Theories 3- Carol Vernallis

Multiplicity shots of incomplete, obsure parts of a narrative are used.

The order of the shots is unconventional and shifts variablly with no shot order.

Time, space, character and narrative are revealed incompletely.

Discontinuity is used.

Visual Hooks are used.

THE Phantasmagorical Body 

Shots of the body will be put together in a certain way in order to encourage and reveal this 'perfect body' to the audience. In a few of the GIFS I have found below, it reveals this way of presenting a body and it is specifically seen it the female gender rather than men, however male's are sometimes seen as this image to attract the female audience or anyone who is attracted to them and like their music.

Theories 2- Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin produced a book called ‘Dancing in the Distraction Factory’ where he stated that the editing style is focused on three areas:

- Illustration

- Amplification

- Disjuncture

But it’s further split into the areas of looking at the lyrics, music and image of a band or artist.

Illustration

Music – The shots always cut on the beat.

Lyrics – The images illustrate the literal meaning or feeling of the lyrics, mainly  just with the band singing and dancing.

Band Image - The band simply singing/dancing/playing instruments, usually dressed as would be expected to the genre.

Above is a Gif of One Direction, who are dresses casually and in their video's the shots are always cut on the beat, and also their lyrics match visually with what is in the video.

Amplification

Music – Shots cut on and off the beat, to emphasise certain features.

Lyrics – The images amplify the lyrics & create a specific narrative, could be used as certain things aren’t picked up from just reading the lyrics. 

Band Image – The band could take on fictional roles in the narrative.

In Katy Perry's video of E.T she takes on a fictional role as an alien, however still a Phantasmagorical body is still revealed here to attract the target audience. 

Disjuncture

Music – Shots cut off the beat, can be a sign of a badly made music video, (but not always).

Lyrics – The images don’t relate to the lyrics that are used, sometimes used by bands who are already very well established, and who can afford to take the risk.

Band Image – The band/artist takes on an image that’s completely opposite of their expected image, e.g. Ed Sheeran ‘you need me.’

Above is a Gif from Ed Sheeran's music video called Lego House, which uses another character throughout the video to express his love for Ed, then finally at the end they meet in this form, making him happy. This is a very different approach to the video to not actually have the main singer starring in the video. Sheeran does this in many other videos for example You need me, where he uses another person to act out the whole song in sign language. 

Task 9- Theories 1...Bordwell and Thompsons

Graphic

The transitions between each shot can be linked though the same 'pictorial qualities' like shape, patterns and movement of light and can also cause abrupt cuts when contrasting qualities are used.

Graphic Match

This cut emphasizes between the graphic and the similarities of the shots.

Graphic Continuity:

This is used when the director wants to establish a sense of continuity and often narrative in a music video.

Graphic Discontinuity 

This is use when contrasting colours and shapes are used in a shot.

Spatial

This transition is used to relate each shot to one another through it's setting and location.

Continuity Editing

An establishing shot followed by a range of small range shots are shown to be in the same location and time frame.

Kuleshoveffect

There is no establishing shot but the audience assume that it is the same time and location.

Cross Cutting

This when seperature places are being shown parrallel to eachother, this usually shows what is happening in different locations during the same time in the frame.

Temportal

This is when the of action is manipulated. It is usually done through flashbacks and flashforwards, and can be used to create or answer questions within the narrative. Ellipsis in time are often used to remove boring clips that would create viewer fatigue. 

Empty Frames

This shows the figure of interest moving of the frame followed by them walking into an empty frame usually in a different location. 

Cutaway

This shot shows an event happening for a short amount of time somewhere else.

Rhythmic

This is the duration of each shot in relation to the beat or tempo. It can create tension when the length is steadily increasing and exciting when it is becoming shorter. When a shot is cut on the beat it creates a smooth flow and when it is cut off the beat it usually feels abrupt and imcomplete.

Questionnaire

Here I have screen grabbed the Questionnaire we have created from the website Survey Monkey. This is a great website and piece of technology which allows you the create the questionnaire to how you want it, by providing a range of question types from open and closed with text box's and tick boxes. This is good in a questionnaire as it allows you to recieve a range of answers and get a more in depth answer like their opinions and what they would recomend etc. We have created 10 questions which will recieve answers that will help us with our video, and allow us to analyse the results and make decisions from there.

Questionnaire Results

This graph reveals what genre of music the people who answered the questionnaire likes the most. We chose 6 genre's which are quite well known in society to give the audience a range to choose from. As you can see in the pie chart pop is one of the most popular genre's, which is useful to us as this is our chosen genre for our music video. This shows us, quite a large chunk of society will be interested in our work, and if it was released it would have quite a good chance of becoming successful. I think pop is very likeable as it's upbeat and usually involve songs that people can dance to or relate to fun.



We then asked people how the genre made them feel, and linking to our genre of pop, this bar graph reads that it made people feel happy, and a selection of people extremely happy. Therefore this shows us that in our music video, we should aim for a positive atmosphere and look, to prolong the feeling that pop reflects. The song we have chosen has an upbeat tune, and is sang by an extremely popular artist already, therefore we need to match the quality and style, as if this was his actual video.

This bar reveals how important music is to them. As we can see, half of the people who answered the questionnaire, rated music at an importance of 5, which is the top band they could select. This means, people may see music as an inspiration, listen to it to cheer themselves up or generally for pure entertainment. Therefore we need to ensure this video is meaningful, and so the audience can actually gain something from it, such as a moral or maybe show how actions effect people. Also as our song is about a city, it would be a good idea to link the lyrics of the song to the location, by filming in London and editing the video to suggest how a city feels, fast paced, exciting and vibrant.

Technology I have used

Here I have taken screen grabs of the websites and computer technology I have used to show my research coursework. I have used the website screencast and the application Jing. I really like Jing as it's an application which allows me to make my blog more visual and interesting but also include audio, through my voice over the video analysing what I see.

Task 15: List the conventions of your chosen genre

-Colourful Mise En Scene
-Upbeat atmosphere
-Energetic Dance Routines.
-Number of Costumes changes.
-Artists are involved in the video.
-Women artists are always powerful and independent.
-The target is aimed at teenagers.
-There is usually a Narrative to the video.
-Close ups are mainly used to show emotions and artists faces
-Bright Lighting used to a create the desired atmosphere.
-Various Location Changes throughout the video- prevents viewer fatigue
- Facial expressions reveal a lot to the audience, and have a huge effect on the atmosphere.

Brittany Spears: She looks glamorous, with bright colours in the mise en scene and is performing an enegetic dance routine. She is showing a powerful and independent image due to the strong hand gesture and her isolation in the shot.

Adam Lambert: He uses a darker Mise en scene but uses the spotlights in the background to create a club like effect with pace and excitement. The artist is also the centre of each shot here either long or mid shot.


Ne- yo: This represents a great location. however we can obviously tell this is in a set of outside studio's which is a great advantage as they can personalise it to what they want the video to portray. Also   we can tell this video is aimed at teenagers due to the bright colours, imaginative costumes which match, and the expressive facial expressions.

Task 14: Analyse 5 music video's from your genre choice

Our genre choice is male indie/ pop.
BY CHARLOTTE HANNAH
My first analysis is of 'You make it real to me' by James Morrison.

This video is set in various places throughout Los Angeles, and we can tell this as on the motorway we see the sign for the 110 freeway, whilst james is in a taxi. We also see him in the video by a pool, arriving at a hotel, and then him singing on stage. The video also has shots of Morrison in a bar and coffee-shop. The video ends with him walking alone. These shots are quite similar to each other as they range from a small variety of long, medium and close up shots, however with imaginative and compositions within them, by revealing settings, locations and facial components and expressions. 
Our first impressions to this video is that it's quite low and sad due to the body language he is showing us, by looking down, away from the camera, singing with his eyes closed at times and having quite a frumpy posture. On the other hand this shows he's in deep thought and very emotional about something, and by this reflection he is proving to be a very good performer as he can put across the image and atmosphere that he wants. Furthermore he is always alone, except for in the studio however nobody talks to him. This could emphasise his lonliness and the meaning of the song, of maybe that he lost someone and grieving or suffering. 


BY CHARLOTTE HANNAH

The second video I will be analysing is 'I'm Yours' by Jason Mraz. 
The video’s opening scene is an overhead shot of a private jet a in an airport. It sets up the next scene where Mraz is seated, supposedly, in that same airplane.
Some of the locations we see in the video are an airport, in the back of a pick up truck/ taxi, an apartment with a fish tank, a skateboard park, a waterfall and the beach. 


I really like the underwater shots they take of the men and women swimming. It creates a fun and enjoyable atmosphere to the video as well as the other shots at the beach of people surfing and socialising. The video uses a variety of shots, for example the establishing shot of the waterfall which was taken in a helicopter as it's a high angle shot. Also the close ups of Mraz allow us to see that he's relaxed and is having a good time. 


By BRITTANY DEVINE

As me and my group are looking into a male pop artist for our music video we decided that looking into male pop artists would be appropriate for our research. I chose Daniel Powter's 'Bad Day' as I think that it has elements that every pop video should have. From the cinematography to the mise-en scene I think that he targets his audience and draws them in.

The first shot is a high angled shot that is split screened. The high angled shot is used because they're shown asleep in their bed, connoting that they're tired and therefore at their weakness. It could also portray them as vulnerable as they don't want to get out of bed in the morning as every day for them is a 'bad day.' I think that they use them getting out of bed and appearing weak as one of the first shots as neither one of them has met each other yet and therefore as the song progresses their moods will change. I think that this is also emphasis by the use of high key lighting as it's a representation of a new day and a new start, connoting that things are about to get better and pick up.

I used this second shot as it is a complete contrast to the first. A mid shot is used to convey how happy a couple are on a train. Their use of body language and gesture reinforce how fond they are of one another, and how he's seen as the alpha male by looking after her and keeping her safe whilst she sleeps. This only antagonizes the audience has they're able to relate to both the characters who are looking for love. I would say that Daniel Powter targets teenage girls/young adults in this video, who stereotypically like love stories and happy endings, and therefore you cannot help but assume that this video will have a happy ending.

Shot three is beautifully framed, using the rule of thirds technique. You could almost say that this is nearly symmetrical, apart from the fact that Daniel Powter is directly centered in the middle. The use of the extreme long shot emphasis the metaphorical meaning as to why the artist is presented as a tiny figure amongst the big city. Daniel Powter represents how both the male and female character feel in this music video. They feel consumed and swallowed whole by this city, leaving them lonely amongst a city full of life and energy. That is why I think that the location has been chosen cleverly, inside of in a small park or in a house of some sort. Through analysing this particular shot I learned that location and setting is key when planning or filming your music video. You have to think about it carefully in order to help convey your message to your target audience.

The third shot is another split screen shot of the two main characters. By allowing the audience to recognise that they're so similar yet they have never met intrigues the audience and leaves them feeling excited as we're given the impression that they will meet by the end of this video which is reinforced by the split screen being symmetrical to one another. By always presenting these characters on their own this connotes how both of them are so lonely, and how they need eachother. The way they're positioned and their body language make it evident of how vulnerable they are which rewinds us back to the third shot of how small and useless they feel in this big city. Even though there are elements of high key lighting used in some area's the colours used are pretty dull and dreary. In not one shot is anything remotely bright or vibrant. This has been framed deliberately as they wanted the locations and setting to have connotations of sadness, and that the colours are dull just like their life is.

I love how the fifth shot is framed and I think that it has great connotations. The over the shoulder shot is specifically used to disguise the girls face as she stares out of the window. You could suggest that she is staring out of the window because she thinks that there is more to life out there, or to be more specific some one out there. Her face is hidden from the camera because she feels like she has no purpose yet, and therefore she is a nobody and no identity. Her posture is slouched connoting that she is fed up with everything and tired. She is staring at the shut door/window because she feels like she's stuck behind a wall, unable to progress any further. I think the use of all these connotations are so that the audience is able to relate and easily understand what is going on, as that is key in a music video.

The sixth and seventh shot are near enough identical, yet again hiding each others identity. This is because they're communicating through drawings on a wall, and therefore have never met each other. The girl is very pessimistic as she draws a raincloud over the photo of the lady, as she is representing herself and how she feels. However, when the male character see's this drawing he then goes on to draw an umbrella over the lady. The drawing of these objects are metaphorically used to represent each character. She feels like everyday is a bad day and that she never has any luck (hence the raincloud.) However he is represented as the umbrella, who's there to metaphorically save her from the rain and brighten up her day (as cheesy as it sounds.)

In shot eight we come to the climax of the video, where you could suggest that the picture becomes a reality for both characters. A low angle shot is used so that the male character and the umbrella can appear to be more powerful and have more of an impact in the scene. The costumes/hair and make up are used cleverly in this scene as they have made the female character's clothing and hair all wet in the rain. I think that this only emphasises her vulnerability and the mood that she portrays. This contrasts to the male characters clothing, and for the first time in the music video we realise that there is a different between them. Stereotypically the male character is presented as strong and powerful, whereas the female character is vulnerable and weak.

My ninth and last shot is of the artist lip syncing the song. I included this screen grab as my last shot because even though this pop music video tells a clever and interesting story you'll normally find in pop that they always use lip syncing. You could stereotypically suggest that this is because pop is probably one of the few genre's that focuses a lot more on how the artist is presented or what they look like than others. Therefore, by using close ups of young, attractive men it is going to appeal widely to their target audience of young/teenage girls.

Here are a few gifs taken from the music video.

BY BRITTANY DEVINE

This video is a prime example of a music video that has a narrative story that reflects the lyrics of the song.

The first shot is a close up of one of the artists, shown lip syncing the words to the song. I think that we are introduced to the music video with this shot as Rihanna is one of the most successful pop artists, and therefore would automatically intrigue her fans. This is also the first time that any of her fans saw her bright red hair for the first time, which would then become a massive trend for teenage girls/young adults across many different countries. As Rihanna is a fashion icon by introducing her hair for the first time at the start of the music video this also grabs the audiences attention, and therefore cause people to talk about it via social networking which helps promote the video and her music. The close up is also used so that it is evident for the audience to read her facial expressions, which are stern and mean which connote with the lyrics of the song which theme hatred and anger.

The second shot is a mid shot of the female character used in this music video. The female character is Megan Fox who is an actress best known for her apperance. Having a celebrity involved in your music video also helps creates publicity aswell as intriguing Megan Fox's fans into listening to the song or viewing the music video. The background is parrallel to the foreground, as the background is located in a stereotypically ordinary house. However, the foreground image is of Megan Fox who is cupping her hands to hold fire. This contrast reflects how her and her boyfriend may appear to be an ordinary couple, but behind closed doors it's destructive and dangerous.

The third shot shows the second artist Eminem who is also incredibly famous. This is a beautifully framed shot as it is located in a deserted field as the sun sets. Even though Eminem isn't always centred in the middle of the frame, the open space area allows the audience to divert straight to him. As he lip syncs in this shot his body language and gestures suggest that he is angry and frustrated, something that rappers are stereotypically associated with. This shot is one of the only shots that uses high key lighting, therefore this being the only shot that connotes any positivity. However, I think that they have used this location when shooting Eminem's scene to contrast the different emotions conveyed. The location lifts the video whereas eminem brings negativity with his angry lyrics and gestures. You could suggest that this is used so that their audience has mixed emotions and feelings, just like both the male and female characters do in the music video.

As the music video progresses the lyrics are reinforced by the emphasis of the two lead characters.

BY REBECCA LAKE

Ed Sheeran - A Team

Ed Sheeran fits into the genre of Pop, however this music video doesn't contain all the typical conventions of a Pop video. The whole video is in black and white, which creates a very dark mood. However, it fits with the meaning and lyrics of the song well. There is a range of interesting camera shots used within this video, including close-ups, long shots, and over the shoulder shots. This adds to the suspense and exitement of the video and gives different points of view of the frame to the audience. There is also very good effects used in the video, especially when the girl is sat on the floor and everything around her is moving fast. This gives the viewers an understanding of what her life is like and how she feels, which helps to generate sympathy for the character. Costume is also another aspect which makes this video succesfull as it shows the viewers exactly what this character is like and what the video is about.

Task 17b: Analysis of Album Magazine Advert, what are the conventions?

This is the Kooks album called Junk of the Heart. It was advertised in Kerrang magazine which is a rock/ indie type magazine and music radio station/ music TV channel. 

I decided to evaluate this advertisement as it looks quite unusual and abstract but also because The Kooks are an indie band with contrast to what I have already researched like pop and rock, so it will broaden my knowledge on different genre styles. 

I can immediately see this image has a painting effect, with loose painting strips at the top which is quite expressive and relaxed. This could enhance the type of music they release as they have a laid back and emotional appearance about their music, as they often sing about feelings or people like their songs 'naive' and 'she moves in her own way'. As they are a male band the voices in the songs are quite deep, however still portray a positive mood, where they emphasise and link this to the colours they use within the album cover as the blue, orange and green are all bright and optimistic. Furthermore the image on the cover, of the red haired girl waving her arms in the air, is such a relaxed and calm image as her facial expression  is quite plain. Even though her action looks fun, her emotional portrayment doesn't really match it.

The bold white writing on the cover makes quite a statement as you look at it. As the colour white generally could symbolise purity and honesty it could maybe link to the album title of 'junk of the heart' as a love gesture. Even more so this open action the girl is doing with her arms up facing the camera in a long shot,could almost portray an openness to her heart and as if she's giving it away. 

BY BRITTANY DEVINE

Jls Album Magazine Advert

Task 17a) Researching record labels

Atlantic Records


Logo of Atlantic 
HistoryAtlantic Records (Atlantic Recording Corporation) is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz.Over its first 20 years of operation Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most important American independent recording labels, specializing in jazz, R&B and soul recordings by African-American artists, a position greatly enhanced by its distribution deal with Stax Records.
In 1967 Atlantic became a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, now the Warner Music Group, and expanded into rock and pop music, signing Cream,Led Zeppelin, Yes and Foreigner. In 2004 Atlantic Records and its sister label Elektra Records merged into Atlantic Records Group.

Artists
Atlantic is a huge company and have worked/ is working with artists such as Trey Songs, Kid Rock, James Blunt, Wiz Khalifa, Sean Paul, Flo Rida, Missy Elliot, Jason Mraz, Estelle and Tracy Chapman. Those are just a few of the artists who they have contracts with etc. 


Syco Records

Syco is a London based entertainment company established in 2002 by Simon Cowell. It's parent company is Sony Music Entertainment and accounts for 70% of profit at Sony Music.

The company rarely scouts for new artists, as they are usually developed through the TV talent formats. Generally, the company has a strong focus on promoting its artists through television. Syco Music is run by Managing Director Sonny Takhar and Head of Syco TV is Siobhan Greene. Syco works with a number of US record labels to release albums in the states and China.

Examples of Syco's artists include:

-Leona Lewis

-Alexandra Burke

-Olly Murs

-One Direction

-Cher Lloyd

-Matt Cardle

-Labrinth

-II Divo

EMI
EMI music, is one of the Worlds leading record companies, and is home to some of the most successful and best known recording artists. 
EMI Music brings artists and fans together by driving action and creating value wherever music is experienced. Our record labels include Angel, Astralwerks, Blue Note, Capitol, Capitol Latin, Capitol Records Nashville, EMI Classics, EMI CMG, EMI Records, EMI Records Nashville, Manhattan, Parlophone, Virgin Classics and Virgin Records. 


Their artists include:
Lily Allen, Professor Green, Gorrilaz, The Beatles, Coldplay, Snoop Dog, Tinie Tempah, Kieth Urban and Robbie Williams.

EMI traces its history back to the very beginnings of recorded sound and music as one of our original companies was founded by the inventor of the gramophone, Emile Berliner.Since then EMI has always been at the forefront of technology and change. EMI scientists invented stereo recording and were closely involved in the development of magnetic tape. They were also behind the birth of electrical television and radar.


As I can see they have worked with many pop male solo artists, therefore this Record Label would be well suited to the artist's music video we will create. 

Task 16: Music Album Cover Analysis

Robyn Album Cover analysis

This album cover is by the artist named Robyn. She is an electro- pop artist; with her singles reaching the top 40 in pop therefore it’s popular to a wide range of audiences.

My immediate response to this album cover is that it’s quite generic with a specific composition of the font, the artist and what she is wearing. The flower like cut out shapes which look stuck on her upper body on the shoulders and head, are very similar to hospital equipment, which gives almost a sinister feel to the album cover. However the pink colouring softens the effect as it’s typically a feminine colour.

Also her body language looks quite stiff and solid as she’s got a tilted head but still making eye contact with the audience. It looks quite robotic and generic, emphasizing the title of the album ‘body talk’. She is positioned in the centre of the cover showing her importance, but also as she is a solo artist so the spotlight is on her.

Her personality style is revealed immediately through her hairstyle, which is short, and bleach blonde. This emphasizes her individuality, however people could stereotype her as a lesbian from this image she is portraying. Also as she is bare on her shoulders it reflects a more elegant image to the audience in contrast to the harsh transparent black font, which is overlapping her, and the hospital like attachments on her body.

The camera, which is using a mid shot, reveals no emphasis of any status meanings like low or high however it gives the audience a clear view of the left side of her face, which is creatively attached with decoration. It gives her a general importance as there are no angles in this shot like low or high which will alter the feeling towards her if so. It’s important that we see this as it’s got a great meaning to the cover but also as her head is facing one side, the camera needs to be in a position so its is visible. 


Her make-up is quite gentle and even, reflecting a less glamourous appearance in comparison to an artist in the pop genre. Even though she still looks great on the album cover, the decrease in concentration on the make-up on her face allows the audience to focus on the complete album cover and the components within it rather than only the artist herself.


I think the artist used this image as it's diverse and really emphasises the electro- pop genre which her music is classed as, due to the harsh contrast in colours and strong bold cuts of the shapes including the font and the body decoration which are windmill or flower like. It can also connote for some audiences what the music will be like in the album, because her facial expression is quite stern and abrasive therefore the music will maybe link to this feeling of concern. 


BY REBECCA LAKE

Mumford & Sons

BY BRITTANY DEVINE

Local Natives- Gorilla Manor

Music Video Genre Mood Board

I have created a mood board to represent the pop genre, particularly male, however we hadn't specified our genre at this time so we looked at a mixed bunch of artists from soloists to successful bands. In pop, fashion is a very much main way to fit into the genre and stand out from all the other bands or solo artists wanting to be at the top of the chart. If the artist looks good, the audience will grow to like them and see them as a fashion icon, so they are likely to buy their albums and be interested in their music. For example the band 'The Wanted' in the bottom right hand corner is already a band with a group of attractive young men, which automatically attract girls, however to aim for a wider audience like men aswell, their clothing really makes an impact as they can aspire to look like them by buying similar clothes. In many of their video's and album covers they tend to go for a grey and dull colour scheme within their fashion, however this is modern and is very attractive to the audience. 

However it is very different for the female gender, as women are tend to be seen as sex objects to the audience, by the clothes they wear which are revealing and secluding. Even though they may not want to look so bare, it attracts an audience as they look attractive and dream like, especially by the editing and specificity the camera can do to make them look how they desire. For example in Kylie Minogue's video of Spinning Around, we can specifically tell that the camera has been used to film shots of her good body parts, even though she looks great originally, there may be some weak points about her which she may feel could put the audience off.

On the other hand Adele's album cover looks very pure and meaningful, as she still looks attractive however this solo artist is more specific about the quality and sound of her music rather than using herself to attract an audience. This is appreciated by the world as she creates music which people really enjoy with no extremely appealing image to look at whilst listening. It is more about the meaning of her songs through her previous experiences in the past, rather than what is happening in the present time in her life.