This document provides guidance for completing a case study assignment on music video production. It is split into three tasks. Task 1 addresses the purposes of music videos and strategies employed by labels and artists. Task 2 focuses on styles, techniques and conventions of music video production. Task 3 requires analyzing a minimum of three music videos by one artist, discussing the usage of style, techniques, intertextuality, camerawork/editing, genre conventions, and critical approaches. Students are instructed to include video links, images, and compare/contrast their chosen artist/genre to others.

1. MUSIC VIDEO PRODUCTION
CASE STUDY
B E N M A N BY

2. MUSIC VIDEO PRODUCTION
• We will look at Music Videos from a number of perspectives, this template is for
you to write up your notes and to complete your case study.
• The document is split into 3 different tasks, each with separate questions to
answer.
• Task 1 is concerned with the purposes of music videos and the strategies
employed by labels and artists
• Task 2 is concerned with the styles, techniques and conventions of music video
production
• Task 3 is your own case study into a minimum of three music videos where you
can unpack and discuss the videos considering everything you have looked at in
Task 1 and 2
• You are expected to submit each section on a weekly basis during your remote
learning weeks.
• If you get stuck, talk to/email your tutor for guidance.
Click to add text

3. NOTES ON COMPLETING THE
CASE STUDY
• It is often easier to show something you are discussing than to
take time describing it. With this in mind, feel free to add lots of
illustrative images from your chosen video examples. Links to
YouTube/Vevo/etc are also encouraged.
• Remember, when you make a point or define something, you
should follow this with an example, an explanation of this and
then link to further texts/videos where possible.
• If you don’t think there is enough room to add your full
response to a question, don’t just reset the font size to really
small, add an extra slide wherever necessary.

4. TASK 1 -
PURPOSES
Y O U S H O U L D O P E N T H E M U S I C L E C T U R E
P O W E R P O I N T A N D L O O K AT S E C T I O N 1
B E F O R E D O I N G T H I S TA S K

5. TASK 1 - PURPOSES
• Q1 - Outline the 3 core purposes of music video with a short
explanation for each:
• 1. Entertainment - A key purpose of a music video is to engage
the audience. This can be done in a variety of ways such as the
technical aspects and the story behind the video.
• 2. Sales - With the increase of entertainment and customer
satisfaction, it could lead to a higher ammount of sales
• 3. Branding/Identity - with the increasing ammount of sales, the
more the artist would get recognised for the music they have
produced to the public.

6. TASK 1 - PURPOSES
• Q2 – What are some of the broader purposes of music videos?
Try and outline a minimum of 3. (Think about some of the strategies employed by artists
in their videos and how they represent themselves, you could consider where the artist is on a major label,
independent label of unsigned, is there a difference between them?)
• Advertisement for bigger projects – they would advertise a
movie they have produced a music video/song for.
• Collaberation with other artists – different artists might want to
collaborate because they like what they see throughout the
entire music video.
• Publicity stunt - Many artists have used publicity stunts to
promote their music videos and songs such as Rhianna (2012).
Unfortunatly the stunt backfired and didn’t go to plan.

7. TASK 1 - PURPOSES
• Q3 – Branding; select an artist you like and look at how they
present themselves in their music videos. Explain what their
‘brand’ is, who is appeals to and why they might have done this.
• Twenty one pilots. The artists present their branding in a way
that shows that they’ve stuggled to get to the point where they
are now, this can make fans relate to the music that they
produce. Their music appeals to people of all ages and they
might have done this to atract more fans and spread their
names across the globe.

8. TASK 1 - PURPOSES
• Q4 – Compare One Direction and Animal Collective music
videos [find them on YouTube!], what can you discern about
each act from their videos? What is the main aim? Explain why.
• One direction "one way or another" - In this music video, they
use the money from the music video and send it to the charity,
Comic relief. They also include a variety of locations ranging
from Africa to New York. They have done this to raise awareness
about people living in harsh conditions such as Africa and the
UK.
• Animal collective "my girls" - They saying in this video that
people shouldn’t need a social status or the "freshest wave". As
long as they have got a house then they are happy with what
they have.

9. TASK 2 – STYLES,
TECHNIQUES AND
CONVENTIONS
Y O U S H O U L D O P E N T H E M U S I C L E C T U R E
P O W E R P O I N T A N D L O O K AT S E C T I O N 2
B E F O R E D O I N G T H I S TA S K

10. TASK 2 – STYLES, TECHNIQUES
AND CONVENTIONS
• Q1 – Describe and explain the use of camerawork in music
videos, i.e. the types of shot used with examples to illustrate this
and how this creates meaning
• Camera angles play a massive part in a music video because
they emphasize the emotions/expressions that are given by the
artist such as this close up, low shot of Tyler Joseph (lead
vocalist, twenty one pilots) in the music video "stressed out":
This video shows the facial
expressions portrayed by
him. These expressions can
be interpreted into multiple
things such as, anger,
stressed, upset,
disappointed and more.

11. TASK 2 – STYLES, TECHNIQUES
AND CONVENTIONS
• Q2 - Describe and explain the use of editing in music videos,
i.e. the types of shot used with examples to illustrate this and
what the effect of this is/meanings that are created/etc
• Editing is used to put a story together. And the story is the
most important part of any video and depending on how you
edit it, will tell how well the story fits, for example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OnO3UXFZdE&list=RDEMr
9ZkDmyg4Y39GwnbPKJlLA&index=2 . This is the music video
for ode to sleep by twenty-one pilots, and it includes footage
from 2011 all the way up to 2014. This footage includes 3 shows
expressing how they’ve become known by many. Many shots in
this video were either close up, medium shots or long shots this
shows the expressions from the artists. The effect of this is that
is shows that it clearly shows the story behind what they’ve
done for years.

12. TASK 2 – STYLES, TECHNIQUES
AND CONVENTIONS
• Q3 – Genre conventions; often music videos adhere to genre
conventions within their visual style and production techniques.
Select a recognizable genre and use illustrations to explain what
their genre conventions are…
Alternative hip hop generally have meanings of
death of loss of someone or something, but a lot of
the time they have no sort of correlation to the
lyrics within the song.
Twenty-one pilots is in the
category "alternative hip hop"
And in the music video "my
blood" it shows that someone
has lost a family member.
In the beginning of this video it
shows a bed with a supposidly
dyying person and a child. This
irelates to that meaning of
"death and loss"

13. TASK 2 – STYLES, TECHNIQUES
AND CONVENTIONS
• Q4 - John Stuart’s description of the
music video “incorporating, raiding and
reconstructing” is essentially the essence
of intertextuality [something asserted by
Andrew Goodwin]. Can you explain what
intertexuality is and find a minimum of 3
examples of it in music videos?
Intertextuality is that
similar or related text can
differentiate, reflect or
influence the meaning of
the text.

14. TASK 3 – CASE
STUDY
Y O U S H O U L D O P E N T H E M U S I C L E C T U R E
P O W E R P O I N T A N D L O O K AT S E C T I O N 3
B E F O R E D O I N G T H I S TA S K

15. TASK 3 – CASE STUDY
• For your individual case study you must study an artist of
choice, focusing on a minimum of 3 videos [ideally 5+ videos]
• This should provide discussion on the usage of the following:
– Style[s] & Techniques employed
– Intertextuality
– Camerawork/editing
– Genre conventions
– Critical approaches [you should be applying some of the critical
approaches from your lessons and some of your own, to your
selected videos]

16. TASK 3 – CASE STUDY
• You should include a video link for the videos used
• You should include illustrative stills from the videos chosen
• Be creative in your approach, it is suggested you use the
heading on the previous slide a guide on how to structure your
response to get you started
• Remember, make a point, use a specific part of the chosen
video as an example, explain yourself and then link to another
video where possible
• Compare and contrast your artist/genre to other artists/genres
• Remember to consider differing contexts

17. TASK 3 - CASE STUDY
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp-EO5I60KA
• Ed Sheeran - thinking out loud.
• The style of this song is slow and meaningful, this can
improve the impact on the viewer by making them think
about what's happening in the music video.
• The techniques related to camera movement are also
slow, smooth but also long, this technique can create a
sense of depth to immerse the viewer.
• The intertextuality in the lyrics shows as the song carries
on, the older the couple gets. This creates a meaning of
time which grows as the song goes on.
• There isn't any information on the editing process for the
song "thinking out loud". But there is a behind the
scenes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLN18Vfs
N0NzmS1R7LBE4KgUe7k8f_uQPh&v=uc-CzXQJg8Y
• The video was shot continuously using a 16 mm film
camera
• The music video was shot inside the dimly lit Crystal
Ballroom at the Millennium Biltmore.
• The theme was Ed Sheeran and Brittany Cherry dancing
in the ballroom, which the dancing progressively sped
up.

18. TASK 3 – CASE STUDY
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0ib
BPhiaG0 - Ed Sheeran - Castle on the hill
• The styles for this MV are flashbacks of
his younger self and the time he misses.
This gives a nostalgic feeling.
• The techniques involved are
• The camera work involved is long and
close-up shots integrated between one
another. This creates a sense of going
back and forth between time. There is no
form of information about the editing
process.
• The genre conventions:
• The theme is going back to his past and
remembering those moments.
• The setting is in the countryside of Ed
Sheerans hometown, visiting all the
places he used to hang out with
his friends.
• The characters shown in the video all
represent Ed's friends when they
were younger.
• Some people would see castle on the hill
as nostalgic meaning because it would
go back through his childhood reliving
the memories of times spent with
friends.

19. TASK 3 – CASE STUDY
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Vv
-BfVoq4g – Perfect – Ed Sheeran
• The styles involved in this
• The techniques involved in this
• The camera work involved includes a
variety of long/close-up shots, tracking
shots and Ariel shots. These can
enhance the depth and meaning of the
MV all together.
• There isn't any sign of the
editing process nor a behind the scenes.
• The theme of the MV is Ed trying to
show his love to a girl.
• The setting is I the snowy mountains
of Hinterux, an Austrian ski resort.
• The characters are the womans friends
which block out ed from being with
the woman he loves.
• Perfect is seen as a romantic ballad
MV with people having a good time
away.