Music Video Research

01/08/14

Amnesia - 5 Seconds of Summer

Artist: 5 Seconds of Summer

Song: Amnesia

Genre: Pop Punk/Rock

Record Label: Capitol

Release Date: 15th July 2014

Audience: Under 25's, females

5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS) are an Australian Pop Punk/Rock boy band formed of Luke Hemmings, Calum Hood, Michael Clifford and Ashton Irwin, and have recently released a single called Amnesia, from their new self titled album, with the lyrics to the song explaining the emotions felt by a person who has recently split up with their girlfriend or boyfriend, and how they wish they had 'amnesia' to forget the memories they had together. The meaningful and emotional lyrics about love makes the song and band very stereotypical, as most common Pop genre artists usually write hit songs about love or break-ups, and get much more attention and fame when compared to any other genre. This music video is a Narrative music video, as the artist is featured in the video lip syncing to the music, whilst the lyrics are telling a story and the video is portraying that story with the artist and other actors.

Within the music video, the camerawork makes the whole video seem very organic and subtle as of the use of handheld close up camera shots and movement as each member of the band is featured singing directly into the camera. As a close up is used to show the boys singing, it is also cleverly used to show their expressions whilst singing and also makes the lyrics seem more important as they are telling the audience of their heartbreak, as their faces are taking up most of the screen. As the boys are singing to the camera, it also makes the audience assume that 5SOS are talking directly to them, thus making the audience feel like they have a relationship bond with the boys. As the video progresses, long shots have been used for the flashback scenes of the band members and some friends who are messing about, being themselves and having a fun time. These scenes of running around, laughing and being together reflect on the positive memories that are described in the lyrics to the song, when the camera suddenly switches to a close up of one of the band members singing to the camera, theresore showing that the lyrics are more serious. These camera shots alternate to show the difference in time and state, from past to present. The camera also includes the Rule of Thirds, where each member is positioned within the points of interest on either the left or right side, so the composition of the members and video looks professional.

The use of sound also helps to make the music video seem organic and original, as before the track starts, there are a few different sound effects that help to set the atmosphere of the video. Firstly, a diegetic sound effect of a bike chain can be heard which supports the footage showing one of the band members riding a bike. Other uses of sound in the first few seconds of the video are non-diegetic barking sound effects and birdsong which complements the rural location of the music video which makes the atmosphere of the video seem more organic and normal to the audience, thus supporting Richard Dyer's theory on stars being both extraordinary by being famous singers and ordinary by toning down the atmosphere to appear normal to the audience. Other sound effects within the first few seconds also include diegetic underwater bubble sounds which correspond with the footage being underwater whilst the titles appear, and also a non-diegetic garage door sound and non-diegetic soft playing instruments are heard as the footage follows the band members practicing their music in a garage, just before the actual song track starts 15 seconds in. From then on, the music track plays throughout the video.

In addition, the music video also shows the introduction footage and most of the featured footage of the 'memory' scenes in the video through slow motion. The slow motion effect prolongs the footage and makes it seem hazy and dream like, which then supports the meaningful lyrics stating ' maybe this is just a dream?' and helps to create a dream-like atmosphere. The slow motion is then contrasted with the pieces of footage showing each band member singing to the camera, which are of normal speed. This helps to show the difference between the past and present footage that is portrayed, and also puts an emphasis on the lyrics that are being sung. Again, to help support the separation between the past and present footage, straight cuts are inserted to clearly show the separation of time. Another editing technique that is used in the footage is a blurred border on some of the shots where the boys are singing directly into the camera. This is used to help focus the camera onto the boys as they sing, and also helps to portray the importance of the lyrics.

Mise en scene is also used throughout the music video, to help set the storyline of the video. The costumes of the band members and cast in the video, include casual black skinny jeans, casual plain or band t-shirts and trainers like Converse or Vans. Their look is also complemented with their own styled hair, and no make-up is used on the boys. The boys' charming looks also make them seem very attractive which also helps to encourage the target audience to watch the video. The costumes worn are the typical clothing items that the band members usually wear, and therefore reflects their own original style of clothing, and also their original style of music. Also, their clothing can also be reflected in the audience, as many tend to wear casual and comfortable clothes, alike the ones seen on the boys in the music video. This can act as personal identity for the audience, as the uses and gratifications theory can be applied here. The locations also used in the music video include the interior of a car garage, where the band members are having band practise, with the different camera shots showing the members playing instruments. A garage is a very typical location that can be used by people on an everyday basis, which reflects the band's normality to the audience, and can again act as personal identity for the audience. Another location that is used includes the interior of a house, more specifically the living room, kitchen and on the stairs. These locations are used for both the 'memory' scenes and the more serious scenes with the band members each singing into the camera. As these locations are very typical and used everyday by people, this again makes the audience relate to the video, and makes them feel in their comfort zone as they are 'at home'. Therefore this makes the audience want to watch the video as it acts as a comfort. This location is also used for most of the serious aspects of the video, which can portray that the band members are becoming more related to the audience, as they are talking directly to the audience, and are in a relatable location when doing so. Therefore personal relationships fromt he uses and gratifications theory can be applied here. More locations used include the interior of a car, in a swimming pool in the back yard of a house and a corner shop. All of these locations are typically used in everyday life, which makes the video look very normal to the audience, and therefore can assume that 5 Seconds of Summer are a band that have come from very normal everyday lives, and are reflecting themselves in their video, as well as making the audience reflected in their video, thus forming personal identity. Throughout the video, the lighting used is high key natural lighting, with the sun mostly being used as the light source and small fairy lights being used for the main decoration. The orange tinted natural light makes the atmosphere of the video seem warm, which again supports the aspect of comfort throughout the video whilst also making the atmosphere happy and upbeat as the colour orange is associated with warmth, positivity and happiness. The use of NVC in the video includes the soft facial expressions seen on the members' faces in the 'memory scenes', like smiling and laughing. These expressions portray happiness and joy, which are reflected in the memories of spending time with friends in the video, and can also be reflected in the audience as the audience members may have encountered similar memories in the past they can relate to. Also, another use of NVC includes straight but slightly upset facial expressions, which are portrayed during the scenes with each band member talking to the camera. This, along with the close ups, talking directly to the camera and blurred border of the frame is a successful way to portray a more serious topic, as the lyrics relate to the seriousness of a break up. Finally, the props that have been used in the video include everyday objects such as bicycles, music instruments, golf equipment, a car, a shopping trolley, food, inflatables, kids' toys, waterguns and a cricket bat. Most of these items were used in the 'memory' scenes to help portray a happy environment, with the boys messing around and spending time with their friends, having a water fight and pushing eachother round in a shopping trolley. Again, these normal everyday objects were used to help portray a normal life, as they are typically used on a daily basis. Plus, it can also reflect the audiences' personal identity, as the audience may have also done similar events in the past, and they can easily relate to the video which again encourages them to watch the video.

Somebody That I Used To Know - Gotye

Artist: Gotye

Song: Somebody That I Used To Know

Genre: Indie Pop

Record Label: Eleven

Release Date: 5th July 2011

Audience: 13 - 30's, both genders

Somebody That I Used To Know is a single made by the Belgian-Australian singer songwriter Gotye, with the New Zealand singer Kimbra being featured. The song is an indie pop, mid-tempo ballad, about a break up, with the lyrics explaining from the man's point of view how a couple have gone from being in a relationship to barely knowing eachother anymore. The music video is a concept music video which features both Gotye and Kimbra, covered in painted geometric shapes of different colours, singing the argumentative lyrics to one another. This music video is stereotypical for an indie pop artist, as most concept music videos are made by indie genre artists, due to their expressive music style and way of portraying their lyrics.

Within the music video, various camera shots and techniques are skillfully used. The music video begins with a close-up of Gotye's left foot, and then the camera tilts upwards following the left side of his naked body until it reaches his face to where it stops and he begins singing. The camera movement is used to show that Gotye does not have clothes on, and is a very strange aspect to have in a music video. However, as the shot shows his bare body, it also links to the lyrics that tell the story of a couple splitting up, and is being portrayed through the absence of clothes, making him feel bare and alone without his partner. He then stops singing and the next shot is a wide shot of the wall situated behind Gotye, with paint being applied to the wall gradually, which then cuts back to a close up of Gotye's face whilst he looks down to the floor, as if he is in despair. The next few camera shots follow the same pattern, cutting from a close up fo Gotye singing, to the background wall having paint applied on it, until the last line of the verse, which is an extreme close up of Gotye's face. This is to put emphasis on the lyrics being sung "But i'll admit that I was glad that it was over", which can be related to the audience, if they have had a similar life experience, which is a form of personal identity to the audience. Next, several different close up shots of various parts of Gotye's body are half in shot, with the background in the remaining half, and the paint still being applied getting closer and closer towards his body, as if enclosing him in a very small space. This could portray another use of personal identity, where people may have felt as if they are being enclosed by emotions from a broken relationship and cannot escape. As Gotye starts to sing the main chorus, the shot changes to a mid-close up of his face, with the background clearly seen behind him. Then the camera changes to a close up of his hip, where the paint from the wall in the background has now found its way onto his arm and begins to colour in his arm. Again, the shot changes back to a close up of Gotye singing, and this pattern occurs another five times, with the paint gradually applied onto more parts of his body, until the shot changes to an extreme close up of Gotye's face, showing his blank and dumbstruck facial expressions, with the paint being gradually applied to his face, and finally covering his whole body. The paint finishes on his face, around his eyes more specifically, as he looks into the camera which makes the audience assume that he is looking directly at them, a form of direct address. As he sings the last line of the chorus, the camera shows a close up of Gotye's face covered in paint, with his green irises contrasting against the colours of the paint, which also makes him look as if he has been crying. Again, this is a normal occurrance from a break up, which is a use of personal identity as the audience could have had the same event happened to them, and feel sympathy towards Gotye in the video. The shot then changes to a mid-close up of Gotye which zooms out from his face to a wide two shot of Kimbra and himself. The camera movement is used here to portray that Kimbra is also featured in the video, and prepares the audience for her solo in the song. The camera then stops zooming out when Kimbra starts her solo, and remains there until she beings to sing the last line of her solo, to where it changes to a tracking mid-close up, two-shot of Kimbra moving closer to Gotye whilst singing. The tracking movement of the camera allows the audience to follow Kimbra, which makes the audience feel more involved with the concept of the video. The tracking stops following Kimbra when she stops moving, and continues to hold the mid-close up two-shot of the singers, which is used to show the connection between the two characters, and also supports the lyrics at this point that state: "Reading into every word you say, you said that you could let it go, and I wouldn't catch you hung up with somebody that you used to know", as if she is shouting at Gotye. This can again act as personal identity, as the audience members may have had a similar encounters with having an argument with another person and could reflect them here. As soon as the chorus starts again, Gotye joins in singing and the camera shot changes to a close up two-shot of these two characters singing to eachother, mimicking an argument. This camera shot has been used here to show their broken relationship, which is reflected in the lyrics and NVC of the two characters arguing with eachother. The shot can also show personal identity, as the audience may have had some similar relationship based arguments before, so they can relate to the music video and can find themselves in a similar situation.

The music video also includes some basic editing techniques, which include straight cuts inbetween each piece of footage. The straight cuts that are used help to separate the video into different sections, and are beneficial into keeping the audience engaged with the video. If straight cuts were not used, then the footage would just be one continuous shot, and will loose the attention of the audience, thus not gaining many views. Another editing technique that is used in the music video is the sue of stop motion animation, in which many frames were taken slightly differently, and then organised together in a sequence to create a stop motion sequence. Within the video, this technique ocurrs multiple times when the paint is being applied to the background, and Gotye and Kimbra's bodies, to make the paint look as if it is being applied itself. The use of stop motion within the video, also makes the section seem fast paced, which helps to engage the audience when watching the video.

Within the video, the sound is the most important aspect, as it is the sound that is being portrayed through the video. From the beginning of the video, the track 'Somebody That I Used To Know' plays throughout the video until the song finishes after approximately four minutes and five seconds. The track 'Somebody That I Used To Know' is played throughout the video, in perfect timing with the video as Gotye and Kimbra are featured lip syncing to the song within the video. The timing of the song with the lip sync is very important as it can make the video look extremely professional when done correctly. If the timing is out of sync by the slightest, the whole video would be out of sync and it would not look as successful or professional. Apart from the soundtrack, there are no other sounds or pieces of music played, which therefore makes it very simple and easy for the audience to understand that the track is the only thing being portrayed.

Finally, Mise-en-Scene has been used throughout the video that is the key element to the video. Atypically, there has been no use of costume, as both characters in the video are featured with no clothes on. This is not very stereotypical for indie-pop genre music videos, but the use of the characters wearing no clothes throughout the video is to portray their vulnerability through the rocky relationship portrayed by these characters. By having no clothes to wear, this shows the audience that they have nothing to hide behind, and are stripped down to the last piece of their relationship, before splitting up. This is also reinforced by the lyrics of the song, which is about breakup and they are speaking their emotions to each other through the lyrics. Personal Identity can be applied here, as break ups are a common event that happens in normal everyday life, to normal everyday people. This can therefore make the audience feel like they are reflected in these characters, which interlinks them more with the characters, and also makes them feel as if they are not the only people to experience these events. In addition, high key lighting is used throughout the video the video, in order for the characters and setting to be seen by the audience. Plus it also shows their honesty, as light connotes honesty, innocence and vulnerability, which are all represented through the characters, lyrics and NVC in the video. The characters that are featured within the video consist of only the singers Gotye and Kimbra, one male and one female. The reason for having only two characters within the video makes it easier for the audience to follow the characters, and also shows a good representation of two people in a relationship. Gotye and Kimbra then make the video appear realistic as they are portraying a broken relationship through singing the meaningful lyrics to each other. Again, this is a reinforcement of Personal Identity, where the audience can be reflected through these characters as of the typical break up events that happen in real life, to ordinary people. Also, Gotye has been featured in the video with no make up on his face, and his hair in a natural style, which has been used to portray his honesty and innocence in the video, as he has nothing to hide behind when playing his role in a break up. Kimbra however has her hair styled neatly in a bob with her fringe covering her eyes, and her make up covers her eyes within the middle of the video. The use of make up and perfectly styled hair can make the audience assume that she has something to hide, as Gotye does not have anything to help cover up his face which could hide his facial expressions or NVC that would portray secrets or lying. Usually in broken relationships, a person will be trying to cover up their face or expressions to get them out of telling the truth about their relationship or their emotions. This then makes the audience assume that Kimbra’s character may have something to hide. NVC has also been used throughout the video, where Gotye is featured singing directly into the camera for most of the video at the beginning. By looking directly into the camera, this can make the audience assume that he is looking directly into the audience, and singing directly to them. This can reinforce Personal Relationships, as the audience thinks that they are forming a relationship bond with Gotye’s character, when he is ‘looking’ directly at them. This then makes the audience feel more involved in the video, and also makes the lyrics appear more important to the audience as they feel more targeted at. Gotye is also featured looking down at his feet for some of the footage, which is a normal occurrence for people to do when admitting something, alike when being in a relationship. Looking down at your feet also symbolizes that a person feels ashamed, embarrassed or confessing for doing something, and this links perfectly with the lyrics being sang at the beginning ‘But that was love and it’s an ache I still remember’, where Gotye looks down at his feet whilst singing this line. Also, between the instrumental from the first verse to the second, the shot cuts back to Gotye looking down at his feet, whilst giving a big sigh. This use of NVC can make the audience assume that he is fed up, ashamed or confessing, as sighing can usually portray these emotions without actually using words to describe. Again, this can also reinforce Personal Identity and also Personal Relationship, as the audience can be reflected in Gotye’s character if they have experienced this emotion before, and also the audience can feel sympathetic towards Gotye’s character, as they have been through past experiences and know what the feeling of guilt is like. This then encourages the audience to keep watching as they feel they are being reflected through the character. NVC is also used in the verse before second chorus and in the second chorus of the video, where Kimbra is now featured singing with Gotye, but her stern facial expressions, leaning towards Gotye and lip syncing make her look as if she is shouting the lyrics at him. These facial expression and body language is retaliated through Gotye’s NVC, as he looks at the camera, and then to the ground with an angrily appalled facial expression, closing his eyes, whilst Kimbra ‘shouts’ at him, as if he is forcing these expressions towards Kimbra. He then begins to sing the chorus of the song with these facial expressions, and then looks directly into the camera again. Surprisingly, he doesn’t turn to look at Kimbra at this point, which shows that he is too ashamed and doesn’t have the courage to look at her through this break up. Throughout the video, we see that paint gets applied to the background of the setting, which then gradually gets applied to the characters in the video. At the beginning of the video, the paint begins with lines that join to form geometric shapes on the walls, acting alike cracks in a wall that grow and grow until they join. The paint then acts as the cracks in the broken relationship between the two characters, showing that their relationship is falling apart. Then as the video progresses, the geometric shapes are gradually filled in with different colour paint. Notice that the colours of the paint are all cold, dull, bland colours of blues, greys, browns and beiges, which again portrays that the relationship of the two characters is bland and dull. As the paint is then gradually applied to the characters in the video, this represents that the relationship is gradually affecting them both negatively, as they are engulfed in dull and bland emotions. However, when Kimbra is featured in the video, many of the colours featured on and around her are green. The colour green connotes emotions such as envy, jealousy and anger, which are all typical emotions felt by people that are in broken relationships, especially if one of the characters has cheated on their partner. Jealousy is also a very common emotion seen in women more than men, which suggests to the audience that Kimbra’s character is jealous of Gotye’s character, as he may have cheated on her due to the heart-break lyrics.

Pompeii - Bastille

Artist: Bastille

Song: Pompeii

Genre: Indie Pop/Indie Rock

Record Label: Virgin

Release Date: 11th October 2013

Audience: 13 - 30's, both genders

The music video begins with a straight cut into the footage of a low angle wide shot of a concrete building with a person standing on the top, in which the camera zooms into the person. From the high angle shot, we assume that the character in the frame is probably the artist, as we, as the audience, are looking up to the character that has more authority and importance than the audience. The shot then cuts straight to a handheld mid shot from behind the person, looking out to the cityscape. This shot puts the audience in the character’s perspective, which makes the audience think that they are close to the character, and have a personal bond with the character. This encourages the audience to keep watching the video, as they want to experience a personal closeness with a famous singer, due to their abnormal and famous lifestyle that is so different to normal everyday life for a person who is not famous. The camera then changes to a handheld mid-close up of Dan singing the lyrics to the song for a few seconds, which then cuts to a stable wide shot of Dan walking towards a set of stairs, and then walking down the stairs, when the shot changes again to the same concept of Dan walking down stairs at a different floor level, a use of match-on-action. This technique happens again as Dan finishes walking down the stairs, and walks off. Using the same types of shots one after the other, it helps to portray a smooth transition between the settings, which makes it easier for the audience to understand the change of setting. The shot then cuts straight to a handheld mid-long shot of Dan opening the door from inside the warehouse, as if to walk outside, before cutting to a series of establishing shots of streets, buildings and other warehouses. The transition of opening the door to the establishing shots help to portray the outdoor locations used in the video. Next, the camera cuts to a tracking long shot of Dan riding a bicycle from the side through the streets, and the use of a tracking shot here allows the audience to follow Dan through the streets, and therefore acts as Surveillance, because the audience feel as if they are following and tracking Dan as he travels from one place to another. This shot then cuts to a wide shot of a street as Dan enters the street on the bicycle, thus showing the audience the location to where Dan is going. Again, this shot is followed with a tracking long shot of Dan on the bicycle, from the side. Then the shot cuts back to a handheld mid-close up of Dan singing along to the lyrics, then back to a front facing handheld wide shot of Dan riding the bicycle down a street and onto a pathway. Again, the shot cuts back to a handheld mid-close up of Dan singing along to the lyrics of the song, and then to a handheld mid-close up of him slowing down and dismantling the bicycle. Then a tracking close up camera shot is used as Dan continues to sing along to the lyrics. The sequence of patterned camera shots allows the audience to follow the character through the video, without getting sidetracked or loosing focus or misunderstanding the concept, another form of Surveillance. The shot is then followed by a tracking handheld mid shot of Dan walking towards the camera, as if to pass it, and then switching to a slightly low angle mid-close up from behind Dan as he opens the door and enters a small café. Again, this use of match-on-action helps to make the footage seem continuous and helps the audience understand the two shots being used together. The next shot is a tracking mid-long shot of Dan standing in a doorway, as if to be looking for something, which then cuts to a handheld close up of Dan singing along to the lyrics, showing his facial expressions as he combs his hand through his hair. Next, the camera cuts to a tracking handheld long-mid shot from behind Dan as he walks over to a cooler to take a drink in the café. The tracking shot follows Dan’s every move, which again allows the audience to follow the character through the video. The camera shot then changes to a tracking handheld mid shot from behind of a woman, who is the owner of the café, as she looks out of the serving hatch to where Dan is standing. This shot has been used here to make the audience seem like they are behind the owner of the café, and are also looking out to see Dan from her perspective. By doing this the audience can feel more involved in the video, as this is a different perspective to Dan’s and makes them experience a different way of looking at the concept. Then, a tracking handheld mid-long shot shows Dan walking from the cooler to the serving hatch with a drink in his hand, wanting to purchase the drink, which then changes back again to the handheld mid shot from behind the woman, but the camera shot is more of an over-the-shoulder shot as Dan can be seen over the woman’s shoulder. The use of an over-the-shoulder shot here has been used to show Dan’s facial expressions with also using the woman in shot too, to show their interaction. From here, the shot changes to a handheld mid-close up of the woman’s face, showing a relaxed facial expression and her eyes, which are completely black. As the eyes of the woman are completely different to normal eyes, a mid-close up has been used here to exaggerate her eyes and make them the centre of attention in this shot. Next, the camera cuts to a tracking handheld long shot of Dan running out of the café from behind, thus making the audience assume that he is running away from the owner of the café, due to her black eyes. This is followed by a match-on-action panning long shot situated outside the café, as Dan opens the door and runs across the street. The shot then changes to a handheld long shot of Dan running down a street, towards the camera, until he reaches the corner of the street where the camera is zoomed in to a handheld mid-close up of Dan running round the corner and away from the camera and a couple kissing. The camera then pans round to the couple kissing, to reveal their black eyes also. The zoomed in camera shot again exaggerates the abnormal black eyes that the other secondary characters have in the video, and makes the audience realise that it is not a normal trait to have black eyes, and assumes that the characters in the video are creepy and weird. Usually, a demonic being would have completely blacked out eyes, which makes sense to why the main character Dan is running away from the people with black eyes. Next, the camera then changes to a handheld mid-close up of Dan singing along to the song, again showing his facial expressions. This then changes to a handheld wide shot of Dan running into an arcade centre, in which a wide shot has been used here as of the new location, otherwise the audience would get confused as they would assume that the location would remain the same if a similar long-mid shot was used. A handheld tracking close up of the back of Dan’s legs and feet are featured next, as he runs through the arcades, which shows the audience that he is running frantically and also keeps the audience following Dan’s character as he runs. Once Dan stops running, he finds two girls playing a game in the arcade, where the shot cuts to a handheld mid-close up of Dan’s face, as he looks past the camera at something that the audience cannot see. His blank expression then makes the situation seem eerie, and therefore makes the audience believe that something is wrong, and also as they cannot see what Dan is looking at, it makes the audience feel worried and anticipated to see what he is looking at. This then makes the audience want to continue watching the video, to see what it is that he is looking at. The shot then cuts to a handheld long shot of the two girls at the arcade machine, with part of Dan’s side in view of the camera, which makes the camera appear as if it is hiding behind Dan. This could suggest to the audience that something bad is going to happen, as they are ‘hiding’ behind the main character. Plus, this also encourages the audience to keep watching the video, as they want to find out what they are hiding from. The next shot reveals the two girls turning round in a handheld mid-two shot, as they have their eyes closed and then slowly open them to reveal they’re completely black. This shot is followed by a tracking handheld long shot from behind Dan as he runs away from the two girls and through the arcade to find the emergency exit at the back of the arcade. As Dan runs though the arcade, the camera tilts from one side to the other, swerving in-between the pool tables, as if the camera is following every move that Dan makes. This then makes the audience believe that they are also following Dan’s footsteps, which makes them want to continue watching as they feel more involved in the video. The next camera shot that is used in the music video is a tracking handheld long-mid shot of Dan as he runs through the back door of the arcade to a cabinet holding various car keys. These two shots are also match-on-action as they show one concept through two different perspectives that match the action that is going on, which flows smoothly together. The camera then switches to a tracking handheld mid shot of Dan dropping his keys and then picking them up again, with the camera following the 180-degree rule as the camera has changed sides from the last shot. The camera then changes back to the previous shot and shows Dan picking up his keys again through the use of a tracking handheld mid shot of his legs and feet. By having the camera at his feet, it makes the shot look more complicated as he is moving his feet and legs more than his body due to him running around. This adds to the intensity of the organic camera movement and therefore adds more intensity onto the audience, as this encourages them to keep watching the video. A handheld long-mid shot follows this shot, as Dan runs through the gate at the back of the arcade, which then cuts to a handheld mid-close up of a man smoking with a beaten up face and his blacked out eyes following Dan’s movement. The mid-close up again shows the eerie eyes and freaks out the audience, but this element of creepiness and alien is escapism for the audience, as these eyes are not normal eyes to everyday people, which makes the audience fascinated by them and makes them want to continue watching the video. Next is a handheld tracking mid shot of Dan as he runs to a lot of parked cars, to try and get into one of them and get away from the black eye demonic people. Again, the shot cuts to a handheld long-mid shot of Dan as he runs to a different car, and cuts again as he runs over to another different car, before changing to a handheld mid shot of him trying to unlock a blue car, before changing to a handheld mid-close up of him getting in the car and driving off. A handheld wide shot then follows as the car pulls out of the alley way it was parked in and drives off. An empty street is shown next in a wide establishing shot, to show the location of where the music video is being made. A steady close up shot is used next, which shows Dan’s face looking around him and the car as he drives away, followed by a mid-close up of his face as he starts singing along to the music again. Next, a handheld wide shot is used to show the car being pulled up into view with Dan hitting the steering wheel, gesturing that the car has run out of fuel. The next camera shot that is used in the music video is a handheld mid close up of Dan sitting in the divers seat of a car, with the camera facing the back of his head, as if in the back seat of the car. This camera shot makes the audience believe that they are in the car with Dan, which acts as Personal Relationship as the audience believe that they have a close bond with the character in the video, through the use of similar camera shots that engage the audience and make them feel involved in the video. The shot then changes to a handheld wide shot of the car as Dan opens the car door, then cuts to a handheld mid-close up of Dan’s face as he sings the lyrics to the song. Next, the camera cuts to a handheld tracking long shot of Dan as he gets out of the car, which then switches to a handheld tracking mid-long shot from behind him slamming the bonnet of the car. The handheld camera movement allows the footage to look more organic and shaky, which makes the footage seem more realistic to the audience when following the main character. A handheld tracking mid-long shot of Dan is next, which shows him in disbelief running his hand through his hair, which then cuts to a handheld close up of Dan’s face looking up whilst singing along to the lyrics of the song. After, the next camera shot used in the video is a handheld wide shot of Dan back in the car, then a handheld mid-close up of Dan as he looks into the rear-view mirror of the car and discovers his eyes slowly turning black alike the other characters’ eyes in the video, through a handheld close up. The close up has been used to exaggerate and show the audience Dan’s eyes as they change colour, which makes the audience feel shocked and worried as they know that he may have the same creepy and eerie eyes as the other characters. Another handheld close up is used to show his reaction, by again running his hand through his hair, which then changes to a handheld close up as Dan gets out of the car. The shot then changes to a handheld wide shot of Dan from the side as he opens the door, grabs his jacket and runs away from the car. These few camera shots all link together in a sequence and are all very short, which makes the whole concept very fast paced, and helps to encourage the audience to keep up with the action and pace of the music video. A hand held wide shot is used next to show Dan from behind, now running away from the camera and into the horizon. This is then changed to a handheld tracking mid shot of Dan walking from left to right, and then to a handheld extreme wide shot of Dan walking towards the camera. Next follows a handheld mid-close up of Dan singing and looking down to the ground, which then changes to a handheld wide shot of a small stream, with Dan walking to the edge of the stream, before stopping and then having the camera shot changing to a handheld mid shot high angle from behind Dan looking down into the stream. This high angle shot has been used here to show that the camera is looking down onto Dan, thus making the audience look down onto him, and therefore taking away his authority and importance from the beginning of the video. A handheld wide shot from the right of the previous shot of the stream is next, with Dan still looking down into it, as if in deep thought. Again, another handheld wide shot high angle shot is used to show Dan from behind walking over some rocks, and again showing that he has lost his authority and importance in the video. This then makes the audience assume that they have the authority as they are at a higher position than Dan. The next camera shot used is a handheld tracking mid shot from behind Dan as he walks away from the camera, followed by the same shot at a wide depth, and again at an extreme wide depth to show the great separation from the character and the camera. The camera then changes to a wide shot of Dan walking away from behind again, as if he is walking away to get away from the attention, and that he may have something to hide. Finally, the last two shots that are used in the video include a handheld long shot of Dan standing on rocks, overlooking a valley. This shot is much alike the first shot of Dan overlooking the cityscape, where he looks down onto the city. This shot then changes to a close up handheld shot from behind Dan, to where he slowly turns around and looks directly into the camera to reveal his completely black filled eyes. This shot has been used to put emphasis on the eyes as they have completely changed, and are alien-like as they are not normal eyes to the audience, and has been used to creep out the audience.

The music video begins with a diegetic sound effect of a howling wind before the actual song track is played. The use of this diegetic soud effect helps to complement the empty atmosphere of the video, and also matches with the wind blowing through Dan's hair in the beginning. The added effect helps to make the video seem more realistic to the audience, which therefore encourages them to watch the video as they believe that this video is similar to real life in which they can relate to. The diegetic sound effect fades out and ends 17 seconds into the music video, which overlaps the beginning of the music track which begins to play just 15 seconds into the video. The song is the main sound that is played throughout the video as it is the main purpose of the video, and it is the song that is being advertised. Once the song has been played through once, it ends after three minutes and 47 seconds, which leaves five seconds left for credits to the record company Virgin Records, before finishing at three minutes 52 seconds.
In addition, the editing techniques that have been used in the video include the basic straight cuts which are continuously used throughout the video, in order to separate the footage into sections. The straight cuts also help to show the audience if the location, shot, character or event has changed, and therefore helps the audience understand the video more, than if straight cuts were not used. Also, the duration of the footage used is relatively short, along with the cut duration which also helps to make the video seem past paced which keeps the audience engaged with the video, wanting to continue watching as of the exciting thrill they receive from watching fast paced videos. Another editing technique that is used includes overlaying text of the music artist's name and song title over the footage. After 11 seconds, the name of the artist Bastille and the name of the song Pompeii appear on the screen as a crossover, in a white coloured sans-serif font which is typically and iconically used on their music as this style of font is easy to recognise and is associated with the band. Also, the editing technique match-on-action has been used within the video, where Dan is featured about to walk down a set of stairs in an old warehouse, which then switches to another shot of him walking down the stairs on a different floor, and again switches to him finishing walking down the stairs and about to walk off on a different floor. The use of having footage from three separate spaces in which the scenes graphically match is a good technique to used to allow smooth continuity from one scene to the next. This again helps the audience understand the movement from one location to the next, without disrupting the continuity and smoothness of the transitions. Another use of editing includes a special effect, in which in post-production, the eyes of the characters in the video have been blacked out. The reason for using special effects to do this is as it is a more inexpensive and quicker option to allow the characters to wear contact lenses. The blacked out eyes also make the video a little bit stranger than a typical music video, which then makes the audience feel strange. However, the creepiness of the blacked out eyes are alien-like to the audience, which makes the video more enjoyable for the audeince as blacked out eyes are not a normal occurance in real life.

Mr Brightside - The Killers

Artist: The Killers

Song: Mr Brightside

Genre: Indie Rock

Record Label: Island

Release Date: September 29th 2003

Audience: 16 - 30's, both genders but primary audience of males & secondary audience of females

Artist: MKTO

Song: Classic

Genre: Pop

Record Label: Columbia

Release Date: June 20th 2013

Audience: 8 - 20's, both genders

Classic - MKTO

Artist: Imagine Dragons

Song: Demons

Genre: Indie Rock

Record Label: KIDinaKORNER,

Interscope

Release Date: January 28th 2013

Audience: teens+, both genders

Demons - Imagine Dragons

Artist: American Authors

Song: Best Day of My Life

Genre: Indie Rock

Record Label: Mercury, Island

Release Date: March 19th 2013

Audience: teens+, both genders

Best Day of my Life - American Authors

In this music video for The Killers’ song, Mr Brightside, it opens up with a fade in from black to a handheld wide shot of the band, in sync with the beginning of the track for Mr Brightside. The band are formally dressed in tuxedos, surrounded by instruments as if they are about to play their song at a formal event. This gives a small insight to the storyline of the video, and also makes the audience assume that the band in the video are the artists of the song that is going to be played in the video.

Next, the camera cuts straight to another handheld wide shot of a large group of men and women seated as if to watch a performance. The characters are all dressed formally alike the band, with the men in formal black and white tuxedoes, but the women are dressed in extravagant dresses and their hair and make-up made to look doll-like. Their doll-like appearances help to exaggerate their features and make them seem prettier, which therefore increases their sexualisation towards the men. The use of female sexualisation can be supported through Laura Mulvey’s theory on which women are seen as ‘erotic objects’ through the eyes of heterosexual males. The theory is also supported through the use of focusing on one specific girl, with the use of a close-up camera shot on her face, as she plays with her dyed and backcombed hair with a clueless facial expression spread across her face.

The footage then cuts many times between The Killers performing and the women who are flirting around with the men, with the timing of the cuts being fast paced in order to keep the audience entertained and helps them to remain watching the video. The camera also cuts between the main singer from The Killers and the main female, with the characters’ NVC looking slightly off camera, as if to be looking at each other. This gives the insight to the audience that these two characters are interested in one another, and have a forbidden love. This forbidden love is also represented through a red apple being thrown to the girl by another male who wants the girl for his own. The apple signifies the ‘forbidden fruit’ and therefore portrays that the love between the main singer and the main female is forbidden. Through handheld, tracking long shots, the women put on performances for the men, in which they dance and lift their skirts up for the men’s enjoyment, which again supports the Laura Mulvey’s theory. Close-up reaction shots have therefore been used to show the reactions of the men who are watching the females, and again supports the fact that women are sexualised by males.

Other uses of editing within the video includes special effects as the main singer and the main female are standing on a balcony together, as fireworks and stars appear to surround them. The fireworks have been included to show the connection between the two characters, but as the girl runs away, match-on-action is used to show the girl running towards another man in a different shot, as if she had been called by the man for her attention. Again, the fast paced cuts between the lead singer and main female help to show their connection, as they look past the camera which makes us assume that they are looking at each other.

The next shots include two-shots of the main singer and main female interacting and talking to each other, which is separated by other two-shots and close-ups of the same female with other men, dancing, talking and flirting. Reaction shots are again used to show the reaction of the main singer as he realises that she is being sexually used by other men. These shots continue in a pattern, of close-ups of the female, close-up reactions shots of the main singer, and two-shots of the female with other men, in which the shots are quickly cut. The shots then cut back to the tracking close-ups and mid shots of the band, and then cuts to the women who begin dancing and flirting with the men again.

The next shot is a two-shot of the main singer from The Killers and the other man who wants to own the main girl, and are playing draughts together. Along with this footage, another piece of footage of the main girl dancing is edited in to overlay over the top. These two pieces of footage together makes us assume that whoever wins the game of draughts, wins the female, which again supports Laura Mulvey’s theory on seeing females as objects sexualised by males. The concept is also supported through close-ups of the male’s faces, and cuts to footage of the girl dancing. Once the man realises he has won, the lead singer flips over the table in which they were playing, with an angry and frustrated expression on his face.

Lastly, the music video concludes with the main female and main singer dancing around together and caressing each other, which switches in-between the band playing and ends with a long-two shot of the main singer and the main girl sitting on chairs, when the main singer gets up and walks away from the girl who is still sat down. The shot fades to black and the song ends.

This music video begins with a close-up camera shot of a female dressed in a white formal dress with matching accessories and formal hair and make-up in front of a purple curtain background. She looks to the camera as the shot cuts quickly to a mid-shot of the same girl as she begins to mime along to a male voice, before the camera again quickly cuts back to a close-up as camera flashes beam down to the girls face. The camera then cuts to a handheld close-up of two hands doing a handshake, which continues in a two-shot long-mid shot of two males. The males are dressed formally in tuxedoes and look clean cut as they have positive NVC such as smiling and laughing, and are standing in front of a black curtain as blue spotlights shine down to help illuminate them. The shots then repeat from a two-shot long-mid shot to a close-up of one of the males as he looks to the camera, with the use of a close-up exaggerating the male’s facial expressions as he looks into the camera, thus looking directly into the audience. This gives the audience a sense of direct address, as the attractive male is directing straight at the audience, making them feel more involved within the video. Again the shot cuts to a two-shot long-mid shot of the two men and then back to a close-up as the male on the left begins to sing along to the track, thus making the audience focus on this person as he is important whilst singing.

Next, the shot cuts to a handheld long-two shot of the men walking down a corridor in their suits, as a backlight is positioned behind them. The footage has also been slowed down to a slower pace as they walk down the corridor. The use of slow motion makes the footage elongate which makes it appear classier. Along with the clean cut suits, the footage has similar characteristics to successful Hollywood action films such as James Bond. This intertextuality can help the audience realise that the music video will be of a good quality as of the likeness of existing and successful films. Again this assumption is supported as they walk through a door and a girl wearing a party dress with her hair and make-up making her look classy and beautiful, linking perfectly to the name of the song and also linking to most females in successful action films who are glamorous and beautiful.

The footage then cuts back to a handheld close-up of one of the males who is singing along to the song, before switching to a two-shot long-mid shot of the two males and then cutting to a mid-shot from behind the two males as they follow the girl who was present in the past shot. Again this shot is filmed in slow motion to make the footage elongate and also makes the audience assume that the characters are classy alike the existing characters in other successful films. The shot then cuts to a mid-shot from in front of the girl as she walks, where the males’ facial expressions can be seen in the back. Their NVC shows the males smiling and shaking hands, as if to gesture that they have caught the attention of the female.

The shot then cuts back to the two men singing, when again the shot cuts to a roulette table with glasses, cards and chips, which is again in slow motion. These objects in the frame support the intertextuality of films such as James Bond, where roulette is a popular event. The shot again changes back to a mid-shot of the men following the girl into the room to where other young people are playing roulette. After cutting back to one of the males singing, the shot cuts to a mid-shot of one of the males following the girl as they walk into the room. This is then followed by a long shot of the roulette table and the other male following the others as they walk through the room. AS they do so, the shot cuts to a mid-close up of a woman in a party dress holding a glass, as she looks past the camera as if to be looking at the males who have just entered the room.

Again, the shots cut to various close-ups and mid-shots of the men singing, and then cuts to a slow motion long-mid shot where the men are both being seated at a table. The use of slow motion in this piece of footage is also used here to separate the times in which the pieces of footage were shot, therefore the normal paced footage is in the present, and the slow paced footage is in the past as the past is reflected in a slow way.

Again, the shot then cuts to the men singing and then cuts to some young people dressed in formal clothing such as suits and dresses, all smiling and holding up money which makes the audience assume that they are playing roulette. This is also a very common event for young adults to do, which again adds to the stereotypes of youth. However, it also adds to the negative stereotype that young adults are ruthless and are not responsible, as they are seen spending copious amounts of money. Other shots that complement this are other mid-close ups showing young people shouting, holding up drinks and playing cards. The shots the cut between the singing males and roulette shots, before changing the singing shots to a close-up of a silhouette of one of the males, from side on and a backlight behind the figure as he sings into the microphone. The blue lighting suggests that the position in time is present, whereas the lighting used in the roulette scenes has an orange tint which suggests that it is situated in the past.

Around one minute into the video, the main singer appears in a handheld close-up two-shot in the roulette scenes, holding the hand of a girl and singing along to her. This shot is broken up between the shot of the two men singing, which then cuts back to him singing to the girl. The different positioned shots allow the scene to be seen from different perspectives, allowing the audience to feel more included in the video.

The video for Demons by Imagine Dragons is a performance and narrative based music video, and begins with a handheld wide shot of a man on stage which is taken from the crowd’s point of view. The blue lights suddenly light up the stage along with a diegetic sound effect to complement the lights being turned on, as well as the diegetic sound of an audience cheer. These sound effects adds realism of the performance and makes the experience of the concert seem real to the audience. As this shot is also taken from the crowd’s point of view, it makes the audience of the music video believe that they are also in the crowd at this gig, which is a use of direct address to the audience. This then encourages the audience to get involved in the video, and makes them want to watch more, as they feel important and a part of the video. Low key lighting is also used within this shot, where blue spotlights are the only light source which illuminates the stage and the crowd’s faces. The use of a blue light connotes a calm atmosphere, which therefore portrays to the audience that the band Imagine Dragons are a pure and ‘original’ band that can be easily enjoyed and listened to.

Another shot that is used in the video includes a wide shot of the crowd from the singer’s point of view who is on stage. This wide shot used helps the audience feel as if they are on the stage looking out to the crowd, which is a surreal experience for most normal everyday people to have. This then makes the audience feel more involved in the video, as they get the experience that the singer has on stage, and encourages them to continue watching the video. From this shot, the crowd members’ faces can also be seen from the blue artificial light, which show young adults of both males and females. By seeing the crowd at the gig, this makes the audience realise that the crowd are of a similar age to them, and therefore gives them personal identity, as they are reflected in the crowd.

Also, close-ups are used to portray the lead singer as he sings along to the song, which show the singer’s facial expressions as he sings. His NVC includes closed eyes, hands on the microphone and slowly moving his head from side to side, which are usual ways of singing with passion. This then portrays to the audience that this band are very passionate about their music, and therefore makes the audience want to listen to their music. The blue spotlight that beams down onto the singer helps to illuminate his face, whilst moving slightly and gives a similar movement to how light moves under the ocean surface. This can portray to the audience that the mood is alike this atmosphere, which is portrayed as calm, peaceful and tranquil, and therefore shows this to the audience, in order for the audience to assume that the band’s music and personalities have similar qualities. From the close-ups, the costume that is being worn by the lead singer can be partially seen, and includes a plain t-shirt and jeans. The costume being worn is very casual and basic, which is very similar to what everyday people wear and most probably what the audience would wear on a day to day basis. Therefore, the costume being worn is a form of personal identity as the audience can relate to the costume being worn on stage, and also makes the audience think that Imagine Dragons are as normal as them.

Some of the other camerawork that is used includes handheld close-ups of the band’s face and instruments that are on stage. The use of close-ups here are used to emphasise the band’s facial expressions and to emphasise how organic the band are, with the fact that they play their own instruments and are not a “construction” alike most other bands that do not play their own instruments. This is more appealing to the audience, and therefore encourages them to carry on watching the video. Plus, the use of slow-motion for these shots emphasise the shots even more, and also makes the suspense of the gig build whilst the slow-motion makes the gig appear dream-like again.

The music video also includes narrative based sections, in which the camera zooms into an extreme close-up of the eyes and nose of one girl in the crowd, to where it fades into another extreme close-up of the same layout but at a different location. The transition between both shots shows the audience that we are entering the girl’s eyes to what she has seen, and the lyrics also complement this, as the words “I wanna hide the truth, I wanna shelter you, but with the beast inside, there’s nowhere we can hide” describe that she is hiding away a secret. The audience then discover that the girl is sitting on a bench indoors, dressed in black. The shot then cuts to a mid-shot from behind the girl who is now staring at a coffin with a large picture frame of an old couple, which the audience may assume to be her parents. The room is filled with candles and the lighting of the room is dim, which suggests that she is upset as we associate light with happiness. This then relates to the secret that the girl was hiding, which was the death of a family member. This event can also pose as personal identity as the audience may have had a similar event happen in their life, and also makes the audience feel empathy for the girl’s character. Again, this also helps the audience remain interested in the video and carry on watching the music video. Similar narrative events also happen to other people of the crowd within the music video, where the camera zooms into the eyes of a male who is looking at himself in the mirror, observing his incredibly skinny body. His face also shows sadness, which makes the audience sympathise and empathise for him. Another similar story within the video is where the camera again zooms into the eyes of another male with a bruised eye as he is abused by his father, again in order for the audience to empathise and sympathise for the character.

Once the music video has finished, an extra is added onto the end, which dedicates the video to a cancer patient who sadly lost his life battling the disease. It also shows a video of the patient whilst still alive, as he attended an Imagine Dragons concert and sang with the main singer during their performance. The video is very heart-warming as the singer and the patient are both smiling, making this moment memorable for the patient, named Tyler. Whilst the video plays, text underneath the video portrays a note stating the audience should consider donating to the Tyler Robinson Foundation. This has a very powerful impact on the audience as they take Tyler’s story to heart and it makes them want to help by donating to the charity. It also helps give this video and Imagine Dragons a good representation, as they are of good will and are supporting charities to help others. This also encourages the audience to watch more music videos from Imagine Dragons, and to become a fan of theirs as of their work and support.

Welcome To the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance

Artist: My Chemical Romance

Song: Welcome To the Black Parade

Genre: Alternative Rock/Emo/Pop Punk/Post-Hardcore

Record Label: Reprise/Warner Brothers/Eyeball

Release Date: October 9th 2006

Audience: teens+, both genders but mainly males

Yellow - Coldplay

Artist: Coldplay

Song: Yellow

Genre: Alternative Rock

Record Label: Parlophone

Release Date: June 26th 2000

Audience: teens+, both genders

The music video for My Chemical Romance’s single called Welcome to the Black Parade, is a performance & narrative based video. The video begins straight away with the track and enters in with a circle-in editing transition from black to some footage of a wide shot which shows a male in a hospital bed and a nurse in uniform holding his hand. Behind the characters are medical machinery and equipment. The wide shot used here allows us to see everything in shot in order for us to understand what is going on in the shot. From the use of props and characters, the audience believe that they have entered a hospital room and are witnessing an ill male in his last few moments. High key lighting that flickers constantly has also been used in this shot to make the locations of the hospital seem more realistic, which therefore makes it more realistic to the audience. The shot then straight cuts to a TV with a different male’s facial features taking up the whole screen in black and white, which then begins to mime along to the song. This makes the audience assume that the face on the screen belongs to the lead singer of the music artist.

Another camera technique that has been frequently used within the video is an extreme close-up which has been used on the male patient in the hospital bed. An extreme close-up has been used in these pieces of footage to show the male’s NVC and facial expressions, which include a closed mouth and big eyes as he looks up towards the TV. This gives the audience the assumption that he feels very vulnerable and afraid as he knows that he is on the brink of death. This is also makes the audience feel sympathy and empathy for the male, as they may have been in a similar situation where they have felt vulnerable, and therefore encourages them to continue watching as they are being reflected in the video. The shots of the male in the hospital bed and the shots of the TV screen alternate to show that the male is constantly watching the TV as he slowly dies, until the footage circles in to his face which shows that he’s fading away, and then circles in and out rapidly as the man is struggling and makes facial expressions to show pain as his eyes are covered in black. The man then reaches upwards as if pointing to ‘Heaven’ which again shows that he is dying.

The next shot cuts and focuses into a slow-motion mid-shot of a crowd of people who are dressed in a monochromatic theme and are wearing masks and creepy-looking outfits. The costume used in this shot portrays darkness and death which shows that the male in the previous footage has probably died and is going to reappear in this setting. This shot then cuts to a high angle wide shot of a band who are also dressed in black and white costume and are performing on a parade style float, whilst the people in the previous shot are slowly following the float, alike a parade going through the streets. The shot then straight cuts to a location shot, which shows the float at the top of a road, with piles of debris on either side of the road. Also, a black and white filter has been applied over the top of the footage to make it appear death-like, which corresponds with the dark costume and story plot of a man at his deathbed. However, the filter has also allowed the colour red to show through, which makes the audience assume that the colour corresponds with blood which is associated with death.

The shots then cut between the performance shots of the band on the float, with various close-ups and mid-shots of the main singer, the band members and the people following behind the float. Some of the shots including mid-shots of the band singing are out of focus to which they are very shakily focused into a clear image, then out of focus then in focus again. The use of changing the focus of the shot is similar to the behaviour of a person’s eyes if they are dizzy, fainting or dying. This then links to the male in the hospital bed, as the audience can assume that the shaky, out of focus footage is portraying the male’s death. However, as it is the audience that can see the camera technique, they can then experience the effect of their eyes being in focus and then not, which then makes them believe that they are in the same position as the man in the hospital bed. As this is an experience near death, this is not natural for the audience and therefore encourages them to continue watching as they are experiencing events that they have never had before. Some of the shaky focus shots are also complemented with the use of slow motion, which again makes the experience of losing focus more realistic and frightening, thus making it more enjoyable for the audience. In addition, the shots are also cut between the narrative shots of the male in the hospital bed. This again links to the unforeseen events that the man in the bed in near his death, and therefore ensures the audience clearly understand the links between the two.

The music video for Coldplay’s song Yellow begins with the track being instantly played as the footage fades in from black into an establishing shot of the sea from the beach. The use of an establishing shot from a fade in from black transition helps to make the audience understand where the first initial shot is being located, and as the audience can see, the shot portrays the ocean from the point of view of someone who is standing on the beach. The shot also makes the audience believe that they are there at the location and are looking out to the sea, which makes them feel more involved within the video, and encourages them to continue watching the video. The video is also in slow motion, which makes the sea look calming and tranquil. This then corresponds with the artist Coldplay, as their music is very calm and peaceful and helps to complement and promote their style of music through the video.

As the drums and guitars begin, the camera continues the shot before slowly panning to the left, and reveals a night sky, stars and a man walking on the beach, as if to be walking directly to the camera. The shot has been used to also portray the starry night in the background to again complement Coldplay’s signature calming music styles, and also helps the audience to view the character who has just appeared in the shot. He is pictured wearing waterproof clothing and boots, and removes the hood of the jacket from his head. These are very casual pieces of clothing and by wearing the casual costume, the audience can then relate to the character, as they may have similar clothing themselves. This can therefore act as personal identity as the audience will be able to feel reflected through this character and the clothing, and therefore encourages the audience to continue watching the video as they want to feel involved in the video.

The shot continues still, until the man is in a mid-shot view in the frame to where lyrics are being sang in the track and the male begins to sing along to the track. The camera then tracks the male as he continues to walk towards the camera. The tracking shot that is used helps the audience to keep up with the male character as he sings while he walks forwards, and also helps to portray the male’s facial expressions and NVC. The male is also constantly looking into the camera whilst he sings, which also enables the audience to believe that the male is singing directly to them and communicating to them. This then forms direct address to the audience, which therefore encourages the audience to continue watching the music video, as they want to have the experience with being involved in the video and have a personal interaction with the character in the video.

The shot continues with the male singing along to the lyrics of the song, whilst the camera tracks backwards to make the male continue walking towards the camera and the sky gradually becomes lighter due to the passing of time, until 1:52 to which the male slowly stops walking towards the camera whilst the camera continues to track backwards. This section of the music has no words in, which is why the male stops walking and singing. The use of a continuous shot throughout the video has been used to make the audience easily understand the whole concept of the video, and enables the audience to understand the lyrics even more. The band Coldplay are a band who use lyrics to tell stories and portray emotions, which are more important to them than the actual style of the video. The male also looks around him whilst he has stopped walking, as if observing the landscape and his surroundings whilst the instrumental of the track is playing. A few seconds before the singing begins, the male runs up to the camera to form a mid-close up before singing along to the next part of the song at 2:14.

The same shot continues again, with a mid-close up of the male as he sings into the camera, whilst walking along the beach in slow motion, until 4:12 where the male beings to slow down and prepares to sing the last line of the song. The camera continues to slowly track backwards whilst the male slows down and eventually stops as the song ends and the camera leaves him in a long shot. He slowly turns his head to the sea and then walks off to the left and out of the frame, as the camera slowly pans to the right to see the sun rising on the horizon of the sea before slowly fading to black again. The minimalistic use of camera shots and techniques makes the whole video seem simplistic but also encourages the audience to focus on the male singing the lyrics to the song. Also, the end of the video fades into black which is a similar editing transition to the one used at the beginning of the video. This makes the whole music video appear more professional and clean cut, and portrays to the audience that as a similar transition and frame was used at the beginning, this must mean that the transition and footage at 4:30 marks the end of the video.

This music video for Vance Joy’s song Riptide begins with the track being played instantly, and the camera pointing into the sky. The camera then slowly tilts downward as some text appears at the bottom of the screen, stating that some of the features in the video are copyrighted. The shot then cuts straight to a close up of a woman lying in a dentist chair with dental equipment placed in her mouth. The use of a straight cut has been used to separate the two different pieces of footage, and helps the audience understand that a new piece of footage is being used. The young woman has a scared and worried expression on her face as she looks around the room. Her NVC makes the audience believe she is scared of dentists, and therefore promotes a form of personal identity to the audience, as some people also have a fear of going to the dentist. Due to the personal identity, the audience also feel sympathetic towards the woman as she is in a similar position to what the audience do not like to be in. To also support the footage on screen, the lyrics to the song say, “I was scared of dentists”. The lyrics complement the footage, and help the audience fully understand the video. The music video also provides visual communication to the audience, as well as audible communication through the song. The shot then goes black after the light source moves away from the woman’s face, which leads into the next shot.

A low, canted angle of a swinging and flickering light on a ceiling slowly dollies out, as the lyrics to the song say, “and the dark”. The use of a low angle here makes the audience believe that they are looking up towards the light, as if the light is much more important to them when they are in darkness. The canted angle also adds a more eerie and strange atmosphere as the light seems distorted and unnatural, which are some of the features of being stuck in the dark. In addition, the light is also swinging which makes the audience assume that the atmosphere is unnatural, as a light is inanimate object and should not move freely. The shot then fades to black, as if the unknown and eerie atmosphere has fully engulfed the shot, making the audience again feel uneasy, and also provides a form of diversion, as eerie and unnatural events do not happen in everyday life.

The next shot shows a long-mid shot that slowly zooms in to a woman from behind, who is undressing on the beach. The long to mid shot has been used in order for the audience to see the woman’s NVC and the lyrics that accompany this piece of footage are “I was scared of pretty girls”. The lyrics and footage together also form personal identity, as the audience (and most probably males) would also be ‘scared of pretty girls’. This section of the video can also link to Laura Mulvey’s theory, as she quotes that ‘women are seen as erotic objects from a heterosexual male’s perspective’, and the female in this scene is taking off her clothes, which is attractive and interesting for the typical heterosexual male. However, some people disagree with Mulvey’s theory, such as Richard Dyer, who says that the ‘gaze is not always male’. This shot is then followed by a shot of a hand that pushes a book on a table, into the view of the camera. The hand belongs to a woman, and the book states on the cover ‘Techniques of Photographing Girls’, which again links to the lyrics “and starting conversations. Again this technique has been used to make clear links between the song and the video, to ensure that the audience can understand what the lyrics are trying to show.

This shot is then followed by a handheld, two-shot, mid-close up of a male and female having a conversation, which again links to the lyrics from the previous frame. The male’s NVC also shows that he is slightly moving up and down, which could show that he is nervous when talking to the female, as most people jitter and move about when nervous or in an uncomfortable situation. The audience could then also feel as if they are being reflected in the footage, as the form of personal identity is being portrayed through the use of the male’s NVC. The male and female are both wearing summer clothes and a tall building can be seen in the background. The lyrics ‘All my friends are turning...’ then follows as the two people are seen quickly turning their heads towards the camera, again complementing the lyrics. The shot is straight cut to a close up of a pile of one-dollar notes, which slowly zooms in slightly. The lyrics that are present in this shot are ‘…green.’ which is also represented through the colour of the money, which is green.

The shot then cuts straight to the sky, where a pair of hands comes into frame from the right hand side. The hands and fingers then move, as if to be performing something, in which the frame then straight cuts to the same shot but a playing card is now placed in one of the hands. The use of a straight cut here has been used to cleverly make it seem as if the hands are magic, and a playing card has appeared out of nowhere. These two shots are complemented by the lyrics again, as the lyrics say, “You’re the magician’s assistant…” again making the song more understandable for the audience. The shot then quickly pans to the left, to view a different female from a low angle mid shot, showing the woman holding her hands to the sky, and the lyrics continuing with “…dreams.”

Next, the shot follows with a straight cut to a handheld mid-long shot of a woman holding a torch and walking around a graveyard in the dark. The woman is dressed in a very beautiful long fur coat, which makes her look of high status and expensive, which is completely contrasted with what she is actually doing. The lady’s NVC shows a worried look on her face as she moves her head around as if looking for something or trying to find a pathway, which could mean she is lost. As her face shows that she is concerned and worried, this makes the audience feel anxious, as they also do not know what is going on. As she looks to the left, she moves her hand as if to encourage something to come over or towards her. Once this gesture has been made, the camera then quickly pans to the left to show a male and a female who appear as if they are also looking for something or are lost. They are too holding a lit torch, and turn around in unison as if to be looking at the woman. But as the camera quickly pans back to the right, the woman who was once there, has now disappeared, which is very eerie and unnatural, which could suggest that she has ran off or been kidnapped.

As these events in the video are not common to our everyday life, this promotes diversion to the audience, as they are experiencing something that is not normal to them, and is a form of escapism from their day-to-day lives. To also complement this piece of footage, the track sings “ooh” over the top of the footage, which is a similar sound to the howling of a dog or wolf. This could then interlink with the footage, and once paired together, makes the audience assume that a wolf may have taken the woman who has disappeared. This again makes the audience want to continue watching the video, as they get enjoyment from watching something that is completely different to their normal lives, as they can experience unnatural events as a form of escapism.

The shot then pans quickly again to the left, but changes to a different shot. This next shot is of a mid-shot of a woman who is bound to a tree with rope, where she struggles to remove the rope from herself and run away. She does this with a fast pace and her body language suggests that she is worried and scared, and wants to break free as quickly as possible. By seeing the woman trying to break away makes the audience feel anxious and distressed, as they want her to break away and get away from whatever she is trying to outrun. This keeps the audience hooked into the music video, as they want to keep watching and enjoy watching the video. Also, whilst the footage is being played, the track is also played over the top, in which the song says “and they come unstuck”. This again links to what is being portrayed on screen, as the woman is getting ‘unstuck’ by freeing herself from the ropes.

Throughout the rest of the music video, the footage continues to complement the track for Riptide by using imagery and events such as a woman running when the lyrics say "lady, running down to the", and then some footage of a riptide, when the lyrics sing "riptide". By using imagery and footage to complement the song, it makes the song much easier to understand and visualise for the audience.

Artist: Vance Joy

Song: Riptide

Genre: Indie Folk/ Indie Pop

Record Label: Liberation, Infectious, Atlantic

Release Date: May 21st 2013

Audience: teens+, both genders

Riptide - Vance Joy

Song 2 - Blur

Artist: Blur

Song: Song 2

Genre: Alternative Rock, Grunge

Record Label: Food

Release Date: 7th April 1997

Audience: 17+, both genders but mainly males

The Last Time - Taylor Swift ft Gary Lightbody

Artist: Taylor Swift ft Gary Lightbody

Song: The Last Time

Genre: Alternative Rock, Folk Rock

Record Label: Big Machine

Release Date: November 4, 2013

Audience: teens+, both genders, mainly females

The music video for Song 2 by Blur begins with a straight cut to a wide shot of a drummer sitting at a drum kit, located in a room with wallpaper and carpet which may be a living room of some sort. After a second, the track begins to play and the drummer plays along to the drums in the track. The use of a straight cut to open the footage makes the audience understand that the footage starts straight away. The wide shot has also been used in order for everything in the shot to be seen, which would then be seen by the audience. Some of the key objects in this frame include the wallpaper, drum kit and amplifier, which help the audience to understand the concept of the video and assume what the video is going to be about. As some of the objects in the video are typical everyday objects, this makes the audience relate to the video as they may own similar objects, which then forms personal identity. The drummer is also featured wearing very casual clothing such as a t-shirt, jeans and trainers, and appears very natural. As the drummer is seen wearing a casual costume, this creates a form of personal identity, to which the audience can relate to the person as they may dress in similar clothing. The use of casual clothing also makes the video appear less formal and more inviting, as it makes the video appear more laid back and comfortable for the audience to view, thus making them want to continue watching the video.

In addition, several uses of close-ups and mid-shots have been repetitively used throughout the whole video, including mid-close ups of the lead singer who is holding a microphone, singing and looking directly into the camera. The use of a close-up here has been used to show the main singer’s face in the frame, and also helps to portray the person’s facial expressions, to which he is looking sternly into the camera as if directing the song and lyrics directly into the audience. This then creates a form of direct address, as the singer is directly singing to the audience. Therefore, the audience’s reaction is to assume that they are playing an important role in the video, and are communicating to the singer, which makes them want to continue watching as they want to be involved within the music video. Other uses of similar camerawork includes straight cuts to a mid-shot of the lead guitarist, with the band in the background of the shot. The mid-shot has been used for this piece of footage as the guitarist is featured jumping up and down in time to the beat of the music, and therefore the shot enables the audience to view the lead guitarist and his body language as he jumps around. The body language of the guitarist and band portray passion but also recklessness as they jump about without any care to what they are doing or what they could possibly break. They also stumble around which can be seen through the mid-shots, similar to the movement of someone who has been drinking and is disorientated. This behaviour and NVC helps to portray Blur’s rocky and expressive music styles to the audience, to make it easier for them to fully understand the band’s music style. It also allows the audience to see the rest of the band behind along with the other objects such as the drum kit and amplifier.

Furthermore, different editing techniques also help to convey the music video. For example, long shots have been used when the band have been forced backwards into the wall due to the intensity of their music. The shot is also accompanied by different speeds, with slow motion and fast paced editing to change the speed of the footage, and also the rotation of the frame has changed for certain pieces of footage. In one shot, the main singer has been thrown backwards into a wall in slow-motion and the entire frame has been rotated 90 degrees clockwise. Due to the rotation and different speed of footage, this makes the footage appear unnatural and weird to the audience. However, as the footage is like this, it makes the audience feel disorientated which again links to the point that the band’s movement is similar to someone who has been drinking. Again, this helps to portray the band’s music style and also gives the idea that people can get ‘drunk’ from their music. The same applies to the footage of a similar shot of the main singer who is thrown into the wall, where the footage is this time sped up and the footage has rotated 90 degrees anticlockwise.

Also, the music video includes different uses of light to help convey the track. For example, in the beginning of the video, the lighting used is low key as a small lamp is placed on an amplifier in the background behind the band. The use of low key lighting helps to evoke a darker and moody atmosphere than if high key lighting was used. The use of low key lighting also helps to support the rocky alternative style of music that Blur create, as darker colours connote danger, mystery and strength. As the video progresses, the track comes up to the chorus and the band members jump around to the beat of the song. Along with this, the lighting changes as the lights flicker on and off as the music intensifies. The effect that the flickering lights have in the audience is intense and supports the connotations of low key lighting even more, as the flickering lights make the atmosphere appear darker and more dangerous. As we cannot see without light, it makes us scared and nervous as we do not know what may be there, and as the use of light is absent for short amounts of time, it emphasises the emotions felt by the audience. We associate darkness with death and danger, which are elements that are not featured in everyday life, and therefore poses as diversion for the audience, as they are experiencing events that do not usually happen which forms escapism from the audience’s real lives. This is then enjoyable to the audience and encourages them to continue watching the video.

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