Mise en scene of Music video (RESEARCH)

Planning- Estelle 'American boy'.

We picked this music video because the genre we chose was RnB and we feel that Estelle is an amazing female artist especially in this video as she collaborates with Kanye West in the song 'American boy'.

Independent Research on Branding

Name of Artist: Drake
Album Cover Name: Nothing Was the Same

• Picture of the sky as a background
• Picture of the artist as a child and as he is now
• Title in the bottom centre of the album cover
• Painting/Artistic

Album Teaser:

Music Video Single:

What features can be seen across all 4 products to create a brand identity?

• Artist is prevalent in all forms of media
• Often as the central figure
• OVO Brand (The Owl) can be seen in the bottom right corner of the teaser trailer

Costume and Props in music videos (RESEARCH)

Research- Carol Vernallis theory on music videos.

Research

Carol Vernallis studied camerawork and editing closely in music videos to see how much difference there was from the editing and camerawork process of films. Carol believes that edits in music videos come much more frequently than in film, this stands out as disjuncture (what we see doesn't match with what we hear). The editing seems to have a rhythmic basis closely associated with the song. The main points of her observations are:

• The usual rules of 'continuity' editing (editing usually found in classic broadcast fiction) are broken in order to draw attention to what is on screen.
• Edits may be really obvious to draw attention to themselves such as wipes and special effects added.
• Jump cuts are often used.
• A base track is frequently used to give the video a structure.
• The camera often moves in time with the music.

Here is an example of a music video which outlines her main observations.

Reflecting on AS Media- Technical skills.

The Skills learnt over the AS year.

During the AS year, we were put into groups to make a short opening to a thriller from our own chosen genre. we also had to do a short remake to a music video. . Throughout the filmmaking i gained new skills these are as follows:


Editing

• Using Final cut pro to edit our thriller openings on.
• Creating special effects such as transitions (fade in fade out).
• Creating slow motion, Jump cuts and Shot reverse shot in the openings.

Camera

• A range of shots such as Mid shot, close ups, Long shots, wide shots.
• we also used High angle and low angle shots.
• I learnt how to use tracking and panning during the filming process.
• we also learn the 180 degree rule whilst filming.

Sound

• Using base track during the editing process of our music video.
• Sound track pro- creating Foley sounds and adding in non diegetic/diegetic sounds.

Apart from these skills learnt during the filming process, i also learnt how to present my work in different ways. I used a range of technology such as Prezi, Go animate, YouTube, blog, Slide share etc. With the skills i gained in AS i will be using these in A2 media to help me to develop on my media work.

Research- Evidence of copyright clearance.

Research

 

During the summer break we were given summer work, which included us getting copyright clearance for our chosen artist/song. Getting copyright clearance means that we will be allowed to use the artists song in our remake of the original music video. Permission will be given to us from either the record label company or the artist themselves. I sent a letter to EMI records asking for copyright clearance for the song 'i want to break free' by the rock band queen and the song 'clown' by Emeli Sande. I also sent another letter to the record company 'Syco Music' asking for copyright clearance of the song 'what makes you beautiful' by One direction. Unfortunately i didn't receive a email or letter with permission for copyright clearance. 

 



Summary of Carol Vernallis theory (RESEARCH)

Carol Vernallis Experiencing Music Video: Aesthetics and Cultural Context

Just like other theorists that saw a huge difference between music videos and films, Carol Vernallis closely studied the editing and camerawork in music videos and films. She argues that the edits in music videos are more frequent than films and that this provides more disjuncture to the video. However the more frequent editing tends to have rhythmic relationship with the lyrics in the song and the apart of the reason why music videos have so much editing in them is so that the audience can establish a visual feel of the song. According to Vernallis, here are her main points about music videos:

• The usual rules of continuity editing are broken in order to draw attention to what is on screen.
• Edits may be really obvious to draw attention to themselves, such as wipes and special effects are added. This key element are usually used to represent the artist, these effects are often corresponding to the artist image and reflect the character they portray in the media and used to brand them.

• Jump cuts are often used: to keep the viewers intrigued in the video and to show certain images and footage that represent the artist in a particular way. 

• A base track, or in other words a master shot, is frequently used to give the a structure: In this scenario, the base track is used to show the different locations and setting that the artist decided to use. In this video, we see a great use of many Islands. This could interpreted as a symbolic expression of the artist, Nicki Minaj, representing herself as a free artist and having the physical and mental ability to willing to express herself how she wants to. 

• The camera may move in time with the music: This is to follow the rhythm of the music and keep the audience engaged with the video.



Analysis of Music video of former students (Research)

Before starting to film our own music video for this unit, we first need to research the type of music videos that were previously filmed about the former A2 students. The reason why we need to do this is because we would be able to gain an understanding of what should do and what shouldn't do when filming and editing. The video I decided to analysis is Heaven by Emeli Sande, I chose this particular video because it had a very basic structure to the video. Here is the music video:


Following the theory of Andrew Goodwin, this music can be described as Disjuncture if watched closely. Disjuncture is when the images and the footage that is being shown in the video does not correspond with the lyrics. During the video we see the woman lying on the street and looking ocean, the lyrics about hope from the heavens above. However in the later stages of the video, we see the woman come across a religious statue. This matches the lyrics of the song because it is based on religion aspects. Usually in music videos women are represented as sex objects, but in this video she is displayed as a strong and respected young woman that is happy and proud of life. We can make this assumption by the low camera angle shots and the amount of camera time she has. This video doesn't follow the conventions of the typical representation of video, instead it displays the female artist in a way that the female may feel somehow inspired by her portrayal. Following the theory of Carol Vernallis, this video tends to break the basic rules of continuity editing. We see many jump cuts of scenes where she is walking down the street and when she is just staring at a lake. This is to keep the audience intrigued within the video. Another reason why this video may have a lot of cuts and edits is to visual express the character of the artist within the short amount of time it has.

Research- Analysis of previous a2 work.

Research

Before we start filming our music videos, we first need to do research on the different types of structure to music videos. we also need to choose a style and genre to use in our music video, thus we are researching on the previous a2 students videos to get an idea of what to include in our own music video such as the different shots and camera work needed for when filming and what effects we should add during the editing stage. The video below is a previous a2 students work which i will be analysing.





In terms of Andrew Goodwin's theory this music video uses 'Disjuncture'. This is because there is little connection between the lyrics and the video itself. The intended audience for this video is a younger audience maybe teenagers. The strengths of this video may be the fact that it has a strong representation of women as the singer is a female. The female singer dominates the video as there are no male characters so it alienates the whole idea of the 'male gaze'. The singer is also seen directly looking into the camera this suggests a visual relationship between the audience and the singer. The weakness of this music video is that the ending of the video could have been a lot effective as in adding an effect such as transitions or different camera shots.

Throughout the video the singer lip syncs in time with the song and also the images are well timed with the song these are also strengths of the music video. Mise en scene such as the settings and the costume are well organised as the singer is seen wearing different outfits for every scene. Editing is also used such as  Jump cuts in between each part of the video this is to highlight the different locations they attend to e.g. skate park, café under a bridge and a street, this goes with the video as the locations represent the style  and genre of the video. The video also uses a variety of camera shots such as mid-shots, close ups and long shots. This is to get a shot of the singers emotions and feelings, long shots to capture the type of clothing she is wearing. The conventions of the music video highlight the street/urban feel of the video which is directly aimed towards the younger viewers.

Research- Andrew Goodwins Theory

Research

Andrew Goodwin’s Theory

 

Andrew Goodwin’s trusts that traditional narrative analyses don’t really apply to pop videos. This is mainly because pop videos approach narrative from a different angle to novels and films. The reasons for the different narrative structures are:

 

v  Pop videos are developed around songs. These songs do not pose traditional narrative structures.

v  Often pop videos use singers as both the narrator and as a character.

v  Singer looks directly at the camera , this is to get the viewer at home involved with the performance.

 

In pop videos they often repeat images in the way the song repeats choruses or lines. They mostly rely on repetition as we become familiar with the genre and certain aspects such as parts of the song and rhythm.  Videos played on the TV, radio etc. become very familiar through repetition.  Pop songs/videos do have a form of closure and ending. The three minute single that a video is based on must end this is shown up to a building of a climax or a constant repetition before fading away. The visualisation of a song may go beyond the original meaning. Often videos provide a visual pleasure that encourages repeated viewing which therefore promotes the music. There are three types of relations between songs and videos which are illustration, amplification and disjuncture. Music Videos try and appeal to as wide an audience as possible without alienating the core target audience. In some videos the different instruments in the music are represented by different objects.

 

2.) The examples that follow Andrew Goodwin's ideas are:

 

v  Amplification-  Occurs when videos introduce new meanings that do not contradict with the lyrics but the layers of meaning.
 

v  Illustration- This is when videos tells the story of the lyric for example dance can be a way of expressing the feelings/moods in the song.This video by J-Cole is an example of Goodwin's ideas.

 

 

 

v  Disjuncture- This is where there is little connection between the lyrics and video or where the video contradicts the lyric. This song by Bruno Mars is also an example of Goodwin's ideas.

Laura Mulvey theory: Representation (RESEARCH)

Like in TV drama, music videos tend to represent the artist or the people involved in the video in a particular way. According to Laura Mulvey, it consists on these aspects- gender, age, ethnicity, place etc. Laura also goes on to say that artists choose how they would want to represent a particular group or themselves. For instance most R'n'B artists tend to portray the women in their videos as sex objects and possessions, rather than display them as respected figures. Here is an example of R'n'B rapper, Lil Wayne with his explicit song called Love me.

 

In this video, we can see that the women are objectified by the men. Laura Mulvey uses a key word for this called 'The male gaze'. This is when the camera adopts the perspective of a man and objectify the women in a sexually way. The way camera does this is by using slow motion on the girls when they are dancing and using low and high angle shots to directly get a shot of their seductive body and revealing outfits. Also, the women in this video tend to have less amount of camera time as the men. This means that they are not seen as significant as the artist and only seen as an item that is owned by the men. The aspects I mentioned are very common among R'n'B videos because it is one of the conventions that tends to be popular- to have a large amount of background dancers, dancing seductively in revealing costumes.

 

However in the video with Beyonce Listen, we see a strong contrast between the two videos

 

In this video, we can argue that the artist, Beyoncé, is portrayed as the dominant figure. She stands strong and firm throughout the video and is represented as a powerful figure that has respect for herself. The costume she wears is very basic and not revealing as the first video we looked at. The simple clothing may suggest that Beyoncé is comfortable with the way she is and does not need live for the interest of men. The close ups and mid shots of her throughout the video shows the passion she feels within the lyrics- it captures every bit of emotion she feels. Beyoncé represents herself in this video as a dominant woman that has self respect for herself and a strong place within society. In this case, we can argue that this video is intended for a female audience. The setting of her being on stage by herself shows that she is confident and willing to express herself to society, the variety of shots on her shows that she is the main focus and that she doesn't need to live in the shadow of a man and like said before, the costume shows that she is comfortable with her physical appearance. This will portray Beyoncé as a positive role model to young girls and encouraging them in being confident and comfortable with their physical appearance. 



Andrew Goodwin's theory (RESEARCH)

Andrew Goodwin theory

 

According to Andrew Goodwin’s theory, music videos tend to have different narrative structure. Not all music videos have a traditional narrative analysis where it starts as a normal scenario, a problem occurs and then it is solved by the character. According to Goodwin, music videos have different narrative structures for these three clear reasons.

 

·         Pop videos are built around songs- and often songs do not pose traditional narrative structures (normality, problem and resolution)

·         The pop video uses the singer both as narrator and as a character

·         The singer often looks directly at the camera- this is an extension of (music hall) performance and trying to involve the viewer at home with the performance.

 

Goodwin also states that the Pop videos tend to have a massive use of repetition. He declares that pop videos often repeat images and footage to replicate a particular hook or chorus of the song. The repetition of these certain images and footage will often have a particular message or meaning it is trying to express to its fan. This message could be to represent the

artist in a positive way so that they have a wider fan base or it could simply be to display the type of character they are through their authentic appearance. A great example of this would be the famous pop star- Lady Gaga. Andrew Goodwin also argues that there are three types of visual expressions to music videos: Illustration, Amplification and Disjuncture.

 

·         Illustration- This is when a music video uses images and footages that correspond with the lyrics that are being sang by the artist. It illustrates the meaning of the lyrics and the genre. Hence why the term is called Illustration. Here is an example of music that provides illustration:

 

·         Amplification- According to Goodwin, this term is used when music videos use alternative footage and images to the lyrics of the song. Therefore providing a range of meanings to the song.

·         Disjuncture- This is when the images and footage is completely dismisses the meaning of the lyrics. A fine example of this would be one of Michael Jackson’s biggest hit- Man in the mirror. The lyrics are about self realisation but instead it shows images of world poverty and powerful leaders of social change.

Analysing Past A2 videos

The music video I analysed was the video by Valeza, Erika, Jessica and Stavorella. The video has a variety of costumes. It differed various location (But with the actors in the video staying central to the camera), furthermore the costume changes contrasted with the locations they were put in, for example the actors wore pyjamas whilst in a busy, serious location.

Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin main points on 'The Structure of Music Video: Rethinking Narrative Analysis' can be summarised as:

• Pop videos are built around songs, and often songs do not pose traditional narrative structures.
• ]The pop video uses the singer both as a narrator and a character.
• The singer often looks directly into the camera, this is an extension of performance and trying to involve the viewer at home with the performance.

Goodwin goes on to say that the video would be on TV and therefore the video would also be used as an advertising film/promotion for the song. Goodwin goes on to say that pop videos or music videos can be separated into 3 types of videos:

• Illustration: This is where the video tells the story of the lyrics "Pap don't preach" (Madonna) for example. Dance is often used to express the feelings/moods in the song.
• Amplification: Occurs when the video introduces new meanings to the video  that do not contradict with the lyrics but add layers of meaning.
• Disjuncture: This is where there is little connection between the lyric and video or where the video contradicts the lyric; Man in the Mirror. The song is about self-realisation but the video is full of radical world events.

An example for each type:

Illustration:

Disjuncture:

Amplification:

Carol Vernallis, Experiencing Music Video: Aesthetics and Cultural Context 

Carol Vernallis's theory on music videos can be summarised simply as her observing that edits in music videos come much more frequently than in film, that many stand out as disjuncture and that the editing seems to have a rhythmic basis closely connected to the song.

The main points of Vernallis's theory can be summarised as:

• The usual roles of 'continuity' editing (Editing usually found in classic broadcast fiction) are broken in order to draw attention to what is on screen.
• Edits may be really obvious to draw attention to themselves, such as wipes and special effects added.
• Jump cuts are often used.
• A master shot (base track) is frequently used to give the video a structure.
• The camera may move in time with the music.

• Special effects used early at the start of the video
• Jump cuts used often
• 
  

------

• Use of special effects
• Camera moves in time with the music

                                                                           ---------------

• Camera moves in time with the music
• Use of slow motion to draw attention (Editing)

Laura Mulvey - The Male Gaze

Laura Mulvey 'The Male Gaze'
Laura Mulvey's theory of female representation in music videos, is called the 'Male Gaze'. Laura Mulvey theorises that anytime we watch a music video, we are watching from the view of a hetrosexual male, through the fact that many music videos focus on the female body often in a sensual/sexual manner. This can be heard through the lyrics but is often visually seen in hip-hop videos. For example: