Music Video Planning: Proposal

Basic information

The artist i chose to do was The Blackout. The song that i chose from the band was Liars. The message in this song is that you shouldn't trust everyone because people will betray you and leave you. "You left me bleeding on my knees and far from home". This shows that the artist singing this has been ditched by someone he thought he can trust and he no longer can. "Liars, they're f**king everywhere" this is saying that there are liars everywhere no matter where you turn. 

The target audience is anyone who likes The Blackout. e.g. teenagers and young adults. They will be targeted by having the blackout song played in the background and by using visuals and hinting that the song is from the band by showing their logo. 

My idea for this music video is to have someone lip syncing to the song while acting out scenes on a beach. for example, I would have someone on their knees bleeding on the beach because it fits in with the song lyrics. I would also have that same person running along the beach trying to find their way home because it also fits in with the lyrics of the song. At the end of the video I would have that person find their home and go to bed then wake up finding out the music video was just a dream. At that point the song would of ended at the time the person found the home. 

Technical Information 

The purpose of this music video is to promote the artist themselves. This can be done by having the bands logo shown in the pebbles on the beach or in the sand. This can also be done by showing where the song came from at the end of the song. This can also be achieved by having the bands links in the description of the music video so that the viewers can go and find out more about the band. 

The conventions that will be used will be lyric interpretation and pace to cuts. The lyric interpretation will be shown by having someone lip syncing while acting out something that has to do with the lyrics. For example, the actor will be on their knees bleeding like the lyrics "you left me bleeding on my knees and far from home". The video will have pace to cuts to show the beat of the song so that the song matches the video. 

The techniques that i want to use are cutting to the beat and multi-image. I want to use cutting to the beat so that the song will match the music video. I want to use multi-image on the screen to show that the actor is going through a lot all at once. For example, i want the screen to be split in half and one half showing the actor running and the other half showing the actor looking around lost.

The style i have chosen for this music video is narrative. I have chosen narrative because i want to tell the story of someone who gets betrayed by their friend and always gets left behind. I also want the story to show that the person is just dreaming about being left all alone by their friend on the beach with no way to get home apart from running. 

Financial Information

The Copy Right Licence will cost £15. The location is free because it is located on a beach. The clothes they will be wearing will cost £30 for the hoodie and £5 for the wrist band to promote the band. £500 for the actor, £200 for the actor a day before to rehears. £40 administration. £10 for the music. £30 hospitality. £245 for a rental van for travelling. £550 editing suite. £200 catering. £120 camera/tripod rental. £20 lighting. Hotel room will cost £37 The total of this music video would cost £2,002. 

Inspiration Board

Inspiration Board

Ideas for the music video

Pace - fast pace due to the song being a fast beat song.

Style - Narrative because it will tell a story
Conventions - visual interpretation of the lyrics
Techniques - cutting to the beat, lip syncing, leads of camera angles and camera shots to show emotion and to show what the people are doing.

Location - forest or beach to show that the people in the music video are far from home and all alone.

Target audience - the target audience is anyone who likes The Blackout. e.g. teenagers and young adults. they will be targeted by having the blackout song played in the background and by using visuals and hinting that the song is from the band by showing their logo. 

Initial Response to Music Track

The Blackout - Liars

Genre & Style:

Heavy and angry

The Genre of this music video is Heavy and some people would call this style of music angry. This is because they shout and scream throughout the song. 

Length & Pace:

3:41 Fast

The song length is 3:41 minutes long and the pace of the song is fast. The pace of this song is fast because it is a rock song and the beat of this song makes it fast.

Meaning

The meaning to this song is that you shouldn't trust everyone because people will betray you and leave you. "You left me bleeding on my knees and far from home". This shows that the artist singing this has been ditched by someone he thought he can trust and he no longer can. "Liars, they're f**king everywhere" this is saying that there are liars everywhere no matter where you turn. 

Narrative

There isn't a clear story behind this song but if you listen to it you can picture a story where someone trusted their friend and they always get let down by them. this is evident in the lyrics because it says "I'm done, trying to hide these scars.. You left me bleeding on my knees and far from home". 

Impressions

My impression on this video is that it is truthful and makes me feel like i relate to the song because i can see that there are liars everywhere. It also makes me feel like i can understand what they are saying by quickly going through the lyrics. The Lyrics are simple and relatable so it is a good song to listen to no matter what mood i am in. 

Imagery and Symbolism

There is no symbolism in the song, it cuts straight to the point with what they want to say through the song. However, this song could symbolise a friendship that was built on trust and is no longer there because the trust was lost. 

Lyrics:

Liars, they're fucking everywhere

They are, the reason I don't care
Riot! We gotta take what's oursI'm done, trying to hide these scarsYou left me bleeding on my knees and far from home(Waiting for somebody to save me, waiting for somebody to call)Get me to the hospitalGet me to the hospitalQuiet (Just shut your fucking mouth)Tired, of all the shit you spoutDie young, to fucking save yourselfI'm done, you know I know what's bestYou left me bleeding on my knees and far from home(Waiting for somebody to save me, waiting for somebody to call)Bleeding on my knees and far from home(Waiting for somebody to save me, waiting for somebody to call)Get me to the hospitalGet me to the hospitalI got the feeling that something's wrongSick, I'm Sick, I'm SickSick of all this shit!I've waited for someone for far too longSick, I'm Sick, I'm SickSick of all this shit!It feels like it's almost overI'm fading awayBleeding on my knees and far from home(Waiting for somebody to save me, waiting for somebody to call)Bleeding on my knees and far from home(Waiting for somebody to save me, waiting for somebody to call)Get me to the hopsitalGet me to the hospitalGet me to the hospitalGet me to the hospitalSick, We're Sick, We're SickSick of all this shit!We're Sick, We're SickSick of all this shit!We're Sick, We're SickSick of all this shit!We're Sick, We're SickSick of all this shit!(We're sick, We're sick)(Sick of all this shit!)(We're sick, We're sick)(Sick of all this shit!)(We're sick, We're sick)(Sick of all this shit!)(We're sick, We're sick)(Sick of all this shit!)(Bleurgh!)

music video conventions

In this assignment I will be comprehensively explaining the styles, conventions and techniques of music videos with elucidated examples and consistently using subject terminology correctly.

A.

1.    Lyric interpretation 

The artist has their own interpretations of the lyrics they write. However, the audience listening to the song may interpret the lyrics differently and have their own way of understanding the lyrics. This could also bring the person listening to the song closer to the artist. 

2.    Extending or consolidating song's meaning

This is showing a songs meaning throughout the artists music video. This effects the audience because they can see the artist’s song meaning through the video and gain an understanding of what the artist is trying to represent. 

3.    Focus of performer

This is showing the artist in the music without anything else to take the attention away from them. This effects the audience because it helps them understand what the artist is attempting to put across. 

4.    Lighting for mood

The lighting in the artist’s video will represent the mood of the song within the video. This effects the audience as it helps putting across the mood of the song that the audience is listening to. 

5.    Pace of cuts

The artist’s video will contain different paces of cuts to show the audience the type of song they are representing. This effects the audience as they can get an understanding of the artist. 

Special effects such as Chroma key (green screen)

The Blackout - Radio

They use green screen to film the music video because they are trying to show that they have gone on holiday but without going on holiday. They did this effectively by showing them paragliding, on a boat, playing guitar on the beach and by performing as a band on the green screen beach. Having green screen means the band can have fun and learn about new video styles and being able to include anything they wanted to make it seem realistic of not. In this case not realistic. It also means that the fans can enjoy watching them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2PzANQd1cg

Multi-mage (multiple images on screen at once)

Azonto - Fuse ODG Feat. Tiffany

Azonto is a good example of having multiple images on the screen at once. To have more than one image on the screen shows that they have lots of footage and are showing their editing skills. It also means that the viewer can view more than one image at a time. It is effective because it shows that the artist is trying to show off as much as possible in one video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTUIlOudlHI

Cutting to a beat

The Blackout - Never By Your Side

They have used Cutting to a beat in this music video to make the video link in with the fast beat of the song. This is effective because it allows you to see that the song has a fast beat. It is also effective because it shows that they have linked the video in with the song. Cutting to the beat enabled the viewer to think that the editor has spent a lot of time on the music video and that the band has thought out what they are going to do. It also means that the band can show what genre of music they produce by having a fast beat music video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zR5ICFGFTis

An artist miming and lip-syncing to a playback track

Yashin – D.E.A.D

It is clear that the band are lip-syncing in this music video because for the majority of the music video they are in the forest and in the forest there is no electric to play instruments. You can also tell they are lip-syncing because the backing track is perfect. Artists will use lip-syncing while filming a music video because then they know that it will be the same timing as the backing track. Without lip-syncing the video might be wrong. Some artists struggle to lip sync and this could lead the viewers to question them. It all depends on the editor of the music video to enable the backing track to match the footage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=837wGLKa1M8

Animation

Gorillaz - Clint Eastwood

Some music videos use animation, whether it be for the whole video or just part of it. This can range from stop-motion animation to digital. They are an animated band that is fronted by a group of four animated characters who are 2D (vocals and Keyboards). By having a music video in an animated format means that they are able to show their animation skills as well as their music skills. However, having an animated music video doesn’t make it suitable for kids.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoQYw49saqc

In-concert footage

Asking Alexandria - Not the American Average

This video shows in-concert footage to promote their new song. This is effective because it shows that they can perform this song live and it shows what they do on stage. You can see that it is in-concert footage because there is the band on stage and they are performing to the crowd. To have in-concert footage as a music video enables the viewers to see what they get up to on stage and enables them to see how they perform. It also shows what they crowd are like in their concerts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7Fi8-7HRhc

An "as-live" performer where the group or artist is shown performing (miming/playing instruments) in an empty space

McFly – That’s The Truth

In-Concert Music Videos show the artists of the song doing a live performance of it. Some of them even use videos from a real gig rather than a staged one. Audiences generally enjoy these music videos as they want to see the artist playing the song rather than just hearing it. In some cases, it can be used to represent the feeling of a real concert. However, artists need to ensure that they lip-sync by singing in the same way to the studio version of the song. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xA3tHGWbuF4

An allusion or reference to another musical artist

Metallica - All Nightmare Long

Allusion is when a reference to a person, existing text, place or event is made within a music video. It could be fairly obvious or totally discreet but either way, many music videos feature conventions such as this. For example, in the music video for Metallica’s ‘All Nightmare Long’ which makes reference to the Tunguska event in 1908 as well as the speculative conjecture that circulated around it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFqjDXy9s5A

C

1.    Narrative (tells a story)

this is when the music video will tell the story throughout the video. For example, the whole 'save rock and roll' album tells a story which is split up between all the music videos. 

2.    Impressionist (more about mood and atmosphere than meaning)

This is when a music video has no purpose or meaning and its more about the artist themselves and the music they are producing. An example would be The blackout's music video for Higher and Higher. 

3.    Interpretative (directly interprets lyrics of son in a visual way)

This is when the lyrics of the song are shown throughout the video in a visual way. An example would be The Blackout's video for their song Start The Party because the lyrics talk about starting a party and in the video they are on a party boat.

4.    Surrealist (weird imagery, seems unconnected with the song, often used in videos for instrumental songs and dance tracks) 

This is associated with strange videos that are not trying to get a message across, an example would be My Chemical Romance's video for I don't love you. They have them playing their instruments and then they have a couple and one of them is painted. The whole video is also in black and white and it doesn't connect with the song. 

5.    Pastiche/homage (an affectionate or positive copy of or tribute to another artists work, a media genre or product like a TV programme, film etc.)

 This is when a media idea is incorporated within a music video. An example would be Mcfly's video for I've Got You because it has clips from the film just my luck.

6.    parody (a mocking or critical copy of another artists work, or another media genre)

This is when an artist makes a joke of another celebrities work, an example would be Bart Bakers parody for Miley Cyrus' video We Can't Stop. 

Music Video Styles and Conventions

Some examples of music videos that show the following techniques.

Special effects such as chroma key (green screen)
The Blackout - Radio
they use green screen to film the music video because they are trying to show that they have gone on holiday but without going on holiday. they did this effectively by showing them paragliding, on a boat, playing guitar on the beach and by performing as a band on the green screen beach.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2PzANQd1cg

Multi-mage(multiple images on screen at once)


Cutting to a beat
The Blackout - Never By Your Side
They have used Cutting to a beat in this music video to make the video link in with the fast beat of the song. this is effective because it allows you to see that the song has a fast beat. it is also effective because it shows that they have linked the video in with the song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zR5ICFGFTis

An artist miming an lip-syncing to a playback track


Animation


In-concert footage

Asking Alexandria - Not The American Average
this video shows in-concert footage to promote their new song. this is effective because it shows that they can perform this song live and it shows what they do on stage. you can see that it is an in-concert footage because there is the band on stage and they are performing to the crowd. 


An "as-live" performer where the group or artist is shown performing(miming/playing instruments) in an empty space


An allusion or reference to another musical artist


Lyric interpretation 

The artist has their own interpretations of the lyrics they write. however, the audience listening to the song may interpret the lyrics differently and have their own way of understanding the lyrics. this could also bring the person listening to the song closer to the artist. 

Extending or consolidating song's meaning

this is showing a songs meaning throughout the artists music video. this effects the audience because they can see the artists song meaning through the video and gain an understanding of what the artist is trying to represent. 

focus of performer

this is showing the artist in the music without anything else to take the attention away from them. this effects the audience because it helps them understand what the artist is attempting to put across. 

lighting for mood

the lighting in the artists video will represent the mood of the song within the video. this effects the audience as it helps putting across the mood of the song that the audience is listening to. 

pace of cuts

the artists video will contain different paces of cuts to show the audience the type of song they are representing. this effects the audience as they can get an understanding of the artist. 

narrative(tells a story)

this is when the music video will tell the story throughout the video. for example, the whole 'save rock and roll' album tells a story which is split up between all the music videos. 

impressionist (more about mood and atmosphere than meaning)

this is when a music video has no purpose or meaning and its more about the artist themselves and the music they are producing. an example would be The blackout's music video for Higher and Higher. 

interpretative (directly interprets lyrics of son in a visual way)

this is when the lyrics of the song are shown throughout the video in a visual way. an example would be The Blackout's video for their song Start The Party because the lyrics talk about starting a party and in the video they are on a party boat.

surrealist (weird imagery, seems unconnected with the song, often used in videos for instrumental songs and dance tracks) 

this is associated with strange videos that are not trying to get a message across, an example would be My Chemical Romance's video for I don't love you. they have them playing their instruments and then they have a couple and one of them is painted. the whole video is also in black and white and it doesn't connect with the song. 

Pastiche/homage (an affectionate or positive copy of or tribute to another artists work, a media genre or roduct like a tv programme, film etc.) this is when a media idea is incorproated within a music video. an example would be Mcfly's video for I've Got You because it has clips from the film just my luck.

parody (a mocking or critical copy of another artists work, or another media genre) this is when an artist makes a joke of another celebrities work, an example would be Bart Bakers parody for Miley Cyrus' video We Can't Stop. 

Music Video Styles

Katy Perry - Firework

I think that the style of the music video is narrative and impressionist. The video tells a story about people who are hiding their secrets and keeping their emotions within themselves. The video tells us to be ourselves and not to be scared of what people think about you, the video also tells you to be proud of who you are. The video tells you to just let all your emotions and secrets burst out and not to control your life. The music video also shows the mood and atmosphere by showing different types of camera shots. For example, close up shots were used to show the peoples emotions. Katy Perry tells people to be free by saying "come on, show 'em what you're worth." 

Music Video Production 1: Purposes

Linkin Park – Iridescent

The purpose of this music video is to promote the film Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

There is evidence of the film in the music video by having scenes from the film and props from the film such as the lead singer turning into a transformer while in the music video.

The mise-en-scene shows that they have transformer costumes to represent the film Transformers. The special effects enabled them to transform from human to a transformer to represent the film. The main edit technique used is cut but there are more, such as fade into another scene and they have used fade to black.

The director has used many camera shots to show different scenes in the music video. They have used long shot camera shot to show that everything in the scene is important. They have a close up camera shot to show the singers emotions. They have a medium close up camera shot to show that the singer is beginning to transform. They have an action shot to show the transformation happening.

The purpose of this video is shown by having many clips from the film incorporated into the music video to make it clear that they are representing a film and not just the song. For example, at 1:27 minutes into the video, you can visually see a scene from the film Transformers: Dark of the Moon. 

My Chemical Romance – Welcome To The Black Parade

The purpose of this music video is to promote the artists album. This is shown by the title of the song being similar to the album. The album itself is called My Chemical Romance – The Black Parade and the song is called Welcome to The Black Parade. This evidently shows that the song is from the album and that it links to the album.

You can see by the mise-en-scene that the music video matches the album because of the costumes that the band are wearing. They are all wearing marching band uniforms and they wear them throughout the video. They also have the location in based in a “black parade” due to the fact that they are on a parade stand going through a parade full of ashes and black and white surroundings.

The editing used throughout the music video are fade to black to get to the next scene or fast cut. They use fast fade to black to get to the next scene and fast cut because it matched the pace of the song.

The camera shots used in the video are long action shot, close up, medium close up and long shot. They use long action shot to get everything in the screen and to show that the surroundings as important as the band themselves. They use close up shot to show Gerard’s emotions while singing. They use medium close up to show the band playing the instruments and to show what the band are doing. They use long shot to show that the band are performing on a parade stand.

The purpose of the video is shown by the lyrics in the video. “Because one day I’ll leave you, A phantom to lead you in the summer, To join The Black Parade” in these lyrics you can see the title which indicates that the song is from the album.

They have the location set in a “Black Parade” which evidently shows that it is linked to the video. 

Gerard Way – No Shows

The purpose of this music video is to promote the artist. The reason this music video is promoting the artist Gerard Way and this is because it was it first solo music video since he left My Chemical Romance.

The mise-en-scene suggests that Gerard Way has changed the style of music and show his new style of clothing. Having many different camera angles and camera shots throughout the video help to show this. The location that Gerard Way is in also tells us that he has changed his style of music. This is shown by the background being from the 70’s and having old microphones to help with the look. 

The camera angles/shots in the video have been used effectively to show Gerard Way himself and to let the audience know that his image has changed. The have used close up camera shots to show the people viewing the music video that he has changed and now has bright orange hair. They have used long shots to show what his style of clothes are and how he acts on stage. They used low angle while pointing the camera at Gerard to make it look like it is a point of view angle to make us feel like we are watching him live.

The purpose is clear and is shown by having Gerard Way singing with his band on stage to a group of people. This shows us that Gerard is promoting his new album and his new music. For example, 2:28 minutes into the video you can see Gerard performing his song with his band to the crowd.

Bang Bang – Jessie J, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj

The purpose of this music video is to increase the income for the record company. They do this because they have three different artists in one music video. They have Ariana Grande, Jessie J and Nicki Minaj. This will increase the record labels money because they will get income from all three artists fans. You can tell the evidence in the record label making money by the amount on YouTube views the song has. You can also tell by the amount of iTunes downloads.

There have been many camera shots and angles used throughout the whole music video. The camera shots have been used to show that all three artists are in the video and what they are doing in the video. They have used medium close ups to show who each three of the girls are. They have used medium long shots to show what they are wearing and what dance moves they are doing. They have used long shots to show the surroundings of where the girls are. They have used many camera angles to go with the camera shots. Some of theses are low angle facing upwards to show Nicki Minaj to show her getting out of a helicopter.

You can clearly see Ariana Grande 0:12 seconds into the video. You can clearly see Jessie J 0:37 seconds into the video. You can clearly see Nicki Minaj 0:29 seconds into the video.

Ariana Grande - The Way ft. Mac Miller
This music video was to increase Ariana's range of media to achieve in. This is because Ariana used to be in a show called Victorious and she used to sing but no one knew her for herself. The evidence to show that it is Ariana Grande trying to achieve different types of media is the song 'The Way ft Mac Miller' this was her first song as an artist not on the TV show.
The camera angles used in this video help us to identify that it is Ariana Grande. They have used medium close up camera shots to show that this song is sung by Ariana. They use long shots to show Ariana's style and what she dresses like out of the TV show. They also use long action shot to show the dancers and to show the surroundings.
Throughout the whole video they use only fast cut as the editing technique to match the song and the beat of the song. The mise-en-scene shows that she is located in a plain white studio and has a projector projecting images to make the background fit the song.
The purpose of the music video is shown by having Ariana Grande in the video to let the audience know that she is now a artist and that she is going into the music career.
You know Ariana Grande is in the song because as soon as the video starts she is sown.

Fall Out Boy - Sugar, We're Going Down
The purpose of this video is to promote a particular song. The evidence showing that this song is for self promotion is because of the band performing in the music video. They can promote this video and get the song known by showing the video on different media sites such as YouTube or on tv.
The editing used was fast cut to match the pace of the song. The mise-en-scene shows that the location was outside where deer could be hunted, and in a cabin. The costumes had a man with antlers in his head and deer feet/legs as his legs. This shows creativity. The camera shots consist of long shot to show the person and the surroundings e.g. the band in the cabin and the deer man waiting in the road. Close up to show the bands faces and emotions. Medium long shot to show the band members playing instruments.
The purpose of this music video has been shown by having the band performing the song in a cabin. You can see the band members 0:15 seconds into the video which indicates that it is a all Out Boy video.