Carol Vernallis4 Key Points

Narrative

The music video is a visual response to the narrative. What happens on screen is a reflection of the lyrics. However, Vernallis explains that the narrative may be incomplete in some places, leaving the narrative to appear disjointed. The video will have something driving it forward, this doesn't have to be the narrative, it could be mainly performance in some cases. This can leave some questions unanswered though. Lastly, the video will have a theme but this will like be presented in a montage (multiple clip) style, instead of a linear clear way.

Editing

Music videos may go against the convention of continuity editing. Editing will likely be more obvious in music videos through use of effects and other features. Therefore a music video will have a distinctive editing style to go with the narrative/performance, examples of this are: jump cuts, Break 30 degree rule, graphic matches, juxtapose frames, subtitle effects.

Camera Movement & Framing

She states establishing shots are one of the key shots in a music video, as well as close ups. The framing style should be quite distinctive in the video and the camera may use movements to match video with the lyrics of the song. Extreme close ups are also something that are very common.

Diegesis

Diegesis is known as 'the world of the music video' (narrative). It will be revealed over the course of the video to the audience for further identification with the song. Not all actions will be completed in a video as stated before, as well as the fact some shots will be repeated to allow them to seem more important.