Group 8: September 2013

Tuesday, 24 September 2013

Costumes Setting & Location

Video 1 - Evanescence 'Bring Me To Life'

Genre - Indi Rock

During this video there is only 1 costume change. Throughout the video the artists are singing about life and death mainly and at the same time they express this through the video by telling a story, for example one of the artists is slipping off the roof and at the same time she's holding another band member's hand and sing "don't let me die". Also during the video the artist is singing about wanting to be woken up and the video shows us that she's asleep.

The costume links to the setting/location of the video because, the music video has been filmed during the night time and the performer is dressed in her nightdress. In this music video there are only 3 different locations spotted a bedroom, a big city and a small performing room for the band. One of the locations link to the genre and makes the video seem typical and that is the location of a small room (looking almost like an attic room) with lights and a performing band in it, they are dressed in simple black clothes that makes them seem very casual and they are singing into a microphone and playing instruments, this makes it typical because this kind of location is often seen in a lot of Indi-rock music videos.

There isn't many props used in this music video, however the props that are used are specific of typical props of this genre (Indi-rock) and those are the instruments(guitars, drums) and also the microphones that are used in the performance.

Video 2: Drake- started from the bottom

Genre-Hip hop

Use of costume

The number of different costume changes in the video was 7
Each time the location in the video changed the costume also changed in addition when there was a new verse the costume changed as well.
The way in which the costumes linked to the lyrics was when he was working in the supermarket he had a uniform which showed us that in the beginning he "started from the bottom" however throughout the video it shows us that the costumes became more expensive stating that he had more money and a better career.
The way in which the costumes relates to the genre is that in typical hip hop music video the clothes are very expensive and extravagant these factors are shown in this music video as the artist changes his clothes numerous times, and all these outfits are stylish and expensive also the use of the gold chains which relates to the genre.

Use of setting and location

In the video the location changed about 9 times
How the setting and location link to the costume is that as the location changes so does the costume, also the costumes relate to the location that they are in such as the in the supermarket location the artist wore the store uniform.
the use of location and setting links to the genre as the location show the extravagant lifestyle of the artist such as the big mansion house with the swimming pool, the audience will realise that the artist has a lot of money which relates the genre hip hop.

Use of props

The video has a few props such as gold chains, cigars and cars

these props link to the lyrics and location as it again shows the rich lifestyle of the artist and how he started from nothing and now can afford luxury and expensive things.

Video 3 - Skepta 'Castles'
Grime

Use of Costume
The costumes used are fairly simple but have a contrast between the links of estate living and the life of a rich person. there are 2 costumes worn by the artist.

All black costume with black jacket and black baseball cap. it is a typical worn costume in this genre as a baseball cap and jacket usually fits the stereotypes that are given to the audience. also, the colour black suggests the lack of an exciting atmosphere, making it dark and simple.
A golden silk bath robe. this contrasts to the simple black costume as it creates the opposite atmosphere created with the other all black costume. It contrasts the low status people have in estates and the high status of rich people. The colour gold automatically gives away this assumption. However, it is not common to have rich colours such as gold in a grime video, but the idea of contrasting two statuses through the narrative allows the costumes to relate to the video and idea of the lyrics.

The settings and locations are very basic, simplistic and not complicated. It starts of with an estate sign and an estate block, which is very common in the grime genre. This means that the first location wouldn't be well known but rather discreet. However, the conntrast in status and use of colours is shown in the more costly apartment. Usually, a grime video would tend to be in urban settings, which have been shown in parts of the video in the council flats that is used to keep the originality of the grime genre.

Props
As the idea of a grime video is meant to be simplistic, lower social class based and urban, not much props were needed for the video. in the urban parts of the video, there are scrap magazines, lighters and not much else, as they are the main props needed to match the urban theme. When the contrast appears when the artist is in a costly apartment, a glass of champagne is a prop that matches his location to suggest wealth and power. Art in the background further implies the theme of wealth and superiority, as such paintings and pictures are those that do not tend to be cheap.

RESEARCH OF MUSIC VIDEO - Individual Homework Task

Previous students work

This is a video made by Dipika, Eda, Alia and Judith. This video stood out from the rest because the story line was kept simple which made the performance more effective and I liked how they used pictures as a transition between location. I think they had good choice of locations because it made the song come alive and i felt that the filter they used suited the way the song sounded which made the music and song merge together better.

RESEARCH FOR MUSIC VIDEO - Review Of Previous Student work

Summary Of Mulveys Theory

Laura mulvey from farhaosmanix

RESEARCH FOR MUSIC VIDEO - Mulveys theory

Laura Mulveys Theory on the the representation of gender
"The male gaze"

Laura Mulvey is a British Feminist film theorist. She based her ideas on the way genders are represented in music video. For a feminist such as herself, it can be seen in three ways:
1. The way men look at women
2. The way women look at themselves
3. How women look at other women

However, she focused on the male gaze. She understood that there was a sexual imbalance, the male being dominant and the female being a 'sexual object', as according to Laura Mulvey and other feminists, we live in a patriarchal society.

She believed that when watching such music video, the viewers has to view the video in the perspective of the heterosexual male. This is because a woman's experience of the narrative will be secondarily, by identification of the male. the camera lingers around the female body as an 'object', which causes different reactions between the heterosexual male and female.

In the music video above recorded by artists lady gaga and beyonce, a clear understanding and representation of Laura Mulveys theory is applied. Laura Mulvey talks about the male gaze, males being dominant and women as objects. thios is a clear example. For instance, the clothing worn by lada gaga and other characters in the prison (bra and pants) can be seen as revealing and exploiting in a feminists view. Furthermore, the performance is male dominant as the female characters are represented as puppets to men, as they are in a prison dancing and climbing cell poles in a way that catches the male gaze. Moreover, lesbianism is promoted in this video, which although does not abide by the heterosexual view of the theory, but does catch the male gaze in the same way that Laura Mulvey explains. When beyonce is introduced, her chest is revealed. Near the end where Lady Gagas performance is in the kitchen, she is the only female present with roughly six men, automatically indicating the sexual imbalance between genders. The reaction that a male would have to this video would be rather diffeent to the reaction of a heterosexual female, showing the sexual imbalance in the way the women are presented and the different ways men and women view and react to these types of female appearances.

Analysis Of Costume, Props, Location & Setting

In this post I will be analysing three music videos of costume, props, location and setting from a genre that I am interested in working with.

Jessie J - Domino:

During this video the artist's costume changes 8 times through the whole music video, the costumes the artist is always wearing are bright, colourful and bold outfits, the costumes link to the location through the patterns, the patterns on her outfit are very similar to the patterns on the background wall. for example during one of the costume changes the background is full of pink and black lines, the same as the patterns on her costume. During the costume change her hair colour also changes from black to red to blue. The location in this video is set internally with her standing in an empty room with bright backgrounds, making the location very simplistic. The only prop in this music video is a chair, and it is used for her to dance in it while singing giving the music video a very "pop feel" to it.

Rita Ora - How We Do (Party):

This is a great example because there are a variety of costume, location and prop change that takes place throughout the music video. In this video the artist costume changes 6 times, and every time the costume changes in the video the location also changes, when the artist sings about partying the location changes to a room full of people dancing and drinking with neon lights all around. The second location is of the artist in the dark with roses and flowers all around her. The costumes are always casual partying costumes, for example, shorts and short tops with a leather jacket/fur jacket and a crown on her head. there are many props in this video for example a bed, alcohol, chairs, paint, snake, table, sword and more.

Emeli Sande - Heaven:

Emeli Sande's costume doesn't change at all throughout this music video, she has only one costume and that is a black dress with two gold necklaces coming down from her neck. There are various location changes in this music video, we have the artist singing on the street, singing in a room on her window seal, externally singing in a park full of roses and flowers, and internally her singing on the roof tops. During the video she is showing snippets of different peoples everyday life, for example, a young girl going to college on a bus, or another young girl playing on her scooter. The location links to the song because when the artist is singing the following lines "only heaven, only heaven.." she's standing on a rooftop, looking up at the sky, as if she's singing up above to heaven. There are many props in this music video for example a doll, a lighter, a scooter and many more.

Summary Of Vernalis's

RESEARCH FOR MUSIC VIDEO - Vernalis's Theory

Carol Vernalis's Theory: Experiencing a music video

Carol Vernalis mainly based her theory on the experience of music videos through editing and camerawork. she found that in music videos, there are much more edits compared to a the amount found in films. this reason is because the rhythm of the continuous editing, such as a lot of jump cuts can be closely connected to the song and the beat. this follows the rule of 'Continuity', with the aim of engaging the viewers attention. Edits can become 'foregrounded' - seen as obvious, and the effects are also obvious too. the results of this is to again draw attention the the movement on the screen.
A base track (Master shot) is frequently used to create a video structure. Although the speed of the edits can be manipulated, the camera movement can often be in level with the speed of the music. all these conventions together form an engaging, intensive and interesting music video which Carol vernalis found within her theory.

In edits, you may see:

Jump cuts
Breaks of the 30 degree rule
Breaks of the 180 degree rule
Cutting against the movement
Cutting with the lyrics
Fancy edits or cuts
A style of editing that is distinctive throughout the video
Extreme changes in pace

You may not see:

An even pace throughout
Smooth transition
Matches on action

An example that contains large amounts of obvious edits is in the music video by Tinie Tempah - Pass Out

At the very beginning, it is a very dark shot where only his face can be seen. The camera focuses on him for a long time and the edit of a orbit around his head is very obvious and eye catching as not only does it relate to the idea of being drunk, but also is a very good editing technique. It is a fancy edit used to engage the audience. However, the camera stays on him for roughly 12 seconds. As the song goes on and picks up its tempo, there is at least two jump cuts every verse. This is because it keeps a rhythm to the beat and the lyrics, keeping a unique flow in the changes of speed and cuts. this clearly shows a extreme change in pace. There is also a master shot of a pumping speaker which is reoccurring in the video.

When it comes to camera movement and framing, Carol Vernaliss found:

Extreme shots are very common
The same style of camera movement and framing may be distinctive to the video and run the same throughout
The camera may move with the lyrics but can also move in time with the music
The master shot can be frequently used as closeups

All the above are also seen in the video Pass Out as it keeps a distinctive type of framing and camera work all through the song. The camera moves in time with the beat and lyrics, and the master shot of the speaker is a close up. Pass Out is a very good video which follows the conventions of Vernalis's Theory.

Previous Student Video

TO WATCH VIDEO ENTER THE PASSWORD - "STUDENT"

This is my favourite previous student video because, the video is very simple but it still holds the audiences attention at the same time. I like that the performer hasn't changed her costume a lot of times, and when she does change her costume its very simple, casual and it suits the locations she's chosen to sing at. I also like the fast movement of the camera when showing the location of the city.

RESEARCH FOR MUSIC VIDEO - Andrew Goodwins Theory

ANDREW GOODWINS THEORY

Andrew goodwin based his theory around the characterisitics of a music video, which he names "Dancing In The Distraction Factory". He focused his theory revolving around various elements of a music video that build up the characteristics in the video itself and also in the mind of the viewer.

"Music videos ignore common narrative as they are essentially advertisments. as consumers, we make up our own meaning of a song in our minds. a music video can anchoor meaning and gives the record company a method of anchoring meaning"
-Quoted by Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin believed that pop videos do not apply traditional narratives to pop videos. this is because the narrative they form is different to the narratives seen in films and novels.
The reasons for this are that:
1. Pop videos are built around the song
2. the main singer is usually used as both narrator and character
3. the singer oftenly breaks the 4th wall which is when the singer looks directly in the camera. this is mainly done to engage the viewer.

Andrew goodwin identified three ways in which the music video can be connected to the song itself
Andrew goodwin identified these Key features in his theory:

Illustration
Amplification
Disjuncture

Illustration

Illustration is basically the image created from the music in the video. it is a told story where the expressions of the lyrics match the illustration in the video. It gives a literal meaning in visual form without any contradictions, unlike amplification and disjuncture.
For example, in the video of UK Artist Pepstar - Russian Roulette

This video is a very good example of a music video that tells a story visualized directly from the lyrics. in the begining, it starts of as a film like introduction which leads up to events that lead up to the current situation. For example, when he says "just three weeks ago i was on the shopping spreeing", he is literally shopping. he then goes on to say he saw a girl and "tapped her shoulder" whilst literally doing it. Also, near the end, the girl screams "run pep run" but in the music video the story is visualized as she literally says it. This is a clear example where the expressions of the lyrics are identified through literal performance.

Amplification

amplification is when the video adds different layers of meanings but do not connect directly to the song. they may use both narrative and performance as connotations of the meaning.
For example, in Kanye wests video 'Homecoming'

In this video, we do not actually see the 'home' in reference to a house. We see people from kids to adults, men and women to suggest the society based in the area of where he lives. We also see different locations that are identifiable to the city, to make the 'Home' a familiar area. neighborhoods, a dark effect and location shots are taken to imply the feeling that his hometown brings, without relating it directly to the actual lyrics of the song. The meaning that the video brings is not direct from the lyric source, but creates its own meaning indirectly.

Disjuncture

Disjuncture intentionally ignores the content of the song and the general meaning. it tries to change the video to a whole different set of meaning, having a very little connection between the video and the lyrics.
For example, in the Dubstep video Guilt - Nero

In this Dubstep song, it is clear that the connection between the video and the song is very little. The song is called guilt and says in the chorus "you keep on talking but it makes no sense at all". However, there are no suggestions of verbal interaction between the people in the performance. Throughout, we see a pole dancer dancing and doing tricks, but it does not have a relation at all to the lyrics or story being told. Also, there seems to be a theme of flashing lights even though the lyrics does not implicate a lit up atmosphere. It is completely random compared to the lyrics being said, as it creates a whole different meaning. this is a clear example of disjuncture.

Laura Mulvey

Research - Laura Mulvey

Laura Mulvey’s theory of representation of gender is “In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure which is styled accordingly” The male gaze is the way men look at women – as “sexual objects” Laura Mulvey basically believes that we are living in a patriarchal society and that men are dominant.

Dizzee Rascal – Holiday

During this video men and women are represented very differently, the men are represented as dominant and superior, they are full dressed, and there are shots of them in suits and sunglasses during summer by a swimming pool surrounded by females in bikinis. Females are represented as “sex objects” in this music video, the females hardly have any clothes on apart from their bikinis, they are shown dancing and drinking with the men, and the men are giving the women ‘the male gaze’ this sends out a message to the audience that women may only be good for fun, and that men are at a much more powerful position. Mulvey discusses the idea that women are ‘dismembered’ in all forms of media – that there is a focus, not on a women as a whole, but a focus on part of their bodies for example their legs, and there is evidence of this in this music video, during the music video, there are frequent slow motion edits shown of the women’s bodies showing specifically their legs, bellies and other body parts.

Laura Mulvey's theory

(British feminist film theorist)
This is a quote from Laura Mulvey about how women are presented and expected to be looked at in music videos:

Stereotypes of women within music videos:

Slim figure

Close up shots of a woman's features

Minimal/revealing clothing

Higher ratio of females to males

Attracting the attention of men

A music video which demonstrates Mulvey's theory is Dizzee Rascal's video for his single Holiday:

In this video we see girls in bikinis and there are close up shots of their bum and legs and the camera tilts up the girls bodies. The men however are fully clothed in T-shirts and shorts and they are seen looking at the girls (active). The girls are seen smiling at the fact that they are being looked at and are not seen to be doing anything about it (passive).

RESEARCH FOR MUSIC VIDEO - Functions Of A Music Video

Functions of a music video

What is a Music video?

A music video is simply a videotaped performance to a recorded song, containing visual images such as performance, (Dancing, Story telling) and sometimes even text, which interperet the lyrics. it is not a necessarily long video, as most tend to be withing the rang or 3-4 minutes.

A music video consists of many different types of film making such as camera movement, shots, shot types and location. It also consist of a vary of edits, all of which to create a successful music video. they can possibly approach their audiences in different ways. For example, some videos can visualise a narrative to the song, or on the other hand provide a peculiar experience for the intended audience depending on its genre. A music video in a UK Grime genre would commonly use an estate block as a location in the video and would also not hold a narrative, for the purpose of promoting the artist. On the other hand, a pop song can set a visual representation of a strong narrative in relation to the lyrics and beat. however, the intention is purposely to promote the artists as well as entertaining viewers.

The Main purpose of a music video

The main purpose of a music video is to help promote an artist,which is important for the record labels in the music industry as it gains larger audiences and brings in large amounts of money considering ratings of the artist. This is through the selling of albums, tours and other fundemental routines in the careers artists in the music industry.

However, as it is a selling product, it must satisfy its audience. To do this, the video must do the following :

Make the song in such a way that the viewer can remember the song
Has to provide a product where the viewer can engage and understand the video through the sound and mis-en-scene. Narratives or unique editing and film making techniques can help achieve this.
show the talent of the artist through their performance, helping to entrtain the viewer

Without any of the above, artist popularity can decrease and can cause a drop on the income and status of the record label, just for the cause of an unpopular or disliked music video.

An example of a song that shows the functions of a music video Started from the bottom - Drake

In this shot, the artists performance of singing and rapping
shows his talents and entertains the viewer.
It also suggests his status due to him
standing in an expensive car.

The male gaze suggested by Laura Mulvey.
This engages the audience, particularly male and as it is a scene that does not involve a music background.
it makes it unique for the viewer to remember.

Artist performance clear as well as the artist himself.
this helps to identify the artist

On Drakes VEVO, he received 83,330,129 views for this video. This automatically indicates that the video was a success as both the artists and video was promoted so well that it entertained the audience, gained popularity for the artist and helped to sell albums off the record label.

Vernalis's theory

Experiencing music video: Aesthetics and cultural context (2004)

Carole Vernallis studied editing and camerawork in music videos and found that edits in music videos are more frequent than in a film, many edits stand out as disjuncture and the editing seems to have a rhythmic basis connected to the song.

Carole Vernallis concluded that:

- The usual rules of 'continuity' editing are broken in order to draw attention to what is on screen

- Edits may be really obvious to again draw attention to what is on screen

- Jump cuts are often used

- A master shot (base track) is frequently used to give the video structure

- The camera may move in time with the music

- The speed of the edit is also manipulated

Example: Rizzle Kicks - Lost generation

- Speed manipulation: There is a slow motion shot of when one of the singers is seen diving onto the sofa

- Edits: The artist standing up is blurred out to draw attention to the other artist who is singing. Editing is used to add text to the video to establish who the artists are and the name of the song. Editing is also used to enhance the flash on the camera to show that he is taking a picture

- Master shot: The artists are seen multiple times in the big brother diary room and on the sofa throughout the whole video.

Carol Vernallis

Research-Carol Vernallis

Carol Vernallis closely studied editing and camerawork in music videos. She found out that edits in music video come much more regularly than in film, this may draw us to a conclusion that the editing seems to have a rhythmic basis closely connected to the song. Carol explains that 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 them, for example wipes and special effects added to the music video, jump cuts are also often used. She also explains that base track is often used to give the video a structure; the camera may move in time with the music.

Carol Vernallis main points are: that there is no balance between narrative and performance, the narrative in a music video is not always complete, music videos don't always have narrative resolutions at the end of the music video and lastly, music videos pose questions.

Music videos that illustrate Carol’s ideas:

Mark Ronson – The Bike Song

There are frequent jump cuts used in this music video, especially between the girls when they're riding bikes, other examples of editing is used for example slow motion, when the guy is walking into and out of the shop, also when the boys are looking at the girls when they are riding past them. Special effects are used when speakers are show as though they are coming to life, moving in time with the music. Throughout this music video there are repeated shots of the artist/performer. There are also uses of base track in this music video, for example, when the artist is walking and singing and also when the performer is circling with the bike.

Rizzle Kicks – Lost Generation

During this music video there are regular jump cuts used, one example is during the beginning of the music video when the two artists walk into the living room. There is slow motion used in this music video when the younger boys are being chased and also when the boys are being beaten up. There are obvious edits such as jump cuts and when we see the CCTV footage. Throughout this music video the camera is moving in time with the music, and also the artists are making eye contact with the camera – addressing the audience. Repeated shots of the artists/performers are shown, there are base track examples shown when the boys are in the Big Brother house and also the living room scene. In this music video there is also editing in time with the beat of the song when the beat goes down, the shot changes.

RESEARCH FOR MUSIC VIDEO - Copyright Clearance

01/09/13

75 Rockefeller Plaza
New York
NY 10019

Dear Sir/Madam,

Request of Copyright clearance

I am an A2 media student from City and Islington college, North London writing to you in hope to get permission to use a song by one of your artist for my coursework. The song I would like to use by the following artist is Ed Sheeran - We are . I am aware that there isn't yet already a music video produced for this song It will be a great honour to be able to use this song as well as appreciating being able to use the song, as I believe it has great inspiration into making a sublime video. it will not be publicly diplayed, as it is solely for coursework itself. However, I could send you a finished product of my A level piece.

Your sincerely,

Umar Sheikh

Andrew Goodwin's theory

‘Dancing in the Distraction Factory’ (1993)

Andrew Goodwin puts forward the idea that pop videos approach narrative from a different angle to films and he proposes a few reasons for this:
- Pop videos are built around the song
- Pop videos often use the main singer both as a narrator and as a character
- The singer often breaks the forth wall (singing directly at the camera) which is used to try and involve the viewer at home with the performance.

Andrew Goodwin argues that there are three types of relations between songs and videos:
1. Illustration: The video tells the story of the lyrics.
2. Amplification: The video introduces new meanings that do not contradict with the lyrics but add layers of meaning.
3. Disjuncture: There is little connection between the lyrics and video or the video contradicts the lyrics.

Examples:

Illustration: Lawson – Standing in the dark.

- “Sitting here wide awake” – Sitting on the end of the bed
- “She’s dancing on the table” – The women behind the glass is seen dancing
- “As he looks into her eyes” – The man is seen looks into the women eyes while they stand in front of the lead singer.

Amplification: Katy Perry – Wide awake.

- “I’m not blind anymore” goes from the dark maze into a brightly lit garden with colourful flowers. The lyrics suggest that she can see her situation more clearly now and the video further enhances this idea by showing her punching the ‘knight in shining armour’ which then reveals a bright light at the end of the forest.

- “I wish I knew then what I now know” The lyrics suggest that she wishes she could go back to before the relationship but the video shows the character as a little girl which implies she wishes to go back further into the past.

Disjuncture: Maroon 5 – One more night

- “We keep throwing things and slamming the door, you and I get so damn dysfunctional” Through these lyrics we would picture a couple arguing and throwing things but in the video we see them as a happy family where the mum is cooking and the dad is looking after their daughter. This contradicts what we would expect to see in the video as it shows the complete opposite to what the narrator is saying.

- The male sings “I’ll only stay with you one more night” which implies that he would leave his partner but in the video it is actually the women who packs her stuff and leaves the man.

Andrew Goodwins

Research - Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin feels that traditional narrative analyses don’t really apply to pop videos; the main reason for this is that they approach narrative from a different angle to novels and films. These are the reasons for the different narrative structures:

Pop videos are built around song lyrics
The pop video uses the singer both as narrator and as a character
The singer often looks directly at the camera, breaking the 4^th wall, and trying to involve the viewer at home with the performance.

Some videos are independent from the music they come from. The visualisation of a song may go further than the original meaning. Sometimes the video provides a visual enjoyment that encourages repeated viewing which therefore promotes the music. Sometimes the videos might be promoting something other than the music, for example film. There are three types of relations between songs and videos: illustration, amplification and disjuncture.

Illustration is where the video tells the story of the lyrics. An example of this is Madonna – “Pap Don’t Preach” it fits into this category because the artist is expressing the words of the lyrics through the images in the music video. For example while she sings the following lines/chorus “Papa I know you’re going to be upset, cause I was always your little girl, but you should know by now, I’m not a baby” In the video she’s showing the audience how life is now she’s grown up, and how life was like when she was a little girl and how she used to play around with toys, with her dad in the garden. The dancing is often used to express the feelings/moods in the song.

Amplification is when the video introduces new meanings that do not contradict with the lyrics but add layers of meaning. Lily Allen “Smile” is an example of amplification because as she sings “When I see you cry it makes me cry” images of the guy in the video being distressed are shown and the artist smiles. The audience becomes aware of the relationship which goes along with the lyrics.

Disjuncture is where there is little connection between the lyric and video or where the video contradicts the lyrics. An example of this is Michael Jackson “Man In The Mirror” It fits into this category because the song is about self-realisation but the video is full of radical world events. During the video when the artist sings the following lines”I’m gonna make a change, for once in my life, it’s gonna feel real good, gonna make a difference, gonna make it right” the video shows images of adults needing shelter and money for their children and as a result of not having it, they can’t afford food as so their children starve.

Functions of a music video

REFLECTING ON THE AS YEAR - Remake

The As year gave me a taster on what will be experienced through the project that i will be doing in this A2 year. The As project of opening sequence production was not as hard as it sounded out to be, but the taster at the end of As giving us a idea of what'll be expected in A2 has already implied to me that it will not be as easy as the AS year. The AS year was short in terms of blogging, production work etc but this project can easily be seen as to having much more than what was done in As.

Function Of A Music Video

Research - Function Of A Music Video

A music video can be simply defined as a videotaped performance of a recorded popular song, usually accompanied by dancing and visual images interpreting the lyrics.

Music videos use a variety of styles of filmmaking techniques, especially camera and editing techniques, which can include animation, live action filming, documentaries, and non-narrative approaches such as abstract film. Some music videos combine different styles, such as animation and live action. Numerous music videos interpret images and scenes from the song's lyrics; however others may take a more thematic approach. Some music videos may be without a set concept, being simply a filmed version of the song's live performance. Music videos play an essential function in the success of the artist and the sales of their singles and album releases, this is why they are so important and have become a fundamental part of the music industry.

What is the main purpose of a music video?

To ensure a music video is carrying out its main purpose (which is to promote the single, the album the single is from, and the artist) a music video needs to make sure they are doing the following:

Selling the song in a way that the audience can remember the song from the video
Is providing the viewer with a better understanding of the song so they engage with it both visually and audibly (this is usually achieved through a performance or a ‘story’ telling)
Lastly, entertaining the viewer by highlighting the talents of the artists through dancing, singing, performing and their physical appearance.

I think an example of one of the best music video forms is Lady Gaga feat. Beyonce – Telephone, I think this, because it is not only a pop video but a short film, which really attracts and holds the audience’s attention. I researched some information and found the single sold 7.4 million digital copies worldwide in 2010, making it one of Lady Gaga’s best selling single. I also feel this is a great example because you can straight away tell that the costumes of the artist’s have been clearly thought through and they match with the story and the lyrics of the music videos.