Analysing Music Videos
Pulp - Babies (Music Video)
- Diegesis of sound is complicated - both and neither at the same time.
- Diegesis: in the world of the narrative.
- Inter title's are used communicating explicit meaning to the audience.
- Important to make the music video clear.
- Long shot at the beginning introduces audience to the band slowly coming into focus.
- So the audience are aware of who they're watching.
- Mise-En-Scene - typical of socio-political context (costumes/bedroom).
- Working class/small/grubby.
- Mise-En-Scene - Costumes refuse to conform to hegemonic codes
- Close Up of disinterested face of the keyboard player which is extremely unconventional.
Convergence
- The 'coming together' of two previously separate media industries.
Why Do Music Video's Exist
- To make money - advertising of songs.
- Entirely new form of entertainment - important for the audience.
- Synergy - the interconnectedness of media products leads to a result of more of the sum of its parts.
- Examples include merchandising tie-ins, TV shows, etc.
- Music Video's are adverts for songs.
- Music Video's are easily shared between audiences. If the new generations are always online then it will end up being successful sharing music on the internet.
- MTV is an American channel that just showed music videos and that was there brand as there was a market for this, so it was tying in television and music together.
Music Videos VS Cinema
- Music Videos
- Generic Music Video's are quite short. (3.5-4 minutes)
- Edited around a song.
- Simple Narrative.
- We would expect an advert sometimes but not always.
- The music video is the advert for the song.
- Music Video's generally a hyper energetic/over the top.
- Music Video's will often use confusing narrative techniques (non continuity)
- Music Video's involve high paced editing generally.
- Music Video's are more direct address.
- In Music Video's we aren't exactly placed in the scene, we know were watching something through a screen.
- Music Video's are free.
- Films
- Generic Films are long. (1.75-2.5 hours).
- Traditionally the film is made first then the music.
- Elaborate Narrative.
- With films we would expect a trailer.
- The film is the product.
- Films are generally quite relaxed and more realistic.
- Films involve continuity.
- Films involved normal speed paced editing generally.
- Films involve no direct address sometimes this does happen when conventions are broke typically in comedies to show the variation from a generic film.
- In Film's we are placed within the scene and watching it first hand.
- You have to pay to watch a film.
Terms we call performers in music videos are Celebrities:
- Celebrities are people who are well known not just in a certain group of people they need to be widely known.
- Need to be well known for something you've done and people know about.
- They will have a bold personality.
- They will be seen as role models.
- To do something to become known.
- A celebrity is the attribution of glamorous or notorious status to an individual in the public sphere.
- Can give us life lessons (not all good life lessons)
Applause - Lady Gaga (Music Video)
- A close up at the end shows the mise-en-scene of the mask perhaps showing she's trying to mask her identity.
- We know she is a celebrity as we can see she is wearing minimal clothing and we dont bat an eyelid whereas if we saw someone wearing it in the street we would find it extremely strange and weird and they would be breaking hegemonic codes, whereas when Lady Gaga breaks the hegemonic rules of society we dont think its strange so it shows her glamorous celebrity status.
- Mid Shot - The mise-en-scene of the use of the cauldron symbolises a witch shows connotations that she is a difficult and unpleasant person, her hair is also looking scruffy which is outlandish and strange again showing her breaking the hegemonic rules.
- Mid Shot - The mise-en-scene of the lighting and positioning is constructed so that we are always focused on Lady Gaga throughout, through the use of the spotlight and we dont see any other lights (fill lights, key lights)
- Close Up - the use of high key lighting shows the importance of Lady Gaga, also with the boldness of the mise-en-scene it emphasises her celebrity status.
- The mise-en-scene of the bouquet of flowers, she also looks like a ghost as she is mixed in with the shadows, also Lady Gaga looks as if she is saying goodbye to the old lady gaga and reinventing herself as this new person showing her confidence and boldness, also with the bouquet of flowers it shows her fans love for her and expresses her celebrity status a lot more than originally.
- The consistent use of close ups of Lady Gaga's face encodes her as a celebrity, also she is spaced centre and the main attraction of each shot we see, we always see her first, nothing else.
- Metanarrative
- Also known as grand narrative, this refers to an overarching narrative or system of beliefs that helps us to make sense of the world.
- Marxist
- Marxists believe that the ruling class have complete control over the working class and exploit the working class by blaming everything on them.
