Music Video Ideas

From 2:54 there is a camera shot type used known as a Tracking Shot in which the camera follows the characters and circles them as they move around the room but also the clip is fast forwarded and a wide angle lens is used to film the shot to create a fish eye effect. I found these effects very useful and like the look of them as they add interest to the video instead of simple shots and camera use.

Individual music video by Adam White- Johnson

Before filming this music video I had to write the lyrics to the song and then go to a studio to record it. After recording the song and mixing it on garage band I encountered a few problems opening the file after exporting it because it wasn't a MP3 file. I had to find an online file converter to convert it. I then planned the video sequence and decided on locations to film. I then filmed the video in the studio, in a car park, and took moving shots whilst driving. I used the moving shots of nightlife and other scenery as cutaways. The video is mainly performance with little narrative. I then encountered more problems when uploading the footage because my video camera saves the video to a format that final cut does not recognize. So I had to use a file converter to convert the files into quicktime movie files. After converting the files I then edited it on final cut and then exported it into an mov. file and uploaded it onto youtube which took 180 minutes.

Problems with uploading footage

I came across problems with uploading my video shots for my individual music video onto the apple mac because my video camera had encrypted the files. This was an annoying feature JVC decided to include which makes it difficult to work with on macs. I found numerous on-line file converters that converted the mpeg files into quick time movie files. This however took a long time.

Analysis of Amnesia by Skepta

Amnesia by Skepta

Skepta is a UK grime artist that has broadened his audiences by diversifying his style of music he produces. This song Amnesia, is a mix between grime, and club (house) music. The lyrics are performed over a house instrumental which gives the song an unusual twist but it is done successfully with the help of the video.

The video has mainly contextual and narrative ideas in it with a bit of performance. The narrative in this video is so strong that you could fairly understand what has happened in the video without hearing the lyrics. The basic idea of the video is that people gout, binge drinks, get drunk, do something embarrassing and in the morning when they are hung over they always say they will never drink again. ‘Here come that classical line, I’m never drinking again’ that line from the song is repeated throughout verses and before the chorus.

Goodwin’s 6 point analysis on music videos is clearly been put into practice in this music video. Genre characteristics of a house music video would require the setting to be in a club, which it is. It is set in one of the most renowned clubs in Ibiza (the party capital of Europe) Amnesia.  Genre characteristics of grime had to be non-existent as this song is for mainstream audiences.

Another point Goodwin made in his music video analysis was that there is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. In this video this technique is used on multiple occasions. Skepta says ‘last night was sick, oh what a city I lost my phone though oh what a pity’ and the camera takes an extreme close up shot of an I phone with someone flicking through pictures of the wild night. Also Skepta describes waking up with a note from a girl that he doesn’t remember which is a common occurrence that happens after wild drunken nights out. ‘I woke up with a note that said sorry I had to go ILY’

The demands of the record label usually are that there are lots of shots of the artist in the video. This is definitely the case in this video with Skepta appearing in every shot with a variety of camera angles, mainly close ups.

There is a use of a screen inside a screen effect in the video. The stolen I phone displays images of what has just happened in the main narrative of the music video.

To conclude, this music video by Skepta has successfully used Goodwin’s six point analysis to meet the demands of the record label and its target audience.

Stop Motion Research

In our music video we aim to include stop motion techniques to create surreal and strange effects which will suit our theme of non-reality. To gain more information and techniques we researched famous stop motion artists such as Jan Svankmajer, a self-labeled surrealist known for his surreal animations and features, which have greatly influenced other artists such as Tim Burton and Terry Gilliam. In the research we found from Svankmajer, we saw that he uses claymation in his works which is animation created by changing clay models (e.g clay faces) into different shapes and positions. We continued our research to find animators who use stop motion in music video's. In this research we found a music video directed by Eric Gunther and Jeff Lieberman. The song is 'End Love' by the American rock band OK GO. This music video uses stop motion to create the appearance of traveling without moving the body. From this research we hope to develop our own techniques fitting into our genre to use in our music video.

Analysis of 6 foot 7 foot

Lil Wayne 6 foot 7 foot

Hip Hop superstar Lil Wayne stars in this solo track called 6 foot 7 foot. The video is more contextual than narrative as there is no story line to follow in the video. The video features a series of images that correspond to the lyrics in the song. When Lil Wayne says ‘glass half empty half full, ill spill ya’ the screen straight cuts to a close up moving slow motion image of a wine glass full of a clear liquid that then falls to the ground and smashes.

Mise on scene is used in the video to incorporate sex appeal which is widely used in hip hop videos. The women in the video are dressed in provocative outfits. One woman is dressed in a red satin dress which is seductive because the colour red is a connotation for lust, passion and sex. Red is also associated with danger and the woman walks with an attitude which could suggest she is dangerous. Lil Wayne is dressed in a military commissioner’s outfit as he says ‘young money militia and I am the commissioner.’ This technique was used to introduce his entourage in an entertaining and surreal way. The video incorporates Goodwins 6 point analysis. Firstly, The lyrics are represented by visual images in the video. Genre characteristics are represented in the video by the use of women and mise en scene. Women are used in hip hop videos as a sex symbol to attract male interest which hip videos are targeted towards. The demands of the record label are clear in the video. The artist Lil Wayne is showed in every shot unless there is a cutaway to an image of what he is rapping about. Record labels invest a lot of money in their artists so they try give them as much publicity as possible.

 A mirrored effect is used on the women in the video to make it seem like there is more of them than there is, amplifying there attractiveness. A mirrored effect is also used when Lil Wayne says ‘talking to myself because I am my own consultant’ The mirage of images make the video more enticing. The cut away to Lil Wayne in a car moving backwards and forwards in a slow motion jerking movement and when he falls into a bath tub full of water makes the video somewhat of an enigma.

Different camera shots are used with straight cuts to create a fast pace to the video. The video has to have a fast pace as it has no narrative and is set in one location a white room. Extreme close ups are used when there is an emphasis on a specific subject in the lyrics. Women are the focal point of a lot of the lyrics so there are a lot of extreme close ups and close ups on the faces of attractive women.  Lil Wayne shows his superiority in the video as the camera is shot from ground level as he says’ I think you stand under me if you don’t understand me.’ 

Although there is no narrative or costumes as such, this video is successfully incorporates contextual ideas with a variety of camera shots and edits that make the video fast paced and thoroughly entertaining.

Music Video Draft Timeline