Research

The Most Common Codes and Conventions used in Music Videos

 

 Performance based video: Where there is often little relation to the lyrics, although there can be a story during the video.

Narrative based video: The video often relates heavily to the lyrics.

Lip-sync: Artist seen miming the lyrics dueing the video.

Diegetic lighting: Source of lighting can be seen in the video.
Non-diegetic lighting: Source of lighting not seen in the video, often a specific/high-tech light

Golden hour: Haze of sunshine seen in the video, often in the first/last hour of daylight.

Star image: Seen throughout the video. Can be completely obvious things like make-up or costume, can also be smaller things like camera angle/shots.

Rythmic editing: When shots appear/change in cohesion with the beat of the music.

Silhouette lighting: Used to create shadows

Green screen: Allows editors to put in images of faraway locations, using images.

Changing contrast/colour/saturation: Used heavily during music videos, used to change mood (Normally for the worse). Often in ballads or heartfelt songs

Close-ups: These often feature heavily in a music video. They will either be of a character in the video or they will be of the band/artist

Establishing shot: Sets the scene and tone of the music video

Long shot: Feature scarcely, but can help to tell the story

 

 



Inspirations for my Music Video
Mumford and Sons - Little Lion Man

I like the look of the rustick set and the dimmer lights used in this music video as it has an intimate feel and has the effect of making the band appear more tradtionally folk. I also like how slow motion has been used when focussed closely on the artist. This has the effect of making them appear significant as they are being focussed on for longer. I will attempt to emulate these features in my music video.

 

 

Mumford and Sons - Winter Winds

 

I like the use of slow motion in this video as it presents the artists as significant to the music video. I also like how the artists' mouths are still moving in time with the music despite the film being slowed down. I will find out how this has been done and will attempt to use the same technique in my music video.

 

I also like the setting in this music and the use of the golden hour as lighting. These features have the affect of giving the music video a rustick feel which is conventional to the genre of the song which is folk. As the genre of my music video is also folk i will attempt to include these features in my music video.

 

 

The Script - Hall of Fame

 

I like the way that the producers of the video have separated the artists from the narrative. The effect of this is to show the artists to be storytellers. This would be appropriate for my music video as the lyrics are talking about a character. Therefore I will use a similar type of style in my music video.

 

Jessie J - WILD

 

I like the introduction to this video as it introduces the setting and artists well. This has been done by following the artist through her walk around the setting. I also like how the big white text introduces the artists and the song as it show the audience that they are highly significant to the music video. I will attempt to do something similar at the start of my music video.



The Lumineers - Ho Hey

 

The lighting in this music video is similar to those used in Little Lion Man as shown in pictures i and ii. The intimate feel this gives the video has the effect of making the artist appear more genuine and down to earth as folk bands normally have an intimate feel. I hope to do something similar in my video.

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Star Image

Richard Dyer, the famous academic and cinema specialist, famously said a star is an image not a real person that is constructed out of a range of materials. This can be said for my chosen pop star, Lady Gaga.

There are a variety of factors that make up a 'star', one of those is their character and personality. One of the methods of portraying this personality is what the star is seen to be doing in public places and in the media. This means that the star gains a reputation and a media personality through their behaviour. Lady Gaga has gained a reputation of being outrageous and bizarre whenever she's seen in public. She has gained this image by pulling shocking stunts in the public eye. She gets these oppourtunities on chat shows and interviews. An example of one of her bizzar stunts was when she brought a sheep on stage with her on a chat show as shown by picture Y. These wild acts are done to build up a perceived personality of the pop star and keeps the public guessing as to what she will do next. Lady Gaga uses other methods to contribute to her star image. One of these methods can be through her music and music videos. Her bizzare image is portrayed in music videos by what she's wearing and possibly even the subjects of her music. This is show in her song 'Born This Way' as she is seen wearing strange costumes (as shown in picture W) and is showing that she is proud of herself for being different through the message of the song as she says in the song 'god makes no mistakes'. The effect on the audience is that it makes them feel proud for following somebody who is different and stands up for those who are different. This gets people talking about her and gets her exposure.

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Y.

 

Another feature of Lady Gaga's star image is her culture and philosophy. This is the star's cultural values and attitudes which adds to their personality. This is done in the hope that the audience of the artist share their beliefs. This common ground encourages them to consume the music of the star. An example of this with Lady Gaga is that she is an outspoken activist for LGBT rights worldwidewhich is a foundation that supports the homosexual movement as shown in picture X. Herself being a bisexual, being part of this movement has been a great attribute to her success as she has gained many followers through her prominence in the gay movement. This contributes to the philosophy of the star image. Stars also attempt to start trends through hairstyles or clothing. This is done to turn the pop artist into a style icon through their image. Lady Gaga has done this through her hair styles. The fringe she entered the music industry was the first trend she set.

X.

Born This Way - Album

The digipak mirrors Lady Gaga's image as it is outrageous and creative. This is shown through the font used for the song list as it is stylish. The fact that Gaga is not wearing much also shows her outrageous side as it shows she is not afraid to push the boundries on what is considered acceptable in the music industry. The qualities of Gaga's images is reflected in the digipak of this album.

Music Video Research

Rizzle Kicks - Lost Generation

In the video Lost Generation, Rizzle Kicks, the protagonists, are scolding society, the antagonist, for their values and are informing them that what they perceive to be the norm in our current generation is alarming and somewhat disturbing. Rizzle Kicks are convincing this "lost generation" to find itself again. In the video, Rizzle Kicks overpower the current 'system' and reveal the ugly nature of what it really is. This is shown when they confront "Jeremy Kyle", throw popcorn at the "Big Brother" television screen, break the media's camera lens and acts as a metaphor for them rebelling against society. Not only is this contributing to their star image but Rizzle Kicks also seem to be standing by the common man as they are ranting at and questioning society. The music video is set in a working class part of Britain as is shown by picture 1. This is reinforcing the idea of the pair being the voice of the people as they are living in the same conditions as their audience and this contributes to their star image. Rizzle Kicks are wearing stylish yet casual and affordable clothing as is shown by picture 2. Not only does this make the duo seem genuine as they are wearing something that the audience would expect them to wear but it also makes them seem relatable this applies to Goodwin's theory. This is because their audience wear similar clothing to them, therefore they have something in common with their fans. This has the effect of building a relationship between them and their fan base. In addition, the clothing Rizzle Kicks wear also creates a star image as it has the effect of making the twosome appear fashionable and sincere. A common prop that is used throughout the video is the mobile phone as is shown in picture 3. It could be argued that this prop is used to depict man's reliability on technology. This argument would link with the title of the song Lost Generation, as humanity are lost and clueless to how strange they appear as it is seen as normal in today's society. Another prop that has been used is the portable television as shown in pictures 4a and 4b. This has been used to act as a motif for their star image as it has appeared in some of their other music videos like Down With the Trumpets. A common motif in the star's music video provides a consistency to the act's image and marks them out as an original artist as the motif used is unique to them. This has the effect of making the image of the act appear unique and encourages the consumer to take an interest in their music. In this music video the artists are the main characters. This could be because they are the ones delivering the message in the song. This would also mean that the target audience are more likely to take in the message of the song as it is coming from the lips of celebrities. There is intertextuality in the video as Rizzle Kicks are openly mocking reality shows like the Jeremy Kyle Show and Big Brother using humour which also pushes the video into the parody genre. These shows have been mentioned in the lyrics and shown in the video, as you can see from pictures 5 and 6, as they have been summarized as typical reality television shows that the public love to watch and that Rizzle Kicks are rebelling against. This technique is called 'thought beats' in Goodwin's theory as it is a way of visualising the message of the video. This technique has been used to present these television shows as immoral and unethical. Rizzle Kicks are questioning why we enjoy watching these shows and they are also questioning whether this "lost generation" are becoming immoral beings.

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Including the narrative, there are also aspects of performance in the music video. At times in the video, Rizzle Kicks are focusing on performing and not on what's going on around them on the set. However, when they are in performance stages of the music video the setting they are in is still relevant to the narrative. For example, when they're in one of their performance settings we see that it is the 'diary room' from "Big Brother" this is shown in picture 6. This suggests that even when Rizzle Kicks are delivering the message of the song, they can't escape the lost generation. This is reinforced at the end of the video when Rizzle Kicks are surrounded by cameras. When Rizzle Kicks were performing, they were performing to the camera. This is because their audience are who they are communicating the message of their song to. There is a lack of voyeurism in this music video compared to most hip hop music videos. The reason for this could be that Rizzle Kicks don’t want to take anything away from the message of the song as the use of this form of appeal to the music video might distract the audience from what the artist is trying to bring to light. As well as the artists performing there song, there is a dance group that perform a dance routine towards the end as it shown in picture 7. In this routine, the dancers don't let go of their phones. This could be a method of reiterating the earlier point that this generation are too reliant on technology. While the dance routine is being performed, the camera seems to go out of focus slightly as is shown in picture 8. This could mirror the current state of this generation as it could suggest that this current generation are in a daze, like they appear to be on the camera.

 

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Throughout the music video, there is no use of saturation or desaturation to adjust the colours as is shown by picture 9. The fact that this editing technique has not been used suggests that the artists are doing this to mirror their star image as it comes across as simple and authentic. During the video rhythmic editing is constantly used. This could have been utilised to encourage the public to listen closer to the music in the video. The purpose of encouraging their target audience to listen closer to the music could be a method of getting them to try and extract some form of meaning from the song that could apply to their lives.

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Robin Thicke - Blurred Lines ft T.I., Pharrell

 

The music video of Blurred Lines is lacking in any form of narrative as it is purely performance based. The reason for this could be because the producers of the video most likely wanted all the attention to be fixed on the scantily clad women and the artists. In addition the makers of the video have gone as far as to give the video no real setting, just a white wall to stand in front of. This has been done to keep the audiences eyes fixed on the people in the shot and what they are doing. The producers are using this form of sex appeal to draw in the audience, not just for the song but for the video itself. The producers used this outrageous method of selling and promoting the song because the shocking nature of the video would get people talking about it. The outrageous disposition of the music video was clearly a marketing technique as it pushed the boundaries on what is acceptable in a music video and this would draw in publicity. The women in the video are wearing high shorts and high cut tops as shown in picture 10. They are wearing the revealing clothes to appeal to a male audience. In the video, the men are wearing suits and looking sophisticated as shown in picture 10. This displays them as powerful and dominant as they are the ones wearing the nicest clothing out of the two sexes. Goodwin's theory would suggest that this contributes to Robin Thicke's star image. This not only appeals to the male audience as it is empowering for them, but it also appeals to a female audience as the men are dressed to look attractive. This is a marketing scheme as it pulls in both sexes and gives them a reason to watch the music video as well as to listen to the music. This video follows the conventions of a typical pop video as it involves voyeurism ,to attract a male audience, and men seeing women as objects.

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When Robin Thicke is performing the song, he appears to be singing to the camera for the majority of the video. When surrounded by the women, he seems to be singing to them less frequently as shown in picture 11. This is keeping with the conventions of the pop genre of video as the, all male, artists seem to view the women in the video as objects. This is reinforced by the voyeurism used in the music video by what the women are wearing and how they are dancing as they aren't viewed as individuals, but objects. This is shown in picture 10.

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During the music video, camera work is frequently used to portray the women as sexual objects. This is done through close up and medium shots of the girl's body's and the camera tilting up and down the women's body's to show off their curves as is shown by picture 12. This has the effect of making the women seem more appealing as it is drawing attention and inviting the audience to look closer at the music video. This camera work has been used as a marketing technique as it encourages the audience to watch the video further. The only text used in the music video is the "#THICKE" writing as shown in picture 13. This use of intertextuality is another marketing technique as the producers are promoting Robin Thicke's image through displaying the link to all of the star's social networking sites (for example, twitter). This is the industry's method of exposure as it shows the audience how to find out more about Thicke. The colour white is used frequently during the music video as the backdrop of the video is white and the clothing of the girls are white as is shown in picture 10. Goodwin's theory suggest that the use of white could be a method of making all the focus about what the women and artists are doing but white also carries connotations of innocence and purity as the theory suggests that colour is frequently used in music video's to portray the mood. This could be linked to virginity as the phrase "good girl" is used often during the song. The colour of the women's lips are all bright red as is shown in picture 14. This colour carries connotations of danger and passion. These techniques could have been used to make the women seem more desirable. The lighting in the music video is intense and harsh as is shown in picture 10. This form of non diagetic lighting has been used to ensure that there is full focus on what is going on in the shot and not what's going on around it. The light is not in the shot to make sure that there are no distractions so that all the focus can be on what is going on in the shot. There is a use of rhythmic editing throughout the music video. This editing style has been used to encourage the audience to listen to the music due to the matching beat of the music and the editing.

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La La La - Naughty Boy ft Sam Smith

 

In La La La by Naughty Boy and Sam Smith is the whole video consists of just narrative which is conventional to the genre of dance pop. Goodwin's theory would also suggest that this use of abstract narrative is conventional to a specific genre like dance pop as it is ambiguous and encourages multiple meanings. The music video is based on an old Bolivian myth where a young boy leaves his abusive home and saves two outcasts and a whole town from an evil spirit with his ability to shout incredibly loud. The music video adapts this concept by demonstrating how this story can have cultural significance in the modern day. The message of the song and the video is to not listen to the people who are spiteful towards you and the narrative of the music video is a metaphor for this. The use of abstract narrative to deliver the message of the song is conventional to the genre. The first half of the video is set in a poverty stricken town in Bolivia as shown in picture 15 and the second half of the video is set in the country side of Bolivia during the 'golden hour' of the day as is shown in picture 16. This setting has been used to make the audience feel slightly uneasy as most people in western society are unfamiliar with Bolivian culture. This makes the video somewhat haunting as it makes the audience feel apprehensive. The costumes that are worn by each of the three main characters are highly significant as they are all relevant to the message of the music video. The costume of the boy is what typical Bolivian children wear as is shown in picture 17, this has been done to show the audience that normal people like them can be brave and make a stand like the child did. The cement man and the elephant man are dressed in odd costumes, as shown in picture 18, to give the music video a fairy tale like quality. The mise-en-scene in the music video hints to the origin of the story. There seems to be a use of intertextuality in the video as the storyline of the music video appears to mirror that of 'The Wizard of Oz' novel. This is shown with the inclusion of the dog, picture 19, as the main character's side kick in the music video which is the same as the main character in the book. In the video, the cement man, who could be seen to mirror the tin man, gets a heart, like the tin man does in the novel. The narrative of both the music video and the novel are very similar as both main characters are not happy in their current situations, leave their homes in the search of a better life and save the day at the end. This again sends out the message to their audience that they can be whoever they want to be, no matter their restrictions, as long as they take the first step in their pursuit of happiness. Mise-en-scene is also used to market the artist. This is done when the main characters pass the television screen in the desert and it turns on while the camera is panning. The text that comes up on the television is the name of the artist's album 'Hotel Cabana' as is shown in picture 20. This is a technique of exposure as it shows the audience that the song they are listening to can be found on 'Naughty Boy's' new album.

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There is no performance section in the music video as 'Naughty Boy' and 'Sam Smith' do not feature in the video. This I because the producers wanted all the focus is on the narrative so that the message of the song would come through with more clarity. There is no type of voyeurism in the video. This video is therefore an unconventional pop video as it does not follow the conventions of the average pop video would as it does not involve any sections of performance during the video and it doesn't involve any form of voyeurism. This has been done so that the focus of the music is on the message.

Throughout the video, whenever something significant is happening slow motion is always used. This is done when the small boy leaves home, when he meets the two outcasts and encourage them to going him on his quest and when him and his companions are walking to their destination. This editing technique has been employed to put emphasis on moments which are important to the narrative. There are also a lot of extreme long shots in the video to establish the location as is shown in picture 21. This has the effect of adding a charged atmosphere which contributes to the mood of the video. A lot of the lighting in La La La is low key, little artificial lighting is used and shadows are utilised a lot as is shown in picture 22. Goodwin's theory would suggest that the low key lighting adds a dark mood to the music video and has the effect of making the audience feel uneasy. This mood could be linked to the narrative as the message of the narrative is about facing fears and the use of darkness and shadows could be a representation of the character's fears that they are battling with. Throughout the video rhythmic editing is used. This could have been employed to encourage the audience to focus on the lyrics and what is being said so they gain a better understanding of the music video's message.

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Magazine Advert Analysis

 

 

Codes and Conventions of Music Videos

 

 

 

Digipack Analysis

 

 

Font research

BROADSIDE BOYS

This font is bold and clear and we felt that this would work well. After researching other famous folk artists fonts we saw that this type of font matches up with those used in other folk artists.

BROADSIDE BOYS

BROADSIDE BOYS

After researching other album covers by folk artists, the vast majority use this bold, basic font like the two shown above. A standard, serious like font suits this genre of music in contrast to colourful. A bubble writing font which would be associated with a genre such as pop.

BROADSIDE BOYS

We are going to be using this font for our album cover as it fits with the bold stereotype but also adds it's own flavour with the dark edging and stands out a lot more.