Laura Mulvey

Laura Mulvey's Theory on Representation

Mulvey's theory focuses on the idea of the passive female and the active male both of which are valid perceptions of stereotypical gender roles in society. 

Male Gaze

An example of Male Gaze in the Arctic Monkey's video Snap Out Of It, where the female protagonist is seen running around hysterically in nothing but her bra and knickers.

The idea of male gaze highlights the manner in which females are objectified in music videos by being styled and presented specifically to attract the attention of the 'active male', which is most commonly found in RnB, Hip Hop, Rap and a significant amount of mainstream music videos. This is not only exerted visually in music videos but also lyrically and mirrors the issue of the objectification of women in the media and society.

The infamous video to Robin Thicke and Pharell Williams' song Blurred Lines is an accurate depiction of Mulvey's ideas concerning representation. The active male is presented as dominant on the basis of the fact that the three male artists in the video are the ones singing whereas the females dance around scantily clothed. 

Carol Vernallis

Carol Vernallis: Main Theory Points

- Role of editing in narrative; editing as a reflection of music

- Synchronisation of image and sound; camera movement in time with the music, cuts or tempo

- Broken rule of continuity editing; more attention on what's on the screen rather than it making sense and being seamless

- Obvious edits and frequent jump cuts, e.g. distinct transitions or special effects (colour change filters)

- Base tracks which form the foundation for music video structure 

"Music videos break down visual, lyrical and musical elements to the smallest constituent parts - a prop, a colour, a few words, an intriguing riff'

In Rizzle Kicks' video to their song 'Lost Generation', use of frequent jump cuts, slow motion and base tracks support Vernallis' theory.

Andrew Goodwin

Dancing in the Distraction Factory

The basis of Andrew Goodwin's theory is that:

1. Pop videos are built around songs - often songs do not pose traditional narrative structures
2. The pop video uses the singer both as a narrator and as a character
3. The singer often looks directly at the camera (star image) - the viewer is then involved in the video
4. Thought through beat (seeing what the lyrics mean in your head)
5. Relationship between the song and visuals

'Pop videos rely on repetition'

Goodwin highlights the manner in which images and themes are often repeated in pop videos in order to make the song memorable and recognisable which leads to expectations of music videos of specific genres. Repetition acts as a way of keeping the audience engaged.

Goodwin proposed three types of relation between songs and videos:

Illustration

This is where the video of the song acts as a visual narrative of the lyrics. 

A prime example of this is Beyonce's video to her song If I Were A Boy, she spends a day in the life of her male counterpart (all very literal). In the video Beyonce dresses as a male police officer and has an affair as the video explores role reversal, which the whole song is about.

Amplification 

This refers to when a video introduces a non literal visualisation of the song which brings new meanings which do not challenge/contradict with the lyrics but instead bring new interpretations/perspective. Amplification is closely related to disjuncture, but amplification is just the enhancement of a concept while still retaining a link to it. A prime example of this is Kanye West's Homecoming where the video clearly shows his home but the audience is given a creative foundation which allows them to understand that he is walking around a city that he knows which likens home.

Disjuncture

This is when the video intentionally ignores the content of the song and tries to create a whole new set of meanings. Videos of such a nature often don't make sense and tend to use abstract imagery, for example Fat Boy Slim's video 'Praise You' which has no relation to the lyrics of the song. This is the complete opposite of illustration.

What is the function of a music video?

Music Video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Music videos differ from other moving imagery as they are produced for visual pleasure and are often not in made in any particular order. 

One Directions video to their song 'Best Song Ever', is a prime example of the function of a music video. A lack of chronological order, constant camera focus on the band and glamorised locations allow this video to directly appeal to its target audience, enticing visual pleasure. 

Reflecting: Technical Skills

Throughout the AS year, I developed many skills and was introduced to different forms of technology. 

• Photosnack
• Prezi
• Final Cut Pro 
• Powtoons
• Motion
• Flip/Still Camera 
• JVC professional cameras
• Blogger 
• Picasa 
• TimeToast
• Audio Converter 
• Creative Commons 
• Camtasia 
• Cinematography and different camera angles (long shots, wide shots etc)
• How to embed URL's
• Media language 

Reflecting back on the AS year

Introduction to Music Videos

During our AS to A2 transition lessons, we explored the history of music videos and the process in  which they are made. In addition to this we began to learn about Andrew Goodwin's theory and the idea of visual pleasure. The first ever music video was Video Killed The Radio Star by The Buggles which was produced in 1970's and aired on the 1st of august, 1981. After this, MTV then went on to flourish into the global channel that it is today by becoming a platform for music videos through promotion.

Conventions of Music Videos:

Camerawork 

Tracking shots are often used in music videos to signify a journey or movement 

of some sort 

While the artist is singing (lip syncing), the focus is mainly on them giving them the most screentime

Videos are shot using bass-track editing

Shots are filmed in order/chronologically for the audience to understand the story

Different styles of camerawork to signify the narrative 

Variety of distances, shots with action - lots of movement

Editing

Special effects - different types of transitions  

Jump Cuts/Obvious editing - not static yet there is a lack of continuity which opposes continuity editing which we studied in AS

Edited to the beat of the song: cuts occur on the beat, e.g. a fast pace song would have fast pace cuts whereas a slow song would have fewer lesser frequent cuts. 

The artist tends to get the most screentime (lip syncing)

Music videos don't tend to follow a narrative structure which is conventional in film and tv drama

Mise-en-scene

Dancing or activity in music videos is often dependant on the genre: e.g. a hip hop video may have street dancing in it

High key lighting which looks appealing is common in mainstream music videos

Clothing is suited to the genre: the artist is most commonly styled in such a way to compliments the genre and theme of the music video and song. 

(Similarly, there are often costume changes which suit location changes in music videos)

Exaggeration of make-up and revealing outfits are also conventional in music videos - this is to do with male gaze and ensuring that the audiences 'needs' are met (linking to Laura Mulvey)

Generic Signifiers 

Pace of editing is dependant on genre 

Age of the artist, group or band provides an indication of the genre 

Pop videos tend to relate to the mainstream wide audience

Locations tend to match the genre

Creativity and Innovation 

Editing - music videos tend to have a creative use of transitions and special effects 

Camerawork - innovative shots

Mise-en-scene - outfits are often unique and trend setting 

Artists' performance style can also often be creative, i.e. their dancing 

Intertextual references, TV, social media, popular culture.

Filming Prelim

Last week we began filming our prelim and also finished filming it on the first day. In order for this to work we had to film between 3 and 5 base tracks so that the editing process would not be to difficult. The whole point of making the prelim was to give us an introduction of what it will be like to film a music video. Also it was to develop lip syncing skills. 

For a music video to look good the music has to be in time with the performer in the music video. For this to look perfect the performer usually has to sing out loud with the track as it is playing in the background whilst being filmed. 

Base Track Editing Practical

Laura Mulvrey Theory

“In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure which is styled accordingly”. (Laura Mulvrey, 1992)

Basically what is being said here by Mulvrey  is when  it comes to the majority of music videos women are styled  to be seen from the male point of view “male gaze” whether the viewers of the music video are men, women or children. For example:

Beyonce’s song ‘Naughty Girl’.

This video takes the male gaze into consideration and is illustrated by the perfomer, Beyonce and also her female dancers. They’re attire for the music video is mostly tight, revealing clothing which is satisfying to the male audience. 

 

An artist who attempted to challenge this is Jennifer Lopez with one of her more latest music videos ‘I Luh you Papi’.

 

 

 

The performer, Jennifer Lopez is using the stereotype of women being used as props in a music video and is instead using men which shows her challenging the stereotype, however the "male gaze" is still incorporated into this video as she has still been styled to be seen from the male point of view.

Carol Vernallis research

Carol Vernallis has observed music videos very closely to discover that the editing is very different to what the editing that you would see in films. The camera tends to connect with the rhythm of the song and the edits in music videos are much more frequent.

Here is an example of Carol Vernallis’ theory:

 

 

 

This is the first scene of the music video where a slow motion effect is used as she is fixing her clothing and walking out of the house. 

Jump cuts are used here when she is singing on the beach.

 

 



Throughout the music video in every other scene the camera always returns to her on the beach, this would mean that the beach is one of the main base tracks for the video.

Andrew Goodwin's Theory

Andrew Goodwin believes that music videos are different to other media forms due to the way they are…

1.      Structured

2.      The way they visualise the lyrics of the song & organise this into 1 of 3 narrative “types”

The music video ‘Numbers in Action’ by the rapper Wiley fits in perfectly with the “structure” that Goodwin talks of. This structure is:

-          Verse/chorus

-          Lots of repetition

-          Images/shots

-          And the beat

 

Goodwin also talks of illustration, amplification and disjunctive.

Illustration - The visual images support the lyrics of the song

Amplification - The visual images support the lyrics of the song and adds new layers of meaning

Disjunctive – The visual images contradict the lyrics of the song, there is little connection between the video and the lyrics.

The video above by Wiley is an amplification.

[RESEARCH] - Lip Sync/Base Track Editing Tutorial

Lip Sync/Base Track Editing Tutorial

In today's lesson we learnt base track editing. A base track is where the action is filmed from one shot/angle all the way through the video from start to finish without pausing. Parts of the shot that aren't needed are edited out during post-production stages. We were giving footage to work with and steps of syncing the video to the song and creating a short music video. 
The process included:

• Place the soundtrack (.aif) on the timeline. Find the first clear word and place a marker.
• Watch the footage and where the first word that was marked on the soundtrack is heard, then place another marker and bring down to the timeline and sync with the soundtrack.
• do this for all the footage.
• listen to the beat of the song and place a marker everytime (e.g. 1 2 3 M 1 2 3 M)
• Change to the blade key and hold down shift and cut at each marker point.
• Start deleting clips not needed and a video is created.

note: the clip on the top of the timeline is the footage that will be viewed. 

Reviewing Previous Students Work

11. Yacine, Andrew, Ryan, Mazlum from 283goswell on Vimeo.

As part of our research on music videos, we were told to look at the previous A2 music videos and analyse them. I chose to analyse group 11 music video because I like the song they chose. Group 11 was able to do what a professional music video would do, and that is to attract a audience.By being able to do this, it shows as I  have been attracted to their music video. The genre for this song is indie/country and their main target audience would be anyone who enjoys this music genre, normally 16 - and higher. The reason for such a high age range is because the indie genre has become much more popular in the chart music, artist such as 'Imagine Dragons' and '1975' are building a much wider range of audience. As for the genre country, it a known to have a more mature audience as style of music has a more traditional, mellow calm sound.

Group 11, chosen to do a amplification type of music video giving it no initial narrative but still being able to adapt to the vibe of the song. The video has two location a indoor and a outdoor, but towards the end we get to see a a slight change in setting. As the music video begins the first location is inside a cafe, once the music starts it is very slow and calm so to reinforce this vibe we see the artist looking very calm and reflective. We as the audience can hear a instrument being played and for that ! could see that they have used a actual guitar in their video make it see more significant. When a new beat kicks in, the location changes again and we the artist. this time much more active and open. The actual guitar is played along with the song showing their use of wider thinking as it shows there connection they have created with the song.

Lip Sync/Base Track Editing

As part of the our coursework, it is a key essential to have a basic understanding of how to do base track editing. As part of our lesson we got shown a basic beginners tutorial on how to do base track editing on final cut pro. 

 A base track is when you film the piece of scene from one shot/angle all the way through without pausing in between. All the parts that are not need for the video would be edited out during the editing stage. In class we were given footage to practice the editing on. 

 The process included:

• Place the soundtrack (.aif) on the timeline. Find the first clear word and place a marker.
• Watch the footage and where the first word that was marked on the soundtrack is heard, then place another marker and bring down to the timeline and sync with the soundtrack.
• do this for all the footage.
• listen to the beat of the song and place a marker everytime (e.g. 1 2 3 M 1 2 3 M)
• Change to the blade key and hold down shift and cut at each marker point.
• Start deleting clips not needed and a video is created.

note: the clip on the top of the timeline is the footage that will be viewed. 

Functions Of A Music Video

[RESEARCH] - Previous Student Video

Previous Student Video Review

21. Khadeeja, Romy, Andreia, Luke from 283goswell on Vimeo

Analysing Costume, Setting and Locations

Carol Vernallis's Theory

Laura Mulvey's Theory

This is Laura Mulvey theory on what type of representation we would find in a music video. The theory tells us that depending on the gaze of the male, it determines how the audience views the female figure when presented but also depending on how they are style accordingly. The imbalance sexual between men and women creates a split between an active/male and passive/female suggesting the male has a more dominant role in music videos as they play the active role whereas the female has the more inactive role. 

An example of a video relating to Mulvey's theory is Scouting for Girls's 'she so lovely'.

When watching the video there is a clear knowledge that the main active roles in the video is played by men, this tell us that we as audience is viewing the video from a males gaze. As the music video is continues on to 0:27, that is when the female role is introduced. The male gaze tell us that he is almost in shock because of this women's lovely features, and not only is he the one showing it in the video but all the other men also stop and stare as she enters. As the video continues to 1:05 we see a clear close up of the lead female face, from this a seductive facial expression is portrayed to the audience which suggest a intended act for the male audience make the women seem desperate and seeking attention. Also in 1:49/50 we see one of the male actors 'smacking' the females arse which also suggest that the men have more control over women as she has allowed it to happen and not done anything back. In 2:21 we see the male lead walking over to the female lead, at this point we see her smile upon his arrival, but during that time she is also sitting with her partner, she instantly smile when seeing him. From this we get a sense that the female actor is being very open towards other male attention she is receiving and able to show flirtatious attention towards other men, even though she is with someone. This clearly gives off image that females are players and are able to toy with men as they are able to be with on but still seek attention from another.

Andrew Goodwin's Theory

Andrew Goodwin theory on music videos goes against the traditional narrative analyses. He believes that they are approached in a different narrative way compared to novels and film.
The reasons for the different narrative structures are as follows:

•          Pop video are built around songs- and often songs don’t pose traditional narrative structures (normality-problem-resolution)
•          The pop video use the singer both as narrator and as a character
•          The singer often looks directly at the camera – this is an extension of (music hall) performance and trying to involve the viewer at home with the performance

Repetition plays a great key for music videos as they allow a great amount of audience to see the artist work. For example during a music video there is almost always a repeat in images once it reaches a certain part of the song, (e.g. chorus line) by doing this it allows the audience to gradually be familiar with the songs. The video will also be played on TV, radio and advertising film or TV tie-in making the song very familiar through repetition.

Depending on the video type Goodwin has come up with a conclusion of how there are different types of videos.

•          Illustration: this is where the video tells the story of the lyrics.
•      Amplification: occurs when the videos introduce a new meaning that do not contradict with the lyrics but add layers of meaning. 
•      Disjuncture:this is where there is little connections between the lyric and video or where the video contradicts the lyric.

     Kanye West's 'Good Life' shows a clear execution of how a illustrated music video would look like. The video has a animated theme throughout the whole video which highlights the lyrics as the Kanye is sing the song. For example in 0:26 of the video Kanye is singing the lyrics 'I got to shine' and on the screen appears the animated words 'I got to shine'. Also in 0:34 Kanye sing 'throw you hands up in the sky' and as he sings those words animated hands all appear on the screen, which show the relation between the music video and song.

For amplification, its is almost similar to disjuncture but doesn't disregard the lyrics/song but construct complementary layers of meaning to the video. Again in another Kanye West's video, 'homecoming', it suggest that the song is about his home or his arrival of coming home, but the video doesn't show any indication of him actually going home but just of him walking around the streets. This only implies more meaning towards the song but doesn't show a clear connection between the song and video. 

Finally for disjuncture, completely ignores the content and genre of the song and can create a whole new meaning of its own. They will mostly make no sense to the song, for example Fat Boy Slim's 'praise you' has not connection to the song which is why it is considered a disjunctured video.

                                    

Reflecting On AS Year - Technical Skills

Throughout the AS year we learnt and developed a wide range of technical skills. This allowed us to apply these skills into how assignments and projects. 

• How to edit on final cut pro

• How to use a JVC camera 

• To understand different types of shot e,g long shot, mid shot, two shot 

• Understand different types of camera angles e.g birds eye view

• How to use 'prezi' 

• How to embed URL's 

• Understand media language e.g mise en scene, camera, sound, editing

• How to use 'camtasia' 

Reflecting On AS Year

Reflecting on AS year 

As a prep for the A2 course, during the last two weeks of term we briefly covered what a music video is to prepare for the upcoming new term.We looked at what a music video is and what its purpose is. We looked at the reason why the music industry needs to produce a music video. It helps the artist promote
themselves but also their song and or album.

The aim of a music video is to:

• sell the song 
• invoke a reaction from the audience  
• to entertain (showcasing their singing, but also other talents that they may have e.g dancing acting)
• give the audience a better understanding of the song (if the video follows a narrative)

MTV

We also looked at the 'Music TV' what we know as 'MTV'. Launched in August 1st 1981, it's purpose was to allow the audience to watch music videos guided by television personalities, also know as video jockeys (VJs). It allowed all kinds of genre to be channeled to a wide range of audience, allowing them to showcase their talents and music. When MTV first started their target audience were demographic young adults but as the society has changed through the years it's now main audience are adolescents and teenagers.  

Functions of a Music Video

Purposes of a music video

The biggest purpose of a music video is to advertise the performer as an artist and also advertise and promote the performer's music.

What is a music video?

Well according to the dictionary it is "A filmed or videotaped rendition of a recorded song, often portraying musicians performing the song or including visual images interpreting the lyrics" which I some cases this is true, for example the song "We Belong Together" by Mariah Carey.

This music video is a perfect example for the definition given above...

However, not all music videos follow the lyrics and the storyline of the song like the song "Love On Top" by Beyoncé.

 

This song is about a man finally putting his relationship before everything else in his life however this story is not illustrated within the music video, instead we have the performer, Beyoncé doing a dance routine with all male dancers and going through a number of costume changes which excludes everything of what the dictionary definition of a music video is.

Copyright Clearance (Research)

Here is a letter that I wrote during the summer break for Jess Glynne.

The Perfect Music Video - AS Year

Music Videos - AS Year

At the end of the AS year we briefly learned about music videos and what some of the purposes are for having them.

One of these purposes is to promote the artist. If an artist is a new to the music industry a music video is one way to give that artist more recognition among the public in order for people to know who the artist is.

Another purpose of a music video is to promote the music. Watching a music video helps the artist as it persuades viewers to go and buy the artist’s single or album.

The last purpose is the idea of visual pleasure.

[RESEARCH] - Laura Mulvey

Laura Mulvey: Representation

"In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure which is styled accordingly."

 (Laura Mulvey 1992)

Mulvey's opinion on representation, is very much valid in today's society, as in society stereotypes are created that men are of dominance and women are passive. The idea of the 'male gaze' and 'pleasure' brings to light that women are styled specifically to attract the attention of men, which is both common in music videos such as; RnB, HipHop, Rap and in society itself. This attraction is often portrayed in a way where women are objectified as sexual objects. 

With this in mind, what I would expect to see in these music videos is:

• Attractive females 
• Women who have a lot of skin visible and in little clothing  
• Dismembering - Camera focus on parts of the body e.g bum, legs etc

Here is an example of a music video which supports Mulvey's opinion:

 In this video the female/s is

1. Dismembered - 1:30
2. In little clothing - 0:58

this achieves the idea of the male gaze

And the male has an active role as he is singing and has women all around him. 1:24

An alternative to this idea of representation is:

[RESEARCH] - Carol Vernallis

Carol Vernallis Experiencing Music Video

Carol Vernaillis looked closely at editing and camerawork and how they worked within music videos. Compared to films, music videos tend to have edits more frequently and makes it stand out more. The editing tends to have rhythmic basis closely connected to the song.

Summary of her main observed points:

• rule of 'continuity' editing is broken - more attention on what is on screen
• obvious edits - clear transitions like wipes or special effects added, e.g. changes in colour filters
• jump cuts are more frequent
• camera movement in time with the music, or cuts with the tempo
• many base tracks to give the video structure

This video supports the theory Carol Vernallis has put forward and illustrates the points made above:

[RESEARCH] - Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin: Dancing in the Distraction Factory

[RESEARCH] - What is the function of a Music Video?

Function of a Music Video

What is a Music Video?

A music Video is a short film integrating a song and Imagery produced for promotional/artistic purposes. A music video is different to other moving image media forms as it is produced to create visual pleasure and unlike other media forms it does not necessarily tell a story in chronological order. It uses various jump cuts and split screens are also common. Most of the time the artist is present instead of actors/actresses. Most videos include singing and dancing or some sort of performance and the cuts within tend to match to the song tempo, making the song as well as the video more enjoyable.

The first music video was produced in the 1970's and premiered on TV in 1981. This changed music culture and soon enough music videos became the central promotion for the artist/band. MTV (Music Television) became most known for providing a platform for music videos.

There are many videos that I would consider to be good examples of the music video form. One of my favourites would be Deuces - Chris Brown. I think this is a good example of a music video as it includes both singing and a dance performance which I enjoy in music videos. The video also uses a black and white effect throughout and as it is a modern video it singles out from other media forms. There is no chronological story portrayed in the video further isolating it from other media forms. The cuts are timed to the tempo of the song, and it just generally brings visual pleasure and makes the song more enjoyable.

[RESEARCH] - Copyright Clearance

Copyright Clearance

I sent out 2 emails requesting copyright permissions and received a reply from both.

[REFLECTING] - Technical Skills from AS

Technical Skills From AS

There are many technical skills which I have developed in the AS year and hope to further this year. These technical skills include;

• Blogger
• JVC professional cameras
• Flip/Still cameras
• Final Cut Pro
• Motion
• Audio Converter
• TimeToast
• Picasa
• Photosnack
• Powtoons
• Prezi
• Creative Commons

[REFLECTING] - Music Videos Introduction to A2

Introduction to A2 

In our lessons transitioning from AS to A2, we were given an introduction into Music Videos whereby we discussed what Music Videos are and the history of them. We watched a few videos which later led to a discussion about theory and the Idea of Visual Pleasure (Andrew Goodwin).

The first music video was produced in the 1970s, which was The Buggles -Video Killed The Radiostar. This video first aired on MTV on 1st August 1981 at 12.01. MTV helped showcase videos which helped promote songs.

We also looked at conventional features of a music video.