MOCK EXAM - First Draft

. This first draft was a very early edit where I had none of the narrative clips, and so instead I experimented with chroma keying in order to get the 'ghost' in the backdrop of the lip syncing. It worked slightly better than I thought, however, wasn't perfect as it was filmed on a white backdrop and not a green screen as I didn't initially intend to do this. It gave an interesting effect, however, and could work really well with the theme of the song. . .
This second video is my 'real' first draft, submitted as part of a mock exam. This edit features the planned narrative scenes.  . The first few clips of Victoria walking to the door (approx. 0-8 secs) were slowed by about 50% and purposely recorded out-of-focus and wobbly as I aimed to portray the main character's 'drunkenness' through the cinematography. The slow motion doesn't work quite as well as I had hoped due to the frame rate that the clips were recorded at, although it arguably adds to the effect. . The next clip begins the main character's lip syncing. These clips were evidently underexposed during recording, and Victoria is standing too close to the backdrop as it casts a shadow, which are both things I didn't realise until the editing process as I wanted to make the background entirely white however adjusting the light exposure would start to wash Victoria out. For this reason, I might want to consider re-filming these clips.

Set & Costume Design

Mise-en-scene: lighting, costume, location, make up, props, choreography.

Cast list: photos of cast and why they were selected.

Filming diary: talking to camera (video) updated regularly an on location.

Communication: e-mails, letters, texts messages, summary of phone calls to show organisation skills. 

Behind the scenes: evidence of preparation of production e.g. setting up tracking, tripods and directing cast. 

Mise-en-scene



Casting

In regards to the casting, I decided to have Victoria as the main character in my music video. The main reason being that she fit the ideas that I had for a narrative/main character - a female who could play a young adult. Not only this, but she was the artist that I used for my foundation portfolio, and so I thought it would look good to have the same artist and continue the same style/persona in my advanced portfolio.

One of the chosen locations was the green room/studio so that I could record shots of her lip-syncing the lyrics against a white wall. For these clips, I asked her to wear the same/a similar top to what she wore on the cover for my AS media music magazine because I wanted her outfit to be quite minimalistic and by continuing the same outfit and style from last year created consistency.

As it turned out in the final studio shots since the top she wore was a cropped black off-the-shoulder top, the way I framed the shots meant you couldn't see her clothing. Although this wasn't planned beforehand, I decided to purposefully frame the shots this way on the day of recording because I thought it looked better and drew more attention to her face.

Communication

When recording the studio shots for my first mock draft, Victoria and I decided we would share the studio space and film segments for each other's videos together which we thought would work out more time-efficient. Below is a screenshot of the texts which we exchanged the night before asking each other about clothes and makeup.

I asked her to do her hair however she liked because I wanted the look to be quite natural, asked her to wear the plain black top as mentioned beforehand and to do her makeup slightly smoky. The reason I asked her to do this was to hopefully draw more attention to her eyes, and I asked her to leave her lip colour undone so I had the option on the day of recording and could decide whether the shots looked better with a nude lip or bold lip colour.

Weather Forecasts 

Health & Safety Grid

Before filming any of the clips for my music video, it's important to carry out a health and safety risk assessment on the locations that I will be using to minimise the chance of injury. Attached below is an analysis of the two locations I'll be using: the green room/studio and my house.

Cinematography Development

For cinematography development, we were given a list of shots to demonstrate a good knowledge of the different basic shot types and editing techniques which we may use in our media product.

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The shots were as follows:

• Pan
• Dolly
• Tilt
• Handheld
• High angle
• Low angle
• Establishing shot
• Close-up
• Extreme close-up
• Pull focus
• Shot-reverse-shot
• Match on action
• Graphic match
• Eyeline match
• POV
• Cut away
• Montage

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I used variety of clips from different video shoots to demonstrate each of the cinematography techniques listed above, and presented them in a 3 minute long video, shown below.
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. A while ago I also made a video with my cousin when she came to visit, the purpose of it being to test out a profile on my camera that would make colour grading easier. This video (below) is another example of cinematography development, showing a number of the above listed techniques (pull focus, pan, tilt, handheld, POV, etc.) as well as testing colour correction on Final Cut Pro and the capabilities of my camera and how any recorded footage could potentially look. .

Storyboard & Animatic

Medium long shot, MC walking up to front door (two shots in time to music)
Medium shot, MC turning key (two shots in time to music)
Medium shot, MC walks through door (two shots in time to music)

[singing begins]
"I don't need no, no. No no" Medium close up, studio, slow zoom out
"No" close-up of MC looking down at floor
[instrumental] pan down to floor level with bottles strewn everywhere
"I don't need no ghost" Back to medium shot, studio, slow zoom out
[instrumental] Close-up looking up from bottles
[instrumental] Over-the-shoulder shot tilts upwards to see bottles scattered everywhere
[instrumental] Floor level shot again, MC kicks bottles out the way, walks through hallway
"Everybody has a past" studio shot
"But I'm hoping that my past..." Medium shot across table, FS sat at table with bottle in right side of frame, low opacity, MC walks through door in left
"...was not bad" Close-up 'swirling' bottle around
"I don't need to justify" 

Audience Research

Demographics

What are demographics? Explain
Social class - A, B, C1, C2, D & E
What social class are you aiming your music video at?
How will you adhere to their needs?
Genres of music that generally appeal or relate to that social demographic and explain why.
Show music videos and pick up on the key aspects of why it appeals to each demographic
What is the ideology behind the product and why can the audience relate to this?

A demographic presents the various characteristics of a population such as age, gender, education, subcultures, geographical location and lifestyle in statistical data. An example of this is a social demographic table that describes the different social classes, shown below.
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Numerous studies into musical taste and social class show a clear correlation between the two. Our social class continues to influence our likes and dislikes and the way which we listen to music. People of middle/upper middle classes might be expected to listen to genres such as classical and dislike genres such as hip-hop, for example. 

Institutions

What is an institution?
Explain different institutions/channels/radio stations that distribute your artist
Who is the target audience?


An institution in the media industry refers to a company in mass media (such as television, film, radio, etc.) that owns a large number of other companies and caters to a mass audience.

The artist which I am researching, Higher Self, largely produces house music. His remix of 'Save Me' by Listenbee was premiered on BBC Radio 1 with Danny Howard, arguably one of the largest radio stations. Very often, stations such as Capital Xtra, Kisstory and Hallam FM will distribute house music or similar, more broad genres and songs that come under 'dance'. Many 'famous' house music artists are heard frequently on these radio stations, such as Oliver Heldens. The target audience of these institutions are generally young adults and teenagers as they largely play chart music, dance and urban.

Audience Research Questionnaire

Below is an embedded version of this questionnaire, which I made to gather information about the general audience of who I should be targeting my music video at. It includes 10 questions, 4 of these are demographic-related questions and the remain 6 are in relation to music videos in general.

Create your own user feedback survey
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After leaving my questionnaire open for a number of days and gaining a response from eleven participants, I analysed the data and presented it in a Prezi presentation,attached below.
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Initial Ideas

For my initial ideas, I started out by looking at the three main narrative structures for music videos and finding music videos which used these structures as a way of comparing them and summing up which would be the best to use for my own video. I then looked at ideas for a plot/storyline that related to the analysed lyrics of my chosen song.

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Idea 1 - Continuous/One-Shot

My first initial idea was to film my music video as one continuous shot. My 'main character' would've been a young woman in order to match the voice of the song, with lip syncing throughout. The video which I used as the main influence for this idea was 'Hideaway' by Kiesza. However, rather than the video not following any particular narrative, I would try to incorporate a story that follows the interpretation drawn from the analysis of the lyrics.
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. . Continuous shots for a video as long as three minutes would be very hard to set up and plan, as well as providing very little scope for developing editing skills. These are problems which may make this idea quite impractical for the project brief and time limit.  .

Idea 2 - Lipsyncing/Cutaways

The second structural idea revolved entirely around a narrative that followed the interpretation from the analysis of the lyrics such as the previous idea, however uses continuity editing and cutaways rather than a single take. The continuity editing would tell the story of the lyrics like any other narrative video, however, the cutaways would most likely be shots of the main character singing the verses which would enable vast opportunity for development of editing skills. A music video which uses a similar editing style to this and therefore could be a useful reference for this idea is 'Bow' by Kasabian. The video also has several clips which shows the artist side-by-side to create unusual mirrored effects, which could work well as inspiration with the theme of my chosen song.
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Idea 3 - Abstract

The third narrative structure idea was to have an entirely abstract video most likely filmed in a studio. The videos which I used as main inspiration for this idea were 'Intoxicated' and '+1' both by Martin Solveig, both filmed in studio spaces with colourful backgrounds and abstract mise-en-scene. The video wouldn't necessarily have to relate to the lyric analysis as these two videos are examples of that, where the video holds no real meaning an each scene is intended entirely for artistic purposes.
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.. . However, I personally prefer videos with a narrative as they are more memorable to me, and I believe the lyrics of my chosen video would suit a narrative video rather than an abstract one.  .

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After looking at the typical narrative structures for a music video, I looked towards possible plot/storyline ideas that were based around the analysed lyrics of my chosen song and then presented it in a Prezi presentation, shown below.

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Lyrics - Timing & Analysis

Ancillary Text Lyrics

We don't need no education

We don't need no thought control

No dark sarcasm in the classroom

Teacher leave them kids alone

Hey! Teacher! Leave them kids alone!

All in all it's just another brick in the wall

(All in all you're just) another brick in the wall

(Repeated x4)

Analysis of Chosen Song Lyrics

The song which I have chosen for my ancillary text is a remix of an original song by Pink Floyd 'Another Brick in the Wall' (the lyrics are unchanged). The original was made quite famous for its lyrics, even being banned in South Africa in 1980 due to its use by supporters of a nationwide school boycott protesting racial inequality under the apartheid regime.
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Roger Waters (Pink Floyd co-founder) spray painting "No thought control" on a section of Israel's separation barrier in Bethlehem, 2006

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It could be argued that the lyrics indicate a strong marxist view on education, expressing that it suppresses creativity and individuality in pupils. Education is used as an ideological state apparatus to pass on ruling class ideology in a capitalist society; in other words, children go to school in order to learn the beliefs, values and skills that will make them good workers, therefore allowing them to get jobs which will generate money for the bourgeoise. This is where the title of the song, 'Another Brick in the Wall' comes from as it metaphorically suggests that working class children attend school just so that they can become another worker in society, or another 'brick in the wall'. The suppression of individuality is reiterated in this line, as well as the promotional video taken from the 1982 film 'Pink Floyd - The Wall' shows many visual metaphors that support this point of view.
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Chosen Song Lyrics

I don't need no (no) - 0:13
No no no no (no) - 0:16
I don't need no ghost - 0:22

Everybody has a past - 0:28
But I'm hoping that my past was not bad - 0:32
I don't need to justify - 0:36
Myself but I must try and clarify - 0:40

If I wanted to be there, I could - 0:44
If I wanted to still care, I would - 0:48
But that is old news, I'm not entertaining - 0:51
That's it, that is old news, I'm not entertaining that, baby! - 0:55

I don't need no ghost from my past tryna claim me - 1:00
I see, you left me willingly (I see) - 1:04
Uuuh, I-I-I don't hear, I don't see - 1:07
Uuuh, I-I-I don't feel your ghost around me! - 1:11


See I, I don't need no ghost (no) - 1:23
I don't need no (no) - 1:30
No no no no (no) - 1:33
Ghost - 1:39

Everybody likes attention - 1:47
But not when it seemed in the wrong direction - 1:51
Giving me the evil eye - 1:55
Like I'm trying yet he's no longer my guy - 1:58

If I wanted to be there I could - 2:02
If I wanted to still care I would - 2:06
But that is old news, I'm not entertaining - 2:10
That's it, that is old news, I'm not entertaining that, baby! - 2:13

I don't need no ghost from my past tryna claim me (tryna claim) - 2:18
I see, you left me willingly (I see) - 2:22
Uuuh, I-I-I don't hear, I don't see - 2:26
Uuuh, I-I-I don't feel your ghost around me! - 2:30
Uuuh, I-I-I don't hear, I don't see - 2:34 
Uuuh, I-I (no I don't feel!) I don't feel your ghost around me! - 2:38

See I, I don't need no ghost (no) - 2:49
I don't need no (no) - 2:57
No no no no (no) - 2:59
I don't need no ghost - 3:04

Analysis of Chosen Song Lyrics

For the analysis of my chosen song, I contacted the artist via email to ask for an exact copy of the lyrics and input into the meaning of them as the lyrics seemed to have been written wrong and varied across many sites. This initially led to confusion in their meaning however I printed out the lyrics and began making notes on them. My notes started out as vague interpretations until around halfway through, I changed a couple of the lines to what a different website thought they were and the lyrics began to make sense and the meaning of the song became slightly more obvious. Below is an image of that sheet to show the notes which I made and how they developed as I worked through the song.

The song is sang by a woman, and so we can assume that it's also being written from her point of view. She describes a past relationship where the words are seemingly directed at an ex-boyfriend's new girlfriend which is established in the second verse, third and fourth lines, "I don't need to justify myself but I must try and clarify". As the lyrics later indicate that there is some level of jealousy, these lines are an introduction to an explanation of her side of the story. She shouldn't have to justify herself, but she's clarifying her point of view.

In the next two lines (third verse), "If I wanted to be there, I could. If I wanted to still care, I would". These lines tell us she no longer cares, presumably about her ex-boyfriend. "That is old news" tells us she has put that relationship in the past, and "I'm not entertaining that" sounds almost like an unfinished sentence in which she is suggesting she won't entertain the thought of her ex, or won't entertain his new girlfriend with the idea that she is still interested.

In the sixth verse, first and second lines "Everybody likes attention, but not when it seemed in the wrong direction" could either be interpreted as her boyfriend having cheated on her during their relationship, or as a line that sympathises with his new girlfriend's point of view who obviously feels threatened, as supported in the next two lines "Giving me the evil eye, like I'm trying yet he's no longer my guy". His new girlfriend believes she is in competition with his ex, as though his ex is trying to win him back.

The whole song (as indicated in the title) is focused around the theme of a 'ghost', which she repeatedly says she doesn't need nor doesn't feel. This could be interpreted in many ways, however, I believe that the ghost is a metaphor for her ex. Their relationship is 'dead and buried' so to speak, and she doesn't feel as though it burdens her. "I don't need no ghost from my past tryna claim me" likens her ex-boyfriend and their relationship to a ghost who cannot or does not own her because she doesn't let it. She doesn't think about it, doesn't entertain the thought and therefore it doesn't 'follow' or 'shadow' her in life like a ghost.

Visual Essay

. The text which I have chosen to analyse for this project is 'Proper Education' by Eric Prydz vs. Pink Floyd. After researching the different theorists for representation, audience, narrative, genre and language, I will apply each theory to the chosen text in this essay. . Laura Mulvey's theory, also known as the 'male gaze theory' does not really fit in with the chosen text as the characters are a group of teenagers, equally split between male and female, and equally represented. The message of the video is focused on education and being eco-friendly, as well as the age of the characters would therefore make any sexualisation out-of-place and unnecessary.  . Richard Dyer

As for the text which I have chosen to analyse, which is a remix of an original song, the star theory may or may not apply depending on who is considered the artist of the song. Pink Floyd were considered to be stars of their era (70s/80s), well-known internationally for their progressive and psychedelic music. They have been cited by institutions such as MSNBC, Rolling Stone and Q in lists for best band/artist of all time, and it is said that their music influenced artists such as David Bowie, Queen and Radiohead. The text which I am analysing is a remix of 'Another Brick in the Wall', the original of which had a large influence on people when it was first released and was even banned in South Africa for being used in nationwide boycotts. This supports Richard Dyer's star theory, as it shows how Pink Floyd are a constructed image who were widely represented through their character/personality and how their ideology and culture had such a huge impact on society at the time.

Eric Prydz may also be considered to be a star, however, he is nowhere near as well-known as Pink Floyd. His most well-known track 'Call on Me' from 2004 topped the UK singles chart for five weeks and earned him a great level of fame. Prydz has three record labels; Pryda, Pryda Friends and Mouseville as well as two/three stage names including Pryda and Cirez D. This formulating of a stage name and persona is a good example of the two components 'Stars as Constructs' and 'Character and Personality'. However, like many other electronic artists, Prydz tends not to be presented in the same way as pop stars where they are shaped by the institutions which they work for, creating an 'ideal' image with 'ideal' values and beliefs.

One of the initial reasons I chose this ancillary text was for its perception of stereotypes. The characters in the video are all teenagers of secondary school age (represented through their clothing) and living in a lower class area. The stereotype against people of this class and age are often negative, categorised into derogatory terms such as 'chavs'. The video begins by leading the audience to believe they are being represented in this way as from the beginning of the video, several teenagers meet as a group (referencing to gangs which are seen as negative and intimidating) where the 'leader' hands them objects such as bricks which the audience may assume are to be used for vandalism. They disband in pairs and begin sneaking into people's homes.

As the video progresses, we see that the teenagers' motives are not to steal and vandalise things, however they use the bricks to put in fridge freezers and toilet cisterns and switch homeowner's lightbulbs for energy efficient ones and so the message of the video becomes clear. There is a clear use of stereotypes to present the characters in such a way that the audience assumes that their actions will be negative, and then the stereotypes are broken to provide an interesting 'plot twist' and put across the message in a more effective and memorable way.

AUDIENCE

For the ancillary text which I have chosen, the general message of the text was about being environmentally friendly and 'going green' by switching things and adopting simple habits in your own home. To put this message across, they used conventional teenage characters in a way that makes the audience judge them and initially assume they have negative motives, however, the characters break these conventions in order to make the message have more impact.

The general message of the text isn't typically one that would cause offence or upset, and so it could be assumed that most people adopt a dominant or negotiated view of the video. Being more eco-friendly is something that is generally seen as a positive thing, and many would agree that spreading awareness is therefore beneficial. 

The text is unusual in the sense that the message it sends out is not subjective to any particular gender, age, race, religion, etc. and therefore appeals to a very wide audience. However, in terms of the genre of the music, the audience which the video is likely to reach would be predominantly young adults who would be likely to be influenced by, and adopt the habits shown in the video. 

Genre Theory

Genre, by definition, is a way of categorising media texts so it allows us to study them based on common elements. The word 'genre' may come from the French/Latin word for 'class', as argued by Daniel Chandler (2001).

Every genre is divided into sub-genres, which break sup a genre into smaller, more specific categories with specific common elements. Barry Keith Grant (1995) suggested that this allows the audience to identify them by these specific elements and they become recognisable characteristics.

Such characteristics are generally variations of the following elements:

• Mise-en-scene (iconography, props, set design, lighting, location, costume, visual effects)
• Narrative (plot, historical setting, set pieces)
• Generic types (typical characters, stereotypes)

David Buckingham (1993)

Genre is not fixed, rather it adapts and changes over time to suit society's needs. "Genre is not simply given by the culture: rather, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change".

Steve Neale (1995)

In a similar way to Buckingham's theory on genre, Neale stated that "genres are not 'systems', they are processes of systematisation", meaning that genre is dynamic and tends to evolve over time in order to suit the views and needs of a wider audience.

Rick Altman (1999)

Argues that genre offers the audience 'a set of pleasures': emotional, visceral and intellectual

Intellectual pleasures are often derived from certain genres of film, for example, mystery or 'whodunit' films give the audience a sense of pleasure from figuring out the plot and/or solving a puzzle.

The word 'Visceral' refers to internal organs, and so visceral pleasures are 'gut' responses to how a media text will elicit a physical reaction from the audience such as revulsion, kinetic speed or a 'roller coaster ride'.
Emotional pleasures are quite self-explanatory in that the media text will generate an emotional response from the audience.

Jason Mittell (2001)

Industries use genre to sell products to an audience through common codes and conventions that often make cultural references. It surpasses the boundaries of media texts to operate within industry, audience and cultural practices.

Narrative Theory

Bordwell & Thompson - Story and Plot

Bordwell and Thompson's theory was heavily based on the Russian Film Theory, which distinguished a difference between story and plot. The story, also known as the 'fabula' are all the events in the narrative which we see and infer whereas the 'Syuzhet' or plot is everything that is visible and audibly present before us. The 'Story and Plot' theory states that the difference between story and plot relates to the diegetic world of the narrative and what we, as the audience, are positioned to see.

Sven Carlson - 3 Areas of Narrative Structure

Sven Carlson suggests that music videos can fall into two rough categories: performance and conceptual.

Performance clips can be broken down into three different types, song performance, instrumental performance or a combination of both. Conceptual clips show something else, often with artistic ambitions. 

Tim O'Sullivan - Culture and Society

Tim O'Sullivan argues that media texts all tell us some kind of story about ourselves as a culture or set of cultures. This narrative theory demonstrates how we understand a particular set of constructions and conventions and how they are put together.

Todorov - Narrative Structure

Tzvetan Todorov's equilibrium theory identifies five stages of narrative structure

Stage 1: A point of stable equilibrium. Everything is calm and normal.

Stage 2: This state of equilibrium is disrupted by some kind of force

Stage 3: Recognition of the disruption which has taken place

Stage 4: Attempt to re-create equilibrium through action against the disruption or force

Stage 5: A new state equilibrium is restored and established due to the consequences of the reaction

Pam Cook - Narrative Development

Pam Cook identified a structure of the classic narrative system, which should have linearity of cause and effect, a high degree of narrative closure and a fictional world containing verisimilitude.

Audience Theory

Stuart Hall - Reception Theory

Media texts are encoded by the producer which the audience then consume and decode. Whoever produces the text fills the product with values and messages, which different people decode in different ways (and not always in the way which the producer intended).

Different factors may change the way people perceive messages, these factors could be:

• Gender
• Age
• Race/Ethnicity/Culture
• Religion
• Current mood
• Personal identity
• Education
• Political Views

Usually, people will either adopt a dominant, negotiated or oppositional view of media texts.

Dominant

The audience view the text in the way the producer intended, they agree with the ideology & the messages.

Negotiated

The audience neither agree nor disagree but they see the point in the messages. Their opinion is neutral.

Oppositional

The audience rejects the reading of the text and will therefore create their own. They may even be upset, angry or offended by the text.

Blumler and Katz - Uses and Gratifications

The uses and gratifications model considers how we as an audience control the media, rather than the other way around, through our own needs and our desire to fulfill them. It is broken down into four different needs:

Surveillance
We feel more secure when we know what is going on in the world around us and therefore gratify this need through watching/reading the news and weather forecasts. It reassures us and we become more passive and accepting of this information. Sometimes, however, false stories can be published which give us a false sense of security.

Personal Identity
Being a subject of the media reassures us of our identity and position in society and helps us to form our personal identity. Since pop stars often become huge role models and they can heavily influence those who consume them (and therefore is the reason why there's such an outcry when they do something wrong).

Personal Relationships
People use the television as a form of companionship, and by watching the same people (or characters) on television on a regular basis we begin to feel very close to them, as though we know them in person. We might even grieve for the loss of the character in the same way we might grieve for somebody we know in real life.

Diversion

Can also be known as escapism, watching television as a way to escape our everyday lives and think about something else. We are diverting our attention to something else.

Hypodermic Needle Theory

The hypodermic needle theory implies that mass media is very powerful and influential and therefore has a direct effect on the audience. The media controls us and our opinions are based upon what the media tells us. The term 'hypodermic needle theory' comes from the idea that the media 'Injects' us with appropriate messages.

A famous early case which supports this theory occurred during the 1930s where a radio broadcast of 'War of the Worlds' performed a realistic news broadcast in order to heighten the effect of the story and people listening assumed the news broadcast was real and Earth was really being invaded by Mars. This case shows how audiences can be very passive towards what they read or hear from the media and therefore this can lead to misinterpretation.

In the 1940s and 1950s, the media was considered very powerful due to the fast rise in and popularity of television and radio as well as institutions taking persuasive approaches in advertising.

It could be said that the Hypodermic Needle Theory suggests that the media is dangerous and the audience are powerless because of the 'injecting' of messages and values directly into mass audiences. People believe what they are told because it is the only source of information for them.

However, it could be argued that this theory is very outdated as the emergence of the internet and the development of technology and the way in which we consume media means we can access a vast amount of sources and are therefore more aware of our society.

Representation Theory

Laura Mulvey - Male Gaze 

Feminist film theory arose as an academic critical approach in the late 1960s as part of the second wave of feminism (first wave = suffragettes)

Laura Mulvey, born 1941, is a British feminist film theorist whose most notable essay, Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema focuses on the representation of women in sexual and objective ways. Her work was initially on Hollywood films, however, this concept of women being presented and viewed as sexual objects is also evident in almost all media texts today.

The main ideas of Mulvey's work state that we are used to women being objectified and presented in a sexual way, made to appeal to heterosexual males, irregardless of the actual gender and sexuality of the individual members of the audience. Women are to be looked at and to look good, and their objectification is to provide men with a scopophilia aspect of voyeurism. She suggests that the narrative within films tends to justify the 'looking at' of women through the use of cinematography (e.g. close-ups) and editing (e.g. eyeline matches). The music video which I have attached below, 'Satisfaction' by Benny Benassi, is a good example of this as the whole video comprises of close-up shots of women dressed in little clothing, posing and dancing suggestively.
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Most media texts have female characters that are subject to the male gaze. In brief explanation, this also links in with the Bechdel Test, a test mainly used against films that asks whether there are more than two women, named and who discuss something other than a man with each other. According to user-edited databases and the media industry, only about half of all films meet this requirement. Although this might not necessarily work with the media text I have chosen for this brief (music videos) since there is generally no dialogue, the Bechdel Test further backs up the theory which Mulvey presents, showing gender inequality in media texts and that female characters are often presented as nothing more than either a love interest or an 'object' to gain.

However Mulvey's male gaze theory, first published in 1975 and revised in 1981, is quite outdated. The rise in feminism has called attention to gender inequality and in a lot of modern media texts, women characters are often equal to male characters or women who present themselves in a sexual way often do it as a form of empowerment. A good example of this is 'Your Body' by Christina Aguilera. Although she is sexualised in the video and the cinematography and editing both support Mulvey's theory, she is using it to her advantage and she continuously displays dominance over the men in the video. . .

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Richard Dyer - Star Theory

A star can be defined as a very famous and most likely talented person; a celebrity.

Richard Dyer's star theory suggests that stars are images of how society would like them to be, constructed by institutions, in order to make society want to consume them and therefore generate money. He states that "A star is a constructed image, represented across a range of media and mediums". They form a persona which generally isn't a true representation of themselves, however it appeals to a target audience and makes them 'buy into' that identity. Dyer's theory is typically broken down into four key components:

• Stars as constructions
• Ideology and culture
• Audience and industry/institution
• Character and personality

Stars as Constructions

Although the 'stars' themselves may be real people, their images and how they are presented is just a persona, constructed so that society will buy into them. Pop stars are generally more successful and have a greater freedom with this as they generate their own material whereas, it's often more difficult for a film star to formulate an 'image' as their success is dependant on others (film directors, screenwriters, etc.).

Ideology and Culture

The cultural values and beliefs a star promotes is important to their success as a positive attitude will receive well with a target audience, for example, being charitable. Dyer himself states that "Stars represent and embody certain ideologies" and influence this through hegemony (leadership and dominance). If their attitudes are positive, this makes them a more desirable celebrity which society are more willing to consume. 

Audience and Industry/Institution

Industries and institutions are heavy influences on stars, shaping them to what they know the target audience wants. In the case of pop stars, record companies will shape them in a way that they know will make the most money out of the target audience. The audience will consume this image and follow the artist and buy their albums. A quote from Richard Dyer that supports this states that "Stars are commodities that are produced by institutions". 

Character and Personality

Stars build up a character that gives the audience an idea of what people are supposed to be like, based upon the image which they have constructed for themselves (and often an image which is not necessarily true to their 'real' selves). As described in the component 'Audience and Industry/Institution', these constructs are what an audience want to consume and feel the need to conform to.

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Tessa Perkins - Stereotypes

A stereotype is a generalised judgement used to categorise groups of people. They are generally perceived to be quite negative and sometimes offensive towards people of that particular group. Often they are also unreliable and take advantage of those in minority groups.

However, Tessa Perkins (1979) states that stereotyping isn't always a simple process as many of the ways stereotypes are presumed to work aren't always true. She identifies that stereotypes are not always negative, not always false and not always about minority groups, and argues that if they were always simple they wouldn't be accepted culturally.

History of Music Videos

What is a music video?

A music video can be defined as a short film, recorded and edited in combination with a song. Nowadays, they are an invaluable marketing and promotional tool for artists, providing wider opportunity for publication of a song and changing the way in which audiences consume media.

History of Music Videos

The Prezi presentation below shows the origin of promotional music videos in a brief timeline from 1957 to 1982, highlighting how they have developed over the years, as well as looking back at some of the earliest forms of technology between the 1920s and 1940s which have influenced the development of media as we it today.
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. Music Videos Today
As technology has advanced, the quality of music videos have also improved, as well as the means of distribution. Below are two music videos from the genre which my chosen song falls into (house music), the first video being an example of an abstract video which does not follow a narrative, and the second video following a a short and somewhat vague narrative. These videos are intended to be an example of the music videos being produced and released today. . .

COURSEWORK - A2 Media Brief, Chosen Text and Song

Brief

A2 Media Studies
Unit G324
Advanced Portfolio In Media

A promotion package for the release of an album, to include a music promo video, together with two of the following three options:

• A website homepage for the band
• A cover for its release as part of a digipak (CD/DVD package)
• A magazine advertisement for the digipak (CD/DVD package)

Chosen Ancillary Text

The text which I have chosen to analyse is 'Proper Education' by Eric Prydz vs. Pink Floyd. It's an interesting music video in terms of narrative and representation and would therefore work well as an example text relating to the theories which we have been learning from the start of the academic year.

The genre of the original song, 'Another Brick in the Wall' by Pink Floyd is late 70s punk rock, whereas, the remix by Eric Prydz is modern house music and this contrasts the two eras and brings about further interesting points. I am hoping to make a music video to a modern house track, so this will make applying my analysis of this text to my own music video a lot easier.

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Chosen Song & Genre

The song which I have decided to make my music promo video for is 'Ghosts' by Higher Self ft. Lauren Mason. It was difficult to find a house track which featured extensive lyrics that would provide a basis for lyric analysis. Quite a lot of house tracks have no lyrics at all, and those which do are often small, repeated lines or verses and generally hold no meaning. However, 'Ghosts' does feature lyrics compromising of verses and a main chorus, as well as lines which may be tagged as having a real meaning.

'Ghosts' has arguably been, to date, Higher Self's most well-known track with over a million views on YouTube and is the only song with a promotional music video. It's been described as his 'breakthrough' track.

Higher Self is a house producer and therefore in similar fashion to my AS Media portfolio, my coursework will be based entirely around electronic music, predominantly house.

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Final Music Video Remake

Cast, Prop and Location List

Casting

The section which we will be recreating from the 'Toulouse' music video only features two characters, which contributed as one of the many reasons for our choosing of this particular section of the video. The need to find only two characters should not prove difficult, and will hopefully allow us to recreate the music video better in the time given.

As for the casting, Elizabeth and I decided that in terms of production we would equally share the roles of director, producer and editor. The only differing roles we had was that I would operate the camera whilst Elizabeth plays one of the characters in the video. We agreed she would be best suited to her role and has the props and skill necessary for it. This would leave us with only one other person to cast for the remaining character, something at this point in time we are still undecided on.

Props

Arguably one of the main props in the original 'Toulouse' music video are the Anonymous/Guy Fawkes masks, however as previously stated, we will be replacing this prop with hooded onesies as it is more easily accessible and will add a slight twist that makes the video a little more personal and unique.

The only other 'prop' in the music video will be the outfit for the second character, who is dressed in relatively dark and plain clothing - a black jacket, pair of jeans and boots which will be easily obtainable for the role of this character.

Location

The only two locations needed for this music video will be in a bus stop setting and town centre/busy shop-lined street. Both me and Elizabeth live far away from Wyke College, across the southbank of the Humber Bridge near the town of Scunthorpe and so we planned to film these two scenes within Scunthorpe town centre at the bus station (or any nearby bus stop) and the High Street/precinct which is where the bus station is also based.

Shot List

Below is a series of screenshots presented in a shot list for what will need to be filmed when we begin recreating this video

Toulouse shot list

From 0:19

All handheld.

Key = Maskman + person

0:21 - Med close up Approach person, looking at bus times

0:22 - Closeup Finger on list

0:24 - Med close up Look at watch

0:28 - Med / close closeup yawn, enter maskman shoulder, double look sideways ‘:o’

0:30 - Reverse shot lowish angle of maskman – person face in right of screen

0:32 - Re-reverse shot, highish angle, maskman hood left, person looks up, de tenses, eyes

0:35 - Re-reverse shot to maskman – bit of movement

0:36 - Re reverse shot to person, looking up confused as maskman approaches

0:37 - Low angle CLOSEUP of mask face

0:39 - High angle CLOSEUP of person [scared] face – dart look lefty

0:41 - Closeup of both faces, person on left (only side of face) Mask dominates left 2/3

0:43 - Switch reverse angle, maskman looming over person V SCARED CLOSEUP

0:45 - Re-reverse to mask dominating even CLOSEUP

0:46 - EXTREME eyeball zoomy closeup of person

0:47.5 - CUT to pumping hand – hip shot

0:49 - Cut to mask face / semi person shot (as before) – person look down around

0:51 - Cut to alternative two shot, person low down and scared

0:52 - LONG SHOT – person semi crouched, Maskman looming over doing weird pump thing

0:53/4 - Re closeup of mask dominating low angle – bus shelter in right view = Trappppped

0:54 - Re cut to alternate showing person face

0:56 - Hip shot of hand pumping

0:57 - Re semi 2 shot of mask man closeup

0:58 - High angle on FOOT STOMP

0:59 - Further away cut of medium closeup – facing maskman more, still person half face in shot crouched – MASK TURN LOOKS TO HIS RIGHT / SCREEN LEFT

1:00 - Closeup again on maskman face angle

1:01 - Track around middle torso of maskman, person in right of shot, only bodies, still pumping, to HAND MOVEMENT

1:03 - Long shot showing bus stop, person mid right third - Maskman: hands out weird clap thing semi moonwalk, turn feet face away – readjust feet, hand things

1:04 - High angle on feet, mid framing – feet lock

1:04 - Low angle on Maskman face – pov person, Mask TURNS – slight camera lift zoom

1:05 - Overshoulderish, show person, less high angle – maskman move around left of frame, person looks

1:06/7 - Long shot – mask man feet lock and hand movish clap, TURN FACE

1:07/8 - Maskman looking at person – med closeup person right frame, Maskman left – evening out (not high or low) Maskman turns back

1:09 - Long shot again – person less crouched, Maskman: feet over, then top body slide – head turn

1:11 - Mask man med closeup looking at person, person looking – (hand movement, only show upperbody) turn once to face, turn back, turn AGAIN to face

1:12 - Medium closeup of Maskman, dominating, person face in small bottom right, reveal background scenery, maskamn move = slight glimpse of mask

1:13 - Closeup of mask – from behind Mask man whips down, shoing maskman’s left leg, and the bottom torso &legs of person, maskman moves in, slight tilt up, mask moves up (focus on mask)

1:14 - Mask put on person – half half closeup framing – WHITE FLASH quick speed fraction of a second

1:15 - White fades to cuts to closeup of person now with the mask, even angle – hands on face, turns to look out left

1:16 - Long shot cut – person uncrouches, maskman steps back, personlooks around as uncrouching

1:17 - FLASH WHITE jumpcut, med closeup of maskman on left and new mask person on right jumping around track backwards

1:19 - cuts to back view: Medium two shot – unsteady moving – dance

1:20 - Mini jump cut to being slightly closer – still dancey back view (so maskman is on the right of frame) Person turns while maskman pumps outwards

1:21 - Recut to slightly close front view, maskman slightly in front, person holding hood

1:22 - Slight mini jump cut to closer to cam – weird stridey arm walk thing – maskman left dominating, person in right further back [busier street]

Lyric Timings List

The song which we have chosen doesn't feature any lyrics, therefore the recreation of shots, mise-en-scène and editing will need to be near flawless in order to make the video outcome really good.

Initial Idea

For this project, I will be working with Elizabeth Fijalkowski (http://www.elizabethfmedia.blogspot.co.uk) on the music video for 'Toulouse' by Nicky Romero

We have decided to start the 60 second recreation from around 21 seconds when the main 'character' is reading the bus stop sign which will go on until around 1 min 21 seconds just before they meet the additional two guys. 

TRANSITION TASK - Brief

Remake 60 seconds of an existing music video.