The document provides an evaluation of a media product (a music video). It summarizes: 1) The music video uses conventions of the indie pop genre through its upbeat music, outdoor locations, use of high street fashion, and narrative structure involving flashbacks. However, it also challenges conventions by using ambiguity and representing both genders equally. 2) The print materials like the digipak follow conventions like a 4 panel design but also challenge conventions through its use of different colors on each panel. 3) The magazine advertisement features both the male and female leads smiling together, challenging gender representation conventions. It also includes release date, availability on iTunes, and a Facebook link, following advertising conventions.

1. Evaluation
1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge
forms and conventions of real media products?

2. Genre characteristics in aspects of mise-en-scene:
• Gunther Kress defines genre as ‘a kind of text that derives its form from the structure of a frequently repeated
social occasion, with its characteristic participants and their purposes’ This has implications with audiences feeling
a sense of belonging to a specific group, therefore music videos can give audiences a sense of collective identity.
• The genre of ‘When Were Kids’ is quite ambiguous because the style of music is original, however I would perhaps
consider it to come under the genre of ‘Indie Pop’
• The track is upbeat, likewise with other indie pop artists such as of monsters and men, Bastille and Passenger.
• The majority of locations we used were outside, this is because as a child, outside is where you would spend most
of the time and the song focuses on wanting to be a kid again and escape from the responsibilities of becoming an
adult and whilst growing up, most individuals would prefer to be away from home as they are growing up, hence
using the outdoors. Other artists/bands of the same genre, such as Bastille have used the outdoors in their music
video, for instance, in their music video ‘Pompeii’ uses mostly outside locations.
• The use of location and costume highlights aspects of Britain, such as the high street shops, going to café s and the
landscape view of Norwich from Mousehold. It represents Britain as a lovely place to be.
• Additionally, the costumes used throughout my music video were high street fashion. This something the target
audience (Youth/young adolescences) can identify with in contemporary society – high street fashion is a part of
pop culture. Also, a prop used was a smart phone (iPhone) which is another part of pop culture since technology
as developed; the target audience would have grown up in a world with technology.
Section 1: Music Video -

3. High Street Fashion:
Outdoor Locations:

4. Narrative Structure
• Our music video used a montage narrative. Montages are often edited to the
beat, for example there is a relationship between the music and the visuals. I
used quick cut editing to achieve this narrative, as the track used had a fast
tempo, therefore it was an efficient way of illustrating many of Jill and Joel ‘s(the
actors) memories they had together, because it allowed us to include a variety of
footage and as the cinematographer, I was able to explore many camera
shots/angles for each shot. The action in my music video is synchronised with the
beat. (Goodwin). Likewise, in the original/theme tune of TV Drama – Friends; the
visuals and also the lyrics. This TV show inspired our ideas about what to include
in the music video, such as relaxing at a café. This relates to Katie Wales belief
that ‘genre is an intertextual concept.’
• Goodwins’s theory ‘there is a relationship between lyrics and visuals’ can be
applied to my music video. For instance, the lyrics used are ‘when we were kids’
and the visuals show Jill and Joel playing at the park, enhancing the idea of them
wanting to be a child again.
• This music video is very structured and controlled by memory.

5. • Many music videos use flashbacks, this is a convention I used in my own
production. A flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in
time from the current point the story has reached. However, most movies and
television imply flashbacks by blurring images or using dull saturation colours
such as black and white or a sepia tone. I challenged this convention as my music
video is black and white to begin with which is displaying the present and then I
used a fade to go into the flashbacks of Jill and Joel’s memories – this is all very
colourful, but at the end it returns to the same black and white shot. This could
be seen as a circular narrative.
• I used a black and white tone for the present because I wanted to show that the
two actors are very distant now and do not have the same relationship as they
did previously, which comes across as upsetting. In contrast, I used colour to
show the memories because bright colours can represent happiness and it is
evident in the video, the two actors had a strong friendship and were very
comfortable around one another.
• However, the music video is very ambiguous, the audience are able to come with
their own interpretation of what has happened between Jill and Joel.

6. • ‘Friends’ original theme tune:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xs-HbHCcK58
Present Time Moment from the flashback of memories

7. Representation
• Our music video challenges the conventional representation of gender , especially females. For instance, most music
videos portray the males as dominant and the females as submissive. This is demonstrated in Eminem’s ‘Love the way
you lie’ feat Rihanna. A lot of fighting occurs in this music video between the male and female, but when this
happens, he declares his dominance straight back. Half way through the fighting, they start to kiss which suggests the
male has the power and control over how he treats the women – he uses her as an object, this could be because she
is an attractive female emphasised by her make up. For instance, her use of her lipstick. This connotes Voyeurism .
• This is also used in ‘Echosmith – Come Together’ – the leading female wears red lipstick and many close ups of her
face are used. Voyeurism and the use of close ups in music videos again refers to Goodwin.
• In comparison, our music video does not hyper sexualise either gender, both are respected. In this music video,
youth/young adolescences are represented as happy, emotional, active, adventurous and hedonistic. Both genders
are represented fairly equally, but perhaps Joel comes across as more active in the sense of playing on more of the
equipment at the park. Thus, this challenges the idea of binary opposition between genders. (Strauss)
• The notion of hedonism in our music video doesn’t appear to be a serious issue – it just shows youth wanting to do
things for fun/their own pleasure and escape from their responsibilities of becoming an adult; they feel that they are
growing up too fast and would rather return to their childish ways. This could link with Blumler and Katz theory in
relation to diversion.
• However, hedonism comes across as negative in most music videos such as Charli XCX’s music video ‘Doing it’ feat
Rita Ora. For example, the way they are enjoying themselves is through being sexualised.

8. • According to Mulvey, mainstream Hollywood film "coded the erotic into
language of the dominant patriarchal order" Mulvey indicates that this
coding is, in the essence, the establishment of the "male gaze“.
• Naturally constructed, the male gaze refers to the act of viewing women
as objects, of adopting the role of spectator, but metaphorically, it refers
to way of thinking about and acting within society. Consequently, the
negative and inaccurate sexualised representation of women in this video
(‘Doing it’) will this reinforce misogynists attitudes that women are
toys/playthings and candy, therefore untalented.
• TV Drama ‘Skins’ explores the topic of hedonism, this is an inter-textual
reference that had an influence on our music video, but skins is more
focused on the idea of binge drinking and taking drugs and raving for
pleasure.
• Therefore we have developed the theme of hedonism by illustrating
other respected ways of behaving for pleasure. For instance, driving to
come across as adventurous or going to a gig.

9. • Eminem ft. Rihanna – love the way you lie:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uelHwf8o7_U
• Images from the music video:
• Skins – Rave Party: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RC6zFBji_vQ
• Images from this clip:

10. Images indicating pleasure from my own production:

11. Section 2: Print Productions -
• For my digipak, I used the popular convention of having 4 panels as this is what most
bands/artists including indie pop artists use.
• However, most packages have a similar colour/tone across all the panels. I developed this generic
concept and chose to use colour for the front panel and middle panels, but black and white on
the back.
• The front panel is Joel giving Jill a piggy back. I liked this image for the front panel because it
conveys that they are happy and comfortable in each others company and has a beautiful view in
the distance. I increased the brightness in this image to emphasise their blissful friendship. Most
text on indie pop albums are large and white, therefore I used a white text. However, I developed
the text by placing it in the bottom corner rather than across the top. I considered the image to
be the main focus rather than the text as it is usually the image that grabs an audiences attention.
They will look at the image and then the artist. However, I made the artists name bigger than the
track to promote him as an artist rather than just this particular song.
Digipak

12. • For the middle panels, I used close ups of the main female and male that are actual
images in the music video.
• I decided to use a black and white image for the back panel of the actors walking towards
each other but their faces are hidden. I like this idea as it shows another mood to the
narrative that is involved within the music video. I think this makes it more interesting as
it is mainly a happy video, but as the audience looks at the back panel, it will make them
wonder what's happened, intriguing them to watch the music video. Further emphasising
the ambiguity within the music video. Thus, I challenged the idea of using the same
colours/tone in every image.
• Most back panels have a track list in the centre that appear in a downwards column,
however I developed the idea of a track list being placed like this and instead placed the
list of songs by AnxiousAlibi across the bottom in a row. Although, I used the generic
convention of not using numbers for the tracks.
• The use of a barcode on the back panel is a convention used to indicate the product as a
real media text to tell the consumer that this is a product rather than an advertisement.
• Additionally, I used institutional information, such as the production company, I called
mine ‘YouthProductions’ as the track is relatable to this specific target audience – young
teenagers quickly becoming adults and wanting be a child again when they had no
worries.

13. My Front Panel Imagine Dragons Front Panel Kodaline Front Panel
My Back Panel Bastille Back PanelImagine Dragons Back Panel

14. Magazine Advert
• The image used shows Jill and Joel are smiling/laughing and look
happy and comfortable to be around each other which illustrates a
strong friendship. Also, again it has the scenery of Norwich in the
background enhancing the Britishness of the music video.
• The font I used is quite simple, but it is still fun. I chose to make it
simple, so an audience can understand what it says, but fun too as the
music video mostly uses positive visuals.
• Choosing an image of both the male and female, challenges the idea
of males being dominant and women rarely seen in advertisements. If
women are seen in advertisements in the music industry, it is usually
demonstrated in a disparaging way, such as in an advertisment for
Nicki Minajs song ‘Anaconda’ but both Jill and Joel appear as happy
and innocent.
• Furthermore, I used the conventions of revealing the release date,
where it would be available (iTunes) in this case, stars – to give a
rating and also a Facebook url to promote the artist ‘AnxiousAlibi’
• I believed iTunes to be an appropriate place to advertise the
artist/track. This is because it is another part of pop culture; this is
something people tend to use most likely every day whether it is on
their mac book /laptop or their iPhone. Additionally, most young
people use social media including Facebook, so this will encourage
them to search the link given.