Research for Music Video: Function of Music Videos

Research for music video: Faviourte previous student videos.

In the lesson we where shown the music videos from previous students over the years. It was interesting seeing the different outcomes and how much the quality has changed from the first disc in 2006. Below i have listed my two favourite videos. 


Favourite Music Videos 

• Range of base tracks - I liked that there was a variety of base tracks used throughout as it shows consistency 
• Editing on time with the music- The editing change speed to fit the pase of the music , which made the lip syncing look more realistic 
• Vibrant colours - The flashing lights defiantly made the video stand out , it looks fun and vibrant but can give you a little bit of a head ache. 
• Camera- There was a wide range of shot types used throughout the video which worked well with the song i liked that there was a lot of movement coming from the camera as it made the video look more professional. 
• mise en scene - There was a lot going on in this video , they had a range of  locations , setting , props , lighting , costumes , body language & make up . which i liked because i think it explored real elements of music videos. 

• Black and white - I like the use of black and white throughout the video as it fitted well with the genre. I like how the colour wasn't flat even though it was all in black and white , they use texture and lighting to keep it interesting. 
• Contunity editing - I think the shots , the theme , the story and editing was very consistent it stuck to the genre which made the video look very strong.
• No story -  I like how the video didn't necessarily tell a story , there where parts where the lyrics matched up with the images but that was only a small part of the video , the majority of the video showed the groups interpretation. 
• Time laps at night - I liked the time laps at night it helped to break up the song and slow down the pase. 
• Little lip sync- I like how there wasn't a lot of lip syncing and there was a large emphasis on the story and visuals. 

Research for Music Video: Copyright Clearance

We asked to send copyright clearance letters to the records labels that the songs we had interest in doing for our music videos. I decided to on songs from varying genres such as rap, afrobeats and R'n'B/Soul, so I would be able to have more song choices for our A2 project. Below are the print screens of the letters sent to the records companies, the songs I chose were;  "Half British" - Mad Brains (rap), Cocacola Shape - Shimzie ft. Da (afrobeats), and "Where I sleep" - Emeli Sande (R'n'B/Soul).  Although I knew chances of Emeli Sande's record company replying were virtually non existent I tried anyway.

Reflecting Back on AS: Technical Skills

Technical Skills I learnt in AS

• Using a camera: how to put the battery in, how to set up the equipment like the tripod etc

• Tips on framing to use when filming such as; the rule thirds, to film the same scene in different perspectives to make it more interesting, to use a lot of close ups to display important emotions, don't use manual zoom as it will look smoother and more professional to move forward to the target with the camera, use little or no headroom/white space above the target's head 

• How to use final cut pro, camtasia, audio converter and a hard drive

From my prelim I learnt about rules for and ways of filming:

• The 180 degree rule
• Shot reverse shot
• Match cutting

Reflecting Back on AS: Transition Lessons

Research for music video: Laura Mulveys theory

Laura Mulveys Theory

“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”

The Main Points  in Laura Mulveys Theory

Mulvey states that there is a sexual imbalance, which means one gender has an advantage sexually.

Mulvey suggest that we live in a world ordered by sexual imbalance, which means there is a lot of importance in sexual balance as the world is ordered by it.

Mulvey describes males as active whilst females are passive which are polar opposites.

Mulvey suggest that the male gaze has enough power to make females style accordingly to the male fantasy.

My interpretation of Mulveys theory

As men have the sexual advantage to women they are able to use their power to make their ‘fantasy’ reality, which makes them active, whilst women don’t have the power to do that so they are passive with their desires.

Examples of Laura Mulveys Theory

Throughout this music video there is continuous dismembering of women, in contrast the men are fully clothed. In addition the ratio of women to men in the video implies there will be multiple women per man as seen at the start of the video, which reinforces this idea of a sexual imbalance as we can see the women are there for the pleasure of men. There is also an ice sculptor made imitating the female figure which everybody is playing with whilst we don’t see any sexual desires being acted out on the men.

The Nicki Minaj video is interesting as its being shown from a female perspective however she is still demonstrating the sexual imbalance.  Apart from the continuous dismembering, close ups, high angle shots and cut away which show provocative body language in the video. She also has a short clip at the end where she features a fellow record label artist who is a male, however what is interesting is, instead of using him to promote her video by him just being in the video, she goes the extra mile by dancing for him which shows how she conforms to his desires.

Reflecting on AS year: technical skills I developed

• how to edit using final cut pro
• how to put together a promotional package
• how to put together a digital storyboard
• how to apply the rule of thirds
• I learnt how to film shots such as close-ups and establishing shots
• how lighting affects a scene
• how to use non-diegetic and diegetic sound 

Reflecting back on AS year: what I learned about music videos

 At the end of the AS year I discovered that music videos were in some ways incredibly different than movies and dramas and in others rather similar. Music videos use certain symbols known as generic signifiers to announce the genre of the video; so this means that all Hip Pop videos will feature women, expensive cars and aesthetics and the imagery of wealth and money. Another signifier I discovered for the genre of any video is that bands and groups tend to dress similarly to each other which helps to promote them individually while still showing that they are a unit.

 Within mainstream videos the use of branding is another major generic signifier as they help create a sense of familiarity among viewers while at the same time they draw attention to the genre.

 I also discovered that music videos are filled with special effects and a variety of shot types; they range from use of slow motion and flashes to close-ups on the singers faces.

Reflecting Back On AS Year - Technical Skills Anjuman

I personally learnt many new technical skills over the AS year, all the equipment’s and applications were a first time to me as I have never media studies before AS.

 At first, it was all quite overwhelming and hard, however over the course of the year I received a lot of help from my teachers and group mates until I eventually got the hang of it.

 Some of the technical skills I developed were:-

• Editing clips on Final Cut Pro
• How to use a Mac
• Filming using Cannon camcorders
• Digital storyboards
• Using different presentation programmes, e.g. – Murally, Prezi etc.
•  Memorising number of different shot types such as - close ups, over the shoulder, rule of three etc.
• Numerous types of sound and editing, e.g. - diegetic, sound bridge, voice over etc

    

Reflecting Back On The AS Year

Last year towards the end of the academic year after our exams in June, our class were briefly introduced to the topic of music videos. This is how much i remember so far....

Research for music video: Carol Vernallis

Carol Venallis studied editing and camerawork Closely in music videos , throughout her research she has discovered some interesting differences between music videos and films.

Carol Venallis discovery 

• Editing in music videos is more frequent than film in film
• The editing in music videos seems to have rhythmic basis closely connected to the song
• There are a lot of obvious edits 
• There is more focus on the camera movement which moves in time with the music
• their are multiple base tracks rather than continuous scenes
• The rules of 'continuity' editing are broken to draw attention to what is on screen

Examples of Venallis theory

Meghan Trainor - All about that bass

•  There are five base tracks throughout the song, as well as multiple scenes that occurred twice. 
• Their where obvious edit such as the change in the speed of the girls and the before and after picture.
• The video has a rhythmic basis as the editing changes to the pase of the beat and the dancers.
• There are continuous jump cuts throughout the video
• As for continuity , it was unclear what was happening there where a lot of random shots of thing's happening rather than a consistent story

Jessie j, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj - Bang Bang

• There are three continuous base tracks throughout the video , which show each of the three artist performing. 
• There isn't any continuity throughout the video , at the end it shows all three of the separate artist coming together for a last performance but there wasn't any story or build up to that point. However it was entertaining.
• There are multiple jump cuts from different locations, different people and the three artists.
• There aren't as many obvious edits but there was a bit of manipulation of speed in the beginning and end of the song and the editing speed was very fast as it moved from shot to shot which follows the rhythm of the song

Research for music video : Andrew Goodwin

Research For Music Video - What is the function of a music video ?

What is the function of a music video ?

Research For Music Video - Copyright Clearance

To be able to use a song in our music video, it's important that we ask permission from the artist or record label. This process is known as 'copyright clearance'. I wrote to the record label of the british band Clean bandit, asking for permission to use four of their songs. 

Letter

Reflection On the As Year: What I've learnt from the summer lessons and technical skills.

Reflection on the As year

Technical skills

I learn't a lot of technical skills throughout the A S year, especially on the four technical elements , Sound , Editing , Camera and Mise en scene. Heres what i learn't in a nut shell. 

Music videos

Music videos are completely different to film openings, here are a few thing's i've learn't about music videos in a nutshell. 

Summer holiday work