The video analyzes the music video for the Foo Fighters song "The Pretender". It discusses the mise-en-scene including the props, clothing, lighting, and setting of the warehouse. It also covers the camerawork using different shots and angles. The sound is diegetic from the band playing. Editing uses cuts between shots and pacing to match the music. The video depicts a confrontation between the band and riot police authorities.

1. The Foo Fighters are a rock band and I will
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBjQ9tuuTJQ
be analysing their music video for the song
‘The Pretender’.
I will be analysing the video using the four
technical
areas, sound, camerawork, editing and
mise-en-scene.
I will also look at the basic music
conventions used in this video and what
the meaning behind the video could be.
By Luca Abraham!

2. MISE-EN-SCENE-Props!
The props used in the music video represent the
genre of the artists featured in the video. The band
members have electric guitars, a drum kit and a few
microphones, these props show the audience that
the music video is in the rock genre. There are also
amps which shows the music is going to be
projected loudly like rock music is usually. The other
characters in the video who are not band members
have riot shields and riot helmets, this makes me
think that the band are rebelling and these people
are here to stop them with force. This portrays a
message that some people may think rock music is
a bad influence so the authorities want to stop
it, but this video shows the authorities cannot stop
them.

3. MISE-EN-SCENE-Clothing!
The clothing the band are wearing shows they are a rock
band, they are all wearing black and white which is the
stereotypical colours a rocker wears, they are all wearing
skinny jeans which is also a stereotypical piece of clothing
a rocker wears. The other people who seem to be the
authorities are wearing clothing that a police officer at a
riot would wear, with the riot helmet and riot shield, they
are obviously fighting against the band.
CONTRAST!

4. MISE-EN-SCENE-Lighting!
The whole video is in high key lighting because
it looks as if the band are in a well lit
warehouse playing their music. When the red
paint flies from behind the band the lighting
becomes low key because the people cannot
see because of all the paint. Low key lighting is
used here because it gives the feeling of war
between the two groups.

5. MISE-EN-SCENE-Setting!
The setting is a warehouse, it is well lit
and there is a red background behind
the band which is where the paint
comes from at the end of the video.
There is also a black line through the
middle of the room on the white
floor, this may represent the line
between the authorities and the rock
world, meaning they live different lives
and have different views on life which is
why the authorities don’t like them
because they differ from the norm.

6. Camerawork-1!
There is an establishing shot at first to show the setting
which is a warehouse, this shows the viewer straight
away where the video is going to take place. The
establishing shot also shows the instruments on the
ground where after a few seconds the band members
enter and start to play the instruments in turn. This is
used to show the viewer straight away what genre the
music video is, by the instruments.

7. Camerawork-2!
During the video they use a lot of different
camera angles to keep the video
interesting, they use crane shots, canted
angles, high angles and low angles. These are
all used to keep the video interesting and to
make sure the viewer doesn’t get bored by
the same camera angles. The low angle of
when the lead singer is playing his guitar
shows he is in control of the song and is a
leader against the authorities in the video.
An over the shoulder shot is used to show
the lead singer is facing a lot of the
authorities and that there are a lot more of
them compared to the band.

8. Camerawork-3!
They use a lot of close ups to show the
characters emotions, the close up of the
lead singer shows his emotion and feeling
for the authorities, he shows anger a lot
during the video. Also when there is a
close up of the main riot man the camera
shows his anger at the band which relates
to the meaning of the video. There is a
master shot at the beginning when the
band enter to show the whole band and
them standing with their instruments, this
shows the viewer that the video is in the
rock genre by the props and the band in
this shot. There is a lot of panning and tilt
used in the video, this may also be used to
keep the video interesting and to match
the pace and style of music in the video.

9. Sound!
The music in the video is diegetic because the band is
playing the song in the video, this gives the effect that the
band are playing live and this is how they would act at a
live show. All the sound is coming from the instruments
and being projected through amps in the video. The
music shows the viewer the video is in the rock
genre, this will attract rock fans and indie fans because
the video is in this genre

10. Editing!
Cutting is used frequently during the video, it is used
to cut to different camera angles and camera
shots in the scene to focus on the different band
members and the riot men opposite them. The
cutting is used a lot in the chorus to match the
pace of the song and also to keep the video
interesting. An example of a cut is the camera cut
from a close up on a guitar to a mid shot of the
drummer. All these cuts are called an action
match, because the cuts are to a different shot in
the same scene. During the chorus and the fast
sections of the song, fast paced editing is used to
match the pace of the song, but at the start of
the song when only the leads singer is playing his
guitar, the scene is slow to match the music, this
is called slow paced editing.