in a sexual way. Way actually show our female character as the more powerful of the two characters. This is after the boy has cheated. She is in charge on whether the couple get back together and the boy is powerless to change her opinion.

Pitch Powerpoint

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Test Video - slow motion

To create the slow down effect on our music video we had to sing the song in double time, we then slowed the whole video down. We used this first test to make sure that we could sing in time to the fast music and then progressed to adding a moving person in the background.

Test video - slow motion + normal pace

In our music video we create an argument scene, the girl will throw things in the background in slow motion effect, while the male will sing in a normal pace. We will create this by the male singing at twice the speed the lyrics of the song, with the girl throwing things at a normal pace.

Rough Cut Timetable

To help the group stay organised we created timetable with the date and what we were going to do that day to contribute to complete our rough cut on time.

Filming/Photography Timetable

Questionnaire Feedback

As a group we created a questionnaire to then hand out to our target audience, we had many simple questions such as 'What would you expect to see in a music video?' and also some more challenging questions like 'When listening to he song, what do you think it is about?'. Producing a questionnaire helped us to then create a music video that would appeal to our audience and would therefore sell into the current market.

Anamatic

Once we had drawn all of our storyboards we then entered them into premier elements and added the song to see how long each shot should be and if they fitted together.

Rough Cut

List of Roles

List of roles

Victoria Collings – Main female actress
Scott Shannon – Main Male actor
Tom Howe – Lead guitarist
Sam Blackburn – Bass player
Jake Newstead - Drummer

Rebecca Houghton, Jake Newstead, Victoria Collings, Scott Shannon – Directors, Editors, Camera Crew

Props

Mini (car)
House
Bed
Drums
Mic stand
Flowers

Rough Cut Feedback

After we completed our rough cut, the rest of our media class watched and analysed it giving us back a completed sheet of positive feedback and constructive critisism, for what we can improve on.

Positive Feedback

- Slow motion shot shot
- Gradual wine drinking (SFX)
- Good acting skills
- Match
- Excellent emotion
- Throwing toys
- Driving scenes
- Performance setting
- Black and white effect
-Strong opening shot
- Bridge shot framing
-Good chemistry between actors

Constructive Critisism

- Lip syncing
- Sequence of the narrative
- Unecessary smiling
- More angles needed
- Reshoot performance (5 - 6 times)
- Unsteady camera
-Shadows

Reading and listening to all our feedback, we have discussed as a group what we are going to do to make our overall video and grade more successful. Certain shots such as our match at the begninning of our video, and the gradual wine drinking were mentioned numerous times in the positive feedback section, so we plan to keep these shots. Another scene which also came across popular was the slow motion shot. We are infact going to keep this idea but improve on the shot to make it even more realistic and successful. In regards of the constructive critisism, we have decided to completely reshoot our band performance, using more angles on the band and perhaps even use a different location, as the place we set did not have great lighting even with the added synthetic lights. Scott our lead singer, has thoroughly learnt the words to the song - so his lip syncing and band performance will be a lot stronger, and look much more realistic.