Tranqua Lite idea

As i stated before the meaning of the song is about homelessness and making a positive difference. Using this as a starting point has given us the opportunity to create ideas of our video. For my first video I've been inspired by the Biffy Clyro video for Biblical. In this video two versions of the same event are shown. To begin with we are shown star treatment with the use of the lead vocalist Simon Neil. He is shown to be very aggressive after a phone call. He is shown to make a lot of mess and destruction. After that, the second half of the video shows the same scene however he is happier after the phone call. Instead of causing destruction he acts very helpful and kind towards the people in the band and the extras.

So for my first idea I'd like to use this concept of following the same story twice however both stories have different consequences. I want to follow the story of a homeless person. In one version of the story he is helped by someone who passes him by. He is taken care of and is able to start a new life for himself. However, in the alternative version he is abused and attacked by passers by therefore we are shown how bad life is on the streets. This narrative would also include performance aspects. This would come in the form of the star lip sinking to the lyrics or adding a separate scene to the video. This scene would cut in at parts of the song instead of the narrative and it would be a studio setup with the band playing the song. This decision still has to be made.

Hopefully this idea fits with Tranqua Lite's new single as Toby hasn't sent us the demo for the track so we still don't know what their music is like.

Tranqua Lite

So a new update in our search for a band has occurred. We have made contact with a new band for Leeds called Tranqua Lite. They have 3 members and are going to be realising their first single next month. I contacted Toby Womack who is one of the band members. He seems very interested in our proposal and has offered to give us a demo for the new single so we can use it to create a story narrative for the video. Toby said that the song is about homelessness and wanting to make a difference. This means that we will be able to create a strong narrative to back up the lyrics as well as the performance aspect of the video.

Howl Issues

Over the last few days we have had problems with our selected band "Howl" have split up. After spending 7 years together they went their separate ways. They have moved to different bands and genres. They all still work in the music industry in genres such as Jazz and Afro Beat. They broke up peacefully so they would still be interested in working with us however we don't want to risk any extra complications by working with a no longer formed band. This shouldn't set us back too much because we already have the details and are in contact with several other bands. We should be talking to bands about our creative ideas in the next few weeks.

Suggested Band- Howl

As a group we are in discussion with a real indie rock band who we could make a music video for. The band is called Howl previously known as NGOD. They are a small band from Bradford and are best known for their song Blue which appeared on the Fifa 17 Soundtrack. They are a five piece band which include:

• Sam Augustine- Vocalist and guitarist
• Billy Fielding- Pianist
• Alex Dutton-Taylor- Drummer
• Lewis Dutton-Taylor- Bass Guitarist
• Joe Baines- Guitarist

In the summer of 2016 they performed a national tour, including venues in Leeds, Glasgow and Brighton and Norwich.  They also performed sets at a number of festivals including 'Y Not', 'Standon Calling', 'Underground Festival' and 'Festival No.6'.

This follows the usual genre conventions of rock music, staying simple and having the band appearing to perform sections of the song, with the lead singer lip synching, especially at the start, in time with the music to give the appearance of a live performance. However, they almost always appear in the video separately giving the audiences a chance to get to know each of the performer's as they're a new band who need to connect with their audience. It has real echoes of The Killers 'Mr Brightside' music video with the yellow toned lighting and use of shadows on the wall, showing how they've taken inspiration from a successful band in their genre. One of the band members was also sporting a Bradford City football scarf showing how they're proud of their background and are appealing to local fans. It is clearly a low budget music video with very simple locations and the use of short shots, frequent cuts and strobe lighting to match the pacing of the song. Very little actually goes on in the video but it appears to be made up of only two different camera angles which they've cut between to make the video more interesting. It relies heavily on it's editing and it's clear they've gone for an edgy style, at moments making it look like the video's skipping by repeating the same few frames several times in a row giving it an unfinished, rugged finish.

Audience Research- Arctic Monkeys

To help us decide what the Howl target audience should be we have researched similar indie bands and what their target audience is. I researched Arctic Monkeys and used YouGov to find out their target audience. For Arctic Monkeys I discovered that their most popular generation is the younger generation from 18 year olds to 25 year olds. However, the next main target audience is 40-50 year olds. This shows that indie rock has gone through fazes. It was popular back in the 70s when the older target audience were teenagers and it has reawaken and has become popular again as my generation are teenagers. The gender of their target audience is mixed. The survey shows that 50.7% of the Arctic Monkeys fans are female with 49.3% of the target audience being male. This is a very even split therefore their music videos have to appeal to both male and female audiences.
This video for Arabella appeals for both female and male viewers. The video uses voyeristic images therefore using the idea of male gaze. This therefore makes the video appealing for the male audience members. Female audience members will be attracted by the images of the band themselves and especially the star image of Alex Turner. Female fans are also more likely to enjoy and appreciate an emotional narrative which can be seen in this video. The black and white filter also gives the video an older feel to it therefore it is very similar the the original indie rock songs for the 70s and 80s. This similarity will make it popular with the older generation.

Music Video Director- Samuel Bayer

A music video director who I'd like to take inspiration from is Samuel Bayer. He has worked in genres such as indie rock and pop with bands such as Maroon 5 and Green Day. A lot of his work has a high budget with the use of special effects and a wide range of locations that create a detailed and clear narrative. He also incorporates performance elements with either live performance or lip sinking as well as creative a narrative for the video. For his indie videos he uses much more performance as this is an important genre characteristic for indie rock. His use of colour is also a genre characteristic. He mainly uses dark colours and tones as well as mainly black costumes. These dark colours relate to the feelings given off by indie songs therefore using them as a genre convention.

In this Green Day video for "American Idiot" special effects are used to speed up the actions of one of the band members as well as slow him down compared to the beat of the music and the other band members. Another example of special effects in this video is when green liquid floods into the set from the back and soaks the band.  The mise-en-scene of the video is all bleak and dark, their costumes are all black with red accessories such as ties. The background colours are dull greens are greys which suggest a dark sombre tone.This effect is a favourite of Bayer's as he also uses it in the Maroon 5 video for "Animals". this example shows a red liquid falling on Adam Levine and the girl he is stalking in the video. The red liquid representing blood.

Bayer is very good at creating a dark atmosphere in most of his videos. Not just his indie videos where a key genre convention, but also in his pop videos for Maroon 5. "Animals" is about a stalker and "Payphone" is about a heist and contains a lot of violence and explosions. The mise-en-scene is also very dark as the costumes are mainly black or grey as well as the background which is often bleak or dark. "Animals" also contains heavy rainfall which gives the video an extra addition of negativity and a sombre tone. He is so good at creating a sombre mood effectively that he was given the job of directing the remake of "The Nightmare On Elm Street". This is his only credit as a film director.

Here are more examples of his music videography

Progress and Feedback

Most of the feedback i have received is really positive which I'm very happy with. It shows that I've really stepped up from last year. My target grade is an A which seems very likely as my work so far is all at an A grade already. To try and improve a bit i could add more detail about exact point within certain music videos. My analysis could be more specific so it links to a specific part of the video. These improvement can easily made by the end of the week.

Andrew Goodwins Thoery

Music videos became much more popular and began to trend during the 1990s. This meant more people were watching them and their budgets increased massively therefore making them more visually appealing and attractive for the audience. During this time a theorist named Andrew Goodwin noted 7 point that appear in the majority of all music videos.


Lyrics linking to the visuals:

This is when the visuals and imagery of the video have a direct relationship with the lyrics of the video. They either play off each other or match each other. The music video can often just bring to story of the song to life. This is evident in #SELFIE by The Chainsmokers in 2014. The lyris repeat the word selfie throughout the video and the characters in the video also take selfies at these moments. This illustrates the meaning of the word as well as amplify the meaning of the song and its lyrics.

Song genre linking to the visuals:

This refers to the genre of the song. Each genre shows off different sounds therefore they all create a different meaning a story. Goodwins theory therefore says that the visuals of the music video will link to the genre of the song by presenting a certain tone or feeling by using stereotypes and characteristics of that genre. For example, boy bands often incorporate a dance routine into their videos as well as using their own faces rather than using actors. The dances often give off a positive vibe and the target audience gets to see their favourite band in the video. This has been shown in the One direction video for "What makes you beautiful" from 2011.

Music linking to visual:

This is when a certain emotion is created by the music and that emotion is then portrayed through the visuals used in the music video. this theory also works when the visuals cut in time with the beat of the music. This can be seen in "Single Ladies" by Beyonce as this video has no narrative story and just features Beyonce and dancers dancing to the beat of the music.

Demands of the record label:

A record label will only sign an artist if they have a strong image that can give a good name to their brand. Therefore they will demand certain things from the artists in order to publicise their brand. This often involves giving the star artist a strong image and high star treatment. This image therefore brings people to the video and ends up giving the record label a large amount of publicity. For example, Michael Jackson appeared in all of his videos to give that star image. However, his record label also required him to feature his classic dance moves as this also gave artist iconography for the "king of pop".

Artist Iconography:

Each artist has to be unique so they can attract fans and stand out from the competition. An easy way to do this is to create yourself a motif or symbol that is either part of your performer image or sums up you as a person or band. For example Marshmallo and his helmet.

Notion of Looking:

Making the audience look with more intent means it is more likely that they will remember the video and the song. However, getting people to pay attention often means having to use a voyeuristic approach or employ the use of male gaze. For the video of  "Wrecking Ball" by Miley Cyrus she used her own body to attract a greater male audience through the use of male gaze.

Intertextuality:

This is when another media format is mentioned within the video. Making these links will interest more people in the video as they will most likely understand the intertextual therefore making it more likely that they remember the video and the song. "Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift includes several intertextual references. For example, each character has a certain specific costume. one of these is a bad leather outfit made to remind us of cat woman. Also the video cuts straight away into an action film opening making the audience feel the tension of the action. The video also has references to films such as "Kill Bill" and the training scene in "The Hunger Games".

Lego House- Ed Sheeran

 Near the start of the video there is an example of the lyrics relating to the visuals. We see this as the title of the song "Lego House" is sung. Soon after we see the character trying to fix a piece of lego. Another example of this is when he sings the line "put you on a wall" and then frames a picture on the wall.

The video has really strong star treatment as Rupert Grint has been cast as the protagonist. Obviously he is a very famous actor as he portrayed Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter franchise. This increases the videos popularity as the star image will attract people to it.

The setups of the video help suggest that the main character played by Rupert Grint is a lonely and nervous man. I believe this is the case because two of the locations show him to be alone. First of all we see I'm walking through an empty grassland and secondly we see him lying on a sofa alone. This shows the audience that he has no one close to him. This also suggests that he is struggling in life as he has to sleep on a sofa inferring that he hasn't the money for a proper bed. He is also presented as desperate as his body language is very violent when he is getting taken of stage by the security guards.

The genre of Lego House is a pop ballad as Ed Sheeran is a pop artist but a lot of his music is often about love. Therefore creating a ballad element for his songs. To show this genre style genre characteristics have been used to show this to the audience. These include the camera shots and editing used. The pace of the shots and editing is slow throughout the whole video. This is because a slow pace links to the slow genre pace of the music. Other aspects that link to a gentle theme are slow fades, which can be seen at the beginning of the video and also gentle winds that can be seen while Grint is walking through the grassland.

A wide shot variety can be seen in the video. For example, close ups have been used to show when Grint is getting emotional. The extra emphasis given on his eyes shows the emotion he is presenting. A lot of shots are also hand held as this gives the video and natural feel therefore nothing is staged and his emotions are real. When he is walking towards the gig a tracking shot is used as this makes the audience follow him. Just like we have been following his journey the whole video. This journey gives a linear narrative because at the start we see him living his life as normal but when he meets his idol Sheeran he becomes sad as he is taken away from the gig and Sheeran didn't seem to notice him too much.

Grint uses a mixture of direct mode of address and non direct. This is because we are looking into a story therefore he should look into the camera however he does when he is lip sinking as this isn't necessarily part of the story therefore he can break the forth wall. But as the audience we spend most of the video looking into his story and not part of it.

Rap God- Eminem

Eminems video for Rap God follows a lot of ideas suggested by Andrew Goodwin. First of all he uses intertextual references through the use of old television sets. These are from the 90s and throughout the video they show classic images from the 90s. These include images of famous rapper of the time such as Tupac. These old TVs show visuals that also link to the lyrics of the song. For example, when he mentions Bill Clinton and NASCAR they both appear TVs. Lyrics also link to the visuals for the line "laptop in my back pocket" as we see Eminem walking away from the camera with indeed, a laptop in his back pocket.

Continuing with Goodwins theory the visuals of the video also link to the genre of the music. The genre is rap which originally came from the streets of America. Eminem therefore refers back to this through the visuals of the video. In certain sections he can be seen rapping on a dark street surrounded by lots of people. The majority of which are black as rap is often performed by black artists. This also suggests that Eminem is a minority in his genre. However, in this section he is given the representation of a classic rap artist as the mise-en-scene shows that he is positioned in the middle of all the surrounding people. This is partly due to star treatment as the directors will want him in the middle of the shot to show the importance he holds compared to the extras in the shot. However, him being in the middle may also show that he is welcomed into the rap community despite the fact he is a minority. His clothes also suggests he is part of the street rap community. Mise-en-scene also shows that everyone in the shot is similarly as they are all wearing hoodies with the hood up therefore hiding their identities. These aspects of the video are all genre characteristics for rap as this kind of setup can be seen in a variety of rap videos.

The number of setups and the shot variety is quite vast. This is because the style of rap is very fast paced therefore a greater number of setups allows more cuts and scene changes which can link to the fast paced nature of the music. Close ups are often used when he is on TV or when he's in the chair
however unstable handheld shots are used when the camera technology on set is moving or when he is on the street. The camera pans to keep him in the centre of the shot while everyone jumps around at a high tempo.

Eminems mode of address is often directly to the audience. This is a genre characteristic of rap music because rap music often communicates a meaning for the audience to learn from. An example from rap god is the line "enough lines to maybe to try and help get people through tough times". Therefore suggesting a meaning for the song that he wants to direct towards his audience and his fans.

The narrative of the video is closed as it doesn't contain a fluid chronological story. It focuses on the performance of the song whether that is on the streets, on the TV or in the lab. The three different setups don't seem to link to each other therefore each one seems to be their own individual story meaning theres no linear narrative.

Finally, the shots of Eminem on the TV are all intertextual references to the fictional character Max Headroom

R U Mine- Arctic Monkeys

The video begins with an example of intertextuality as the mise-en-scene shows a radio programme with the presented of the show introducing the song. The video then employs a jump cut as we then see the band themselves listening to the radio and their new song.

Next we see another intertextual reference as the front man of the band (Alex Turner) picks up the camera and directly addresses the audience by lip sinking into the camera. This suggests that he is vlogging the video which is becoming a very popular source of media on the internet. However, despite the vlogging image Turners mode of address isn't always directly at the camera. He also spends certain parts of the video looking away from camera and often looking out the window of the car. This gives the video a natural feel as none of him movements feel very staged. Therefore should the audience what their normal lives could be like. This hand held camera angle gives Turner an important star treatment as he controls the camera therefore he is placed in the centre of the shot. Also the fact that he is holding the camera means that the shot is a close up therefore he fills up a large section of the shot. Therefore increasing his star image.

The video uses a black and white filter for the visuals. This creates artist iconography as the arctic monkeys often use this colour motif as part of their videos but also as part of their album covers. This use of colour also means that the visuals link to the genre of the song. The genre is rock which often that the narrative of the song is dark therefore using a black and white colour scape clearly represents the genre to the audience. This all links to the work and theory's of Andrew Goodwin.

Goodwins theory also suggests that the music of the video should also link to the visuals shown in the video. This is shown through the use of lip sinking the lyrics by front man Alex Turner but also by the drummer Matt Helders. The visuals show him hitting the steering wheel in time with the actual drum beats. This then clearly shows the link between the music and the visuals.

The video has a clear linear narrative. It starts with the band travelling in the car and ends with them performing their song at a gig. The video is shot in a single setup as it is edited to look like one continuous shot through the whole video once the song begins. Due to the continuous shot the shot variety is limited as they can't vary the position of the camera too much until they leave the car.

The video offers several genre characteristics the inform the audience about the genre of the music. R U Mine is an indie rock song and this has been presented by the use of the black and white filter. These colours are used by several indie bands which shows that it is a common characteristic for the genre.

Outside- Calvin Harris

This video follows Goodwins theory for how to create a music video. First of all the lyrics of the song match with the visuals of the video. As Ellie Goulding sings "I'm here on the outside" we see her standing outside a house. The genre of the song is pop/ dance music. This is shown clearly in the video as the louder instrumental verse shows more action within the video as the mise-en-scene shows the couples begin to fight. These fight scenes also gives the video a clear narrative as we can see that she is "on the outside " due to a fall out with her partner. This gives the video a feeling of sadness as this causes her to use a direct mode of address which suggests she is begging to the audience to be let back in again. Linking back to Goodwins theory we see an example of the notion of looking. Goulding presents an element of male gaze as she is shown to wear a small amount of clothing. This voyeristic approach has been used to increase the attractiveness of the video especially for the male audience.

Special effects have been used as a representation of her breaking free from her isolated feeling. We see this in the form of a mirror shattering. Also the motorbike freezes in mid air. As this happens she walks for, underneath it. This shows that she is able to walk away from the threat and break free from the troubles she use to face.

Calvin Harris uses artist iconography by showing himself in all of his music videos, even when he doesn't sing. He always puts himself within the narrative therefore him face makes it clear that you are watching one of his videos. This also adds clear star treatment to the video as it uses a large shot variety that includes close ups, mis shots and long shots to show off the image of Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding. In these shots they often appear in the middle of the shot to highlight their importance in the video and to the narrative. This variety of shot types appears in three different setups. One outside and two on the inside with the two different couples. This creates a clear narrative as we see her story develop. This clear narrative

The voyeristic representation of Goulding creates a stereotypical image of a young woman as she seems quite fragile as well as innocent and victimised by her partner. Harris then presents a stereotypical representation of an aggressive male as he fights his partner and seems to show no remorse.

Where R U Now- Analysis

This music video shows Justin Bieber lip sinking to the first verse of the song. This shows really clear   star treatment as he is in the centre of the shot. A mid-shot is used so most of his body can be seen and this also allows him to fill the majority of the screen. The performance style involves a lot of movement. To begin with the camera moves towards the star so he fills more of the screen as the video progresses. However, in my opinion the performance isn't very real as the lip sinking doesn't look convincing and some of the special effects are clearly fake and don't look good at all. In the first verse the star looking right into the camera lens therefore the mode of address is very personal and direct connection can be formed.

In the instrumental section we seen a huge number of still frames overlapping over his face. This is an example of intertexualilty as we see several pieces of art work created especially for the music video. The stop motion picture move at 12 frames a second so several pieces of art can be fitted into the video.

Bieber uses a direct mode of address as he often
lip sinks while looking into the camera therefore
communicating with the audience. However, he often looks down or away from camera. This suggests an element of shyness or embarrassment. This feeling that is portrayed by bieber links to Goodwin's theory that visuals and lyrics should link. As at this moment the visuals show him to be possibly nervous and as he shows this he sings "where are you now". This is a line that gives off the feeling of nervousness or even sadness.

As part of Goodmans theory he also stated that artist iconography is important for a music video as this makes it unique and clearly shows the identity of the artist. This video contains artist iconography through the use of the jack U logo. The logo appears in the opening shot of the video as well as making frequent appearances in individual frames during the instrumental sections of the song.

Where R U now is a pop and dance song so to show this several genre characteristics have been shown. For example, during the instrumental sections of the song the drawing employ very bright colours and patterns. These colours look similar to the colours and patterns seen during a party. Suggesting that this song should be played as part of a part where people can dance and sing a long to it.

There is a lack of shot variety in the video as the majority of the shots are mid shots that present Bieber in the middle of the shot. This is to keep strong star treatment as Bieber is very famous and a big name that people will recognise and a big reason why a lot of people will click on the video. He also shows a stereotypical representation of a young man. He is skinny, attractive and a good physicality. This will therefore attract women to watch the video.

The video uses very simple special effects as a greenscreen has been used to create a plain background. This gives the video a sense of placelessness therefore suggesting he is nowhere without the person he is singing about. Special effects are also used to layer the drawings over the frames of the actual video.

My first music video

For my first music video we re-created Where r u now by Jack U and Justin Bieber. I starred in the video re-creating the actions that Bieber does in the original. I also helped set up the green screen in the background and also set up the camera. This was all part of the filming process of the video. On creative arts evening we had to create the drawings that go over the instrumental part of the song. For this I helped draw some of the frames as well as attract other people to help out by drawing.