Our teacher set us an editing and creativity challenge task, which required us to try out and practice one of three editing techniques: iStop Motion, .... We chose to try out and practice... This was helpful because it gave us an insight into what kind of editing techniques would look effective in a music video, and it also gave us first hand experience of how to successfully use final cut express to create and incorporate visually appealing editing techniques into a music video. Everyone in the class was asked to use the first 16 seconds of the song Kickstart by UK artist Example when practicing editing techniques. The reason we chose to practice this editing technique rather than the other two is because we saw it being used in Examples music video for Kickstart, and we liked the idea of the shots sliding, and the peoples feet tapping in synchronisation with the music.
I personally feel that our editing and creativity task didn't turn out to be how I imagined it. However, as we were rushed for time and only had one lesson to experiment and practice editing techniques which were new to us, I strongly feel that this may be the reason why. I feel that we did an okay job considering that we spent about 40 mins filming and only 20 minutes editing. An area in which we could improve in is timing when each shot slides in to ensure that it matches the beat of the song, as they appeared to slide in at random parts of the song. An advantage of using editing techniques is that it gave us the chance to be creative and because there are a variety of different editing techniques which can be used, they don't get boring. A disadvantage of using editing techniques is that filming the footage can be time consuming and if you don't know how to use final cut express efficiently to edit, it could take even longer to edit the footage.
In this music video for Keri Hilson's single Lose Control, she both subverts and conforms to the stereotypical representation of females in R&B and Hip Hop music videos. This suggests that she can come across as dominant to the audience, but at times can portray herself as quite submissive.
An example of her being submissive is denoted in the image above where she is singing and is dancing quite closely in front of Nelly. This part of the performance connotes that Keri Hilson is inferior, and the performance portrays her as a sexual object within the shot, e.g. at 1:52, I denote Nelly seducing and taking control of Keri Hilson's body while she is somewhat erotically dancing around him. This suggests the the audience that Keri Hilson is willing to yield to the Nelly, further supporting the stereotype that women are submissive and are seen as sexual objects within music videos. This is also accentuated through Keri Hilson's body language and posture, which seems quite suggestive and even a little bit sexual through the way she is grabbing her hair. However, she also comes across as quite dominant throughout some parts of the music video, e.g. we see Keri Hilson and a group of females dragging Nelly, who is shirtless and chained up, through a sandy landscape. In a sense, this can be seen as an indirect role reversal, whereby Keri Hilson and the females are taking control of the situation, rather than having the male in control. This subverts to the stereotypical view of females in music videos as it is showing female empowerment.
Another example of Keri Hilson conforming to the typical stereotype of women in music videos can be seen in the image above. The costume that she is wearing at this point in the music video is very short, exposing her whole thigh and the lower half of her backside. This connotes to the audience that she is again, submissive and is willing to dress inappropriately to satisfy the male viewers. This is where the theory of the male gaze introduced by Laura Mulvey can be brought into perspective. The male gaze is the idea that women that pose sexually or are dressed in such a way in music videos, are seen as sexual objects and are generally a heterosexual mans main focus and 'source of pleasure'. At this point, and at many others in this music video, we can see how Keri Hilson is conforming to this theory, by dressing and dancing in such a way that portrays here as submissive to her male audience e.g. at 0.11, at 1:27, at 1:41 and at 3:23 just to give a few. At these points in the music video, we denote Keri Hilson dancing provocatively and she appears to be giving up her femininity for male attention.
The image above, links back to what I talked about earlier with the whole male gaze theory. Here, Keri Hilson is dressed up is some sort of swimming attire which is exposing parts of her torso including her cleavage. Yet again, this represents her as a sexual object within the music video, for heterosexual men to gaze upon. Then way in which Keri Hilson is represented is also shown through the cinematography in the music video. I denote a number of high angle shots on Keri Hilson when she is in the water, connoting that she is inferior and submissive. However, this music video does subvert to the normal expectations of females in music videos, and Keri Hilson can come across as quite dominant, contradicting the idea of Keri Hilson being represented as inferior. Throughout the vast majority of the music video, Keri Hilson remains in the middle of the four power points - she's almost always in the centre of the shot. Even when she is being seduced by Nelly, she is still the camera's main focus in the shot. This connotes that she is superior and in control.
Another way in which Keri Hilson conforms to the typical expectations of females in music videos is through the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals. On a number of occasions throughout the music video, particularly at the chorus, I denote Keri Hilson and a group of about five other females dancing quite casually for the first half of the first chorus. When Keri Hilson then says 'Put your hands on my body I, love the way you make my body say I I I', this is when the style of dancing switches up and becomes much more suggestive. At this point, she begins to caress her own body from her hips to her head and back down again. When the second chorus comes up, the females background dancers continue to dance quite casually. However, Keri Hilson dances erotically, on her knees throughout the whole of the second chorus. This portrays her as yet again passive, as she yields to the idea of the male gaze.
The key intertextual reference in Chris Brown's video for 'I Can Transform You' featuring Lil Wayne & Swizz Beatz is from the film Transformers. From the very beginning of this music video, I denote a black sports car driving and then transforming into Chris Brown. This idea has been heavily influenced by the film Transformers and is evident at 1:44 in the Transformers 3 trailer above, when the yellow car transforms into a robot. At 2:25 in the 'I Can Transform Ya' music video, we can see a lady in a costume, which has been heavily influenced by the film Transformers. The colours of the costume and been kept to a minimal (red and black), just like the robots in Transformers and we can see that they have taken elements of the film Transformers by using computer generated images to generate a costume with metal fragments attached to it to make her seem mechanic or 'robot like'.
I imagine that the target audience for Chris Brown's song 'I Can Transform Ya' would be an urban young group of people in between the ages of 12 - 20. The reason I say this is because Transformers the movie has an age certificate of 12+, and so people that have watched the movie may also enjoy watching the music video for the song because of the intertextual reference in it....
The strong and most evident intertextual reference in which Ashanti and Ja Rule's music video 'Mesmerize' is referring to is a scene from one the most famous musical films of all time Grease. The mise en scene, the costumes and the performance in this music video has been heavily influenced by the carnival scene in Grease, in which Danny and Sandy sang a song called 'We Go Together'.
Looking at Ashanti's hair and the clothes she is wearing, we can clearly see that they have tried to imitate the look given to Sandy in Grease. Sandy's actions have also been somewhat imitated by Ashanti in some scenes of the music video. At 0:51, I denote Ashanti smoking a cigarette which is what we see Sandy doing in the carnival scene. However, in Ja Rule's music video, they have created a parody out of this small smoking scene by making Ashanti choke on the smoke from the cigarette that she is smoking. This has been added in to create a humourous effect for the audience. Ja Rule's attire has also been influenced by Danny's costume, which consists of a black t shirt and black trousers.
Intertextuality is important because it allows the audience to recognise aspects of one media text that is shown in another media text, which could potentially increase the target audience significantly. I imagine the target audience for Ja Rule's song Mesmerize would be people in between the ages of 16 - 45. The reason I say this is because hip hop, R&B and rap are all genres that are popular amongst younger people, and this song falls into both the hip hop and R&B catergory. A lot of younger people in between the ages of 16 -25 also look up to rappers such as Ja Rule and see them as role models, and are easily influenced by them. Because the music video has used references from the film Grease, I feel that this may attract older people in their 30's/40's because the music video contains content which they may be familiar with.
Earlier on in the year, our media studies class attended a RichMix workshop in East London, Shoreditch, to further our education into music videos and what exactly is required to produce a successful music video for our coursework.
I feel that spending the day at the RichMix workshop was very advantageous and constructive because the team there provided us with plenty of useful information on how to produce a successful music video. It provided me with the opportunity to practice acting in a music video, which gave me an insight into what it would be like when creating the final project for our coursework. The RichMix team were very accommodating and helpful, and were there to answer any questions that we had.
RichMix workshop helped to better my understanding of how important it is to communicate with others within a group in order to produce a successful music video. The person who will act in your music video should rehearse the lyrics of the song and should actually sing them whilst being filmed, rather than mimicking them. This will make the rehearsal more fun for you and your group, but most importantly, will ensure that your visuals are in sync with the audio and will add a sense of realism to your music video. I learnt that it is important to just be confident whilst recording and not to be put of by others thoughts of you whilst you are acting.
We also took part in a group activity with students from another school which required us to re create the music video for one of Robbie William's well known singles 'Let Me Entertain You'. Our teachers put forward that we get our faces painted in a similar way to those people in the official music video. This allowed us to step out of ourselves, and take on the role of the performers in the actual music video. It enabled us to become more comfortable acting on camera and it gave us the experience that we needed for making our own music videos. It also showed us that we don't necessarily need a high budget to record a successful music video.
Overall, I feel that spending the day at RichMix was very beneficial for me and the rest of the class. We left East London feeling a lot more confident in our abilities to create an effective music video for our coursework. In terms of acting and performance, I feel a lot less worried about what others may think and I've learnt to just be yourself, be creative and have fun whilst recording. I feel that we can take advantage of the information given to us by the staff at Richmix, to produce a successful music video for our final project.
In terms of the cinematography, I feel that this group have used a wide range of different camera shots and angles. I denote an establishing shot being used at the beginning of the music video. However, the unusual thing about this establishing shot is that the camera is moving and it has been shot at a high angle (from a helicopter). This is effective because it shows the audiences the broader scenery in which the music video has been filmed. The audience may be familiar with the scenery and may feel enticed to watch it. I also denote quite a lot of close up shots being used throughout the music video. This is effective because the song is quite a slow and sorrowful noir song designed to evoke deep emotion from the audience.
The close ups used allow us to see the artists face in detail so that we can clearly see how he is feeling through his facial expressions. At 0:47, we can clearly see through the artists facial expressions that he is confused and somewhat upset, which may be something that the audience may feel that they can emphasize with. A low angle shot has also been used, which subverted to my expectations when watching the music video, because low angle shots usually connote superiority and dominance, where as the artist in the music video appears to be vulnerable and helpless. The camera is constantly on the artist which connotes that he is dominant in the sense that the audience are supposed to stay focused on him, rather than anything else.
Regarding the editing techniques and technical aspects of the music video, I feel that the group have included a number of visual effects to keep the viewers engaged with the music video. They have followed the typical conventions of a music video by ensuring that the visuals are synchronized with the audio. An example of the visuals matching the audio can be seen at 1:53, where continuity editing is used to show the audience a progression of events, in this case the artist walking towards the guitar. The clip is cut and the group have appeared to leave out fragments of the footage of the artist walking, to make it seem like he is moving instantaneously. The group who made this music video have cleverly edited the visuals so that the clip of the artist walking cuts every time the drum is hit in the audio.
The pace of the editing in the video is quite fast and transitions are frequently used throughout the majority of the music video. This subverted to my expectations of the pace of the visuals, as I thought that the music video would have been edited at quite a slow pace to match the noir song. This is evident at 0:20, where the screen flashes to introduce the artist. The jump cuts are consistently used between scenes, aided by flashing effects which create a sense of disequilibrium and confusion. This is effective because it relates to the mans mental and emotional state. The jump cuts are also used to show the viewers that time has passed since the previous scene.
I feel that the Mise en scene, in particularly the location of the music video, helps to convey the dark and sorrowful feeling created by the audio. The music video is set in Battersea power station, which could probably be identified by the majority of people living in and out of London. The power station is an appropriate location to use for a noir song because the inside of the power station is quite dark as shown at 2:52 when the man is walking around inside. The only light source available is from the natural high key lighting outside, which is shining through entrances of the power station. The walls on the interior of the power station look blemished and murky, and the floor is filthy and exposed. This is effective because it creates a sense of insecurity and isolation, but at the same time, doesn't make the viewers feel threatened. It relates to the genre of the music which is indie rock/alternative country.
Overall, I feel that the group have successfully followed the typical conventions of a music video, and have used the micro aspects effectively to produce a professional looking music video.
I feel that the students who created this music video have successfully and creatively stuck to the typical conventions of a music video in terms of camera shots, angles and movements. Many music videos tend to include a lot of close ups, mid shots and long shots, as well as pans and tracking shots. This music video contains all of these shots, and I feel that each shot creates emphasis on whatever is being shown in the shot, e.g. the long shot used at 0:32 allows the viewers to pay attention the main focus in the shot, in this case, the boy smashing the small refrigerator with a metal pole. At the same time, this shows them what kind of environment they are in, which may be an important aspect of understanding the narrative within the music video. The random combination of all of these camera shots and angles help make the music video visually exciting, and they allow the audience to see what is key in the music video, and what is not so important.
In terms of technical aspects, I feel that they have managed to keep the pace of the editing in sync with the beat of the song, e.g. at 1:48, the song stops for a while and the screen turns black, and then as soon as the beat kicks in again, the visuals reappear in sync with the beat of the song. Jump cuts have been used to allow a sudden change from one scene to another. This shows the viewers that time has passed since the previous scene, so this is also effective in helping the audience the understand the narrative of the music video. The visuals are very fast paced, which matches the up beat dance music in the video. I feel that the video has been edited in this way to cause confusion to the audience the first time they watch, so that they can watch it for a second time round and hopefully understand it. This is effective because it increases how often the video is repeated by viewers.
Empowerment is a convention dominantly used throughout the vast majority of the music video. An example of when empowerment has been displayed is denoted at 2:10 where we see two opposing groups of youths approaching each other with various weapons, including hockey sticks, fireworks and smashed bottles. This connotes their aggression, dominance and power within the music video. This helps to amplify the narrative of the music video.
I feel that the mise en scene has been used effectively to portray to the viewers that the performers are rebellious people, especially through the use of props. I denote aggressive acts several times throughout the music video, e.g. at 0:29 we see a young male smashing the glass door of a small refrigerator with a metal pole. All of the props in the video appear to be trashed possessions or potential weapons, which makes the people in the music video appear threatening and dangerous. I also feel that the costumes used are pre dominantly hoodies, which can come across as quite threatening, especially because in today's day and age, the people of our society associate them with gang violence. This is effective because it fits in really well with the narrative of the music video, which is basically about two opposing groups preparing for a fight.
Overall I feel that the group have done extremely well to create a music video with a narrative, without using any lyrics in the song.
This music video by Jamiroquai is an example of a 'Conceptual Music Video' because it hasn't got a firm concept behind it, and the lyrics in the song do not relate to the visuals in the music video. The genre of the song is a combination of both Funk and Jazz.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
In terms of cinematography, the music video consists of one complete long lasting composited shot. A composited shot is when the background is filmed or created, and then the artist is filmed, and then the two are merged to make it seems as if the artist is in that environment. Because the whole music video has been filmed using one continuous shot, the camera shots are significantly limited. However, I denote a panning shot being used on a number of ocassions throughout the music video. For example at 0:47, a panning shot is used when the camera which is focused on the Jamiroquai who is dancing in a room, tilts down so that it is facing a cockroach on the floor. After about 3 seconds, the camera is tilted back up and the audiences main focus is Jamiroquai again, but rather than him dancing in a spacious room, a narrow corridor appears and several people are being pushed back by a strong wind which has seemingly appeared from nowhere. This is effective because the change of scenery during the panning shot makes the video entertaining for the audience, because they never know what will happen next time the camera pans. Panning shots are generally used to direct the viewers attention from a less dramatic scene to a more dramatic scene, as shown in this music video.
MISE EN SCENE
I feel that the mise en scene of the music video has been restrained and has been kept very simple and basic. The reason I say this is because the location of the music video is in a brightly lit white room, with padded walls and with a grey floor. The only props used in the music video are the sofas and chairs denoted in the room. I feel that the location for the music video is appropriate in the sense that the song is called 'virtual insanity', and many mentally ill patients who suffer from hallucinations, hysteria and other relevant symptoms are usually put into institutions which have padded, empty white rooms. The location may have been chosen to represent the artist who has quite a 'crazy' and unique personality, and the cockroach, the crow and the blood from the chairs are most probably supposed to be hallucinations. The artist also has quite an abnormal dress sense. He is wearing an unusually big top hot, which we wouldn't see many people wearing about on the street. This suggests to the viewers that he is a non conformist and that he is happy being himself. I feel that the high key lighting used in the video, fits in well with the funky genre of the song. High key lighting generally connotes happiness and a good atmosphere, and I feel that the upbeat song may evoke this feeling from the majority of viewers.
EDITING
The most entertaining thing about this video is the editing techniques used to create images which break the rules of physics in real life. The director of the video has given the audience the idea that the floor appears to be moving whilst the rest of the room stays still. I assume that this a been done by overlapping a computer generated background designed to have moving chairs and sofas in it, and a long lasting shot of the artist to create the image that the artist is in a room where the furniture is moving without being touched.....
This song is a remix of Frank Ocean's single Novacane, by UK artists Double S, Shocka and Vertex who are collectively known as Marvell. This song a mixture of the R&B and UK rap genre. The music video is an example of a 'Narrative Music Video' because the visual combined with the audio tell a story.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
In the music video, the variety of different camera shots is limited. However, the camera shots have effectively been used to produce an emotional story about the life of two troubled youths. The most common camera shot used in this music video is the close up shot. This kind of shot in particular has been used in the video to show the viewers how the youths in the video are feeling, and to give them an idea about the youths emotional states through their facial expression. At 2:17, we can see through Aiden's (played by Shocka) facial expression that he is vulnerable, misguided and unhappy due to certain unfortunate events which took place in his life. The close up at this point really allows the audiences to feel sympathetic for him, as we can see that he is caught up in a troubled lifestyle. I also denote mid shots being used. These are mainly used when we see the artists actually telling the story rather than when we see them acting. For example, we see Vertex who is telling the story at 4:52 in the video (rather than acting as Jay the dealer) and a mid shot is being used. This is an appropriate shot to use at this point because the majority of rappers like to express themselves through hand movements as well as their lyrics, and a mid shot allows this, while showing the viewers mild detail of the artist and the background. This represents the artist as quite expressive and melodramatic through his use of hand movements. Not many long shots are used in the music video, however when they are used, they come across as effective in a different kind of way. At 1:37, I denote Aiden standing in a room and by his body language, we can see that he is feeling depressed or that he is thinking deeply about something. This is effective because it shows us how Aiden is feeling without actually seeing his face. This connotes that body language is also an important aspect of a music video.
MISE EN SCENE
The majority of the music video is set in an alley. The alley is quite dark and the only light source is coming from the street lights. Overall the lighting is low key, which connotes feelings of unhappiness and depression which is effective because the storyline in the music video has deep emotional meaning, and the feeling created relates to the lyrics in the song. Also because the alley is quite narrow, this may represent that characters mindframe in the sense that they have limited space to think. In terms of the props being used, I feel that the group have creatively used them to enhance the narrative of the music video. I also feel that their performance is enhanced by the use of props. I denote a syringe being used by the actor at 3:10, which creates a sense of realism for the audience. Some people may say that they are glorifying drug use by including it in the video. However, I feel that they are just simply highlighting the negative effects of using drugs, to prevent young people from using them. The characters in the story are represented as young and easily influenced through the use of drugs as props. The costumes used in the music video are dominantly dark colours, mainly black. Black outfits can somewhat be overpowering, and can make the wearer come across as rebellious and delinquent.
EDITING
This music video contains many different editing techniques, which include transitions such as jump cuts and visual effects such as flashes and greyscale. As usual, the jump cuts have been used to skip from one scene to another, to show the viewers that some time has passed since the previous scene. The jump cuts have been used rather than other transitions such as dissolves because the music video is quite fast paced. The fast paced editing represents the characters as impulsive, rushing their decisions and unfortunately making the wrong ones. Flashing effects have been used in the music video to show the viewers that the characters are disorientated and confused.
The recent single 'Dont Wanna Go Home' by Jason Derulo is an upbeat song which would probably find itself being placed in the pop genre. The music video for this song is a prime example of a 'Performance Music Video' because the visuals are entirely based on the dancing performed by the artist.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
A number of camera shots and angles have been used in this music video, such as long shots, mid shots, close ups, low angle shots and tracking shots. Because this music video is solely based on performance, long shots have been used more often than any other shot type. This produces a less detailed image of the artist. However, it allows the audience to focus on the artists whole body while he is dancing, without taking away too much attention and detail from the background. This makes the music video more entertaining for the audience. Mid shots are used to draw a little more attention to the artist, rather than his dance moves. Mid shots are effective because they do not limit the viewers from seeing what the artist is doing, we can still see that he is dancing because of his hand movements. The close ups used allow the audience to see the artists face in detail. This allows the audience to see his facial expression and his emotional state. I denote a close up being used at 1:02 while Jason Derulo is dancing. The expression on his face connotes that he is having a fun time after waking up from a party the previous night, and that he doesn't want it to end. I also denote a low angle shot being used at 3:15, which may connote that Jason Derulo is the most dominant person in the music video. This is also supported by the fact that the majority of the time, the camera is focused on him, and he always seems to be in the power points of the rule of thirds. The cinematography as a whole also represents Jason Derulo as quite egocentric because the camera is on him for the majority of the music video.
MISE EN SCENE
The music video for Jason Derulo's single Don't Wanna Go Home appears to be set in a huge abandoned warehouse, with natural high key lighting from the sun piercing through the windows. The lights in the warehouse are also on. High key lighting usually connotes happiness, which I feel is appropriate for this music video because the song is an upbeat pop song and it creates a positive vibe and a 'feel good' feeling. At 1:47, the lights in the warehouse are turned off and performers in the background are shining flashlights at Jason Derulo and the background dancers. This fits in with the genre of the music, because the flashing lights in the dark represent a party, and pop music is often the type of music played at parties and clubs. There are a limited number of props used in this music video, which is effective because it is a performance music video, so the viewers would be focusing on the performances of the artist and the background dancers rather than the props. I denote a huge sofa at the beginning, a bathtub and a big case on the floor. From these props emerge actors. This is supposed to show the audience that these people have woke up with a hangover from the night before, and have woken up in random places, like people usually do at parties. The mise en scene represents the artist as quite juvenile and young because young people generally tend to go out and party a lot.
EDITING
The editing in this videos is quite fast paced, which is effective as it links in with the upbeat pop genre of the music. Jump cuts have been used in between scenes rather than dissolves or other transitions because they are the most effective if you want to create a fast paced music video. If they had used dissolves, the pace of the music video may have been slower, which wouldn't have been appropriate for this music video. Jump cuts have also been used to create a match on action while Jason Derulo is dancing. For example, at 0:57, Jason Derulo starts dancing and then the camera angles and shots change while he is still dancing to create what appears to be a continuous dance routine from different angles. The fast pace editing also relates to the dancing in the music video, because the dancing looks quite fast and energetic.
This music video has a broad variety of different camera shots which mainly consist of long shots, tracking shots and zooms. At the beginning of the music video, a panning shot is used when the camera, which is focusing up at the trees is tilted down to focus on the artist. A panning shot is used to shift the audiences attention from something less important, to something more important, in this case, from the trees to the artist, T-Pain. From here on-wards, I denote a tracking shot being used throughout the vast majority of the music video. A tracking shot is used so that the camera continuously follows T-Pain's movement to make the audience feel more involved in the moment. It also gives the audience a tour of the surroundings and the situation, and makes them feel as if the artist is interacting with them. I also denote zoom shots on a number of occasions throughout the music video. The zoom shots are dominantly used when the artist or the performers in the background are about to dance, and they are in sync with the bass in the song, e.g. at 1:27, the bass in the song kicks in and camera zooms in on T-Pain as he begins to dance. When he stops dancing and the bass dies down, the camera zooms back out again. Long shots are also used to show the audience what exactly the artist and the performers are doing in the video. They provide viewers with a full detailed body shot of the artist and the performers so that we can see their leg movements as well as their upper body whilst they are dancing.
MISE EN SCENE
The music video is set in a local neighborhood in America on a sunny day. The natural high key lighting from the sun helps to make the colours in the music video appear more vibrant, which may be more appealing to the audience depending on what kind of music videos they enjoy watching. The atmosphere created from the song also fits in with the lighting of the video because it is lively. The costumes used in the video very much seem to be like everyday clothes that your average person would wear on a hot summers day, which is effective because it shows that your don't have to wear something fancy to produce a successful music video. It also allows the audience to relate to the artist in the video, making them more likely to watch it. In terms of props, I feel that they have been creative by putting random objects in the middle of the street. I denote a bedroom door and a king sized bed in the middle of the street when T-Pain mentions the word 'bed' in his lyrics. We also see a DJ with his mixer and decks in the middle of the street when T-Pain says 'the DJ play this song for you'. This drives the entertainment side of the music video more because its fun and random.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
Diddy and Chris Brown's music video contains a wide variety of different camera shots and angles. The music video starts off with an establishing shot with Diddy to the left of the screen. This suggests that the cinematographers wanted the audience to focus on the cinematic location of the music video rather than Diddy in this particular scene. The reason being that this allows audience can become familiar with the scenery from the start so that know where the performance in the video is taking place, but they are also intoduced to the artist at the same time. High angle shots are also used on a number of occasions, particularly on Chris Brown throughout the music video. In relation to the lyrics in the song, this suggests that he may feel vulnerable or inferior. At 2:33, he says 'knowing inside i'm broken and torn up', which is at the exact moment that a high angle is used in the video. Close ups are also included in the music video which helps to build up ideas about the artists emotional state. These type of shots are used to amplify the artists facial expressions to show the audience how the artist is feeling. At 2:06 I denote Chris Brown displaying a remorseful, yet frustrated facial expression along with a hand movement, connoting that he feels regretful frustrated at himself.
MISE EN SCENE
The music video is set in a large rural desert landscape in the middle of nowhere, as shown in the establishing shot, which is effective in the sense that it creates a feeling of isolation and confusion. This huge, deserted location may have been chosen particularly to represent both artists mind frames in relation to the lyrics of the song. In terms of props, there doesn't seem to be much going on. There appears to be two barrels with smoke emerging from them and a gun throughout the whole music video, which isn't very exciting. However, the emotional performance by both artists and the dancing performed by Chris Brown contributes towards making the music video visually exciting for the audience. I denote a number of elements being used in the music video which may have been used to create drama within the video, i.e. Fire, Lightning, Wind, Earth. The Fire may have been used to connote deep emotional feelings such as passion and love, the Lightning may have been used to connote complications and confusion in the artists love life, the Earth (the ground they are standing on) may have been used to connote stability, to show the audience that the artists are still standing strong through their individual problems, and the Wind (shown when smoke from the barrels is moving) may have been used to connote misdirection, to show the audience that the artists are unsure about what to do in terms of relationships.
EDITING
The most common transitions used in this music video is the 'dissolve' transition, which is when one shot is slowly fading out whilst the next one gradually becomes clearler. This type of transition is also used to convey to the audience that some time has passed. These are effective because they are visually entertaining for the viewers.They are also used to show a correlation between the shot fading out, and the shot fading in, e.g. at 0:24, Chris Brown says 'Shouldn't have been so beautiful', referring to the female he is singing about and at this point, the scene dissolves from a shot of Chris Brown to a shot of the female. This shows the viewers that their is some sort of relationship between Chris Brown and the female. Also, at 3:22, a match on action is used while Chris Brown is dancing. This is when the same action is being performed from a number of different camera angles and shots, for example, we could have 3 different shots from different angles of someone opening a door, with jump cuts inbetween each shot.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
The video to Chris Brown's single 'Beautiful People' has a very limited variety of camera shots. In total, I counted a total of two different camera shots throughout the whole video, which consisted of mid shots and long shots. The mid shots used when Chris Brown is in the studio interacting with other artists. This is more effective than using a close up because he is not having intense interactions with them, so we do not need to see his face in detail as he is not trying to portray deep emotion. There is a lot of hand movements (e.g. at 3:05), and so a mid shot is appropriate for this reason. The long shots create a full image of the artist and the performers, and shows the audience the surrounding environment which they are in. It also shows us in detail what they are doing, which reflects the artists personality. In this video, the artists and performers are dancing and having a good time, which shows that Chris Brown is a lively person, and the upbeat 'feel good' audio also helps to portray this. This contributes towards making the music video visually exciting for the audience. I denote a tracking shot also being used when Chris Brown and the other performers were riding scooters down the street.
MISE EN SCENE
In terms of mise en scene, I feel that the video isn't as good as it could have potentially been. The location music video is dominantly in the streets. The location isn't very well lit, as it is night time and the only source of lighting in this particular part of the music video is the street lights. A lack of lighting generally connotes sorrowful songs or songs with deep emotional meaning. This subverted to my expectations of the music video, as before the video was released, I thought that there was going to be many bright lights because the song is very upbeat. However, I do feel that the use of vibrant costumes (leopard print clothing and bright blue and orange jacket at 1:48) and juvenile props (e.g. scooters) helped to contribute to that 'feel good' feeling evoked by the audio. Although the lighting in the scenes in the studio were dim and artificial, I feel that the artists dancing and having fun in the studio is effective, as it shows that they are high in spirit, which brings about a good vibe and a positive atmosphere.
EDITING
The editing in this music video is pretty straight forward as has been kept simple. Jump cuts have been used as transitions in the music video. They are usually inserted to show the viewers that some time has passed since the initial scene. At the beginning of the video, I denote Chris Brown and the other performers riding down the street on their scooters. A cut scene is then used and we then see them riding down a different street from a different camera angle, showing that time has passed from when we first saw them. However, these are not always useful as they break up the continuous flow of the footage, which may cause confusion to the audience.
