We are filming a short 50 second part of the song Never be Another by Delilah. We started filming today and used the following equipment:
Fig rig - used for the camera and didn't use a tripod because it's for a music video (lots of movement)
Camera - to film (used a camcorder for more features, better quality)
Light - adding artificial light makes the music video look better
Speaker - played the song by connecting the speaker to a phone so our performer could follow the song so she could lip sync
Although this is a trial and not our actual coursework music video, we've come to terms with how to film and how much footage we need (A LOT) so we can work with the editing and production of the video. Our performer (Julie) was luckily very confident so we were able to quickly film and also film in public places (including on the road and parks).
This music video here was one of my favorites out of the four that I watched.
The video is intended for a young adult audience and has a very pop and indie sound.
This is one of my favorites videos due to it being very well thought out music video.
With excellent mise-en-scene and cinematography it creates a very interesting and
enjoyable music video.
Also this video does not subject to the typical representation of women. As we have
seen with Laura Mulvey's theory on representation women are often seen as objects,
or as just something for men to stare at. In this video however the cinematography is
not done in a way which shows this theory.
Costume: all black (jeans, top) - dark colours keeps it simple & she was quite upset in the song so it creates a sad theme
Setting: local park. We chose Owen's Field at first, but it didn't have enough depth to work with, so then we found a park close by with fences, benches and all sorts of roads and nature too, making the setting look really effective in the background
Prop used: shades (adds youth to the character and keeps it stylish, yet simple. It was clearly seen throughout the music video too so it was used properly
We're making a re-make of the firs 50 seconds of the song Delilah - Never Be Another and we've come up with a story board for shots we want to use. As this song doesn't have its own music video, it allows us to experiment and start off with our own ideas, without being influenced. Our group imagined a young girl with heavy eye make-up singing about her broken heart. She's in a very local area with lots of greenery etc.
Here are the first six shots/potential shots we have got planned for the practical
Our main base tracks are the close-up shots of her face when she is singing, the shot near a wall (tracking shot), and other shots including jump cuts of her in the park and she is all sorts of positions (standing, sitting etc)
We want the last shot to be of the performer ripping up the paper and the pieces falling down onto the camera lens, hopefully then having the last piece drop onto the lens so we can fade out the video and song in the end.
We learnt how to sync a base track to the song in order for the lip sync to match the song. During the tutorial we edited some clips in order to create a base track. I learnt new skills such as how to use markers, how to cut base tracks.
There are advantages and disadvantages of being signed to a mainstream and independent record label.
Laterns on the Lake are signed to an independent record label - Bella Union.
Lanterns on the Lake
Lanterns on the Lake, formed in 2007 are a five piece indie rock band from Newcastle signed to Bella Union.
Bella Union was founded in 1997 by Simon Raymonde and Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins but is now run solely by Raymonde.
They don't have a huge range of merchandise like One Direction but they have the standard merchandise that is sold at concerts which can be found here: http://lanternsonthelake.bigcartel.com/
Their music can be bought on their website and iTunes. http://lanternsonthelake.com/DOWNLOAD
Overall being signed to a independent record label means that you have more creative control over your career.
One Direction is an excellent example of a manufactured mainstream boyband, they are signed to Syco.
One Direction in 2010
One Direction were manufactured on the British television music competition The X Factor. This means they already have a lot of money in them to be successful.
Simon Cowell owns half of their record label Syco and Sony Music own the other half. Artists such as Ella Henderson and Little Mix also have record deals with Syco Music.
One Direction's target audience is predominately young girls and teenagers. Their merchandise can be bought from many places and varies from dolls, perfumes, duvet sets to Monopoly. They have merchandise that caters for mainly young girls.
There is a large fan base and One Direction interact with them on their many social networking sites, they each have their own Twitter account as well as their band account.
You can buy their music online; iTunes, Amazon and physical copies from stores such as HMW.
Being signed to a mainstream record label means that you have hardly any creative control but you have a lot of exposure to the public which can make you successful.
Here is my analysis of three different music videos, each from a different genre. I will be focusing on the use of setting, costumes and props.
Cheryl Cole - I Don't Care (POP)
In this video Cheryl has 5 costume changes; she appears in a white shirt, white vest, an off the shoulder sweater, a yellow vest and an orange vest. The costumes link to the lyrics because as the song title is I Don't Care, her outfits are very laidback, relaxed but still stylish. It is set on a luxurious beach, on a boat in the sea and in a fancy hotel room. She has a very natural and minimalistic make up look, indicating she doesn't care what people think about her.Cheryl's outfits link to the location as she is wearing summery outfits that are appropriate for the beach. This beach setting is typical and links to the pop genre because it shows the relaxed yet fun and lavish lifestyle artists live.
Devlin - Runaway ft. Yasmin (GRIME)
In this video, Devlin has 2 costume changes; a orange polo and a black polo. It is casual clothing which links to the feel of the song. Yasmin is fairly casually dressed too, not too dressed up. This indicates the genre, not as luxurious as pop and hip hop for example. It is typical for a UK grime artist to use locations such as gritty urban neighbourhoods in his hometown Dagenham. This is a local setting, to show the reality and lifestyle of a young grime artist in the UK. Yasmin, is seen on a council estate balcony in the Isle of Dogs singing then both Devlin and Yasmin in a cul de sac. Other people are seen running and jumping into the sea which reflects the lyrics "I gotta be free". The locations used in this video reflect the urban scene and are typical of this genre.
Coldplay - Paradise (ALTERNATIVE ROCK)
Coldplay aren't seen in this video really until the end however their mascot the elephant is seen throughout. Firstly the elephant is seen roaming London, then in a suitcase to Cape Town and then the heads of the elephants are seen on Coldplay at a concert. This shows a fun and playful side to Coldplay as they aren't just themselves but also interacting with their audience. London is used which is a well known location. As Coldplay are known for their musical talent, they are hardly seen in their music videos but when they are it's them performing and enjoying what they do. This shows how it isn't about their image or fashion as they are regularly seen performing on stage with a huge crowd.
This is my favourite previous student music video, they chose the song Let Her Go - Passenger and they have done it justice. As they have used "amplification", the lyrics are well interpreted as the camera shots, movement and angles suit the song. It is edited to the beat of the song, slow so the camera doesn't move really quickly like it would in a dubstep song. All in all, I am very impressed.
On 25/09/14 we had a lip syncing tutorial allowing us the chance to learn how to edit a music video properly. We used final cut pro to edit together our own short music video with footage that had already been provided for us. This allowed us to understand and practice what goes in to making a music video. This tutorial was overall very useful helping us to understand what options are open to us when we are putting together our music videos.
I used the software Final Cut Pro to edit a music video and match the song with the video (lip syncing).
This has prepared me for the editing part once we get our footage.
The lip syncing tutorial was useful because I was able to understand how music videos are created and how it can be easy to snap all the shots together so it looks fluent and perfect. I realised it wasn't that difficult because FinalCutPro has a snap in to place option, making it easier for me to put all the clips together using a marker (m) on the keyboard.
In Vernallis' observation, she realised there were usual rules of 'continuity' which is what I aimed to achieve in the lip syncing tutorial. We realised jump cuts were used a lot and the base track was the most important part of the whole thing.
When making a music video, in terms of the performer looking like they are actually singing, you must:
Use your body language properly to match the song/settings
Sing so the lip syncing doesn't look fake
For every shot, sing the whole song each time so editing is easier
Put your all in because it needs to look realistic
Laura Mulvey is a British film theorist. She writes about the representation of women and the male gaze theory. The male gaze is a term discussed by Laura Mulvey in her essay "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema". It is a term used to describe when the audience is put into the perspective of a heterosexual man. "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".
Simply.. This means in a world where men have power and women don't, men do the looking and women are looked at and whatever image men have on women will be projected.
Therefore, women are represented as beautiful objects in order for men to look at. Particular genres that this is expected from is some pop, RnB and hip hop. Mainly the genres that are based around looks and image. However some genres such as indie rock (eg. Florence and the Machine) challenge Laura Muvley's idea as they are more about their musical talent rather than the women and looks.
I believe Mulvey's opinion is even more so relevant in today's society as there is an increasing number of music videos that contain the male gaze theory and as time progresses, the representation of women is reinforced.
Jennfier Lopez - Booty ft. Iggy Azalea is a good example that illustrates Muvley's theory on representation. After the opening credits/countdown, the first shot is of J. Lo's behind - bum and legs.
Andrew Goodwin feels that traditional narrative analyses don't really apply to pop videos.
The reason for the different narrative structure is:
Pop videos are built around songs and most songs don't pose traditional narrative structures.
The pop video uses the singer both as narrator and as a character.
The singer looks directly at the camera, which involves the viewer at home.
Pop videos rely on repetition. The video often repeats images in the choruses or lines. Some songs may also be played on TV or the radio so the song is already familiar with viewers even before the music video is released.
Andrew Goodwin believes that some videos are autonomous from the music they spring from. The visualization of a song may go beyond the original meaning.
It can be said that there are three types of relations between songs and their music videos.
1. Illustration: This is where the video tells the story of the lyric. Dance is often used to express the feelings/moods in the song. An example that demonstrates illustration is Owl City - Fireflies. In this video, when the artist is singing, many lyrics especially "Fireflies" in the song are seen in the video on top of the piano and on the CD player. This shows a literal illustration of the lyrics in the video.
2. Amplification: This occurs when the videos introduce new meanings that do not contradict with the lyrics but add layers of meaning. A good example of amplification is Coldplay - The Scientist as they are creative with their video but the video doesn't contradict the lyrics. This is seen as when the lyrics "running in circles" are sung, a male is seen riding on a bicycle, although this isn't Chris Martin (the lead vocalist) running in circles, this adds different layers of meaning which illustrates amplification. Chris Martin is also shot walking backwards to portray the lyrics "lets take it back to the start". Overall this music video enhances their lyrics but retains the meaning of the lyrics, the pain over a broken relationship.
3. Disjuncture: This is where there is little connection between the lyric and video or where the video contradicts the lyric. Adele - Someone Like You is a good example of disjuncture. The lyrics and video have little connection as she's wandering Paris and singing. However at the end of the video, there is a male figure seen in the mirror walking away, this gives the video and lyrics some link.
What is the function of a music video?
The main function of a music video is to promote the music artist/artists.
"Work B**" by Britney Spears is a great example of the music video form as she promotes herself as an artist but also her products such as her perfume Fantasy. The product placement in this video (starts at 0:12) is seen on the table in front of the dressing table, there is even a close up of just the perfume on the table.
We hear her show of her amazing vocal talent, thus showing her successful career as an artist. Britney breaks the fourth wall by keeping eye contact, engaging with the audience to lure them into her, making them feel involved. She is dressed suitably for a pop video, showing off her assets and provocatively, which introduces the male gaze. She is also shown dancing which indicates how she has other talents other than dancing but this also shows of her as an artist, being mutli talented. The male gaze is when the audience is put onto the perspective of a male, there are various shots of Britney's body, and all her dancers. At 0:44, there is a just a shot of a woman's bottom. All the dancers are similarly dressed to Britney, all showing off lots of bare skin, and their dancing is sexualised, perhaps to show viewers that girls must dress and act like Britney to be pretty and popular. This is conventional of a pop music video and contains most of the conventions of a pop music video.
I carried out some research into the differences between mainstream and independently signed artists. The manufactured group, One Direction, sing pop and have a large 'machine' behind them which can bring both advantages and disadvantages. On the other hand, Lanterns on the Lake, who are signed to an independent label, don't have this machine.
One Direction - Mainstream
Signed to: Psycho (owned by Simon Cowell)
Sony music entertainment - American music corporation which is operated/owned by Sony Corporation of America
Chairman and CEO: Doug Morris
Chief Creative officer: Clive Davis
Other genres: country, Latin, classical, dance/electronic, Christian/gospel
Target audience: pre-teens (up to 17)
Advantages to being signed to mainstream label:
Money
Popularity/Exposure
Being successful
Disadvantages to being signed to mainstream label:
less control of money
less shares
can easily be tarnished by media etc.
Important to merchandise because it promotes you and you get money for it
Helps to gain recognition with target audience
It is easy to find out information about the bands because of the internet, and the media. If you simply search "One Direction" into Google, and press on Shopping - you find their merchandising products. Likewise, if you click on News - you find out the latest news and where the celebrities have been recently
Lanterns on the Lake - Independent
Signed to: Bella Union (run by Simon Raymonde)
Signed to the record label in December 2010
Their song I Love You Sleepyhead was used in the film Where Soldiers Come From
Their genre is indie-rock
Bella Union was founded in 1997
Other genres: indie-rock, folk, hip-hop, alt country, space rock, dream pop
You can buy their music by downloading it off iTunes
They use Bigcartel.com to sell their merchandise
They have two ex members of the group (Brendan and Adam Sykes)
Advantages of being signed to an independent label:
It's all your money
No one controls you
You get all the shares
Disadvantages of being signed to an independent label:
Not as big and recognized as others
Takes time to work your way up
Lack strong, international distribution networks
Lack the capital (money)
What would I be signed to?
I would prefer to be signed to a mainstream record label because it's easier to get money and recognition, even though the shares are very small due to costs and capital going towards the directors, costs of merchandising, organizing etc. However, being signed to an independent label would mean I had more money and control over my music.
Before we are able to start planning our music video, we had to write off for copyright clearance from the record company or artist. This allows us to use the song for our advanced portfolio. I emailed Ellie Goulding's representative for copyright permission to use her song Figure 8.
I have learnt many things in the course of my AS year that helped me to make my film opening. The overall year has taught me lots of valuable things that I will continue to use and develop such as:
Learning to edit on Final Cut Pro,
How to set up a camera and use it correctly to produce a good quality clip.
Learning how to make title sequences on Motion
Some more of the technical skills I have learnt are outlined here.
In the AS year I learnt about what a music video is... A music videois a short film integrating a song and imagery. However the purpose of a music video is to:
promote the artist
advertise the artists music, merchandise and tour/concerts
add a visually appealing effect to their song
Music videos are typically consumed on YouTube and music channels on TV. Also, music videos differ to broadcast narrative as they have a higher production value, are more visually appealing and they don't necessarily follow a story line. The first music video was produced by the band Queen, in 1975. They made a promotional video for their single "Bohemian Rhapsody" to show it in on The Top Of The Pops - which was a British chart show.
The first event music video was produced by Michael Jackson, in 1983. The full music video is 13 minutes long and is named the most influential pop music video of all time. Thriller has sold over nine million copies, and cost $500,000 to make.
We also learnt about the conventional features of music videos which I go through here:
"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".
Breakdown of Mulvey's Theory
"In a world ordered by sexual imbalance"
Literally this means that we are in a world where men have power while women do not.
"pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female"
This means that men will do the looking while women are looked at making them appear as just an object for men to glare at.
"The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure which is styled accordingly".
This last part of the statement means that whatever image the man has of women is then projected onto the woman. For example often the mans image which is being projected consist of something very sexual or where the woman is in scantily clad dressing and is often passive to the man.
Andrew
Goodwin’s theory on music videos can be summed up in a number of different
points all of which link back to his theory that a traditional narrative analysis
does not apply to music videos. He has built this theory around the fact that music
videos approach narrative from a very different angle than that of films and books.
He believed that the reason behind this different approach o narrative was due
to the fact that: a music video is built around the song and a song is not
always posed with traditional narrative structure and also the artist tends to
look at the camera during the performance as they
are trying to make the audience feel more involved.
Some of the
main points that Goodwin makes are:
Music
videos rely heavily on repetition. Repetition is often used in the video by repeating images as the lyrics
are repeated in the song. The use of repletion in song not only the video means ha the
audience become familiar with the specific genre and therefore the audience with
build certain expectations.
2.Repetition of he song on TV, radio and linking say the video with film advertisement and TV-tie ins creates a familiarity of the song for the audience.
3.Music
videos are very limited in there structure due o it being based on a short song
therefore I will only build o a climax or the video will have a constant repetition then slowly fade away.
4.Music
videos can be: illustration, Amplification, Disjuncture these are the three
types of relations between he song and the video.
5.Some
videos are autonomous from the music,
Meaning that the visualization of the song goes beyond it original meaning.
Videos can also provide visual pleasure which will encourage repeated viewing
from the audience which will promote the music.
6.Also
the genre of the music can be recognised as he video will have easily recognizable feature as in the case with pop videos.
7.Lastly
videos will try and appeal to the larges audience possible while still trying
not to alienate there main large audience.
Gun's N Roses' November Rain is a great example of a good music video especially for the rock genre. This video was made when the genre of Rock and Roll had certain expectations of big hair, big performance etc. When this video was made the expectations for a rock music video consisted of everything that this video showed. Not only does it establishes a story it also constantly shows shots of the band performing on a stage together and has individual shots of their instruments which is what the audience is expecting.
Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit is a contrast although it is in the same musical genre as Gun's N Roses goes with a very different approach focusing the video more on the music than anything else. Keeping the video very simple with the band performing the song together in one location and not really have any further storyline within the video.
In this last few lessons of the AS year we focused on learner what a music video really is and some of their main purposes. "A videotaped performance of a recorded popular song, usually accompanied by dancing and visual images interpreting the lyrics"
This is the definition which was used as a simplistic way of defining what a music video really is. We also learned that the production of a music video unlike that of a TV drama a music video utilizes a very different structure from that of a TV drama and much different editing and camera techniques. We also learned that music videos are very key to raising an artist's popularity with the audience overall helping to increase the sales of both their singles and their album releases.
The purpose of a music video?
The purpose of a music video is to promote the artist this is done through a number of different steps:
1. Sell the song to the audience in a way which makes it memorable
2. Help the audience understand stand to song more so hat they are able to engage with both the visual and audio in the video.
3. Highlight the talents of the artist to help keep the audience entertained.
Lastly we learned a bit about MTV and what was the first video ever shown on there:
Video 3: Arctic Monkeys - Why Do You Always Call Me When You're High?
Use of props (Video 1):
The artist has an iPad which shows a contemporary setting, and the heels in the background show a very girly and feminine scene. The students have paper which they're throwing around and scribbling over - suggesting that they don't care about their education and it holds no importance whatsoever for them. This keeps the 'modern generation' feel of the video together. We see typical American junk food at the lunch table (burgers, fries and sodas etc) which sets the typical American scene, emphasising the cliches. We then see fashionable cars with the young people riding down a road - this shows the young life and moves away from the school/education setting.
Use of props (Video 2):
As the emphasis of the song was the actual musical instruments played in the song, the props were mainly that. There was a big piano played by a man and also a floor full of glasses to emphasise the bass in the song. Later, we see the character in the room full of dust on the floor and they move about along with the strength of Adele's voice - it is a visual representation of her voice.
Use of props (Video 3):
The main prop used in the video is the performer's phone because it was the text message that triggered everything and got him to leave the party to see the female. There are other props too like drinks and glasses that the people at the party hold which also helps to set the party scene.
In this group, we can tell the genre is Dubstep and the intended audience is young people or teenagers who like to party. The narrative is used effectively because she is staring at the camera most of the time to really connect with the audience. There are selective framing shots where it focuses on the features on her face, then her face, and other close-ups too.
The black and white effect worked because of the saturation - if it wasn't saturated enough it would look like a classic or old-fashioned video which would contradict with the genre of the music. (Disjuncture). The dance in the video was well-executed and added dimension to the video too. It was effective because the dancers matched along with the beat of the song.
Dipika, Eda, Alia and Judith - 2011
I think this group had many strengths, including the way they used a photograph and then moved it away from the camera, to reveal the actual setting behind it. It added a 3D kind of experience to it for the viewers. However, as a performer, she was not strong because her body was rigid and didn't really match the singer's voice. The shots were very clever, especially the close-up of half of her face. I also liked the mise en scene because they were always very vibrant and suited the song.
She says: "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." (Laura Mulvey, 1992)
She didn't talk about the music videos, but media in general
She said men have more power
The woman was molded into what the man wanted - sexually passive female
The men looked - the woman was looked at
REWRITE HER QUOTE: "Man have more power, so the man looks and the woman is looked at. His fantasies are styled into the form of the woman, which include sexual desires.
He's not interacting with the ladies, but there are a bunch of them sexually pleasing one another (this is a common fantasy of most men nowadays) - 2 minutes 14 seconds
He refers to them as "bitches" which is common in more music videos nowadays - no name, so the women don't have their own identities
Male isn’t even present - just his voice (shows women are giving into men's desires without even having to be told)
She is helping the women become fit (shows she is independent because she is their boss, but in the long-term they're really just making their bodies a certain way to please men) - 1 minute 43 seconds
