4. The video opens with a slow
reverse zoom, moving from
framing her with a medium
close-up to framing her with a
mid-shot. Her face is obscured
by the framing, focusing clearly
on her body. She is also
central in the shot and
therefore the main focus.
We then see a shot of the
band. The shot unites them as
a group and makes them equal
by showing them all in the
same frame.
5. A variety of shot types and
camera angles is then used
to establish setting and show
the bands movements. A
high angle shows them drive
in from above. A long shots
sets the scene by showing
the setting clearly –
establishing location. A
tracking shot follows two
band members from behind,
immersing the audience in
the video as the handheld
camera makes it feel as
though the viewer is walking
behind them.
6. As one of the band members starts to sing, he is framed in
close-ups and mid-shots. Considering the rule of thirds (as
demonstrated above right), he is in the left of the framing rather
than conventionally central as we would expect for the main
performer. This may be to promote the idea that the audience
should focus more on the music than idolising the singer,
similarly to Bob Dylan’s Don’t Look Back music video from the
1960s. It could also just be a reflection of the genre and how
the band is attempting to break conventions to distinguish
themselves from mainstream music and appeal to an Indie or
niche audience.
7. The video uses lots of close-ups to draw audience
attention to specific objects or people. Here is on
example with the crystal necklace. We see it hanging in
the car in a close-up and later around the girl’s neck,
again in a close-up. The significance of the necklace is
never explicitly stated in the video; instead the
cinematography implies it is important by focusing so
closely on it.
The necklace is also significant in terms of mise-en-scene, but I
will explore that later.
8. The cinematography is manipulated
within the video to sexualise women,
which I will explore further when
analysing the representation and
ideology of the video. These shots on
the left show clearly that the camera is
focusing on the women’s bodies and
not showing their faces at all. In the
first two shots the framing cuts off the
top of their heads and shows instead
more ‘desirable’ parts of their bodies –
legs and chest. In the third shot we do
see the woman’s head but still not her
face, plus the shot is out of focus. All of
this implies that the women are there
to be viewed for voyeuristic purposes,
not given an identity or even a face –
literally just a body to look at.
9. This long shot is one of the final shots of the video. It is clearly set
up to be quite creative in terms of aesthetics. The framing creates
symmetry with the woman in the very middle of the shot, and the
contrast of the blue sea and her pink swimsuit combine to produce
a very striking visual image, almost like a still photograph. It is a
very memorable shot, although it still dehumanises the woman by
refusing to show her face and still focusing only on her body.
11. The video opens by using a slow motion effect as the woman holds the hat
over her face. It effectively matches the song’s intro, which begins slowly
before launching into a faster pace. This rhythmic editing is conventional of
videos and helps to create cohesion between what the audience sees and
what they hear. The faster pace is demonstrated by how many cuts there
are to different shots in a short space of time - between 0:30 and 0:45 there
are eight different shots, showing how the pace speeds up to match the
song tempo.
12. The band have chosen to edit their logo and the name of the song onto the
video in post-production (see above). This clearly identifies the video as theirs
and creates the feel of a short film, maybe enforcing the narrative element of
the video and notifying the audience to focus on that. It’s a feature they have
included in many of their music videos, as you can see from the two examples
below. They often edit the logo on screen (below left in their song She Changes
the Weather) or include the song title, whether it’s edited on or physically part of
the mise-en-scene (below right in their song Honey).
13. There are a lot of distortion effects and overlap editing interspersed
with the conventional standard cuts in the video. As demonstrated
above, the background often stays constant whilst an object or person
within the frame flickers, fades or pixelates. More examples are shown
on the next page. It creates the impression the audience is seeing
double and this adds a psychedelic feel to the imagery within the
video, which matches the style of music. It seems to be simply a
creative decision to make the video visually interesting but arguably it
also relates to some of the issues the lyrics of the song address,
particularly the lines ‘I was high as a fool’ and ‘I wanna be rich, I wanna
show off’. The editing could be colloquially described as ‘trippy’ so
there may be some connotations of drug use and the stereotype of
musicians needing them to create good music.
16. The mise-en-scene within the video creates images of what the
band are like. Their costumes are deliberately slightly quirky, to
suit the genre of the music and create a supposedly original look.
The vintage car they are driving around in may be there to add to
the retro feel of the video, yet it also connotes quite an expensive
ideology as vintage cars are obviously not cheap. To contrast this
idea of wealth, the simple idea of a group of guy friends driving
around together in an open top car is fairly down to earth and
relatable. Thus contrasting ideas are represented through the
mise-en-scene.
17. Focusing more closely on each band member’s mise-en-scene, individual looks
are created for each using costume and props. On the left below we have the
lead singer in a bright shirt and sunglasses, which both have connotations of
summer and the beach, maybe implying he is a happy, light-hearted person.
The bright colours also stand out vividly against the fairly plain, bleached look of
the desert location behind them. To the right, another band member has a much
more hippy/bohemian look as shown through his sunglasses, outfit, long hair
and the flower he holds in his hand.
18. In terms of location, the main section of the video is set in the
desert, as demonstrated by the shot below on the left. The open
space, warm colours and visible heat connote freedom and
summer fun. The location could also be said to represent a lack of
direction and sense of not knowing where they are headed.
Furthermore, the setting, along with the car, links to typical road
trip iconography, which is enforced by the scuffed and worn down
costumes of some of the band members (see the shoes below
right). This implies the band are just a regular group of friends,
spontaneously driving places together, making them much more
relatable to an audience.
19. The costuming for the women in this video is
stereotypically feminine. The first woman we see is
wearing a tight, body-hugging pink leotard/swimsuit.
Pink is a typically feminine colour and the costuming
accentuates her curves, thus sexualising her.
Another example of this is when another woman is
shown, this time in very tight denim shorts.
Again this is emphasising certain
parts of her body and is arguably
also stereotypically feminine. The
contrast with the band’s loose
patterned costumes reinforces the
idea that the female characters are
only there to be viewed for their
bodies.
20. There are not many significant props used in the video, but the
crystal necklace features in several close-ups, implying it is an
important part of mise-en-scene though the narrative does not
explain why. The crystal can connote wealth and link to the
expensive ideology created by the car. However crystals are
often also linked to mystics and thus the necklace may also
feature to add to the psychedelic feel of the video. It also
serves as a tangible connection between the band – we see it
hanging in their car – and the mysterious girl who is the focus
of the video and whose face the camera never shows – we see
it hanging around her neck.
21. The mise-en-scene effectively reflects the tone of the song by
being very different at the start and end of the video. As the song
begins it is happy and upbeat and this can be seen in the location,
lighting and costumes of the video. The shot above shows how
the colours are very warm and bright. However as the song
progresses, the beat lessens and the music becomes calmer and
more solemn. This again is shown in the mise-en-scene.
(continued..)
22. To the left are shots taken from
the end of the video, when the
music becomes less upbeat. The
mise-en-scene clearly shows this
change in atmosphere – the
colours are much duller, the
costumes are darker, the lighting
is much dimmer and even the
location is less open and bright.
This shows how the mise-en-scene
in the video adapts as the
song changes its mood; we can
clearly see the contrast between
the golden, sunlit mise-en-scene
of the first half and the blue, more
melancholy mise-en-scene of the
second.
24. Some music videos include diegetic sound, even
going as far as to mute the music completely for a
dialogue break in order to progress the narrative.
Swim Deep have chosen not to include that in their
video and instead have no sound apart from the non-diegetic
sound of the song, which actually is fairly
conventional for videos of this genre – it tends to be
pop videos that have sound breaks. This may be an
intentional decision in order to encourage the
audience to focus on the music completely and not
be distracted by dialogue or by any of the sounds
they could have included to match what was
happening on screen, such as the waves on beach.
26. As well as analysing how the video uses the
technical elements of cinematography, editing,
mise-en-scene and sound to create images and
ideas, I am also looking more closely at the
messages and values within the video, how
different groups are represented and how the
band and label are presented.
28. The language of a music video refers to what the content actually is and the way
the technical elements are used to create images. I have already analysed this,
focusing on each element separately, but to summarise and develop that analysis:
• Close-ups are conventionally used to focus on the singer performing and
emphasise certain body parts or props
• Long shots establish location and create atmosphere through setting
• The editing is rhythmic and therefore in time with the beat of the song, another
convention of music videos
• The mise-en-scene reflects the feeling of the song clearly through costumes,
locations, lighting and colours
• The video contains performance alongside narrative, again conventional of
music videos. The performance is lip-synced as opposed to live, most likely so
as not to disrupt the diegesis of the world created by the progressing narrative
• The only sound used is the non-diegetic sound of the song in the background
• The band have interestingly chosen to almost contrast the lyrics of the song with
the images on screen; they are singing about the ‘city’ yet the location is a
remote and empty desert scene, followed by a similarly non-urban location – the
beach.
30. The video opens with a parental advisory warning about
explicit content. This implies that the band’s ideology is
perhaps not family-friendly and instead more risqué,
targeted at an older audience. Although it is difficult to
determine what exactly they are defining as explicit content
in the video, it clearly means they want to be perceived in a
certain way – maybe more mature, or taken more seriously.
31. There is blatant sexualisation of women in the video as I’ve already
discussed. This creates quite a voyeuristic, male ideology, implying that
maybe the band only see women as there to be viewed. The faces of
the actresses in the video are never shown, the camera focuses on their
crotch or chest, and their costumes are tight and revealing. Even their
actions are submissive and stereotypically seductive – washing the car,
serving drinks etc. They are merely there to be looked at, with no
perceivable purpose in the narrative, which also aligns with Laura
Mulvey’s Male Gaze theory. Arguably that’s a fairly sexist ideology for
the video to present, even if it is typical of most music videos, making
the video unappealing to half the band’s audience in terms of gender
and sexuality.
32. A fairly light-hearted care-free ideology is also created in the video,
with the simple message that spending time with friends is important.
This is shown through shots of the band laughing and joking with each
other. It presents them as regular, happy people thus making them
more relatable and creating a positive ideology. It places value on
friendship and good times, which arguably is an innocently honest
ideology promoting a relaxed lifestyle. However this is contrasted by
the references to drug use in the lyrics and through the use of
distortion editing. Drugs are stereotypically associated with a much
more negative ideology, yet here the band nonchalantly refers to
them. You could argue that this creates a negative ideology in terms of
them being unconcerned about a serious topic, or a positive ideology
as they are avoiding being judgemental.
34. Swim Deep are an Indie band from
Birmingham, consisting of five
members. They are still fairly new,
having been formed in 2011 and only
becoming popular over the last two
years or so. The video represents
them as a brand and an institution in
themselves, seemingly attempting to
portray them as fun, friendly and
down-to-earth through the media
language – particularly mise-en-scene
and their performance.
The band were originally signed to
independent label Chess Club, but
moved to worldwide major
conglomerate label Sony, who they
were signed to for this video. Sony
has a huge reputation as an
institution that represents all genres
of artist. The video ensures
audiences are aware that Sony does
not only sign mainstream artists, but
smaller bands too that fall into the
Indie genre. Thus the indie style of
the video implies Sony is very
diverse and still successful.
36. The main target audience for this video does appear to be heterosexual
males, probably of a similar age to the band themselves. The emphasis on
women’s bodies aligns with Laura Mulvey’s Male Gaze theory describing how
women in the media are there as passive objects for men to view, which is
definitely what happens in this video. Even just the shots of the band
spending time together and being a typical group of guy friends is more
appealing to men than to women, because it’s more relatable to men.
However the music of Swim Deep is not usually considered to be targeted at
a specific gender one way or the other. The age range of their audience most
likely spans from older teenagers to young adults. The content isn’t aimed at
children or older adults – its targeted at young people, students etc. which is
conventional of most music videos because that age range consumes the
most.
37. In terms of genre, the video does appeal to an Indie audience
because that’s the genre of the band. The mise-en-scene also
follows conventions of this genre, attempting to be original, a bit
quirky, but also retro in the way that it references past styles
(such as the hippy 60s aesthetic shown above left or the vintage
car). However this doesn’t necessarily make the intended
audience a small niche one, I think the overall narrative and
performance within the video is still appealing to a mass
audience and is actually fairly reminiscent of more mainstream
genres like pop. Therefore the video manages to appeal to both
indie audiences and wider more mainstream ones.
39. Women are represented as very
sexual in the video. The woman at
the beginning is dressed in pink
and thus shown as stereotypically
feminine through the mise-en-scene.
The next woman we see is
in tight denim shorts, representing
her as attractive and desirable by
emphasising certain body parts.
The main female character that the
camera focuses on is black,
fulfilling the convention that often
women of colour as used almost as
props in music videos, there only to
look good for the voyeuristic
pleasure of the artist in the video
and the audience at home. Overall,
the representation of women is as
submissive, sexual objects.
Men within the video have a very
positive representation. The
cinematography and the mise-en-
scene present them as fun,
happy and free to do what they
want, with a strong friendship.
Arguably they are also
represented as more important
than women because the
actresses in the video have no
faces and thus no identity,
whereas the only men featuring
are the band who are obviously
presented as very important and
get a lot of screen time. The only
time they even acknowledge the
actresses is to watch them in a
voyeuristic way, representing the
band – and therefore young men
– as fairly shallow.
