Analaysis of a student video watched in class (planning)

In class we analysed a number of video's that student's had constructed, one of the video's we observed was to a song called bullet proof by an artist named La Roux which falls into the categorical genre of pop. Through careful analysis of this video I have concluded that the genre was misrepresented throughout the video in that the mise en scene was not indicative of which genre the girls were trying to represent. The only giveaway was the song because it was familiar. The costumes did not highlight typical pop cultured outfits and the locations that were selected did not compliment the genre. From a narrative perspective the narrative did not have a direct link to the lyrics, which could arguably represent disjuncture to an extent; nonetheless the overall concept of the video was missed and the song's meaning was lost due to this objective choice. Despite all of this the editing was of a particularly high standard, there were a variety of shots incorporated and good use of clear cut transitioning. There was also good framing of shots and manipulation of pace in the video. I particularly liked the part where the girls made use of the split screening technique. In addition to this I also like where they put a recording frame on the screen to make it appear as if there was a camera within a camera recording them. Overall from an editing perspective I felt that there were some amazing elements that I would even consider using in my own finished product, however I feel like due to the lack of planning in mise en scene combined the non-illustrative nature of the video the concept  and meaning of the song was lost. As a result of this I feel obliged to take a more illustrative approach in terms of narrative when working on my own music video and will try to ensure that the mise en scene is carefully planned to the best of my ability.

Analysis of Student Video (Research)

After watching a few music videos from previous students, only one really stuck out for me. The song 'Everybody needs love' is vibrant and joyful and the students managed to portray this image across the video. The video was black and white and the colour red was exaggerated throughout.
It featured  a main singer and members of the public singing the chorus and holding up 'Everybody needs love' banners. I think this idea was very original and contributed to the song because it gave out a good message.
The variety of locations and shots kept us entertained and some shots were cleverly repeated in a way so that it wouldn't look boring.

Vladimir Propp (research)

Russian born Vldadimir Propp was a russian  and soviet formalist scholar who analyzed basic plot compmonents of Russian folk tales; identifying basic narrative structures. Vladimir devised a theory concerning the basic structure to which he believed narrative followed in terms of characters and plotting. Vladimir's character analysis consists of a hero, who he believes is seeking something; and a villan who opposes the hero. Additionaly there is a donor, who helps the hero by giving him a magic object and the dispatcher who sends the hero on his way. Vladimir also believed there was a false hero, whom wrongly assumes the role of the hero and the helper who behaves similar to the donor in offering help to the hero. Finally the princess who is the reward for the hero and needs to be protected from the villian. There is also the role of the princesses father.

Concerning narrative functioning vladimir believed there were three stages in basic narrative structure, these structures consist of preperation, i.e the introudctory sequence in which he named the 1st sphere. This is closely followed by a complication in which could consist of the villian harming a family member and the hero typically seeking action against him/her. This structure is defined as being the body of the story and is the 2nd sphere. The 3rd sphere consists of transference whereby the hero is typically tested and as a result receives a helper to conquer the battle they are facing. The 4th and final sphere is subjective of the hero's return.



Trey_Songz_-_Cant_Help_But_Wait_-_Video_Premiere_-
Uploaded by my-sikk. - Watch the latest news videos.


This video I believe follows the general concept of vladimir's theory in that the female plays the role of the so called "princess" whilst trey songz potrays the role of the hero and the other male plays the villain. In this video we can see that the other male plays abusive partner (villain) whilst the female is potrayed as being the damsil in distress who is in need of rescuing. Which is where trey songz comes in in what is called the second sphere as a complication is established. He is tested by the villain, however nanages to his love interest, rightfully claiming his reward. Though some of the elements of Vladimir's theory can be identified in this video, many of the characters Vladimir believed to be prominent in all narrative's were absent, and after searching for numerous video's I have seen that Vladimir's theory has many flaws in its anatomy.  As  a result I have concluded that it is very rare for this theory to be completely applicable in music video's.

Music Video Analysis(Research)

The following analysis is for the Cheryl Cole music video for "Fight For This Love". Cheryl Cole is a UK female pop artist who is well known around  the world because she is also apart of one of the UK`s award wining girl bands called "Girls Aloud". This song was the first track of her debut album called "3words".

The link to "Fight for this love" video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMiy_UsrPDs

Genre

I believe that the video is not a typical female pop artist video. I feel that the whole video has a more urban look to it, due to the fact of the costume Cheryl is wearing and also because of the animated mise en scene. I believe that the only reason that you really know that the song is a pop song is because she has choreographed dancers in the back. This would be unusual for other geners such as rap songs because they might have dancers in the background but they are not choreographed and are usually woman dressed more prerogative. However i believe that the costume is linked to the lyrics of the song because Cheryl is dressed in a fashionable army jacket and boots. This is a play on the lyrics and another connection because of the words "Fight for this Love". This is a connection because in the army the fight for there country which they love and want to protect.

Narrative

I believe that the narrative in this video is very clear and follows a clear pattern of "verse-chorus-verse- chorus". I believe that Cheryl is narrates and participate in the video. She shows the audience what she is going to do and that she will not give up. However i don't believe this video has a Strong narrative like other videos do having visual content in the video which is followed by the lyrics like a story.

Representation

I believe that in this video Cheryl is being represented as an independent woman by the way she is dressed and her movement throughout the whole video. It makes me feel that she is a powerful woman and never gives up in what she believes in. This whole representation reminded me of American urban/pop/r&b group "Destiny's Child" in there video "Survivor". This whole of woman doing everything for themselves and there morals on self believing.

Media Language

On the whole i believe that the media language throughout this video is extremely good & is of a high standard. For example the video is edited very well, all of the shots are connected well and you can rarely see the editing because it happens so fast. Another good feature of this video is that the video itself is edited to the soundtrack(beat).This means that each time a different shot appears it changes at the same time of the beat and not at a random order. This technique affects the video overall because it makes it look like a more high standard video and it allows the audience to follow the video with them being confused.This is also makes the whole mood of the video much more fast paste and up beat tempo. Also throughout the video there is animation used. The use of the animation gives the video more colour and its own special look. Because i believe without the animation element within the video, it would not be a good music video because it would look to bland. Also there would not be anything linking the song to its lyrics accept for the costume.  I believe throughout the video the use of lighting is very bright, accept for when they are just trying to focus on Cheryl's face then the back ground is a bit darker and there is more light focused on her face.

Analysis of Music Video (research)

N-Dubz is a group made up of 3 people, two boys and a girl. N-Dubz Started off as a grime group, but as there popularity grew and they became more famous they became more mainstream and had a wider target audience, I think N-Dubz now fits into the category of R’n’b . N-Dubz is now a lot more appealing to a wider group of people this has lead to there success as a British urban group. The two male characters are the rappers and the female member is the singer.




Although N-Dubz no longer fits into the genre of grime, representations throughout the video suggests that the group is still quite urban. Flash cars have been used in this video, to symbolise wealth; this follows the tradition of other rap and R’n’b videos. The male characters in this video are wearing ‘bling’; again this is used to symbolise wealth. The different camera shots such as close up and mid-shots are used throughout the video. This allows the viewers to see the jewellery the artists are wearing, and it also displays Dappys tattoos. Bling and tattoos are though to be appealing to the main target audience of this genre of music.

As a music group N-Dubz has come a long way, and this video shpws that. The video has been shot in a very nice house. This suggests wealth wide shots and long shots were also used in this video in order to show off the property.

This music video dose not support Mulveys theory; as women were shown as whole and they weren’t ‘dismembered’ in this music video. However the were shown in short clothing but I think they still looked presentable. This music video had a linear narrative and it was an illustration music video.  The lyrics ant this video were linked well together and they told a story.

Additional letters requesting copyright permission (planning)

 

Dear Charles,

I am writing to you as I would like to formally request copyright permission to use the whole song of Katy B’s on a mission.

I am a student of A Level Media Studies and for my Advanced Portfolio I will be working in a group to produce a promotional package for the release of a new album track.  I would like to request permission to use the above track for this project. 

The finished project will not be made available publicly and will be used solely for coursework purposes.  The holder of the original copyright will be fully acknowledged in the finished project. 

If you do not hold the rights for this song I should be grateful if you could forward this request to the appropriate person, or return it to me with the contact details in order that I might approach the copyright holder directly.

Yours faithfully

Tyra Hibbert-Williams

tyra_h@live.co.uk

More  letters requesting copyright permission for the following songs/artisits...

• N-Dubz-Say its over

• Tinie Tempah-Pass Out

Short list of potential songs (planning)

We began shortlisting our songs by holding a small discussion, however we found it difficult to think of songs by British artists because the majority of music we listen to is from a foreign country.

Because of this we decided to brainstorm all the British artists we could think of. When we had done this, we found it much easier to narrow down our options to those more suitable.

After narrowing down the artists, we then thought of songs we thought we could make exceptional videos for. Tinie Tempah - Frisky, Kate Nash - Foundations, Roll Deep - Good times and Chipmunk - Opsy Daisy were some of our last options. To help us decide what to pick, we watched the videos of these songs to see whether we could create a video of the same standards or better then itself. With this in mind we agreed that N- Dubz - Ouch, Chipmunk - Opsy Daisy or Kate Nash - Foundations were more realistic measures as the others had very high production videos.

As we couldn't choose our final song, we decided to put them all in a hat and pick one. The outcome of this was N- Dubz - Ouch.

Letter requesting copyright clearance (planning)

 Columbia Records Uk

9 Derry Street

London

W8 5HY

10 Richmond Grove

London

N1 2DL

Proforma for obtaining copyright permission

Dear Sir/Madam,

Request for Copyright Permission to use part, or whole of one of the following song: "That's not My name"by the The Ting Tings .

I am a student of A Level Media Studies and for my Advanced Portfolio I will be working in a group to produce a promotional package for the release of a new album track. I would like to request permission to use one of the above tracks for this project.

The finished project will not be made available publicly and will be used solely for coursework purposes. The holder of the original copyright will be fully acknowledged in the finished project.

If you do not hold the rights for this song I should be grateful if you could forward this request to the appropriate person, or return it to me with the contact details in order that I might approach the copyright holder directly.

Yours faithfully

Jovan Newman-Herry


J.Herry


Email: therealjovan@hotmail.co.uk

Analysis of a music video.

I have decided to analyse the pop video 'Get Sexy' by the British girl band The Sugababes.

According to Andrew Goodwins theory the video falls under amplification as there is no direct link between the lyrics and video but there is a significant amount of relevance.
In modern day media, sex sales and the Sugababes have used this to their advantage by using there appearance's to lure in a wide audience.

The video uses flashing lights and dissembles different body parts such as lips and legs to exaggerate their sexiness and femininity. The fast pace editing compliments the song as it is quite up beat. There is an element of repetition and a lot of the shots are used a number of times to help the audience familiarise themselves with it.

Although the song is predominately about men, there are no male appearances in the entire video. This suggests that although women care about what men think of there appearances, they are independent enough to manage without them.

Andrew Goodwin's Theory

Andrew Goodwin’s theory expresses that the structure of music videos are significantly different to other types of media like films and dramas. For example, in pop videos the artist normally plays the role of both the narrator and the character. The artist is made to look directly into the camera in order to entice and draw the audience in, making them feel more involved in the performance. This is very different to TV dramas and films where the performers do not look at the camera giving the audience a more passive approach.

Repetition plays a large role in pop videos mainly because it allows us to become familiar to the genre. When it comes to marketing, the song would be played on the television and radio to help broadcast the hit. Advertisements would be extremely similar to the video in order for us to make a connection between them. This method of marketing works very effectively, especially when introducing a new artist. I have provided a screen shot from a music video and an advertisement to show this.








There is normally a pattern of repetition or a climax at the end or during a video. Additionally some videos may use euphemism to imply a deeper meaning to what appears in the surface. Goodwin suggests that there are three types of relations between songs and videos; Illustration, Amplification and disjuncture.



This video exhibits illustration as it is very narrative. In the lyrics, Beyonce speaks about how she would act if she was a boy. The video shows Beyonce dressed up as a male character and pursuing what she is singing about and therefore there is a direct link to the lyrics. At the end of the video, the element of disruption appears when her role as the selfish male ends and she once again becomes the feeble woman in her male dominant relationship.




This video represents amplification. Christina Aguilera’s lyrics are attempting to encourage everyone that they are beautiful. However, the video is full of people who do not necessarily fit the stereotype of beauty. On a deeper level, I have identified that the video suggests that regardless of stereotypes we are all beautiful in our own way.



This video shows disjuncture as there is no relevance or link between the lyrics and the video.

Reflection on lip synch tutorial experience (planning)

We all enjoyed the lip synch tutorial experience. I found it significantly helpful as not only did I learn new skills using Final Cut Pro, but I also thought that it helped me to understand what it is like being in front of the camera. This was beneficial as this has now made us all feel confident not only in front of camera, but in front of each other.

Before the tutorial, none of use possessed the skills of synching a video to a soundtrack. During class discusions we were advised to sing the song rather than mime it as this would look over dramatised and could potentially lose us marks.
We filmed each of us through the whole song rather than filming in scenes so that it would be easier to edit. By using different angles  we managed to get a range of shots making our video better to watch.

Types of music videos (research)

Amplification music video

Jamelia - See It In A Boy's Eyes

These types of videos are when the videos introduce a new layer of meaning without contradicting the lyrics but adding a new layer of meaning. In this particular video Jamelia is singing about ‘seeing it in a boys eyes’. By just listening to the song to me it seems like a love song, and if I had to imagine the video I would expect it to be sensitive, and be based around a relationship. I would also expect it to be more narrative with a male and female character playing the boyfriend and girlfriend. Instead the video was taken from a different angel. Jamelia is in the army and she is surrounded by other ‘soldiers’. She is literally talking about seeing it things from a man’s eyes.




 

Illustration music video

Roll Deep Ft Jodie Connor Good Time

Illustration music videos are when the music video tells the story of the lyrics. The song is talking about having a good night and forgetting about the day you just had. The video reflects this quit well as it shows people getting ready to part as it’s the end of the week. The main location of this video is in a night club. The mis en scene reflects what the lyrics of the song ‘champagne popping’. There are a lot of people in the club and they are all having a good time.

Disjunction music video

La Roux - I'm Not Your Toy

Disjunction music videos are where there is little connection between the lyrics and the video, or where the video contradicts the lyrics. The lyrics of this song are talking about how she is not a toy and she is not going to be used by a boy. The lyrics referrer to love and relationships but the music video has no correlation to this. In the video La Roux is performing at a type of posh pool party and the guests are dancing to her singing. The video is a bit space age, and it seems like it is set in the future.

Andrew Goodwins Theory (research)

Andrew Goodwin feels that traditional narrative analysis does not apply in pop videos; there are several reasons for this. A pop video only lasts a few minutes whereas novels, films and other type of media last longer therefore they have more time express to the audience all the relevant themes.

Reasons for different narrative structures:
• Pop videos use the singer as the character as well as the narrator.
• The singer usually looks into the camera. In a way this breaks the ‘ third wall’ in order to involve the viewer and making them feel more involved with the performance, creating the illusion that they are watching the pop star live.
• Pop videos are built around songs and songs don’t often pose traditional narrative structures.

Repetition is used throughout pop videos for a variety of reasons. Often an image is repeated throughout music videos like the way lines and verses are repeated in songs. This allows us as an audience to become familial with the themes and ideas that are presented in the song. It also allows us to become familial with the genre and set certain expectations. Repetition is also useful in advertisement. Music videos will be played on the TV, songs will be played on the radio and adverts may be played on the TV. Therefore the use of repetition will link these different types of median and make it seem like one, as the audience will become familial with certain visual images that has been repeated throughout.

Pop songs and pop videos all have something in common; they all have a form of closure and ending. A pop song is usually around 3 minutes long therefore the video has to end after 3 minutes. Thus is how it is usually done; it builds a climax or reaches a constant repetition until it fades away.

Goodwin believes there are three types of relations between songs and videos:
• Illustration: this is when the video has narrative
• Amplification: when the video contradicts the song lyrics or adds new layers of meaning
• Disjunction: when there is little connection between the song and the music video
Typically pop videos are easily recognisable. This is due to the use of clichés and stereotypes. In the majority of pop / RnB/grime videos women are seen as objects of male desire.
Videos also try to appeal to a wide audience range. This can be shown in different ways such as a song from an older band but the video would be of them in there younger days. This would be appealing for a younger audience and the bands core target audience as no one will feel left out. ☺

Andrew Godwin's Theory (research)

In an attempt to simplify the concept of Andrew Godwin's theory it can be identified that he feels that music video's narrative structures are approached from a different angle in comparisson to novels and films. Pop video's conventionally use the singer as both the narator and as a character.Generally the singer often looks directly into the camera in an attempt to actively involve their audience with the performance, unlike TV dramas where the characters are portrayed to take a more passive approach and so therefore do not look at the camera.

Typically pop videos rely greatly on repittion, sometimes there are also intersections of rhythms and parts of other songs which immediately makes us become aware of the type of genre to expect. Additionaly the video will be marketed effectively and so will be played on TV and on the radio. Where advertising is concerned there will be a visual link between the video and the advert in order for people to be able to assosciate the two. This use of familiar repitittion allows for effective marketing.

Generally, music videos build towards a climax or establish a constant repittion before the song ends. However some videos are autonomous in that the visualisation of the song may drift to a deeper interpretation then the original meaning. On the other hand a music video may be promoting a movie in which case there will be visual images from the movie incorporated into the video in order for the audience to be able to establish a connection between the two. Which brings me to the three types of relations between songs and videos, of which consist of illustration, amplification and disjuncture. To emphasise this I am going to provide three examples of the three categories listed above.


Illustration



This video falls into the genre of pop and tells the story of a man who faces rejection from the opposite sex throughout his life. The video is told in three stages as it shows him as a child, a teenager and then an adult; it is illustrative in that the lyrics have almost a direct link to the narrative. There is an element of disruption in the video when the roles are reversed and he becomes the lady killer and is looking down on the girl he'd been chasing all his life.


Amplification



This video by Lady Gaga also falls in to the genre of pop and the narrative tells the story of her boyfriend trying to kill her and her seeking revenge. This exhibits amplification because at face value we would assume that that's all the video is telling us but after careful evaluation I have identified that the video has a deeper interpretation. Lady Gaga is trying to express her love for fame and show us how important it is to her so much so that she would kill her boyfriend to remain loved by the public and the paparazzi. This was shown when she reads the front cover of the magazine and it says new it girl 'no more gaga' an idea that obviously did not sit comfortably with her. This ultimately ties in to her entire wacky persona.

Lastly...

Disjuncture


This video also falls into the genre of pop. I have selected another pop video as ultimately this is a genre that my group are considering pursuing for our own music video. This video demonstrates disjuncture as there is no connection between the lyrics and the video there are only elements of dancing used to convey and express the feelings and mood of the song.

Analysis of a music video ( research)

I have chosen to analyse the Saturday's 'Just Can't Get Enough' and so therefore will evaluate this accordingly.

The Saturday's are a British group who fall into the categorical genre of pop music and have various U.K chart entry's, ranging from their hit single 'Up' and 'Issues'. Throughout the video they are projected as being both the narrators and participants as they actively involved in the video and narration of the lyrics. However there isn't a direct link between the lyrics and the narative and so therefore this video would fall comfortably into the category of disjuncture. In relation to mise en scene through observation we can identify that the girls are not entirely clothed and are dressed in what would appear to be quite revealing lingerie in many of the scenes. The girls are dismembered in many of the scenes, however this is done in a milder form then what one would typically expect in a Hip-Hop video. This dismemberment leads to the sexualisation of their image which reinforces iconography as it illustrates the glamorous natue of the sub-genre from which their music derives, when compared with perhaps that of a rock video or heavy metal video. The saturday's are continuously represented as sex objects throughout the video, which is significant because as a society we have come to the realisation that across multiple media platforms, ultimately ' sex sells 'and the media uses sexualised images of both males and females to market them accordingly. Additionally some of the men are also represented as sex objects as they are in shirts that expose their muscles reinforcing ideologies surrounding masculinity.



In this video the lighting is very bright which compliments the upbeat and quirky nature of this song. The editing is fast paced with a wide variety of shots and is shown from the Saturday's perspective.