Initial Ideas and Music Video Research

This week we have been discussing some ideas of songs that we have for our Music Video.

Our first idea was the song 'Classic' by MKTO. We thought this would be a good idea because the band are not a very well known band. We thought that this way we could help to promote them as a band as well as making a successful music video. The one problem we had with choosing this song was that the video was already very good. They promoted the artists by showing them in different situations, using eye contact into the camera and having different shots of them. The video also used many other ideas that we had for our music video such as a stage, lighting, good costumes and smoke machines.


Another music video which we thought would be a good idea for our music video was 'Love Me Again' by John Newman. We thought this song was very good and we also didn't like the music video much. We thought we could improve this music video in order to draw more attention to the lyrics of the song and more attention to the artist himself. We thought we could also improve this music video by making sure that it was brighter and less dull like the original music video. We have also had ideas of using lighting, smoke machines and a stage. We couldn't think of any points of why we shouldn't pick this song for our music video.

Music Video Director- Sophie Muller

Sophie Muller is an english music video director who is known for working with big artists such as Coldplay, Sophie Ellis- Bextor and Shakira. She gained a Foundation diploma in art after leaving secondary school and then went on to study at the Royal College of Art to gain a masters degree in Film and Television.

Sophie is known for bringing out the personality and emotion of the artist in the music videos. One music video which I love is Stay by Rihanna. This music video is so simple yet so interesting. The use of a simple setting was a good idea because the audience are inticed to watch the video because of the emotion that Rihana portrays in the video.



Another video which Sophie Muller has directed is 'Girl on fire' by Alicia Keys. This video is again very simple yet shows in so many ways the personality and the emotion of the artist through different features such as the close- ups to show the emotion in her face. The video is a lot about showing the strength of the women and how she is 'on fire' Sophie has shown this through many iconic ways such as Alicia cleaning the toys and looking after the children.



In Shakira's music video for 'Hips don't lie' sophie has shown Shakira's bright and bubbly personality through the dancing and the bright colours used. There are a lot of shots of Shakira dancing and even though she is standing in a basic room she stands out wearing bright colours. I think this is good because she is the main part and Sophie has shown her personality.



Overall Sophie Muller focuses on bringing out the emotion and personality of the artists she works with and I think this is important in order to entice the audience to want to watch. I love Sophies videos and will use these techniques of emotion and personality when I am working on my music video.

Intertextuality

Music videos are often described as post modern. They often refer to other media texts such as cinema, television, fashion and photography. This can draw recognition from the audience. This is called Intertextuality. Intertextuality can also be used to create humour out of a pre- existing media text. In music videos intertextuality can be shown in many different ways.
One way intertextuality is shown in music videos is through television. An example of this is in the music video Sabotage by the Beastie Boys.



Another type of intertextuality in music videos is refferring to a movie. Material Girl by Madonna is a mimic of Marilyn Monroes performance of 'Diamonds are a girls best friend' in the movie Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.



The Red Hot Chilli Peppers refer to many video games in their music video of Californication such as Grand Theft Auto and Tomb Raider. This is something which would attract a younger generation of viewers.



In the Music video of Addicted to love by Robert Palmer has been referenced in different media texts such as the video for 'Wild Thing' by Tone Loc who has tried to make humour through imitation of the original video by Robert Palmer.

Previous Music Videos

These music videos were made by other Coombe Media Students from 2012- 2013.

 
13E4
I really enjoyed this music video. It looks as if they have spent a lot of time on planning it and making sure that they had the correct props for the screens. I really enjoyed the different shots that they created of the girl going back in time. They used really good costumes and props to make it more realistic. I also thought the use of the shots of the artist on his own worked well and marketed the artist well. The use of different effects such as the pictures at the beginning and the effects of colours on the shots worked well with the video and I think made it more interesting. One thing that I will be taking from this music video when making ours is the time spent on planning and getting the right costumes. This is because of how much it helps make the video work as a whole and makes it more interesting.


 
13E6
I did like this music video as a whole as I thought they used many aspects to create a successful music video such as different shots and narrative. They marketed the artists for this song really well by showing them in different shots and also using eye contact with the audience. One thing I would say about this video is that a lot of the shots are quite pixelated and could have been made clearer to make it a more eye catching video. They also could have improved the brightness in some of the shots as it was quite dull throughout. I think that from this video the only part that I will take from it is making sure that I focus on making sure the video is bright and the focus on the artist.

Voyeurism Candy Shop

This music video shows the idea of how the Male Gaze can be seen a lot. The use of the slow motion shots when the girls are on screen. This shows how the men would stare at them. Another thing that shows voyeurism is the different shots of the ladies bum and breasts. This shows what a typical man would look at when they are dressed in short outfits.



In our music video we will not be using Voyeurism because it doesn't suit our song or our genre. There will be women in our video but they won't be performing or trying to capture the male gaze.

Successful Ingredients of a Music Video

I think that a successful music video needs to draw in the attention of the viewer. One important way of doing this is through eye contact and showing the emotion of the music. Another way to make a successful music video is through the entertainment side. Dancing and performing is a major part of a music video because if the performance is bad then it won't get people's attention.
Lip syncing is another important aspect of the music video and this is something which I will make certain is perfect when I make my music video.

I think the setting and lighting of the music video is also another aspect which can either make or break a music video. If the lighting is dull then it can ruin the whole thing because people won't be drawn in to watch it.

Music Video Research- Rihanna Stay

I think this video is either something someone would enjoy or someone wouldn't like. I find it really interesting how the artist (rihanna) can draw you in to watch more when it's all in one place.People who like more exciting videos with bright lights and lots of dancing wouldn't enjoy this as she is sitting in the bath for the majority of this but I think her facial expressions and different shots of her face and tattoo's draw people in.

Music Video Research- Chris Brown Beautiful People

I enjoy watching this video mostly because it's from Chris Brown's and his friends point of view. It shows all of the different things that him and his friends do. The thing which I like the most about this video is the shots of him standing against a wall with the animated writing on it. I think what draws people into this video is because it is fun and different. It's not like a typical music video with the artist performing it also uses real life filming when he is with his friends.