Representation of age

Moby - Natural Blues

This video, while somewhat exaggerated, keeps the theme commonly held by music videos when it comes to age, that it is better to be young. In this music video, we see Moby as an old man in depressing surroundings harking back to his youth as he waits for death. Obviously, this represents old age as depressing, as something to fear. At the end of the music video, Moby finally dies and is reborn as a child, implying that youth is somehow a reward.

Against the Current - Young and Relentless

This video explores a common theme of youth in music videos. The video is basically the polar opposite of Natural Blues the performers appear young, they are having a consistently good time throughout the video and they are free rather than trapped. The video is mainly the band members having fun in a city and playing with balloons, both things associated with youth rather than old age.

Diegetic and Non-Diegetic Sound in Music Videos

Diegetic sound is any sound presented as originated from a source within a film's world - eg speech.

Non-Diegetic sound is sound that the viewer can hear but the characters/performers on screen are not aware of as it is not 'in-universe'.

All music videos use non-diegetic sound - the music. Some, however, use diegetic sound as well. Generally, if diegetic sound is found in a music video it plays a part in some kind of narrative.

Here is an example of a music video which uses non-diegetic sound:

Bon Jovi - It's My Life

In this video, as with many other music videos, the diegetic sound is used for narrative purposes. The sound includes speech, computer/phone sound effects and the sound of a lorry skidding out of control. The video is a mixture of narrative and performance. The sound is used only in the narrative sections of the video, while the performance is exclusively the music.

Representation of race

Mark Ronson - Feel Right

This music video is excellent for looking at both possible representations of race in music videos - positive and negative. In this music video, the black child is shown to be rebellious, clearly upsetting the teachers, yet he is praised by the students, who represent various genders and races.

Codes and Conventions of Music Videos

• Two types of conventions - Technical and Symbolic
• The audience can become familiar with a particular genre if all videos within that genre share similar aspects - provides structure the audience can understand

• Style
• Camera
• Editing techniques
• Sound
• Mise en scene

Narrative types

• Linear / Non-linear
• Performance
• Mixture

• Cameo - artists appear in narrative but do not perform
• Camera - angle/movement/technique

Jessie J - Do It Like A Dude

Jessie J. - Do It Like A Dude

This video is a performance video meaning it features the performance of the song by the artist rather than a narrative. The video mainly uses close up shots, quickly edited together as it is a convention of the rock genre. The video does also use low angle shots to elevate the artist's status in the eyes of the viewer. The elevated status fits Goodwin's theoty that music videos match their songs' lyrics since the song suggests that men have a higher place in the world but that she is acting like a man, putting her in a position of higher status.

Representation of gender

Laura Mulvay has a theory that all music videos sexualize women as they are made to attract the male gaze. Here are examples which support this and which deny this:

Support:

Nickelback - Something in Your Mouth

It is clear how this conforms to Mulvay's theory that women are put in music videos to attract the male gaze. These women are clearly a sex object and are put on display for the audience's pleasure. The video mainly consists of close up shots of half-naked women rubbing themselves and sucking on their fingers. 

Oppose:

Muse - Feeling Good

This video contrasts Mulvay's theory of the male gaze since there are only a small number of women in this video and they appear with distorted faces, removing all sex appeal for the viewer.

The importance of special effects

Special effects were always very important in film and television. Whether it was dangling a candlestick with a string to make it look like it was floating in an old horror film, or modern day Computer Generated Imagery (CGI), special effects have always played a key role in cinema.

In the modern day, as films become more ambitious and CGI capabilities improve, special effects take a bigger role in cinema. Key examples include Boardwalk Empire in which the majority of the city is computer generated, and Harry Potter in which special effects were essential. In Harry Potter, special effects were essential for locations, spells, and much more, not to mention the scenes in which the cast flew on broomsticks which boiled down to broomsticks on large mechanical arms being moved in fornt of a green screen. In these scenes, special effects were needed, not only to insert a background, but also to remove the large mechanical arms holding up the brooms.

The importance of props

Props (short for properties) are physical things used on screen in film and television. Story props can be anything from handy items such as balls and books to pictures and pieces of clothing.

Props are crucial to the production of film and television since they can be crucial to move the story along, like the 'one ring' in The Lord of the Rings, and even if they are not essential for story purposes they are necessary to make the world seem real and lived in. For example, the potions class in Harry Potter would seem very unrealistic if it were simply an empty room with now cauldrons, bottles, boiling stands etc.

The importance of sets

In film, sets are locations built especially for the film in order t suit a particular scene. They are built by Construction Managers and specified by a Production designer working in collaboration with the director of a production.

Often, sets are not as they seem on camera. They are frequently missing walls or ceilings and are often not the size they appear to be on screen. For example, the corridor of the Leaky Cauldron in Harry Potter appears to be a full-sized corridor in the film, but in reality, it is not only very small, but also very thin. The corridor set has very little depth and is not as long as it seems in the film, nor is it large enough to stand in.

The sets would be incomplete, however, where it not for set decoration. This branch of the Art Department develops and selects props in collaboration with the production designer. This typically means researching sourcing and making furniture, drapery, light fixtures, art and many other decorative objects large or small.

The production designer is responsible for the environment and setting of every scene and works with the cinematographer and director to establish the visual style of the film. The choices they make include the shapes of rooms, the colours of walls or the positions of widows for example. They also make practical decisions such as whether to build a real or virtual set.

Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone

Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone

Performance-linear narrative mixture

Performance 

 - Convention of rock genre

 - Male gaze - outfit during performance

Narrative 

 - story suits lyrics as Goodwin said

 - Makes her seem sweet but slightly rebellious - role model to target audience

This video is a hybrid of performance and (linear) narrative, meaning it features both story shots and shots of the artist performing the music. The performance shots are included since that is a convention of the rock genre. The video also conforms to Mulvay's theory of the male gaze since she is wearing quite a revealing outfit during the performance sections. The story, as per Goodwin's theory, suits the lyrics of the song. The story makes the artist seem sweet and hard done by while also somewhat rebellious. This is since she acts as a role model to her target audience.

Kanye West - Bound 2

Editing and manipulation of images:

1 - Shot in front of green screen
2 - Lighting to make female star look thinner
3 - Image manipulation to slim and smooth woman
4 - Angle - close up mostly - shots showing her waistline are obscured or further away - convention        of pop genre - leaked into Kanye West video
5 - Kim Kardashian is a brand - product placement (Kanye's ripped shirts)
6 - Slow motion white horses
7 - Fast editing
8 - Fans
9 - Scrolling green screen

Goodwin's Theory

Andrew Goodwin has a theory which states that there is a relationship between lyrics and music and what is seen in screen. Here are some examples of music a video which fits this theory and a video which does not:

Conventional:

Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me

Taylor Swift - Mine

Katy Perry - Part Of Me

Non-conventional:

Yello - Oh Yeah

Fatboy Slim - Weapon Of Choice

Moby - Honey