Conventions of Music Videos

Dolby

Detailed analysis so far- well done. Just note my comment on the music industry prezi.

Categories of Music Videos

There are three main categories of music video which include:

• Performance Based videos
• Narrative Based videos
• Concept Based videos

Performance based videos usually have the vocalist/artist perform the song to represent their star identity and reflect the genre of music that they fall under. A variety of camera shots are usually used to show all of the performance, mostly including close ups, mid shots and long shots to show all of the band or to focus solely on the vocalist. An example of a performance based video is Imagine Dragons' "Demons".



This video shows the band performing to an audience, which instantly makes it performance based as the audio and visuals are in sync due to the lip syncing. The majority of shots are close ups on the main vocalist and a few on the rest of the band. However, the video also has features of a narrative based video as it shows 'stories' of some of the audience members and their problems at home. This reflects the message of the song, which is that many people hide their 'demons' in them, and that when they listen to the song they should embrace their demons and to know that they're not alone.

Narrative based videos attempt to tell a story throughout. They usually have a beginning, middle and end and may sometimes use footage from films or feature flashbacks to follow a storyline. An example of a narrative based video is Green Days "Wake Me Up When September Ends".



The video starts off with a long period of dialogue, introducing us to the characters and their relationship. We learn that the characters are a couple and the rest of the video shows them to be in love and their money troubles as the man realizes he has no money on him when him and his girlfriend are out for lunch and she has to pay for their meal. Then we see the couple having an argument over something that hasn't been revealed to us yet. It then becomes apparent that the man has joined the army, perhaps to solve the couples money problems. The video also includes features of a performance based video as we see snippets of Green Day performing the song in a studio, however it remains a narrative as the majority of the filming follows the storyline of the couple.

Concept based videos follow a single concept or idea, with very limited shots or editing in the video. Concept videos aren't very popular as they're not as entertaining as performance based videos as they don't fit into a commercial slot. An example of a concept based video is Benny Benassi's "Satisfaction".



The video consists of a selection of women dancing with power tools as the name of the equipment comes up on screen. This remains to be the main concept of the video throughout as no other characters or ideas feature. However, the video could come under Laura Mulvey's theory of the 'male gaze' as it could be seen to exploit the women in the video as they're dressed in very little clothing and dancing provocatively.

Research Into The Music Video Industry

RMA Music Video Analysis

The first music video I have chosen to analyse is Sam Smith's "I'm Not The Only One". Smith is a British Soul-Singer that specializes in the genres Pop and R&B. Unlike most pop songs, I'm Not The Only One has a much slower pace and tempo, promoting a sad emotion throughout the video.
0:00 the video starts off with an establishing shot of a house with the special effects of titles across the screen. The opening represents who the artist is and the name of the song, followed by who the video is directed by. The video is un-traditional in the way that the audio doesn't begin straight away with dialogue instead.
0:12 the frame then cuts to the inside of the house, showing us Dianna Agron and Chris Messina who feature as a married couple in the video. An over the shoulder shot is used when Messina is looking at himself in the mirror, presenting us a clearer image of his character.
0:23 The close up shot of Agron here allows us to see into the mise en scene of her character as we see her smiling whilst waving off her husband to work. In these shots we also get to see more of the house that they both live in, which appears to be a typical American white-picket fenced family home. The bright, natural daylight also reflects a happy, lighthearted atmosphere.
0:39 here, the close up shot allows us to see Agron's facial expression change to a sad, glum emotion as she turns back to walk into the house.
1:00 Here, we see an instant change in mise en scene due to the change of location and the sudden dark, low key lighting. However, Agron and Messina both feature in close up shots even thought they're in different places which may represent the link in their marriage. The contrast in lighting over the next few seconds as the scene changes back to forth from the house to the bar represents the difference in atmosphere; the dark lighting in the bar may have been done to represent the husband to be doing something he shouldn't be, whereas the natural lighting in Agron's scenes to represent her innocence.
1:12 in these close up shots, we are able to see more of Agron's chosen mise en scene. Her outfit shows her to overall be well put together due to her high heels, perfectly fitting dress and jewelry - particularly her wedding ring. However, as the frame then changes to a close up of her face, we start to see her imperfections show through as her make up appears to be smudged - perhaps due to crying? The whiteness of her dress presents her innocence, which links in with Laura Mulvey's male gaze theory that women are either seen as innocent characters or sex symbols, and in this case Agron is seen as the innocent character. As she takes her wedding ring off, the frame then changes back to the bar where her husband is, linking the two scenes together. The ideology here suggests that he's doing something unfaithful to their marriage.
1:22 over these few seconds, Smith sings the words "I can't believe you let me down" which links to the film we see on screen; Agron crying on the floor alone in her house.
1:29 a mystery woman now appears on screen with Messina. The audio we can now hear is "for months on end I've had my doubts", which furthermore suggests Messina is being unfaithful to his wife as the director has linked the audio to the visuals on screen, suggesting that the mysterious woman is his mistress as they have body contact.
1:37 we then hear the lyrics "denying every tear" as an extreme close up shows Agron wiping away her make up stained tears whilst driving a car. At this point, we see the representation of Agron's character from the beginning of the video dramatically change as her picture-prefect image dwindles as her hair do comes out of place and she smudges her perfectly-done make up. The ideology used here could be that even though something may seem perfect from the outside it doesn't mean everything's what it seems.
1:46 the frame then cuts back to a close up of Messina and his mistress drinking shots at the bar, the close up may have been used to represent the closeness in their relationship.
1:52 we first see Sam Smith at this point as he sings the chorus, which is un-traditional for a music video as we may expect the artist to feature in their video from beginning to end. The ideology here could be that Smith is just an outsider looking in, hence the representation of a perfect house with the perfect married couple at the beginning of the video.
2:06 here we see Messina and his mistress kiss as Smith sings the lyrics "when you call me baby I know I'm not the only one" - showing that by this he's singing from Agron's perspective as she's not the only one that her husband is having a relationship with.
2:15 the frame then cuts to Agron in a liquor store drinking alcohol, which reflects back to when Messina and his mistress were taking shots in the bar. The ideology of both of the characters drinking alcohol shows that her husband and his girlfriend were drinking to have a good time whereas Agron is drinking away her problems as her husband goes into the bathroom with the mysterious woman, reflecting the songs lyrics "your heart is unattainable".
3:00 the low-key, blue, dark lighting in the bathroom gives off a darkened mood as her husband is being unfaithful as he's cheating on his wife. The speed of shots seem to shorten as the cuts quickens from Agron to Messina, as Agron appears to be burning all her husbands clothes outside their home. The pick up in pace represents action and perhaps represents a change in Agron's emotions, from sadness to anger.
3:44 here we see Agron smoking, which may not be what we'd expect to see from a 'perfect' housewife, using the ideology of the cigarette to change the representation of Agron's character as she there is a continuation of close ups of her crying.
3:54 the frame then cuts to Messina walking home whilst putting his blazer back on, suggesting he's coming straight from seeing his mistress. The scenes change back and forth from Agron to Messina, showing Agron in a white room, representing her pureness and innocence whilst her husband walks home in a dark light.
4:22 the close up is then on an over the shoulder shot of Messina as we see his point of view shot of him being welcomed home by his wife. The video then ends on a shot of the both of them hugging each other whilst Agron smiles as if nothing had ever happened, ending in a similar way to how the video started.

Overall, I felt like this was an appropriate video to analyse as even though Sam Smith is a Pop and R&B singer, he has made a successful music video by cleverly syncing the audio and the visuals. Also, if this is the genre that we decide we want to follow through with, we don't necessarily need to pick an up-beat song to create a music video to as a slower song also fits into this genre of music.