Saturday 26 February 2011
Friday 25 February 2011
Conventions of music videos
Fast Edits – Edits are usually no more than a few seconds, adds to the pace and therefore keeps the audience engaged
Multiple Shots
Feature the lead singer or band – Members of the audience recognise the singers, adds to their star status
Relationship between the music/lyrics and the video or image
Dance Routine
Appropriate mise-en-scene for the genre of music
Cross-cutting between narrative and performance (of band of singer)
Frequent use of montage editing
Average length approx 3-4 minutes
Michel Gondry
Spike Jonze
David Fincher
Info on the director – their background and where they are today – examples of their films
Their style – how would you describe their style of filming
Their Music Videos – list what videos they have created and discuss their style
Screenshots from the music videos – annotated outlining their stylistic features
Info on the director – their background and where they are today – examples of their films
1) David Fincher was born on August 28, 1962
2) Fincher began making movies at age eight with an 8 mm camera
3) He was hired by Industrial Light & Magic in 1980
4) In 1984, he left ILM to direct a commercial for the American Cancer Society
5) This quickly brought Fincher to the attention of producers in Los Angeles
6) Though he would continue to direct spots for companies like Revlon, Converse, Nike, Pepsi, Sony, and Levi's, Fincher soon discovered music videos and went on to direct many promos
7) Fincher has also worked on many feature films including Alien 3 (1992) Se7en (1995)The Game (1997)Fight Club (1999)Panic Room (2002)
Zodiac (2007)The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)The Social Network (2010)
Their style – how would you describe their style of filming
Fincher is known for his dark and stylish thriller movies which reflects some of the films that he has directed such as Se7en,
The Game, Fight Club and Zodiac
Their Music Videos – list what videos they have created and discuss their style
"Dance This World Away", Rick Springfield (1984)
"Celebrate Youth", Rick Springfield (1984)
"Bop Til You Drop", Rick Springfield (1984)
"Shame", The Motels (1985)
"Shock", The Motels (1985)
"All The Love", The Outfield (1986)
"Every Time You Cry", The Outfield (1986)
"One Simple Thing", Stabilizers (1986)
"She Comes On", Wire Train (1987)
"Should She Cry", Wire Train (1987)
"Endless Nights", Eddie Money (1987)
"Downtown Train", Patty Smyth (1987)
"I Don't Mind At All", Bourgeois Tagg (1987)
"Notorious", Loverboy (1987)
"Love Will Rise Again", Loverboy (1987)
"Johnny B", The Hooters (1987)
"Storybook Story", Mark Knopfler (1987)
"Can I Hold You", Colin Hay (1987)
"No Surrender", The Outfield (1987
"Say You Will", Foreigner (1987)
"Don't Tell Me The Time", The Motels (1987)
"Tell It To the Moon", The Motels (1988)
"Heart of Gold", Johnny Hates Jazz (1988)
"Englishman in New York", Sting (1988)
"Shattered Dreams" (second version),
Johnny Hates Jazz (1988)
"Get Rhythm", Ry Cooder (1988)
"Most of All", Jody Watley (1988)
"Roll With It", Steve Winwood (1988)
"(It's Just) The Way That You Love Me" (version 1988), Paula Abdul (1988)
"Holding On", Steve Winwood (1988)
"Heart", Neneh Cherry (1989)
"Bamboleo" (second version), Gypsy Kings (1989)
"Straight Up", Paula Abdul (1989)
"Most Of All", Jody Watley (1989)
"Real Love", Jody Watley (1989)
"Bamboleo" (third version), Gypsy Kings (1989)
"She's a Mystery to Me", Roy Orbison (1989)
"Forever Your Girl", Paula Abdul (1989)
"Express Yourself", Madonna (1989)
"The End of the Innocence", Don Henley (1989)
"Cold Hearted", Paula Abdul (1989)
"(It's Just) The Way That You Love Me" (version 1989), Paula Abdul (1988)
"Oh Father", Madonna (1989)
"Janie's Got a Gun", Aerosmith (1989)
"Vogue", Madonna (1990)
"Cradle of Love", Billy Idol (1990)
"L.A. Woman", Billy Idol (1990)
"Freedom '90", George Michael (1990)
"Bad Girl", Madonna (1993)
"Who Is It?", Michael Jackson (1993)
"Love Is Strong", The Rolling Stones (1994)
"6th Avenue Heartache", The Wallflowers (1996)
"Judith", A Perfect Circle (2000)
"Only", Nine Inch Nails (2005)
Notable Names – Michael Jackson, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Madonna, George Michael and Paula Abdul
· Feature the lead singer or band members – so the audience recognise the singers, adds to their star status.
· Fast cuts – edits are usually no more than a few seconds, adds to the pace and keeps the audience engaged (MTV generation) short attention spans.
· Relationship between the music (lyrics and the video/images.
· Dance routines
· Appropriate mise-en-scene for the genre of music.
· Genre signifiers, which the audience decode.
· Cross cutting between narrative + performance (of band or singers)
· Frequent use of montage editing
· Average length approx 3-4 mins
Intertextuality: Intertextuality is the shaping of texts' meanings by other texts. It can refer to an author’s borrowing and transformation of a prior text or to a reader’s referencing of one text in reading another.
One of the pleasures that audiences experience in the consumption of media texts is the joy of recognition. One form of this pleasure comes in recognising the reference in one media text to other media texts. This process of referencing is called intertextuality.
Hall's Theory of encoding and decoding is a theory of Reception Theory developed by Stuart Hall.
According to the theory, audiences can have three different reactions to a media text, whether it is a film, documentary or newspaper:
Dominant, or Preferred, Reading - how the director/creator wants the audience to view the media text;
Opposition Reading - when the audience rejects the preferred reading, and creates their own meaning of the text;
Negotiated Reading - a compromise between the dominant and opposition readings, where the audience accepts parts of the director's views, but has their own views on parts as well.
Categories of Music Videos
Performance Based Video
These are music videos that feature the artist/band/group performing the song through most if not all of the video. It’s probably the easiest to do on a budget provided you can get a suitable location for filming.
Narrative Based Video
A narrative based music video contains mostly footage that attempts to tell a story through the moving image. Usually involving actors, the story is sometimes linked to the lyrical content of the song, but this isn’t always the case. This type of music video tends to be popular for a song that’s featured in a movie and you will often see scenes cut into the music video.
Concept Based Video
This is a style of music video that is based around a single concept or idea. These types of videos tend to be fairly unusual or utilize a particular editing or filming technique. It’s not often you get a purely conceptual music video as the commercial world demands things to be a bit more accessible.
Examples of Narrative Videos
Madonna; “Bad Girl”
Bon Jovi; “Always”
Guns n’ Roses, “November Rain”
Examples of Band Performance Videos
Take That “Patience”
JLS “Beat Again”
Girls Aloud “Sound of the Underground”
Examples of Conceptial Music Videos
OK GO - Here It Goes Again
These are music videos that feature the artist/band/group performing the song through most if not all of the video. It’s probably the easiest to do on a budget provided you can get a suitable location for filming.
Narrative Based Video
A narrative based music video contains mostly footage that attempts to tell a story through the moving image. Usually involving actors, the story is sometimes linked to the lyrical content of the song, but this isn’t always the case. This type of music video tends to be popular for a song that’s featured in a movie and you will often see scenes cut into the music video.
Concept Based Video
This is a style of music video that is based around a single concept or idea. These types of videos tend to be fairly unusual or utilize a particular editing or filming technique. It’s not often you get a purely conceptual music video as the commercial world demands things to be a bit more accessible.
Examples of Narrative Videos
Madonna; “Bad Girl”
Bon Jovi; “Always”
Guns n’ Roses, “November Rain”
Examples of Band Performance Videos
Take That “Patience”
JLS “Beat Again”
Girls Aloud “Sound of the Underground”
Examples of Conceptial Music Videos
OK GO - Here It Goes Again
Monday 14 February 2011
Friday 11 February 2011
Research into the Music Industry
The music industry sells compositions, recordings and performances of music. There are many individuals and organisations that are part and operate within the industry, including the musicians who often compose the music and then perform it both recorded for consumer use and live on stage.
There are also the companies and professionals who create and sell the music once it has been recorded by the musicians. These include people such as music publishers, producers and record labels. The live music side of the industry also involves many different people such as booking agents and promoters.
There are also the companies and professionals who create and sell the music once it has been recorded by the musicians. These include people such as music publishers, producers and record labels. The live music side of the industry also involves many different people such as booking agents and promoters.
Music Videos
A music video is a short film or video (usually between three and four minutes) that accompanies a piece of music.
Modern music videos in Britain and the United States of America are primarily made and used as a marketing tool to promote music recordings. Music videos became popular in the 1980’s when MTV started to show and use them on a regular basis, although they date back much further, Before the 1980s, music videos were described using many different names including "illustrated song", "filmed insert", "promotional film", "promotional clip" or "film clip". In China, the music video was simply known as an "MTV" because the network was responsible for bringing music videos (from Britain and USA) to popularity in that country.
Music videos use many differing styles of film making techniques; these include animation, live action filming, documentaries, and non-narrative approaches such as abstract film. Some music videos use more than one style by interlinking different styles to create one video, for example animation and live action.
The companies and record labels within the Music Industry
The Music Industry is made up of four main companies as well as independent companies that are shown on this chart below.
The five groups in terms of how powerful they are within the industry are:
· Universal Music Group
· Sony BMG
· Independent Labels
· Warner Music Group
· EMI Group
MTV’s Impact on Music Videos
MTV is an American network that launched on August 1, 1981. The purpose of the channel was to play music videos therefore commercialising and bringing the attention of the music video to the world. This started the music video as we see and know them today.
When it started MTV had a major impact on the music industry and popular culture. As the idea of a dedicated video-based outlet for music was introduced, both the artists and the fans found a central location to watch music videos, events, news, and promotion. MTV has also been referenced over and in popular culture by musicians, and in other media including other TV channels, shows, films, and books.
Despite much effort to play certain types of music videos in limited rotation, MTV greatly reduced the amount of music videos that they played throughout the first decade of the 21st century. Music videos were still featured on MTV up to eight hours per day in 2000 but by 2008 the average had dropped to just three hours of music videos per day on MTV. This was caused by the internet as music videos could be posted on websites such as YouTube for free.
As the decade continued MTV continued to play some music videos but around this time started to air music videos only in the early hours of the morning. This therefore means that in the present day music videos are rarely played by the company that introduced them to the world. This shows the impact that MTV has had on the music industry and in particular music videos.
Where can Music Videos be found
Music videos are predominantly found on television channels; however the rise of the internet over the last twenty years has ensured that music videos can also be found on many different websites such as YouTube.
Music videos are currently shown on these television channels:
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Friday 4 February 2011
Goodwin's Analysis
1) Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics (e.g. stage performance in metal video, dance routine for boy/girl band).
2) There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).
3) There is a relationship between music and visuals (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, telescopes, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
6) There is often intertextual reference (to films, tv programmes, other music videos etc).
The style of our video goes against the genre characteristics, the dance group towards the end of the video is the only part that goes with the song genre.
The song itself sounds like a remixed old horror theme; the relationship with the video would be the old-style horror film we’ve emulated.
We haven’t stuck with the contemporary idea of objectify women as sexual objects, instead we’ve copied what they were shown as in the early 1900’s.
Our whole video is an intertextual reference to Frankenstein’s Monster.
2) There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).
3) There is a relationship between music and visuals (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, telescopes, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
6) There is often intertextual reference (to films, tv programmes, other music videos etc).
The style of our video goes against the genre characteristics, the dance group towards the end of the video is the only part that goes with the song genre.
The song itself sounds like a remixed old horror theme; the relationship with the video would be the old-style horror film we’ve emulated.
We haven’t stuck with the contemporary idea of objectify women as sexual objects, instead we’ve copied what they were shown as in the early 1900’s.
Our whole video is an intertextual reference to Frankenstein’s Monster.
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