Best pop video – Budget
In his book Dancing in the Distraction Factory (1992) Andrew Goodwin points out 6 characteristics and features that can be found in music videos.
1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal videos, dance routine for boy/girl band, aspiration in Hip Hop).
The genre of the music video which I chose is a pop music video.
Pop songs are usually quite upbeat which is reflected in the editing of the music videos, which is usually fast paced with quick cuts to different shots of the band/artist (mostly of the singer) and/or the actors. In terms of Mise-en-Scene, the music videos will often have bright lighting and props - creating a happy tone - which appeal to a younger audience, in addition to having the artists and actors in either bright colourful clothing or the latest trends which their target audience find fashionable. Much like the target audience of the genre Pop, artists and the actors in their videos are usually quite young so they are relatable to the audience. Pop music videos often contain lots of movement and close-ups - so the audience can recognize them - of the artists lip syncing (like most music videos of any genre) especially of them performing or dancing to their songs. If a pop video has a narrative it usually centers around young people in love or a narrative with a positive message behind it. these types of videos attract the younger audiences because the situations shown are similar to their own experiences so it makes the video relevant to them. Additionally pop music videos sometimes reference other artists and pop culture and sometimes products (if they are being sponsored) because these things are either current in the media or seen as cool.
This music video does reinforce the expectations of this genre, to a certain extent.
The tone of the music video is not stereo typically happy like most music videos of this genre, which is shown through the Mise-en-Scene. Natural lighting has been used as the video has been shot in the early evening which reinforces the main characters feeling of sadness due to a broken heart. Similarly to the majority of pop music videos, the narrative is centered around love, the main character likes a girl to then see her kissing his friend. However, the video is non-linear and the audience is shown flash backs (before he is heartbroken where he and the girl were close), all of these scenes were filmed when it was still relatively light creating a happier tone, which is a juxtaposition of the characters feelings in present time. The actors shown in the video are of the same age of the target audience and appear to be in secondary school judging by the school uniforms they are wearing in some of the scenes and also by the different coats/jackets they wear, which is similar to what you would expect teenagers to be wearing (hoodies, leggings/jeans).
The artist, Aquilo, does not appear at all in the video which is quite uncommon for this genre as the artists often have the most screen time instead of the entire music video consisting of just narrative. The Editing used in this video is not as fast paced as you would normally expect a pop music video to be, however, this is not so surprising as the tempo of the song is rather slow.
2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. (either illustration, amplification or contradiction).
At the start of the video, the first thing the audience sees is a handheld long shot of the main character getting out of a car - which we can assume is his friend's as he is the only one seen driving in the video - that seems like has been crashed into a gate by him, and walk off with the camera panning across him. The next shot is of a large concrete structure on a grassy cliff top which he approaches in the next shot. There is an extreme long/point of view shot framing a small part of land next to the sea, then a mid-shot of him looking out at it. From then on in the video it switches from present time to flashbacks showing the gradual change of his relationships with the girl he likes and his friend, leading up to where he sees her kiss his friend. The music video ends on similar to the start with the main character still staring out to sea on the cliff in a mid shot then a point of view in an extreme long shot of the sea.
The narrative of the video definitely illustrates the what is being described in the lyrics of the song quite closely. For example, the main line of the chorus is "I'm losing you" which is the main message the video tries to convey, which is shown throughout as the main character realises he has lost the girl he likes to his friend.
3. There is a relationship between music and visuals. The tone and atmosphere of the visual reflects that of the music. (either illustration, amplification or contradiction).
I think the music video for this song reflects the tone and atmosphere of the song very well. The music video has a very calm atmosphere which goes well with the songs sad tone in combination with the slow-paced editing with fairly long shots between cuts which really reflects the pace and the tempo of the music. The mise-en-scene also helps to emphasise the tone of the song due to the casts' acting, there we are shown lots of sad/upset and angry facial expressions and much happier ones during the flashbacks.
Unlike most music videos of the pop genre the artist doesn't have any screen time and there is no lip syncing from the actors either.
4. The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style).
The artist Aquilo, is not actually promoted in the video as he does not have any screen time, instead, just the actors are shown however there are lots of close-up of them to show the characters emotions. This is quite uncommon for this genre as promoting the artists image is one of the most important things in a pop video as it is what shows what the artist represents and the genre of music they make. An artist's image is usually established in music videos through lots of close-ups of their face, allowing them to have a lot of screen time - usually, it is the singers out of a band that get the most as they are the frontmen of the band - so people will recognise them and long shots which show their style through their clothing which might make them more popular to their audience depending on what genre they fit into.
5. There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
No, there isn't any evidence of this in this music video, mainly because I think this song and music video is aimed at a younger audience especially judging by how old the actors in the music video are as it is shown through the mise-en-scene that they are still in school as they are seen wearing school uniforms.
6. There are often intertextual reference (to films, tv programmes, other music videos etc).
There doesn't appear to be any references to any other media in the music video, possibly because it wouldn't fit with the concept of the video, which is to illustrate the lyrics through the visuals and so referencing other music videos or films/tv might seem random. However, a lot of pop music videos do reference other artists, for example, 'Moves Like Jagger' by Maroon Five, both the song and music video reference Mick Jagger, the singer of the Rolling Stones, with videos of him and other people auditioning as Mick Jagger Impersonators, imitating him dancing. Some artists also reference films as a way of promoting both the film and their music which would then be included in the films soundtrack or on the end credits. One example of this is 21 Pilots' music video for 'Heathens' which is set in a prison that resembles the one in the film 'Suicide Squad' (2016) which includes snippets of the characters in scenes from the film.
Although this music video doesn't directly reference any other music videos it does remind me of a lot of other pop music videos as they all mostly have the same narrative of love which is a recurring theme of this genre.
Director: Eoin Glaister
In his book Dancing in the Distraction Factory (1992) Andrew Goodwin points out 6 characteristics and features that can be found in music videos.
1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal videos, dance routine for boy/girl band, aspiration in Hip Hop).
2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).
3. There is a relationship between music and visuals. The tone and atmosphere of the visual reflects that of the music. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).
4. The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style).
5. There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
6. There are often intertextual reference (to films, tv programmes, other music videos etc).
(From Andrew Goodwin, DANCING IN THE DISTRACTION FACTORY, 1992.)
1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal videos, dance routine for boy/girl band, aspiration in Hip Hop).
The genre of the music video which I chose is a pop music video.
Pop songs are usually quite upbeat which is reflected in the editing of the music videos, which is usually fast paced with quick cuts to different shots of the band/artist (mostly of the singer) and/or the actors. In terms of Mise-en-Scene, the music videos will often have bright lighting and props - creating a happy tone - which appeal to a younger audience, in addition to having the artists and actors in either bright colourful clothing or the latest trends which their target audience find fashionable. Much like the target audience of the genre Pop, artists and the actors in their videos are usually quite young so they are relatable to the audience. Pop music videos often contain lots of movement and close-ups - so the audience can recognize them - of the artists lip syncing (like most music videos of any genre) especially of them performing or dancing to their songs. If a pop video has a narrative it usually centers around young people in love or a narrative with a positive message behind it. these types of videos attract the younger audiences because the situations shown are similar to their own experiences so it makes the video relevant to them. Additionally pop music videos sometimes reference other artists and pop culture and sometimes products (if they are being sponsored) because these things are either current in the media or seen as cool.
This music video does reinforce the expectations of this genre, to a certain extent.
The tone of the music video is not stereo typically happy like most music videos of this genre, which is shown through the Mise-en-Scene. Natural lighting has been used as the video has been shot in the early evening which reinforces the main characters feeling of sadness due to a broken heart. Similarly to the majority of pop music videos, the narrative is centered around love, the main character likes a girl to then see her kissing his friend. However, the video is non-linear and the audience is shown flash backs (before he is heartbroken where he and the girl were close), all of these scenes were filmed when it was still relatively light creating a happier tone, which is a juxtaposition of the characters feelings in present time. The actors shown in the video are of the same age of the target audience and appear to be in secondary school judging by the school uniforms they are wearing in some of the scenes and also by the different coats/jackets they wear, which is similar to what you would expect teenagers to be wearing (hoodies, leggings/jeans).
The artist, Aquilo, does not appear at all in the video which is quite uncommon for this genre as the artists often have the most screen time instead of the entire music video consisting of just narrative. The Editing used in this video is not as fast paced as you would normally expect a pop music video to be, however, this is not so surprising as the tempo of the song is rather slow.
2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. (either illustration, amplification or contradiction).
At the start of the video, the first thing the audience sees is a handheld long shot of the main character getting out of a car - which we can assume is his friend's as he is the only one seen driving in the video - that seems like has been crashed into a gate by him, and walk off with the camera panning across him. The next shot is of a large concrete structure on a grassy cliff top which he approaches in the next shot. There is an extreme long/point of view shot framing a small part of land next to the sea, then a mid-shot of him looking out at it. From then on in the video it switches from present time to flashbacks showing the gradual change of his relationships with the girl he likes and his friend, leading up to where he sees her kiss his friend. The music video ends on similar to the start with the main character still staring out to sea on the cliff in a mid shot then a point of view in an extreme long shot of the sea.
The narrative of the video definitely illustrates the what is being described in the lyrics of the song quite closely. For example, the main line of the chorus is "I'm losing you" which is the main message the video tries to convey, which is shown throughout as the main character realises he has lost the girl he likes to his friend.
3. There is a relationship between music and visuals. The tone and atmosphere of the visual reflects that of the music. (either illustration, amplification or contradiction).
I think the music video for this song reflects the tone and atmosphere of the song very well. The music video has a very calm atmosphere which goes well with the songs sad tone in combination with the slow-paced editing with fairly long shots between cuts which really reflects the pace and the tempo of the music. The mise-en-scene also helps to emphasise the tone of the song due to the casts' acting, there we are shown lots of sad/upset and angry facial expressions and much happier ones during the flashbacks.
Unlike most music videos of the pop genre the artist doesn't have any screen time and there is no lip syncing from the actors either.
4. The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style).
The artist Aquilo, is not actually promoted in the video as he does not have any screen time, instead, just the actors are shown however there are lots of close-up of them to show the characters emotions. This is quite uncommon for this genre as promoting the artists image is one of the most important things in a pop video as it is what shows what the artist represents and the genre of music they make. An artist's image is usually established in music videos through lots of close-ups of their face, allowing them to have a lot of screen time - usually, it is the singers out of a band that get the most as they are the frontmen of the band - so people will recognise them and long shots which show their style through their clothing which might make them more popular to their audience depending on what genre they fit into.
5. There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
No, there isn't any evidence of this in this music video, mainly because I think this song and music video is aimed at a younger audience especially judging by how old the actors in the music video are as it is shown through the mise-en-scene that they are still in school as they are seen wearing school uniforms.
6. There are often intertextual reference (to films, tv programmes, other music videos etc).
There doesn't appear to be any references to any other media in the music video, possibly because it wouldn't fit with the concept of the video, which is to illustrate the lyrics through the visuals and so referencing other music videos or films/tv might seem random. However, a lot of pop music videos do reference other artists, for example, 'Moves Like Jagger' by Maroon Five, both the song and music video reference Mick Jagger, the singer of the Rolling Stones, with videos of him and other people auditioning as Mick Jagger Impersonators, imitating him dancing. Some artists also reference films as a way of promoting both the film and their music which would then be included in the films soundtrack or on the end credits. One example of this is 21 Pilots' music video for 'Heathens' which is set in a prison that resembles the one in the film 'Suicide Squad' (2016) which includes snippets of the characters in scenes from the film.
Although this music video doesn't directly reference any other music videos it does remind me of a lot of other pop music videos as they all mostly have the same narrative of love which is a recurring theme of this genre.
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