Media Coursework

1. QUESTION 1.
IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT USE,
DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE FORMS AND
CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA PRODUCTS?

2. INTRODUCTION
My music video comes under the genre of Pop, which has many
generic conventions depending on the type of artist. Female pop
singers usually have upbeat, feel good songs with music videos that
portray those forms. Conventionally the video contains the artist
herself performing, dancing and having a good time along with
glamorous props, unique locations, costumes and makeup.
Selena Gomez – Hands to
Myself
Louisa Johnson – So Good Katy Perry – Chained to
the Rhythm

3. USE OF CONVENTIONS
• Close up camera shots.
In pop music videos, one major generic convention is close up camera shots of the artist. This firstly,
shows the audience who the artist is because they’re essentially buying into their brand. Secondly,
close up shots give the sense of intimacy and shows off the artist’s face, makeup, hair etc. The
singer is selling their voice as a brand and therefore themselves along with it so they have to use
themselves to promote their products. Female pop singers are usually very attractive and
aesthetically pleasing which they use in order to attract audiences.
I have used this convention of close
up camera shots in my product in
order to sell MØ as the artist. The
audience have to know who she is
and what she looks like in order to
relate to her and actually like her.
The convention also brings variety to
the music video against the long shots
where there is a lot going on in the
background with locations and smoke
grenades etc.
This close up shows the
artist with a cute little smile
portraying the fun, youthful
side of the artist.
This close up shows the
artist in the dark moody
dance studio where the
audience see a more edgy,
mysterious side to the
artist.

4. USE OF CONVENTIONS
• Close up Camera Shots from Existing Pop Music Videos
Dua Lipa –
Hotter than
Hell
Rihanna –
What’s My
Name
Meghan
Trainer –
Lips Are
Movin
Ariana Grande – Side to Side
Selena Gomez – Same Old Love
MØ - Drum
Hailee Steinfeld, StarvingZara Larsson – Ain’t My Fault
Anne-Marie – Caoi Adios

5. USE OF CONVENTIONS
• Locations from Existing Pop Music Videos
For music videos nowadays artists have to find new and unique locations in order to be different
and stand out amongst other artists. However, a popular location choice is in a forest. This could
potentially be a generic convention of pop music videos because the artist is the main focus as
they stand out against the mysterious forest and it helps to enhance the narrative being told.
Gnash – I hate u, I love u
Dua Lipa, Last Dance
Taylor Swift – Safe and Sound
Katy Perry - Roar Paramore - Decode
Beyonce – All Night

6. USE OF CONVENTIONS
• Locations
The forest location in my video conveys the mystical
atmosphere and makes the narrative more believable
that the artist appeared from a bright red rose… The
location also gives the common convention of a
unique setting for pop videos because it is a isolated
and enchanting backdrop for the video.
In my video, the characters feel free inside the forest,
and the artist expresses herself as she dances
amongst the trees.

7. USE OF CONVENTIONS
• The Element of Dance
A typical generic convention of all pop music videos is dancing, whether it be the artist
themselves or the people around them.
In my music video, dancing is a large part of the content because it portrays a feel good
vibe which also makes the audience want to dance to the song being promoted.
The artist dancing shows
off her talent as well as
portraying the genre of the
song as pop songs are
usually up beat songs that
the audience can dance
and sing-a-long to.

8. USE OF CONVENTIONS
• The Element of Dance in Existing Pop Music Videos
Selena Gomez – Come and
Get It.
Beyonce – Single Ladies Little Mix - Touch
Zara Larsson – Lush Life Ariana Grande - Problem Jessie J/Ariana Grande/Nicki
Minaj – Bang Bang

9. USE OF CONVENTIONS
• The Digipak and Poster
The Digipak and Poster for the track ‘Final Song’ follows the generic
conventions of pop music through the imagery. The main focus is on the
artist, which is conventional of female pop artists such as Dua Lip and
Charli XCX.
My poster uses this convention to show the audience
who the artist is and so that she becomes a
recognisable person and brand to her target audience.
Her costume and makeup attract her audience
through the glamorous, fairy-tale atmosphere that
young girls will love and will be intrigued by her. The
Digipak does the same thing also, MØ is the main
attention along with her brand name and song title to
clearly tell the audience what they are buying,
therefore successful promotion.

10. DEVELOPING CONVENTIONS
• Editing Effects
Editing effects are a key aspect in pop music videos in order to have a creative music video. As a
part of the current digital and social media trends it is trendy to have fresh, unique, edgy effects on
photos, videos and especially music videos. It is taking advantage of the new technologies out there
to sell your product and make it look the most up to date and fashionable. Pop artists that have used
editing effects in their music videos include Beyonce, Zara Larsson, Bruno Mars, Dua Lipa, Taylor
Swift and many more.
In my music video I used editing effects that changed the colours in the video, one of
them I have called the ‘Prism effect’ and the other was a ‘4-point colour gradient’.
I developed the generic
convention of editing effects my
using these effects to help me
portray the mystical narrative
along with the idea to create a
fresh and unique video.
4-point colour gradient.Prism.

11. DEVELOPING CONVENTIONS
• Editing Effects from Existing Pop Music Videos
Zara Larsson - Lush Life
Colour effect…
Taylor Swift – Bad Blood
Special FX editing effects...
Dua Lipa – Last Dance
Prism colour effect. This effect was used so effectively
in this video and it encouraged me to try and
incorporate this editing technique in my music video
for Final Song.

12. DEVELOPING CONVENTIONS
• The Smoke Grenades.
The use of smoke grenades have become increasingly more popular within
music videos and even adverts. For example the Sigala ‘Sweet Loving’ music
video has girls with smoke grenades attached to their roller skates.
For my music video I developed this
convention by using the purple smoke
grenade as a prop source to make the
forest location mystical in order to
enhance the narrative and also to create
an enchanting atmosphere.
I used the smoke in the music video as
well as for the photography for the print
products.

13. CHALLENGING CONVENTIONS
• Involvement of other characters
The only aspect of my music video that I would say
challenges the generic conventions of Pop music videos
is the involvement of the little girl and the teenage girl.
They both have individual segments where they are on
their own and the attention is on them rather than the
artist herself. However majority of the music video is of
MØ either lip singing or dancing but the fact that the girls
have key roles in the narrative is different compared to
most music videos.
This brings a sense of originality to my product and it also
makes it more relatable to teenagers and ultimately helps
to target and attract the correct audience.