What is a Music Video?

A music video is a narrative alongside a song, relating to lyrics; a distinctive art form which can allow

really interesting creative opportunities, and it has specific conventions, lasts the length of the song

(if longer), features the artist and can tell a story.

What are the Conventions of a Music Video?

Sound (vocals and sound effects), camera shots (long shots, close-shots , mid shots), camera

movement (pans, tilts, tracking, crane shots), mise en scene (costume reflects genre; locations,

colours reflect mood and atmosphere), editing (jump cuts, transitions), lighting (black and white,

artificial, natural light), props (add to the scene) and originality.

What is the Purpose of a Music Video?

The purpose of a music video is to promote a new song through an interesting, creative and unique

video to make the song more memorable. The main aspects of a music video are to promote the

artist and/or song, to entertain, to help people remember the song, to present the story of the song

in a visual form and to invoke a reaction.

Methods of Analysis

Goodwin (theorist) – relationship between lyrics and visuals, particular genres have their own video

style and iconography, demand from record company that there are lots of close ups of the main

artist, artists develop their own star iconography in and out of their videos, voyeurism and

intertextual references.

John Stewart (theorist) – incorporating, raiding and reconstructing is essentially the essence of

intertextuality, using something which the audience may be familiar with to generate both nostalgic

associations and new meanings; visual references from a range of sources such as cinema, fashion

and art photography.

Laura Mulvey (theorist) – the male gaze, argues the main viewpoint and males, and women

sexualised in the media.

Editing – fast cut montage, some images may be difficult to grasp on the first viewing, slower pace

and more gentle shot transitions to establish mood, and digital effects like split screen and CGI.

Camerawork – significant impact on meaning; movement, angle and shot distance; close-up

dominates because of the size of the screen and desire to create a sense of intimacy, and lighting to

focus on the artists face.

Intertextuality – post-modern text, drawing upon existing texts in order to spark recognition in the

audience, short hand, not all audiences with spot the reference, pleasure, and some relate to

cinema, TV genre, other music videos or video games.

Voyeurism – intimate locations (bedroom), Sigmund Freud, erotic pleasure gained from looking at

sexual object that is unaware they are being looked at, near nudity, exhibitionism, too much and too

little.

Exhibitionism – sexually provocative and in control, inviting sexual gaze, and female flesh on display

is simply cynical exploitation.