For my mock exam as I only had test shots due to being unable to film because of weather restrictions I took advantage of the editing programme I am going to be using when editing my final footage. At first, I spent a fair amount of time understanding the programme and trying to get the jist of where certain buttons and actions are that will be useful. Importing the clips and the song was fairly simple, as was muting the original track on the video footage.
I then explored the transition effects. In my video, I want to use dissolve effects; hence why I experimented with this. This dissolve effect was quite difficult to get the hang of as it dissolved the clip into black - which I found unflattering and not conventional of music videos or the genre I am studying. By editing the length of the dissolve and adding a dissolve to the following video clip (while making them overlap slightly) I discovered that this got rid of the black screen, thus dissolving one clip into another.
After experimenting with the transition effects I wanted to add aesthetically pleasing visual effects to the video itself. After scrolling through the long list of effects the programme had to offer I found many that I thought were pleasing, which you can see I've used in my mock video. The effects could make a boring video seem very interesting. Once adding the effect to the clip, the programme gave me the option to edit the effect (e.g. make the effect more intense or less intense). Overall, I found doing the mock exam very beneficial as I feel very familiar with the editing process now and understand how to edit my final video effectively and how I want to.
Here are videos that I've come across in the researching process that have really inspired me and given me some ideas for my music video.
All three of the above videos have similar outdoorsy themes, which the first two in particular having a focus on the girls, which is what I intend to have in my video. I have mainly taken cinematography inspiration from these videos.
As my mock exam is next week, I have been keeping a keen eye on the weather to gage when I will be able to film. For my video, I will need a clear sky - which is looking very unlikely at the moment. I will not be able to film this week, however I have already done some filming in October which would be great to use for my Mock.
Here are my focus group questions that I am going to print off, ask people at random and video their response. The questions are all to do with the audiences relationship with media texts.
Here is a collection of articles I've gathered which I found inspiring. They're good for tips on technique and inspiration. Hopefully these articles will help me when trying to achieve my goal to make a professional looking product.
Colour within the MES and Cinematography
http://www.shutterstock.com/blog/movies-in-color
http://moviesincolor.com/
Lens Effect using Stockings over Lens
http://nofilmschool.com/2013/12/diffusion-how-and-why-to-use-stockings-on-your-lenses
https://www.hurlbutvisuals.com/blog/2012/05/film-education-online-diffusion-for-the-digital-age-part-2/
Nets in general are a good idea for a foggy look.
CINEMATOGRAPHERS TO LOOK AT: Harris Savides Raoul Coutard Gordon Willis sven nykvist jack cardiff douglas slocombe jose luis alcaine vittorio storaro carlo di palma
Directors: Sofia Coppola Gus Van Sant Ingmar Bergman Robert Altman James Gray Joel and Ethan Coen Movies to look at: No Country For Old Men My Own Private Idaho Inside Llewyn Davis The Virgin Suicides
Lana Del Rey – Shades of Cool
The song was co-written by Lana Del Rey and Rick Knowels. It was produced by Dan Auerbach.
Genre: Blues Rock
Lana Del Rey’s song ‘Shades of Cool’ was released on May 26 2014 by Polydor and Interscope records. It was the second single from her album ‘Ultraviolence’. It could be purchased digitally on websites such as amazon or on iTunes. She released her first album in 2010 as ‘Lana Del Ray’, the album was of the same name. She began uploading homemade videos to her own songs on youtube but was very unknown at the time until she hit big with ‘Videogames’. She won the Q award for ‘Best New Thing’ and a Brit Award for ‘National Breakthrough act’ towards the beginning of her career. She has also recorded songs for Hollywood movie successes such as ‘The Great Gatsby’ and ‘Maleficent’.
The video starts with a long introduction of the instrumental with a layered clip of an old man with a blue light over it. The clip is layered on top of a road which connotes that he is in a moving car. The song then starts with Lana singing the non-diagetic lyrics ‘my baby lives in shades of blue’ which relates to the blue light that was over the man at the beginning. This also suggests that she is in a romantic relationship with this man. The lyrics are also similar to the title of the song which already automatically creates a bond with the audience as they recognise the title within the song. Lana’s voice is very deep and old fashioned which suits the blues rock genre as many blues singers have deep voices. She also has a slight Marilyn Monroe feel to her voice which suits her image well. These lyrics make it clear that Lana is singing about a man she is in a romantic relationship with. We then see different shots of the same man driving a car in the night time. She then sings ‘he lives in California too’ while we see him driving in a car in LA. The setting is iconographic and can be recognised by the tall, well lighten buildings and palm trees. It is filmed in a dark setting and the road is clear which works well with the ghostly tone of the song.
Lana then sings ‘he calls for me and not for you’ as a clip of her back in a white dress is shown layered over the LA setting. The colouring is still very bright and toxic. She then turns around and we see her face with a red toned light on her hair and a blue light on her face. The blue light works with the clip of the man at the beginning as he also has a blue light on his face. All of this works cohesively with the lyrics, tone and genre of the song. The red light on her hair also connotes love – at the same time she sings ‘he loves his baby too’. From this I further infer that she is in a romantic relationship with the man who is featured in the video.
After this we see a clip of the same man walking with a layered transparent clip of Lana and the American flag over it. This fits in with the LA theme behind the video. The man is wearing a white shirt and is centre frame which shows his importance. The next clip is of Lana standing at the right corner of the frame in the darkness as she sings ‘and I can’t do nothing about his strange weather’. This shows that she feels inferior and unimportant as it is practically opposite to the previous clip of the man in the light and centre frame. Lana then moves to centre frame as the song becomes more upbeat and positive. We see clips of fireworks over her which could show that this man fills her with energy and excitement – just like a firework. She is also wearing white which connotes purity. The tone of Lana’s voice then goes down as she sings the lyrics ‘I can’t break through your world’ and a clip of the man is shown which informs the audience that she is singing about him. It is now incredibly clear that there is a narrative story within the video as well as abstract elements such as the clip of Lana in the darkness with fireworks. Lana then has clips of flowers blossoming and birds flying over her which connotes how this man makes her feel – which is pure and free.
The video then takes a change as we see Lana outdoors, centre frame wearing white. The iconography is the same as before which informs the reader that the location and setting is still the same. The camera then pans around Lana to reveal the man in the background with his car which is mentioned earlier on in the song and seen at the beginning. We then see a close up of this man as he looks at Lana. We know he is looking at Lana because of the graphic match of the palm trees and the car. The camera then zooms in on the man to show his emotion.
Another abstract element of the video is shown with a video of flowers overlapping an explosion. This connotes the mood and lyrics to the song and the fact that whatever is going on between them is not good for Lana and is very disruptive. The shot then goes back to Lana in the darkness as she sings ‘but I can’t help him’. The darkness and medium long shot could show how distant and powerless she feels towards the problem. The shot of Lana in the darkness is then overlapped onto the clip of him driving off in the car. It is a medium close up of her as he gets further away in the car which could connote that they are drifting apart.
The video now goes to a different shot of the man watching Lana swim in a pool as she wears white which connotes the same as before. There is a blue light over his face which could show that he is feeling down as there is also a dark shadow over him. The song then turns more upbeat as the location changes to inside a luxurious looking house as the man drinks from a fancy cup with his pinky finger in the air which reveals that he is likely to be quite wealthy. His hair is also slicked back and he drives an expensive car while wearing nice clothing which is stereotypical of a rich man. We then see Lana in front of a pool eating a strawberry which also has romantic and attention seeking connotations. She is also wearing red lipstick and drinking a red beverage – all of which connote love. There is then a fast paced montage edit of Lana swimming, dancing with the man, sitting on the floor looking sad and lonely from a high angle which makes her look inferior and also shots of her having fun. This matches the beat of the song. The use of this montage edit is to show the fast range of emotions that she experiences throughout her time spent with this man.
The song then slows down as we see Lana slowly getting out of the pool which is shot/reverse shot to the man with a harsh light on his face which is very different to the rest of the video when he is in the darkness. This could show that she is enlightening him. However, after this moment Lana sings the chorus about not being able to break through his world and we see similar shots to those of which we have previously seen such as the man in the darkness and Lana in the darkness with flowers blossoming in the background. This shows the repetitive nature of their relationship; especially as towards the end of the video we see them both in the same house – in the light embracing each other.
Language
The language used in the video is typical of the genre as the word ‘blue’ is often used in old fashioned music which is what Lana’s music is based on. The narrative story in the video also supports the language used as it is represented very well specifically and abstractly.
Institution
Lana Del Rey music has been noted to reference that of old Hollywood films and movie stars. People would also compare her music to ‘film noire’ and ‘poetry’. She has a contralto vocal range which means that she can express emotion well and has a very jazz-like tone to her voice – which applies to her genre and the mood of her songs effectively.
Ideology
The main ideology behind Lana Del Rey is that of a blues artist. Her music is very bluesy and often quite melancholy; however some are different which what labels her into the indie genre. The ideology behind this video is the representation of a love story with a lot of problems.
Representation
In the music video Lana Del Rey is repeatedly represented as a pure and lonely woman. The representation of her on an everyday basis is very ‘old Hollywood’ as she gets similar labels to Marilyn Monroe and Nancy Sinatra.
The music video for "I Want to Break Free" was directed by David Mallet. It was shot in 1984.
Genre: Rock
The song was produced by Queen and Reinhold Mack.
When the video stars we see an iconographic long shot of what looks to be houses in Manchester. This would make sense as the beginning of the video is loosely based on Coronation Street, which is set in Manchester. We then see a close up of an alarm clock while the introduction is playing non-diagetically in the background. The wallpaper is floral which is typical of a female’s bedroom. We then see a high angle shot of a man dressed as a woman in bed with rollers in his hair. This is stereotypical of a housewife, which could be what he is trying to represent. This video is an example of Christian Metz’s genre theory, in which there is a parody stage when conventions become ironic and over-experienced, therefore causing them to be made fun of. This video is making a parody of Coronation Street. There is then a high angle establishing shot of the houses again, which familiarises the audience with the location. The fact that this is being shown as the introduction to the song plays in the background makes it appear more like a soap opera, as it is conventional that the iconographic location in soap operas is shown as the introduction/theme song plays.
As the beat changes we then see a low angle close up of a hoover inside a living room. The mise-en-scene makes it easy to recognise and establish the setting of a working class house environment within a soap opera (which is based on real people who the audience of housewives can connect with). The camera then pans upwards when we see a hairy masculine arm wearing pink bracelets which is ironic and supports the parody element of the video. The next shot is a medium long shot, which is the first time we see Freddie Mercury entirely dressed as a woman, wearing a pink jumper and short leather skirt. Freddie’s appearance is similar to that of Bet Lynch from Coronation Street – who was known for dressing quite tacky and wearing very heavy makeup. The short leather skirt with a slit down the side and pink jumper represent Bet Lynch well as it is a very tacky combination. He is also wearing giant pink earrings. When hovering the floor Freddie makes eye contact with the camera which is breaking the forth wall and unconventional of soap operas. This supports the role of this video being a parody even further; especially since he smiles when he does so.
An extreme high angle long shot is shown shortly after which shows the entire living room. It appears to be very cramped. At this point we get to see all of the characters. There is a man dressed as a woman in a long pink gown with rollers in his hair, a man dressed as an old woman and a man dressed as a school girl in the kitchen with a blonde wig and school uniform on. These characters are all stereotypical of those who would’ve been in Coronation Street at the time the video was created and even so now which makes it symbolic and iconic.
As Freddie hoovers the floor he sings non-diagetically ‘I want to break free’. This connotates that he/his character wants to break free from the housewife lifestyle – however when the song continues we realised that he is indeed singing about breaking free from a person. Even though the lyrics say slightly different the narrative story of the video suggests that he does want to break free from the life he is living. He then sings the same words again, however this time we see a close up of his face which allows the audience to see the thick, tacky and bright makeup he is wearing which is stereotypical of his character. When he begins to sing about a person his mannerisms change and he becomes a lot more independent and angry. We know this as he flips his hair and stands with his hands on his hip which shows strength. Freddie then stands next to a door and makes eye contact with the camera again. As he sings ‘God Knows I want to break free’ he opens the door next to him to reveal a lot of people standing in the darkness with a light shining on four people in particular in the middle. The camera then fades into a scene which is set in this location. The camera slowly zooms closer to the four figures in the light until it is established that the four people are in fact Queen. Freddie is standing at the front as he is the lead singer. He is also wearing no shirt, whereas the other band members are. This makes Freddie stand out above the other three; however they still stand out as everyone else is dressed in black and unrecognisable as their faces cannot be identified. The camera then zooms in just on Freddie’s face which has a strong light shining on it. This is contrasting with the extras that are in complete darkness with no light on them whatsoever.
The shots then get really fast paced as it flashes from one scene to another during the beat. We now she a long shot high angle which establishes a new location as Freddie emerges from a strange looking piece of the set. The location is very dark and has smoke coming from different directions which is quite mysterious. Freddie is wearing leather trousers and no t-shirt which is typical of him and the genre. When the camera zooms into Freddie we see the same people dressed in black as before. They help highlight Freddie’s significance.
The camera then cuts to a medium long shot of Freddie mid frame in front of a white box. The white box could connote purity and freedom. Freddie then spreads his arms out very energetically in a strong manner which shows his passion about the lyrics he is singing. This represents Freddie as a great performer. Freddie also runs around a lot as the camera tracks him. This shows his desperation in his need to break free as he seems very irritable.
As the intro begins the white box opens to reveal a mountain of people in tableaux like formation with Freddie at the stop, once again being centre frame. He is also eating grapes which if iconographic and conventional of a rich, wealthy and loved person who lives a free lifestyle. In movies we often see rich people being fed grapes by servants, however in this video Freddie is eating them with his mouth off the floor which shows that he is not in the same position as those in the movies but would like to be. The colouring in this scene is also very grey and dull which could connote his life. The other performers in the video are climbing on him and covering him which represents how trapped he is although all he wants in the luxurious and free lifestyle.
We then see Freddie jump into a crowd of people as the catch him which shows that he is care free and trusting of these people. There is also a lot of white smoke and bright lights which once again connote purity, enlightenment and freedom.
When Freddie sings the lyrics ‘But life still goes on’ the camera cuts back to him dressed as Bet Lynch in the same working class Manchester house as before. He is centre frame and making direct eye contact with the camera which connects with the audience. The camera is tracking him as he moves around the house and it becomes very apparent to the audience that the set is created in order to replicate the look of the sets in Coronation Street. We see all of the characters doing stereotypical things that are suited towards their personality – for example the school girl is reading a book, the Grandma is reading a newspaper and the middle-aged woman is reading a home magazine while her hair is in rollers which shows that she is a stereotypical housewife who is very concerned with her vanity.
The next shot is of Freddie in the darkness singing ‘I’ve got to break free, I want to break free’. The repetition of this shows his desperation. The fact he is in the darkness also shows that he has lost hope. The crowd of people around him also represents that he is trapped again as he waves his arms in the air which is something similar to what someone would do if they wanted attention or help if they were drowning, which connotes that he is drowning and suffocating from his trapped lifestyle.
Language
The language in the song supports the video very well. The narrative story is about a character who wants to break free from their tedious lifestyle; however we see glimpses of another meaning which is Freddie himself feeling trapped and suffocated by his lifestyle. He could be suffocated by the amount of attention he gains and lack of privacy which is why there are so many extras surrounding him while he stands in the bright lights which shows that he is a star.
Institution
Queen are a British rock band formed in the 70s, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals), John Deacon (bass guitar), and Roger Taylor (drums, vocals). Queen very often include very structured postures and positioning’s in images of them or videos of them, which also happens in this video when Freddie is standing in front of the other three members who are standing in a line. Queen are signed to EMI which was one of the biggest labels at the time, which supports the bands message of wanting to break free as they were a very successful band who gained a lot of attention and had very little privacy.
Ideology
The song and video have a fair few ideological ideas behind it. The main and most prominent ideological idea behind the video is the inspiration that stems from Coronation Street. However, we also see many shots of the band as themselves rather than female characters from the shows. These shots are not humorous and represent the trapped and confined nature of their lives. Freddie’s sexuality was also often speculated in the press. He was a homosexual but many claimed that he hid this from the public, so maybe he wanted to break free from hiding his true self.
Audience
The video is aimed at an intended audience of rock music fans. I think it reaches this audience well as rock fans are more than likely going to take a hatred towards Coronation Street and soap operas so they will find the parody element to it very funny and amusing which creates voyeurism. The other scenes are very meaningful which is also relevant to rock fans as they like to listen to music that they can relate to and that means something to them. The colours will also appeal to rock fans as they are very musky.
Representation
In the video, Queen are represented in two ways. The first way is as characters from Coronation Street which is a very popular British soap opera and the other way is as themselves. The mise-en-scene and lyrics represent what they are feeling and the message they are trying to put across but in an inventive way.
The conventions of form are the conventions we would expect to see in music videos. Conventions of the form would consist of a number of things, such as:
Lip Syncing
Performance
Different uses of cinematography
Editing
Non-Diegetic material
Sound
Different Locations
Costumes
Long shots to show locations
A studio
Make-Up
Props
My chosen genre is classic rock/folk. The conventions of genre for this would be:
I am going to analyse the music video for ‘Something’ by The Beatles, directed by Neil Aspinall. The music belongs to the rock genre, which is the same as my chosen song. Something was released in 1969 on the Abbey Road album – a year after my chosen song was released. The Beatles consist of Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, George Harrison and John Lennon.
The genre has a few obvious characteristics; the main ones being a dissolve edit. The dissolve edit is used to compliment the dreamy tone and organic mise-en-scene. It makes things appear softer, dreamy and gentle. It also creates the feel of a slow passing of time. The look of the video is also very soft, which could be created because of the quality of the camera at the time or it could be a lens. There are also a lot of close ups and side shots of the characters in the video. This is to familiarize them with the audience and emphasise their features. The song is written about them as so the cinematography is essentially used to romanticize them in a way by showing them as slightly ethereal, with the dreamy soft focus effect and long close ups. The genre always uses a natural outdoor mise-en-scene, too. In this video they seem to be in a large garden. It brings a really natural, organic and relaxing feel to the video.
The lyrics have a clear relationship with the visuals. The first lyrics are ‘Something in the way she moves’ and we see a shot of Pattie Boyd (George Harrison’s wife) walking to the left of the shot, which is then followed by a shot of George walking to the right of the shot. There is an eye-line match which connotes that George is singing about Pattie, as he wrote the song and it is his voice singing. If the audience didn’t know that it would be pretty easy to infer as the media language is easy to read due to the use of eye-line matches and the lyric/visual match. George also sings ‘attracts me like no other lover’. At this point the camera is on a close up of George, who turns his head to the left a the camera changes to a pull focus on Pattie. This shows that she is attracting him as he looks at her and then the focus turns onto her. After this the lyrics are ‘something in the way she woos me’; which is sung over a clip of John looking at his wife, Yoko. This is a match as it connotes that the lyrics are about John’s relationship with his wife, although it was written by Harrison they still have the same feelings. When the lyrics say ‘somewhere in her smile she knows’ we see a clip of Linda McCartney (Paul’s Wife) smiling. Overall, the lyrics match the visuals perfectly which creates a strong and understandable narrative in a way that is easy for the audience to interpret.
The music and the visuals also have a complimentary relationship. The tone of the song is very soft, relaxing and calm. The video uses a lot of dissolve edits and the colours used are very warm and organic. The colours and light are also very soft rather than harsh. All of this works well with the tone of the song. About half way through the song, the pace starts to get faster; as does the editing. It also shows Ringo riding a bike fastly, which supports the tone of the song and the editing. The location of the music video is also outside and the characters are surrounded by nature. This is conventional of the genre as it exists in many music videos of this kind. The nature aspect of the mise-en-scene really suits the organic, dreamy feel and tone of the song.
There are also many close ups of the artist which is conventional of a music video as the record label needs this in order for the audience to consume the product and make a connection with the musicians. It also promotes the artist as a product by showing them in this way. It also shows the emotion in their face, thus making the narrative more believable and helping the audience to relate to those emotions and further consume the product.
There are no intertexual references in this video due to the organic nature of it and the culture in the time it was released. There weren’t many other media products to reference so early on in the development of media texts. The only accessible things to reference would’ve been products such as old Hollywood movies, which wouldn’t have fit with the narrative and tone of the song.
The video is equally narrative and concept based. There is an obvious narrative as the video matches the lyrics throughout, however I also think there is a concept behind the video as there is not a stereotypical conventional linear narrative and it can be interpreted in different ways by different members of the audience due to the looseness of the narrative.
Overall I think the use of mise-en-scene, cinematography, editing and sound ties together perfectly. All macro-elements fit the tone of the song and the scenes are relevant to the song and the time/culture in the late 60s. It very much shows the band as individuals with their own lives whereas up until this point people had only seen The Beatles together.
The video I am analyzing is ‘Heart of The
Country’ by Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney. The song is from their 1971
album Ram. The song was written after Paul left the Beatles and is about when
Linda and he were looking to escape their busy lifestyles to the countryside.
Unfortunately, it is unknown who directed the video.
The genre of the video is folk rock. The
video, like other videos of the same genre contains natural locations, such as
long grassy meadows and beaches. It also contains a soft blur edit at the
beginning and is very soft focus throughout, which is especially noticeable
when the sun appears brighter in the video. The softness on what would usually
be a harsh sunbeam makes the video appear more relaxing and soothing.The lengths of the shots are also longer than
most modern day music videos. This gives the audience the opportunity to really
take in the location and surroundings and embrace the feel of the song and
setting, which works together perfectly.There are also a lot of low angles, which not only make Paul and Linda
look more dominant as the stars of the music videos, it also makes the audience
feel as though they are there watching them; due to some of the shots being
filmed through long strands of grass.
The relationship between lyrics and visuals
is quite an obvious one. In the lyrics we hear ‘Looking for a home in the heart
of the country’, while we see Paul and Linda enjoying themselves in the
countryside. The word ‘heart’ also has a lot of loving and comforting
connotations, which makes sense as Paul and Linda clearly love each other and feel
comfortable and happy in this location. We also hear ‘I look high, I look low’
and see many high angles and low angles. This gives the audience a feel of the
location and helps them take it in as Paul would.
The relationship between the music and visuals
are also fairly obvious. The song is very mellow and relaxing. In the visuals,
the colours are very warm and Linda is wearing a yellow jumper, which is often
referred to as a relaxing colour.The
browns and yellows of the location also give this warm feel to the video. The
tranquility of the locations also supports the relaxing and comfortable feel to
the song, as do Paul and Linda themselves as we can see how much they enjoy
each other’s company and feel comfortable together.
We see close-ups of Paul and Linda, which
is usually conventional of all music videos. This is so the audience can
identify with the characters in the video and create a connection with them
using the expressions on their face. It also makes them appear more realistic
when we get to see them up close.
There are no intertextual references in the
video as it wouldn’t fit given the genre. The genre and conventions of the
genre are very natural and comforting and it would be quite difficult to
reference another product intertextually, especially given the time of the
release of this video, when music videos were relatively new.
The video, like other videos of the same
genre is narrative and concept based. The narrative is clear as the video
relates to the lyrics very well, however there is no particular story in the
video which makes the video slightly conceptual as different members of the
audience can infer different meanings behind the video.
Analysing this video has been incredibly
helpful as I have discovered the similarities in music videos of the same genre
as my song. The conventions are very obvious and it has helped me understand
what to include in my video and what not to include.
Genre is an organising structure that depends on codes and conventions. We recognise codes and conventions through iconography. The iconography helps us relate different codes and conventions to different genres. The audience is aware of specific genre iconography because of the existence of previous media texts.
Barry Keith Grant (1995) says that all genres have subgenres which put them into specific categories - which further helps them in becoming more familiar. An example of a sub-genre would be romance. For example, someone may want to watch a romantic drama, rather than a crime drama. This gives the audience more choice.
Steve Neale (1995) stresses that genres are not systems and that they are systematiztions that are dynamic and evolve over time.
An example of this would be the systematization of westerns. When you think back to old Westerns (e.g. High Noon) they are traditionally masculine and contain the typical cowboys vs indians narrative usually. They often have gun fights. Over time, the systeamatization has changed and now we have Westerns such as Brokeback Mountain; a film about two gay cowboys who love each other.
The iconography has changed over time. It is dynamic and evolves.
When people become familiar with genre it becomes parodied. An example of this is Blazing Saddles, a parody of a Western. It plays on the audience's expectations and pokes fun at the genre.
Many people believe that comedies and animations are genres in themselves, however they are not. They are treatments and styles added to genres. An example of this would be Bill and Ted's excellent adventure, which is a science fiction. Many people would believe it's a comedy. The same goes for Wall-e. Many people would call it an 'animation', however it is a sci-fi.
Jason Mittell (2001) suggests that genres are cultural categories that surpass the boundaries of media texts and operate within the industry, audiences and cultural practices.
In short, industries use genre to sell products to audiences. Producers use familiar codes and conventions that often reference their audience's knowledge of society.
Genre also allows audiences to choose what products they want to consume in order to fulfil a particular pleasure.
Hybrid genres also exist. Hybrid genres are more than one genre put together in one text. An example of this is the film Cowboys vs Aliens - which is a sci-fi western.
In Andrew Goodwin's book 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory' Goodwin points out characteristics and features that can be found in music videos.
These 6 features are: 1. Music Videos demonstrate genre characteristics (e.g. stage performance in metal/rock videos, dance routines for boy/girl band, aspiration in hip-hop). Examples of this follow: In the Girls Aloud video we see a dance routine which Goodwin says is typical of girl bands. In the video for 'Hard Knock Life' by Jay Z we see the struggle and how he wants better than that. This is an example of aspiration. We also see an example of a stage performance in Queen's video for Bohemian Rhapsody.
2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. An example of this would be in Michael Jackson's 'Scream' as he is seen screaming in the video.
3. There is a relationship between music and visuals. The tone and atmosphere of the visual reflects that of the music. An example of this would be the video for 'feels like we only go backwards' by tame impala as the song has a psychedelic feel to it and the illustrations in the video also connote the psychedelic genre.
4. The damands of the record company will include the need of lots of close ups of the artist and the art. They may develop motifs which recur across their work.
Most pop videos conform to this. Here is an example with Taylor Swift.
5. There is frequently reference to the notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages) and particularly voyeurism of the female body.
6. There are often intertextual references to TV, Film or other music videos.
An example of this is black widow by iggy azalea which references Kill Bill. It also features an actor (Michael Madsen) from the kill bill movies.
In this scene the cinematography shows a close up of the woman's face and then cuts to the man, who is looking her up and down. She then suggests that she is going to change into something more comfortable and changes into a very revealing costume. This suggests that women are more comfortable being seen as objects.
This shot is self explanatory. The man is looking through the hole in order to see the woman get undressed.
In this scene we see a man who appears to be an important character knock on someones door. When the maid answers, he is quite rude to her. When he enters the propert we see the blonde mysterious woman behind bars dressed only in a towel. He is more polite to this woman. The low angle suggests that she is a prize, as prizes are often high up. We can't see the woman's face which doesn't allow the audience to make a personal connection with her, which shows her only importance in this scene is to look provocative.
In this video for She's so lovely, the first shot we see is the girl's feet. The lyrics say many manterialistic things about the girl, such as 'she looks just like them girls in vogue', which suggests that looking like a girl in vogue is the correct aim to have - which could have a negative impact on scouting for girls' target audience of young girls. It also says 'I like the way she fills her clothes'. All of these comments are about the girls physical appearance.
We also see a close up of the girl biting her lip which contains sexual connotation. The moral of the video is that there are two men fighting over this girl, as she is the prize. She doesn't have an important role other than to look good.
This video, albeit a different genre, has the same kind of 'who will get the girl' theme. There are a lot of close ups that focus primarily on the girls body parts. The main girl is very fair and slim, and looks to be wearing expensive clothes were as the other female dancers are more voluptuous and wearing cheaper looking clothes. At the end of the video the main girl is left alone in the darkness as both of the men decided she wasn't worth it as she wasn't important enough. This shows that the girl is in the wrong, when she hasn't done anything.
Videos that conform and contradict Mulvey's theory
I am going to create an abstract music video with a slight narrative. I want the audience of my music video to create their own meaning and their own interpretation from my video - which is why there is no strong story narrative; however I am personally creating a story in relation to the song, although it is not an obvious story. The genre of the song I'm using often uses the outdoors in the mise-en-scene as the genre always has an organic feel to it. I will be filming my video outdoors and there will also be a girl in my video as the song is written by a straight man about a girl. This means the audience could identify the girl in my video as the girl the musician is singing about. I want the audience to visualize that the singer is dreaming about the girl and see her as mysterious.
I am considering filming dreamy-orange tinted scenes to show the romanticizing of the mysterious girl and then either blue tinted or black and white scenes to show the emptiness and loneliness that the singer feels, or maybe that the girl feels. It will also be very soft focus. I am taking a lot of inspiration from films that are set in the 60s or 70s and music videos from that time.
