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.
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 A T
S E C T I O N 1 B E F O R E D O I N G T H I S T A S K
5. TASK 1 - PURPOSES
• Q1 - Outline the 3 core purposes of music video with a short
explanation for each:
• 1. It allows the band to not have to play live- This means they don’t have the stresses
of playing live and they can include things into a music video that they cant do live
and the audience they will be putting the video to is bigger than if they were live.
• 2. It allows the band or person to convey a message easier- With a music video a
band or person can convey a message a lot easier with using props and add ons that
they would not be able to do other wise and can make the message feel like it is
being directed at a single person to attract emotions and change.
• 3. Promotion/Marketing- in a music video the band or person and promote
themselves a lot better and with such massive audiences on the internet they have a
better chance at prompting a brand or product than if they were live or simply just did
an advert.
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?)
• Promotional or artistic purpose-promoting a brand or creating the video for a
purpose.
• Extension of income-can have ads on the video which with increase income and
the amount of views on the video would produce income.
• To create a memorable video-creating a video that people will remember is good
because of the size of the audience that can bring in.
• To create a name for themselves-if they have a name for themselves, they can
attract bigger audience.
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.
The artist I have chosen is Slowthai, he does very old school music videos if a low
budget look to them but also follows and theme that he is very dark in his videos, for
example in his video polaroid he is covered in bandages that have blood on them.
He raps about illegal stuff that most people in the music scene wouldn’t do and that
makes him unique and that’s why he has a big fan base. His brand is that you should
give a middle finger to the world and do your own thing and even in some music
videos he raps about dark subjects. He makes his videos look old school by filming
them in a 80/90s rap look and also wears old school street wear and his videos
usually aren't that good quality but does it to give it a garage party feel and his fans
love it.
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 are more of a mainstream band and show that in their videos and
clearly have high budget videos that most of them have a very summertime feel to
them and appeals more to there younger audience. Animal collective are a less
known band that have a very loyal but small fan base the videos that they make are
very had to watch and may even be disturbing to some people, but all their videos
have deeper meanings and really touch the emotions of there fan base. The aim of
one direction is to create a fun dance song with summertime feelings to it which will
most likely get on the radio and being a young boy band they will have a mainly
female fan base. Animal collectives aim is to create videos that are very much out
there and will keep the viewer watching and may even spark conversation about the
subjects and there videos are clearly for people with very specific music taste and
that’s why there music might not be very popular and have a small audience same
with the music videos they are done in a certain way to make people feel certain
emotions and feels and this is why there videos are mostly considered to be very
weird.
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 A T
S E C T I O N 2 B E F O R E D O I N G T H I S T A 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
• In alot of music videos the camera work is mainly focused on the
artist so that it shows the watchers who is the singer of the song
unless the video is about a narrative and will have images that
with relate to that narrative or message.
• In music videos they use a massive range of different types of
camera shots for example pano, birds eye, boom shot etc they
use these shots to keep the interest of the viewer and allows for
the for the video to not become boring.
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
• There are alot of different types of editing in music videos and
some videos have none or very little so that it is just raw footage
but in most there is editing and the editing is usually done to
match the speed or type of beat that is in the song.
• In the editing stage of the music video they will focus on making
the transitions smooth but also match the speed of the song and
the different types of shots used.
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 recognisable genre and use illustrations to explain what
their genre conventions are…
• Genre- rap
• In the genre of rap the visual style is mostly dark and serious and
will mainly focus on the person that is rapping and will mostly
have actors in the background.
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 the shaping of a text's meaning by another text. It is the
interconnection between similar or related works of literature that reflect
and influence an audience's interpretation of the text. Intertextuality is the
relation between texts that are inflicted by means of quotations and
allusion.
• Examples of this in music videos is bad blood by Taylor swift , fancy by
Iggy azalea and roar by Katie Perry.
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 A T
S E C T I O N 3 B E F O R E D O I N G T H I S T A 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. In this music video there is only one person and the camera the whole time is
focused on him and the location is very remote and that adds to the feel of
the of the video and the overall look of it. When it comes to the camera work
it is either a long shot with a lot of background in or a very close up shot with
very little background in it. The genre for this video and song is very dark and
almost gothic there is very little to non shots with light in it and the song
combined with the music video does a very good job at doing that.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5o2TeJ211Zc
Night Lovell—alone
18. Night lovell—bad kid
In this music video it is not focused just on him like most of the others the
camera work in this music video is very unpredictable with one shot it could
be a close up from the from and the next it looks like the camera Is on the
roof this could cause a lot of effects in the video and can cause a effect that
keeps the viewer on there toes and keeps them interested in the music video
because in the video they also use multiple people and a big range of
locations and they edit the video so that the location and lighting matches the
tone of the song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksn5PC4Io7I
19. Night lovell—dark light
This is a music video that has a very clear low budget and almost looks like a
very last minute video but it is also very good for the song the camera work for
this video is very close up and the whole background is black and gives the
whole video and very gothic genre feel and I think that was what night lovell
was hoping to achieve with making this music video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTp5PH8ot6Q