1. Nile Williams
Media Studies Essay
I will be writing a report on Planet Earth; all I have is a video: Jay-z
featuring Alicia Keys – Empire State of Mind and I will have to analyse
the video in detail.
First of all, the low angle shot of Jay-z and the Empire State of Building
shows that maybe there is something every human being looks up to;
judging by the fact Jay-z’s looking out at the city and we’re viewing this
from the low angle shot shows inferiority. This leads me to believe every
human idolises something or somebody.
Also, the position of Jay-z in this photo makes it so we can only see one
side of his face. This has connotations of a two-faced nature? There’s a
side that’s evil and a side that’s good. Most of the light is shining on his
face which shows me that he chooses to act on the lighter side of his
nature.
Also, the female in this video, Alicia Keys, is wearing a lot of jewellery and
fashionable items. This could show everyone on Planet Earth is rich and
maybe they all live glamorous lives; there are loads of other shots of
glamorous, beautiful women in the video.
Thirdly, the bird’s eye view of the city at the end of the video shows a
vast selection of places to see and to visit. It leads me to believe the
“Big Apple” is my playground, I can achieve anything I want in the city; I
own the city, in a sense.
Finally, the black and white part of the video could resemble equality on
the Planet, everyone’s equal – nobody gets treated differently because of
their race or skin colour or at least that’s what they strive for.
