Research
Drawing Inspiration & Identifying References
I began with looking for all the music videos that inspire me, for their stories, colors, simplicity, and creative execution with limited resources. Here are my favorites I gathered along the way.
I will be creating my music video along with my partner and classmate, Rahmah Malik. This is my blog where I will focus on the plot development of the music video, along with costume and set concept design, direction and production.
![Milky Chance - Stolen Dance (Official Video) [HD Version]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/iX-QaNzd-0Y/maxresdefault.jpg)
Codes &
Conventions of Music Videos
Codes and Conventions of music videos are the different techniques used to construct meaning in them.
Here are a few examples:
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Style
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Camera
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Editing Techniques
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Sound (non diegetic and diegetic)
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Mis en scene – props, lighting, costume, location/setting, colours
Evaluating the specific codes and conventions I would like to incorporate in my music video
This is an important part of my research. Before diving into production and design, I need to theoretically evaluate which codes and conventions do I need to focus on, pay attention to, and work on for my music video.
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Firstly, the camera should be shooting at a mid-shot. I want to focus on the character/artist, while appreciating the setting too. The setting should largely stay the same throughout the video, but some little movements (eg. person crosses or bird flies) could help avoid monotony
mid-shot
Secondly, the angle of the camera is important in breaking a pattern and allows more room for creativity. I would like to use different angles timed with the beat of the song. A few examples would be switching to a sudden low angle and then right back up to a close-up low angle when the music becomes more quiet, towards the beginning of the final chorus (refer to Gold by Chet Faker). An angle I would like to maintain is eye-level. This allows me to follow the artist performing in a clean and clear manner. I am considering a bird-eye angle too, to start off the video. A general rule in music videos is that the camera never stays on one shot for than 3-5 seconds, and I would like to break that.
I will use pan camera movement, along with tracking shots. This will depict different meanings throughout my video. A pan camera movement is where the camera scans a scene horizontally. The camera is placed on a stationary axis point as the camera is turned, often to follow a moving object which is kept in the middle of the frame. Tracking shots is for smooth movement and emphasising direction (where the focus is headed, why etc.).
low angle shot
Eye-Level
Bird-Eye
Tracking Shot
I will most probably edit the video by colourising differently from the original. This video will be a one take one, and hopefully will require no cut shots to edit, because I want to maintain a seamless design. The only sound I need is the song itself, as I find other diegetic sounds distracting and non-immersive for the audience (speaking from personal experience).
The scene's lighting will be primarily natural light added on with artificial lights that are already present (eg. street lamps and car headlights). This whole video should look comfortable, natural and smooth. Costume should reflect the lyrics and depict some sort of context as to why the artist is performing in this. The message will be delivered through hair and makeup (or no makeup) too.
I want my setting to be natural, a road or a small forest, aesthetically pleasing and reflecting everyday life, creating relatability for the audience. The artist should connect to the people, and shooting in a public spot could garner attention too.
Color can affect us psychologically and physically, often without us being aware, and can be used as a strong device within a story. Being able to use color to create harmony, or tension within a scene, or to bring attention to a key visual theme can be used to spectacular effect. Desaturating a scene can create a depressed, isolated mood (Evanescence: My Immortal) while over lighting and the use of bright colors can create an uplifting, happy mood. (Katie Perry: California Gurls) A strong red color has been shown to raise blood pressure, while a blue color has a calming effect. Some colors are distinctly associated with a particular location or place, while others give a sense of time or period. The teal/orange look that is so popular now reflects a nostalgic feel (Smashing Pumpkins: 1979) while the black and white color scheme is reflective of the “film noir” time period (Bob Dylan: The Night We called it a Day). I am most excited for this aspect of my video.
Before and After Color Splash
Shooting in Natural Sunlight
Still from Alaska by Maggie Rogers MV, where she performs in a forest
Evanescence - My Immortal
Katy Perry - California Gurls
Smashing Pumpkins - 1979
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Lyric Breakdown
I took one of the songs I have been thinking about using for my mv and divided it line by line, and noted how many seconds each line takes up. This will help me visualise what I need for every shot and story board it more effectively too.
General Research on Music Videos
Definition:
a video of variable length produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes.
Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings. There are also cases where music songs are used in tie-in music marketing campaigns that allow them to become more than just a song.
Tie-ins and music merchandising can be used for toys or for food or other products.
Some Prominent Types:
Music videos use a wide range of styles and contemporary video-making techniques, including animation, live-action, documentary, and non-narrative approaches such as abstract film. Combining these styles and techniques has become more popular due to the variety for the audience.
Many music videos interpret images and scenes from the song's lyrics, while others take a more thematic approach.
Other music videos may not have any concept, being only a filmed version of the song's live concert performance.
First Recorded Step Towards MVs:
In 1894, sheet music publishers Edward B. Marks and Joe Stern hired electrician George Thomas and various artists to promote sales of their song "The Little Lost Child".
Using a magic lantern, Thomas projected a series of still images on a screen simultaneous to live performances. This would become a popular form of entertainment known as the illustrated song, the first step toward music video.
Commercial Releases:
Music videos have been released commercially on physical formats such as videotape, LaserDisc, DVD and Blu-ray. Similar to an audio album, a video album is a long-form release containing multiple music videos on a disc. The market for video albums is considerably smaller than for audio albums and audio singles. An example of a video album is the popular Olivia Physical (1982) by Olivia Newton-John, which won the Video of the Year at the 25th Grammy Awards. The video collection features music videos of all songs from her ninth studio album, Physical (1981).
A video single contains no more than three music videos in the form of a videotape, LaserDisc or DVD. In 1983, British synth-pop band The Human League released the first commercial video single titled The Human League Video Single on both VHS and Betamax.
The DVD single was introduced in the late 1990s as a replacement for the videotape single. Although many record companies in the United States refused to issue CD singles, they readily issued DVD singles, and some popular DVD singles include Kelly Clarkson's "A Moment Like This", Jessica Simpson's "With You", and Beyoncé's "Crazy in Love.
Some Notable Directors:
Chris Cunningham, Michel Gondry, Spike Jonze, Floria Sigismondi, Stéphane Sednaoui, Mark Romanek and Hype Williams all got their start around November 1992 and all brought a unique vision and style to the videos they directed. Some of these directors, including, Gondry, Jonze, Sigismondi, and F. Gary Gray, went on to direct feature films. This continued a trend that had begun earlier with directors such as Lasse Hallström and David Fincher.
Studying : Semiotics & Music Videos
Symbolism In Music Videos
"Semiotics in popular music, or mesomusica, is different from semiotics in other musical forms, because pop music denotes a cultural object."
(Matusitz, 2004)
Music often aims to appeal to the emotions of the masses. It can be referred to as the symbolic form of feelings, and music videos are significant signs coming together to form meanings.
Semiotics is the study of the use of symbolic communication. As a word, semiotics derives from the Greek sēmeiōtikós, which describes the action of interpreting signs.
Many semiotic analysts have examined music videos to decode messages that are being sent to viewers. They can be said to contain visuals that either represent the potential connotative meaning of the lyrics or a semiotic system of its own.
Intertextuality is method used for semiotics in music videos.
It references other popular culture objects within their video, and then the audience creates their meaning of the video according to the intentional suggestion created with relationships between primary and secondary texts.
Material Girl, by Madonna is an example of using intertextuality because she is acting like Marilyn Monroe in Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend. This is a direct cinematic reference which allows an active audience to draw conclusions to the meaning of the message.
Intratextuality is a term that is derived from intertextuality, but is within the same text of media. This type of technique is also called anchorage, found by Roland Barthes: anchoring text to a context that changes the intentional meaning.
Example: Right Now by Van Halen. The lyrics suggest an entirely different meaning than the messages shown through the music video.
Bricolage is also an example of using many different texts within a context for promotional or popularity value. Lady Gaga uses cultural bricolage in her music videos by using fashion and previous memorable characteristics of former pop stars.
Youtube Playlist
I made a youtube playlist for inspiration (inspo), which includes music videos I like and would like to borrow from and other candidate music videos I found uploaded on youtube. The other candidate ones help me see what to (maybe) replicate, what stories to construct, and what to avoid.
My Written Notes
the first ideas I had, before making this blog
Here I have listed some songs I am considering for the music video:
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jealousy jealousy by olivia rodrigo
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team by lorde
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nobody by mitski
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want you back by haim
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alaska by maggie rogers
I have also noted an idea of a "one-take" music video
I mentioned that I want one actor or maybe two
Listed some music videos to look to:
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therefore i am by billie eilish
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bitter sweet symphony by verve
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you broke me first by tate mcrae
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sorry by halsey
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the light is coming by ariana grande
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don't wanna by haim
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gold by chet faker
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moonlight by xxxtentacion
My main inspo is Haim
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Two songs, two potential stories
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I described in short points the first ideas that popped in my head when I heard these songs
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I imagined the videos for both songs
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Some of these ideas may or may not make the final cut
In Depth Analysis of a Music Video
Following the given set of questions, I will breakdown and analyse the music video for Back To You by Selena Gomez in depth.
1) What are the conventions found in this music video?
Some of the conventions I can see in this music video are style, camerawork, sound, editing techniques, and mis en scene. The style is narrative, with hints of performance (especially when the female lead, Selena Gomez, lip-syncs to the song lyrics). It takes inspiration from a 1965 French film called "Pierrot le Fou".The camera follows the characters, stands stationary in front of them, and swings around to show the setting. The movements complement the narrative structure. The sound is both diegetic and non-diegetic. The diegetic sounds include the song at some points and the classical music at the party scene in the beginning. The rest of the sound is non-diegetic. The editing plays with color themes and bright yet dull lighting, and nostalgic and dreamy filters (especially when they drive in the car away from the party). The mis en scene includes important props such as the car, the books, the apple. Props and costume are of importance in this music video.
Pierrot le Fou (top) - Back to you (bottom)
2) Who is the audience for this music video? (be specific)
The audience for this music video are young adults and teens from the ages 16 and above (till 25). This is a dance pop song, and the video shows two people around the same age as the audience, therefore directly targeting the audience. Moreover, this song plays in the original soundtrack of a teen show based on a young adult book called Thirteen Reasons Why (stills from the official lyric video to the right), so the audience remains the same.
3) What genre is the music video in? How is this shown?
It is a narrative music video. This is shown through the first long shots of the party, the back and forth with focus and zooming in on the two characters that are not focused and not talking out of the others shown. Furthermore, it is shown through the development of story and change of setting (the fields, driving away in the car), as well as the dialogue in the middle.
party
car
4) What features of the music video will you use/not use in your own?
I will use the solo shots for the main characters. I will use that to show connection and a back and forth between them, for the storyline and presentation. I will use coloured lighting majorly. I want to use the element of not lipsyncing the entire lyrics, only lipsyncing them when they are most relevant. i want the narrative to not directly mirror the lyrics, keep it more abstract instead. I want to use the same audience for my music video too. The things I do not want to use are the dialogues in the middle. I do not want to break the video up for narrative purposes too, I want it to flow smoothly. I don't want to use costumes that match the sets, such as the orange top Selena Gomez wears in the garden scene with oranges. I want the plot to be realistic and happening in real-time, unlike this music video which borders between real and imaginary; fantastical.
Music Video Content Idea
A previous candidate's music video was shown to us in class. In that video, the song Mad Hatter by Melanie Martinez was used and the student depicted multiple mental disorders such as anxiety, depression, mania etc. in a dramatised and symbolic way, through colourful characters and costumes and important props (such as a clock in the "anxiety" character's hands).
Inspired by this, I thought of exploring the ideas of a fairytale narrative structure, particularly Cinderella. Costumes would be descriptive in this and important props such as the 'shoe' from the original story would be focused on.