Media theorist
Andrew Goodwin
Introduction Within this presentation I will be discussing some of the key points that Andrew Goodwin thought where essential within a music video. This was taken from the "Dancing Distraction Factory", 1992. Here I will be going over some key points such as Thought beats in which I will be discussing how the tempo of the song can affect the video itself, Narrative and performance, which I will look through how the artists roll within their video and Star Image, where I will discuss how record companies use artist as a source of advertisements within their videos. I will also be talking through the Relation of visuals to song as I will explain how different artists represent the meaning of their song through the use of mise en scene.Â
Thought BeatsÂ
Thought Beats It was said that the structure, speed and beat are all seen visually within a music video. His was done through the variations within the "chorus and verse footage" This essentially means that if a song contains a faster tempo it is more likely that its music video will include a series of faster cuts "between shots". This is most likely seen within todays Rap/Hip-Hop music as a lot of the time the chorus itself is concise and upbeat. For instance if you were to take emeinens older videos such as –The Real Slim Shady - a lot of the time the cuts are precise and in time with the beat. You will often feel as though the video itself has been sped up in order to fit in with the pace of the lyrics.
Also, Music videos essentially represent the artist "voice" or style as the song itself is almost seen as advertainment to their personality. Again, if you took Tyler the Creators videos and compared them to his personality/style, you would quickly learn that he may appear as a troubled individual who clearly has a lot of hatred for not only himself but the individuals around him.
Narrative And Performance Music videos need to be something of interest, if it is not possible to watch the video over and over again the artist/director has failed to create a successful music video. The artists need to be able to give of a believable audience giving the audience the impression that they are almost being guided through a narrative through song form. This makes the video feel more authentic and drives the viewers back for more however, as I mentioned within my codes and conventions presentation, I don ’t always feel as though its beneficial to have the 'start' act within the video. Sometimes it feels as though its lacking any real identity and you can tell that the artist has been moved from their comfort zone as they are chucked into a different medium. This is why in my personal opinion I feel as though it would be advisable to have set characters different from those singing the song, perform within the video. I also feel as though this would help the artist achieve the role of a narrator as their voice would almost be non-diegetic to the actors meaning they are almost acting as a guide to the audience, whilst we watch the story unravel.
Star ImageÂ
Star Image Videos are often created to promote the artist themselves, record companies do this as a way to increase the artist popularity and the sales generated by  them. In some cases, the song itself often tells a story about the artist journey and their personal development, this then makes audiences feel more attached to the performer as they can begin to relate to them on a personal level. For instance Ed Sheeran, Eminem and Macklemore will often sing about their past or recent events that have occurred in their life. This then gives the impression that they are not just fake people who are in the medium for the money, but real authentic individuals that are expressing their struggle through an artform that they feel inspired by. This is also done by giving the artist most of the screen time whilst using other techniques such as "proliferation of close-ups of the artists" Â
Relation Of Visuals to Song Disjunction – This is where the meaning behind the lyrics is completely ignored within the music video. Both the images, costume and mise en scene do not relate to what the artist is singing about. This can often be seen throughout rock music as the vast majority of the time we are open to videos of the band itself performing, there is no real indication too what the meaning of the song is. It if left up to us as the audience to figure that out. Amplify -is where the meaning of the song is exaggerated through the use of visuals. This can be seen by the likes of Miley Cyrus wrecking ball, who uses extreme symbolism in order to spread her message. Or again, Tyler the creator who uses a recreation of a dolls house in order to express the troubles behind a broken relationship.
Illustrate – this is where the directors have chosen to represent the make it meaning of the song clear to the audience throughout the video. This is probably one of the most common used techniques within the music industry and is seen mostly within narrative based videos.
My choice- when creating my own video, I intend to amplify my music video by conveying the message by over exaggerating the mise en scene. I am to make a nonlinear video that is consistently shocking the audience. This in some cases may include breaking the forth wall of including members of the general public in the hopes that they themselves might be in shock buy what is happening.
Relation Of Visuals To Song – Part Two