The document discusses several common characteristics and conventions of music videos. It notes that music videos often demonstrate genre characteristics, such as a stage performance for metal videos or dance routines and flashy displays of wealth for rap videos. It also discusses common visual techniques like voyeurism, references to looking through props, and the relationship between visuals and lyrics. Record labels also influence visual styles and demand close-ups of artists with recurring visual motifs. Intertextuality between music videos and other media is also frequently used.

1. Andrew Goodwin
Dancing in the distraction factory

2. Illustration
• Music- the clips will always cut to the beat
• Lyrics- images illustrate meaning or feelings of
the lyrics, often just with the band singing and
dancing
• Band image- the band area/ band singing and
dancing and playing instruments. Dressed as
would be excepted

3. • Music videos more often than not tend to include a demonstration
of the typical genre characteristics.
• For example – a video of a stage performance is typical for a metal
video. A dance routine is typical for a male/female band who is
targeting a younger audience.
A bikini girl who is by a pool with flashy cars and showing off either her
body or her money is mostly typical In a rap video.
Music videos can also link to film genres, this is known as
intertextuality.
Most music videos you will be able to watch without listening to the
sound and be able to work out what genre the music video is.

4. • There are frequent references to the notion of looking and
voyeuristic treatment of the female body,
• The notion of looking includes men or women being portrayed
seductitivty or if there is eye contact with the camera. The notion of
looking can also be referred by the use of props or costume ,
• EG- mirrors, television screens, cameras, telescopes, binoculars and
magnifying glasses are all references to these are commonly used.
• Voyeurism is widely used to sell the artist’s music through the use of
sex appeal, an example of an artist who uses sex to sell their music
would be Miley Cyrus. Voyeurism today is only shown with women
you wouldn’t normally see a male doing this because it doesn’t sell
as well.

5. • There is a succinct relationship between music and
visuals. E.g. Either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting
• This can be seen in killer/ papa was a rolling by George
Michael.
The record label which the artists is
assigned to tends to have certain
demands. They will often include the
need for lots of close ups of the artist
and the artist will have a visual style
which recurs across their work.
E.G. An example of visual style
could be Lady Gaga as she is
always wearing quirky clothes.
The 4th wall is broken near
always when the video is a
performance. This is direct
address and seems like the artist
is singing directly to the
audience.

6. • There is often intertextual references
(to films, tv programmes, other music
videos etc)
• Audiences enjoy knowing the “in joke”
• An example of this would be destiny’s
child doing independent women
referring to Charlie’s angles. Will smith
doing men in black for the film men in
black,
Intertextuality in the wombats video for
My Circuit board city referencing a video
game.