Questions from Peers

Have you thought of the location?
Yeah we have a few locations up our sleeves, one for example could be corridors of a school, school fields, fields, football pitches etc

Showing instruments?
Yes, guitars, close ups and long shots, keyboard, triangle.

How long will it take us?
2 nights.

Effects?
Sepia, cool transitions, black and white, montage, fades

How we will use voyeurism

Other music videos of the same genre tend to show the whole band, lip synching to the music. Each singer or member of the band is dressed smart, with their hair done nicely too, in their own personal style. This relates to voyeurism.

How we can suit 'Genre Characteristics'

We have looked at similar bands to 'Everything Everything' to compare thing such as: Costumes, Location, Props.
Some of the things we have noticed is the casual clothing, this is because they don't want to seem over serious but cool.
It is quite relaxed music, and this is shown in the videos. The lighting is dark but mostly natural and the clothes are casual,
Location - They all use quite casual locations to make them seem normal. Almost the same as they wear casual clothes to not seem too serious. For locations they would use somewhere like a street, a shopping centre etc.
Props - the props used were generally instruments.

How we will use Intertextuality.

We need to include product placement into our music video. We think this may be hard, but with use of certain guitar brands and keyboard brands, this may not be such an issue. We could also dress our actors in the video in certain clothing brands; shoes, T-shirts etc. We researched the clothing people in this genre wear, and it seems to be the sort of clothing sold in Topman, or River Island. The sort of style of clothing is shown here, however we feel we would like to give it a more casual and personal touch.

How we will 'Sell the artist'

We feel this song gives us the opportunity to use instruments as props, this meets genre characteristics as well. The instruments used are very unusual so we will have fun finding and using these instruments. We understand we will not be able to play these instruments so we will use lots of close shots of fret changes on a guitar, or close up of other instruments. This will show that an instrument is being played, however not in enough detail to be able to tell we are playing them wrong. Shots a lot like this.

We will also have some lip syncing in the video, this will sell the artists as a skill full singer, and actor. Also if we dress this character up, he will look more attractive to viewers, selling the artist as a model for the band.

How to use 'Visuals and music'

Our song, by Everything Everything has a very bold beat throughout the song, which we think will be easy to work with, and effective. There is also a repetitive whistle like sound in the song which comes between the verses, we feel this is something quite different which gives us freedom to play about with it.
The opening of the song is a fading in like sound, which makes us think we could make use of an effective establishing shot, much like what was used in the music for 'The Bay' by 'Metronomy'.
There is a change of pace in the music from the beginning through to the end, we can portray this in the music video with uses of faster, or slower cuts, throughout the video.
We could also change the location of the shots used, which will give us a lot of variation, making our video more appealing, and matching characteristics of other song choices.

How we can use 'Visuals lyrics'

We this this song is more experimental than narrative or performance style.
The lyrics of this song are seem very random so it was hard to find an ongoing message throughout the song. However after doing some research it seems the song is criticising the schooling system. Some listeners have analysed the song and agreed with us. The song 'Schoolin' goes through different subjects and critisises the way in which they are taught.


"And I don't wanna make a scene
I don't wanna think about the 3rd world hunger or whatever
'Cause thinking always comes across
A little..."


This lyric here is an example of learning or thinking about third world problems, and issue Everything Everything understand is an issue, but do not feel dwelling on will make a difference, as much as actively making a difference. This message seems to be portrayed throughout the video, talking about different issues and criticisms about them. We hope to elaborate on these bases.

Schoolin' Lyrics

Brother you look like the Taj Mahal
One colossal dome above you and the smell of something other
A pillar and a scimitar
A little…

Yes I miss you like a formless hide
Stretching over me and dangled from the coastguard in a chopper
The scaffold of me all awry
A little...

Broke your shoulder on the library steps
Hanging 'round there in the dark just doing nothing or whatever
What do you mean you saw the stars?
You little...

I could write it in a murder font
I could say it in a way that would be lying or whatever
I don't want them to tell us apart!

You say that I'm an overlord? I've got myself a fire hydrant, with more tyrant
In watery blasts, then all of my past!
You seen me on the bridge a lot. But I never leapt over, the pent upper
My number is up, my number is up
But infinite and joyless little high fives are singing "Praise the lord"
And "Pitter patter this schooling? Is this schooling?" and "You matter not, and you matter not"
And is it, the flogging of a Flintstone
That I'm supposed to be?
The cerebellum get schoolin', and no schoolin'
The drummer goes on, the drama goes on

(Teach me how to hold)

And I don't wanna make a scene
I don't wanna think about the 3rd world hunger or whatever
'Cause thinking always comes across
A little...

There's a meeting of the worlds tonight
Right above my head a miracle the sun erupt forever
I barely ever raise my eyes
A little
(Teach him how to hold!)

And oh I wanna make the peace
And God I gotta be on the train past the ruins the wall and the druids oh please

I'm whining like a breaking bus
Maybe I can sit here and do nothing clever with a laser
I'm not about to open up!

You say that I'm an overlord? I've got myself a fire hydrant, with more tyrant
In watery blasts, then all of my past!
You seen me on the bridge a lot. But I never leapt over, the pent upper
My number is up, my number is up
But infinite and joyless little high fives are singing "Praise the lord"
And "Pitter patter this schooling? Is this schooling?" and "You matter not, and you matter not"
And is it, the flogging of a Flintstone
That I'm supposed to be?
The cerebellum get schoolin', and no schoolin'
The drummer goes on, the drama goes on

The drummer goes on, the drama goes on
My number is up, my number is up

Earth, I take a long time, to learn about the big one
Gorilla limb swipe and beat, and I learn nil about
Earth
Remember how men, would understand the heavens
But leaving those streetlights on
You can't see nothing there

So learn me anything good

Teach me something that works, I take a long time, to learn about the big one
Gorilla limb swipe and beat, and I learn dick about Earth
Remember good men, would understand the heavens
And leaving those streetlights on
A ghost dark hemisphere Earth
I take a long time, to learn about the big one
Gorilla limb swipe and beat, and I learn dick about
Earth
Remember good man, you understand the heavens
But leaving those streetlights on?

Why we changed our mind.

At first we thought we would prefer to film the music video for '4 o'clock' by Bashy. However after we all went away and researched the song, looked at the lyrics and listened to it a little more we felt it didn't offer as much potential as 'Schoolin' by Everything Everything. We found Schoolin' had a more interesting beat, melody, and a better set of lyrics which we coud build on. 4 o'clock's lyrics told a narrative of going out and having sex with girls, however Schoolin' offers a lot less narrative, which gives us more freedom to film to suit 'music visuals' as well as a few 'music lyrics', just a lesser proportion.
We found that the lip synching of 4 o'clock by Bashy would prove very difficult aswell, in this way we feel we can spend less time focussing on learning the lyrics and timing of 4 o'clock, and have more fun and concentrate on creativness for the music video of 'Schoolin' by Everything Everything.

Presentation Choice



We have decided to chose the song Schoolin' by Everything Everything. We chose this not only because liked the song but also we think we can have a lot of fun filming it, and that this this will definately come across in the video. We feel this song has great potential for certain shot types, especially elaborating on the heavy beat of the song, meeting Goodwin's theory of analysis 'Music & Visuals'.
Also, with the lyrics being so random and obscure we feel we can get some good visuals of the lyrics.
In the song there are a lot of different instruments being used, which means that we incorporate them into our video, this will also be selling the artist as we will be seeing them playing instruments, singing and also their personality. This is another of Goodwin's points of analysis.
We have looked at matching artist within the same genre characteristics, which was a cross between Indie and Pop. They were dressed quiet casually, and the sort of clothes youd find in Topman or River Island, in this way there is simularity between other artists we researced.

Some of the props we might need to use are: Instruments such as Guitars, Drums, Shaker (as instruments meet genre characteristics in a music video)

Metronomy interview

This is Metronomy, a purely Indie band. We thought it would be beneficial to watch another interview with a slightly different genre, because this would round off our thoughts as to how to film and direct the music video for Schoolin' by Everything Everything. Metronomy are very laid back in their music style, which is very similar to our song choice. Metronomy make use of strong beats in their song, which we find the most interesting thing of our song choice. Metronomy have a lot of successful songs and music videos, which are edited very well.

In this music video use of 'The Bay' which is Metronomy's most well known song. The editing of the video is very unusual, with use of strange transitions and scene changes. There is use of strange shot types, and very elaborate and glamorous images. The Opening shot is an establishing shot of a Bay, which naturally suits the song very well. This instantly sets out the scene of the video, and gets it off to a good start. We want to utilise a strong establishing shot at the beginning of 'Schoolin' because the song seems to warm in quite nicely, much like this song. 

Rizzle Kicks interview

This is Rizzle kicks, a group from london who are similar in style to Everything Everything, the artists of the song we chose. We thought watching this video would benefit us as it helps us get in touch and used to the genre of music, how the artists think, and what sort of style they are looking for. This will help us decide what shot types to use, props, costumes, and other styles of filming which will suit our song choice well. 

Rizzle Kicks say their genre is 'Indie hop', which is similar to Everything Everything as their music is Indie pop.

Bashy- 4 o'clock

This song appealed to us the most out of the song choices.

Listening to the song it gave us certain images, and ideas of what we could possibly film for our music video. The song has a girl in it, as well as a male singer; this made us think that there should be two contrasting themes in the song, between when the girl is singing and when the guy is rapping. 

Track number 8) We liked the beat of this song, and the rapping. We think this genre of music will be quite fun to film, and easy to follow genre characterics. 

Track number 9) (cause it's easy to film)

Track number 11) Good song, we liked the beat of this song and the unusual whistle effect, which we thought we could elaborate on. 

Goodwin's method of analysis

1) Music & lyrics
2) Music & Visuals
3) Selling the artist
4) Intertextuality
5) Genre characteristics
6) Voyeurism

In da' club- 50 cent.

Music & lyrics- When Fiddy cent says 'in da' club' in the song visuals show of people dancing in a club. This adds to the message of the song, and links to the genre of the song (another of Goodwins theory)

Music & visuals- The characters in the video dance to the beat of the music, 50 Cent himself runs to the beat of the music on a Treadmill. This sells the artist as he is flashing his 'attractive' body.

Selling the artist- They show him being topless which shows how hench he is which appeals to some people. He is also wearing 50 cent shorts which promotes the artist further. He looks g while he is in the club.

Intertextuality- 50 cent is seen wearing Tracksuit bottoms which are his own brand, this is tactical product placement as it further sells the artist, and his brand. 50 Cent is wearing a NY Yankees hat, there is also someone wearing a LA Lakers jacket. This may widen the audience of the song as the fan bases for these famous clubs are very big. Nike shoes are also worn by 50 Cent.

50 Cent Digi box.

We think that that every Digi pack should include; The name of the artist, a picture of the artist, the name of the producer, the name of the record company, the name of the most famous songs, a barcode, 'parental guidance' in necessary, an eye catching logo, attractive colours, a booklet inside the case.
The video, single and DVD should all be linked together by similar pictures of the artist wearing the same clothes and using similar colors. Similar fonts should be used aswell.

Throughout the packaging the same font is used for the artist. The front cover of the case shows 50 Cent topless, a very similar image to the photo on the back. The colours used are similar on the DVD itself and the front and back cover, Reds and blacks are used a lot. The images all make him look strong and bold, which is the image he is trying to portray, this promotes the artist in the way he'd like to be promoted.
The spine of the case shows very clearly what it is, reading 'Music videos on DVD'. It also has the artists name on it, further selling the artist.
On the front cover there is a 'Parental advisory' which warns the purchasers that it has explicit content.

Justine Bieber- baby

This is our favourite music video. It's a song by Justin Bieber, a new up coming young artist, collaborating with Ludacris, a well settled Hip- hop artist. The video considers many of Goodwin's theories including selling the artist. Straight away on the video justin bieber is shown, looking very cute, which appeals to girls and boys alike.

Daft punk- Harder better faster stronger

The genre of this music is very new and electronic, so this video suits well. This is because the animation shows futuristic images, which elaborate technology and colors, which match the futuristic sound of Daft Punk's music.

Music and visuals match as there is an electronic guitar riff shown on the animation, as a guitar riff is played. 

Rihanna- In a way we aren't used to seeing her

Since Rihanna first started she has changed alot. She started by following the normal convetions of a female R&B/ Pop singer but has now changed into more of her own person. The Main thing when she started was to sell the artist by making her fit in with what people wanted to see but now she has made her own style to sell herself more.


The Mise-en-scene that she uses inher newer videos is different. she has her own style of clothes and make up whereas before she was just following the conventions of a normal artist.

Frozen- Madonna A song which shows the artist unusually

Madonna is usually shown to be a 'diva' or a happy lady. However in this video she is portrayed as a mysterious person, who is able to change shape, and float. The video is directed by Chris Cunningham, and is simular in some ways to his other work, making him an auteur.

Smack my bitch up- The Prodigy. A video that shocks.

This video shocks us quite a bit due to many reasons. The song doesn't have any lyrics which meant the director had a lot of freedom as to what to put in the video. The director chose to give this video some narrative of a persona going on a night out, which gets out of hand. 

The song has a very fast beat and is very fast pace, which matches the video which have very fast cuts. Smack my bitch up is also very loud and in your face, as if the video, showing a lot of naked girls.

Throughout the video the viewer is shown an unknown person doing unuasual things, such as starting fights in a club, or touching women without consent. This all added to the shock we had when we found out this character is a female, as the actions she made seemed to be ones a male would make (Hiring a hooker, starting fights, eating a kebab etc.)
The music and visuals are very effective, showing strange camera angles and focussing of the camera when the character is drunk, this is something most the viewers understand, as the target audience of 'Smack my bitch up' is of this age.
It didn't shock us that the video was explicit, as the name of the song contains strong language itself. However there is a censored version of this song, which doesn't include any naked women.

Lady Gaga - Born This Way

We've chosen this video for 'Song with a meaning' she has been represented of having her own style, which links to her song 'Born This Way' as this is how she has always been and wouldn't change for anyone. It's showing that she is different to other artists and she has used it to her advantage to become successful, and that no matter who you are you achieve your dream. The mise-en-scene that is used helps represent her as being different. For example the costume and lighting that she used is a bit strange and makes her stand out from other artists. This is also selling the artist as people want to copy her style. The visuals also fits the the lyrics, as do the visuals and music which helps make it easier to understand the message.

This is a video for the song called 'Bing Bong Brothers' by 'Lonely Island'. It's about two perverts talking to a girl, all in all being very strange. The characters are dressed up in horrible clothes to make their characters even more unattractive. 

The video follows certain aspects of Goodwin's theory particularly music and visuals. The characters are shown clicking their fingers to the beat of the music, or running their hands over their mustaches as certain sounds happen.

There isn't any relationship between lyrics and visuals which means the viewers concentrate more on the characters of the video. This suits the video well as it is primarily about the men who are singing it, being weird, and the viewer isn't supposed to be taken away from that thought.

Poster Practice- Nicki Minaj

 

This is our poster.

This is our magazine page spread advertising Emily Haines, an alternative indie artist. It suits her style as her songs are all very dulcet and melancholy. We found this task very hard using Adobe Photoshop, as this software was very new to us. This task helped us realise that we need to use more time at the end of our project to do this, as took us quite a long time to produce.

The work of Chris Cunninham

Chris uses very dark filters in his video, which makes the video seem quite dull and mysterious. Close-up shots are also used a lot which helps the video seem more confusing to the viewer. There are a lot of shot changes which matches the genre of music, Electronic. The videos seem very twisted and warped, one showing little girls with male faces, which clearly isn't something the viewer would expect.
It seems clear to us that Chris is trying to portray a shocking image, through strange imagery, colors or ideas shown on the screen. These supernatural ideas relate to the music will as the fast beats and fast pace of the music, along with heavy bass seems very forward. The amount of cuts used relates to the fast beats of the music in all his videos too, this is one example of how his videos are similar.
In some of Chris's videos, which are slow songs, dark images and lighting are also used, with strange action on the screen happening also. So far all of Chris's videos have been very dark, supernatural and with very strange effects, which seem unexplainable.
The genre of music Chris uses, Electro, is relatively new. This means it is unknown. Here Chris uses effects which confuse people, and seem new and unknown to them, to relate to the type of music used. This is another example of something Chris repeats in all of his videos.
Chris Cunninham always manages to elaborate on strange, unusual situations. One example of this is a video set in a mental home for children, in Osaka, Japan. Straight away the viewer feels uncomfortable as this is a place and situation they do not recognize. The music reflects this feeling also, with use of strange beats and sounds.
Chris also isn't afraid to make a video to a song which uses explicit language, this doesn't surprise us as his videos are all strange and offensive enough. We think Chris may enjoy making videos for an explicit song as he can really explore further into stranger fields.
Chris also uses the same actor/ face in many of his videos, putting this male face on female bodies. Creating a deeply disturbing image.
He links sights in the video to the beat of the music very well, changing cuts when a beat falls or showing something particularly disturbing as the drop sounds.
Here is 'Come to Daddy' by the Aphex twin, Directed by Chris Cunningham.

The Auteur Theory

A number of cinema enthusiasts who wrote for the Cahier de cinema argued that films should reflect the directors personal vision. The theory has influenced film criticism since 1954. It was generally associated with the French new wave & critics who wrote for the french film periodical cahiers du cinema. Also encourages directors to wield cameras as writers use pens & to guard against the hindrances of traditional storytelling.
Criticism of the auteur theory. In the 1960's film critics started criticizing Auteurs theories focus on the authorial role of the director. A reason for this is the collaboration aspect of making a film and the role of the director.
To summerize, the auteur theory suggests that the Director is the most important person on the set. He should portray his vision through the video or film, in every production he makes, and should have a resounding theme, Tim Burton for example.