Music Video Analysis 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BxfpbyV-uc

The music video for OK Go’s ‘Get Over It’ begins with a shot of the band, looking bored, sat on an old brown leather sofa. After a few seconds of silence, it cuts to a shot of a wall covered with photos, some of which are of the band members, as the song begins. There are then a series of abstract, fast cut shots which all cut in time to the pace of the guitar playing. Some scenes include a ping-pong table, a piano, a wall with deer heads hung on it, and various sofas. Just before the vocals begin, there is a close-up shot of a microphone, with the lead singer coming into focus as he begins to sing. Then the video uses visual representations of key lyrics, e.g. for the line “all your wounds are full of salt”, the camera pans upwards on a shot of a salt-shaker. The pace of the cuts remains fast, with some images only appearing on the screen for a split-second, and in time with the beat of the lead guitar. This conforms to Goodwin’s theory on music videos, where he states that there is a relationship between both the music and lyrics and the visuals. Additionally, Goodwin claims that the demand of the record label will include the need for lots of close-ups of the artist (as this video does), which links to the concept of Marxism as ultimately the purpose of the music video is to sell the song. As well as close-ups of the artist, this video also uses close-ups of the instruments, in particular the guitars, which is a typical feature of an indie music video, as it is a mainly guitar-based genre. As the music builds to a crescendo, the camera begins to shake, suggesting the reckless nature and high volume of the song. However, the song pauses at this point and the band are shown playing ping-pong, before the song starts again, as most of OK Go’s music videos are designed to be funny in some way. As the song gets slower, the cuts turn to fades, which switch back to cuts when the pace picks up again, along with heavy lighting now being used. The video ends where it began, with the band sat on an old brown leather sofa.

Props List

Costumes:
Leather jackets
Sunglasses
Jeans
White, black, grey t-shirts (any plain)

Other props include a car, which will be the basis of the music video, as well as perhaps drumsticks, or maybe a guitar.

24th June

I've come up with the basic idea for my music video based on Arctic Monkey's video for 'R U Mine?'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQH8ZTgna3Q&safe=active
I like the idea of this music video as it's realistic, I feel that I could easily make something similar as it doesn't involve anything too far fetched. The idea is four boys in a car, driving around whilst singing along to a song, miming drumming etc. This will involve casting four boys who will be available and able to perform this way, which obviously requires confidence, and will also involve them having to learn some, if not all of the lyrics for the song. I'd like to use an Arctic Monkeys song as I want the genre to be indie, as I like the costume styling of the R U Mine video which fits in with the song; leather jackets, sunglasses etc.

Conventions of Music Videos

There are several types of music video which each carry their own conventions:

Performance - Throughout the video the artist plays to a crowd, almost like a filmed concert, or simply to the camera. This form of music video is used largely within the genre of rock, but a good example is Beyonce - Love on Top.

Narrative - These videos act out the lyrics in a song by involving a narrative. This video type is used in a wide range of genres, and Katy Perry commonly uses this for her videos.

Mixture - In this type of video the camera cuts between a performance and narrative but the artist is only singing.

Cameo - This video is the same as mixture with the performance and narrative. The artist still performs but they also feature within the narrative, for example The Calling - Wherever You Will Go.

Animation - To create entertainment within the music video. Animation scenes, characters and objects can be edited into music videos.

Each video type uses different camera angles to make their type clear. Some of these are:

Crane shots - Crane shots are mainly used within performance based videos because it gives the audience a sense of watching the artist on stage.

Close ups - To enhance certain words within a song close ups of the artists mouth are used. Close ups are also used during narrative videos to enhance the characters feelings and emotions. Other close ups are used for focusing on instruments and props.

High angle shots - High angled shots are used to give a birds eye view, these shots can be used to show a variety of things from towns or cities to a birds eye view of the stage.

Establishing high angle shots - These shots are mainly used to identify the location of a performance or setting the narrative location.

Pans/Tilts - During performances, pans/tilts are used to move between different band members from one position. They are also used to show the location by panning around and tilting to bring objects into view.

Tracking - Tracking is used to follow an artist whilst there on stage, e.g. if the lead singer moves across the stage the camera shall stay in front of them.

Editing of music videos: 

Jump cuts - the most commonly used as its purpose is to jump from a scene of the location to the artist to the instruments and vice-versa. 

Reaction shots - used with music videos with narrative as it expresses the relationship between two or more people. The pace of the editing is always in sync with the beat of the track.

Mise-en-scene:

Is associated to the inter-textual link of the music video, therefore it depends on the representation. For example, a video based on a sixties film (Madonna – “Material Girl” Is based on “Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend” from a Marilyn Monroe film performance) would use iconic staging, characters, costumes and so on to represent the time. 

Mise-en-scene is also reflected through:

Lighting - Extreme artificial lighting is the most common type of lighting used in music videos as it helps to enhance the look of the artist or band through making them seem flawless, this is commonly used in pop music videos. Lighting switches help to indicate a shift from the chorus to verse. Finally, lighting also enhances the atmosphere as it can be used to give a bright and upbeat feel particularly in dance music videos or a dark and eerie feel which is used mostly in rock music videos. For example, Cheryl Cole’s video for “Fight for This Love” uses the lighting to show her flawless complexion. 

Resource Audit

Places
School (St Mary's Hall, Drama Studio)
My house/Friends houses
My Uncle's house in New Forest
Various public beaches, such as Brighton etc
London
General streets in my area

Props
Clothes that I own/my friends own
My brother's/my cousin's guitar
Music equipment from the music department
My friend's car (links in with my current idea)

People
My cousin, who plays guitar
My cousin's band
Friends of mine who can perform
Drama students
Friends of mine that can drive (links with my current idea)
Students at school for crowds