Analysis of the Music Video “It’s Time”

I chose this music video by Imagine Dragons because I felt it shared themes in which I was interested in portraying in my own music video. Also the iconography/cinematography in this video is an aspect which caught my eye.

• For my first point, I’d like to point out that the colour for the scheme for the video connotes the doom and despair of the setting in which the video is situated. This could have been used to show the characters feelings at this time.

• The video is also clearly set in an apocalyptic wasteland as represented by the rubble and stretches of colourless/empty land.
• The band are also the main characters in the video which will appeal to the bands fan base as they’ll enjoy seeing them.
• In addition to the above, the band are seen wearing quite plain/bland clothing to suggest that they have gone through a tough time. This is also reinforced by the solemn look on the bands faces.
• In my opinion the video is edited at quite a slow pace which is in contrast to the fast tempo at the start of the song. However it is edited in a way that creates a nice mix as it gives the video a serious outlook.
• Also in one of the early shots it has the main band member in focus but none of the others, this suggests to me that the video is from his perspective and outlook throughout.
• There’s also a good combination with a mid shot and a slow motion effect to capture the emotion of the band members as they walk through the setting.
• The cinematography of the video also captures the apocalyptic feel of the video as it follows some stereotypical features of wastelands which are often linked with an apocalyptic feel.
• The band being the only characters in this video as well as the use of depth of field shots capture the loneliness that the band members feel.
• The emphasis of the dark grey clouds coiling and churning suggest that they are reacting to the band members and the setting. I also feel that this is a link to global warming because it’s a real life issue and the director has used this issue to try and get the video popular by providing awareness through the video.
• In addition to the point above, the lyrics “I’m never changing who I am” could be in reference to how dangerous and stubborn the human race has become to Earth. This could also explain the end of the video as the band get sucked up into the clouds which results in the setting getting much brighter/sunnier. The title “It’s Time” also reinforces this.
• The shot of the band walking past the black flags could suggest that they are on the wrong side without realizing it. I get this impression because black connotes death and evil. The silhouette also provides this effect.
• Towards the latter stages of the video, it starts to get cut to the beat which gives the video a bigger effect when it ends. This is useful because it makes the viewer think about the ending and it stays in their head.
• In addition, when the first object of a bright colour is introduced the editor has added flares onto the object to give the white object a sense of purity and importance.

Analysis of the Music Video “Cake By The Ocean”

I chose this music video by DNCE for my research as I felt there was certain techniques and themes used in which I could look to implement in my own music video.

• First of all, the director has used the lighting well to make the video match the light hearted feel of the song. This helps the video keep it’s tempo and entertaining value throughout.
• The setting of the video emphasizes the songs target audience of the teenagers up to mid twenties. This emphasizes this target audience as it’s a beach in which there’s a lot of dancing and music. The cast also clearly state the target audience as it’s mainly a cast of young adults “going crazy” and the use of the band members and the clear focus on Joe Jonas (Main Singer) is used to entice his fan base which mostly consists of young female teenagers up to the mid twenties age range.
• The news broadcast at the beginning of the video gives it a quirky feel and sets the video apart from the other videos that were released at the time. This is an important technique because it makes the video stay in the viewers mind for a longer time and increases the chance of them sharing the video through social media.
• The narrative of the video also clearly matches the songs lyrics which makes it appealing to the viewer as it’s easy to understand whats going on.
• At the beginning of the video, there’s a short tv broadcast in which they use dialogue that links to the songs title and its lyrics. This also provides humour as they used several puns throughout to further emphasize the light heartedness feel to the video.
• There’s also a good variety of shots used throughout the video which keeps each shot refreshing and appealing to the viewer. Also the first few panning shots of the band members is clearly used to establish where the band members are. This appeals to the bands fan base as they get to see the band early on.
• In addition to the above, the depth of field shots give the band a look of importance in the video as the camera operator has kept just the band in focus. This therefore keeps the focus on the band members whilst they’re in shot.
• The large amount of shots they use in this video coupled with the quick cutting between them accurately matches the pace of the song and therefore makes the video more appealing as it gives the video a sense of rhythm.
• Also, the director has intentionally used sex appeal to entice the male target audience into watching and enjoying the video. This is a common theme throughout the music industry when it comes to producing music videos. Also they use a t-shirt with the name ‘Team DNCE’ to try and promote the band name.

• During the video, they use an app that is similar to the popular dating app tinder. This reinforces the sex appeal that the director has used in this video. In addition to that it could be used to try show the popularity of the video by matching it with a popular app for the age range that they are targeting.
• The video is also cut to the lyrics so that it gives the video a rhythm and makes the video easy to understand for the viewer.
• In contrast to the sex appeal that the director has used throughout the video he also countered this by introducing a fat character with a very unusual hairstyle. Therefore the huge contrast between him and the girls provide a comedic element to the video and keeps the viewer interested in the narrative.

• Certain shots throughout the video are used to represent the lyrics being sung at that time, this allows the viewer to feel more connected to the song as it clearly shows to the viewer what the band are singing about.
• The general idea of the narrative provides humour because it’s unusual and wacky which sets it apart from rival music videos. Therefore giving it a larger impact.
• Following on with the target audience point, the way in which the characters in the video are dancing suggests that this has been done so that the target audience can relate to it as it’s the type of dancing you see at clubs and festivals. This therefore provides a stronger link between the video and it’s target audience, increasing the appeal in the meantime.
• The cinematography of the video matches the lyrics, narrative and target audience perfectly because it clearly represents the meaning and narrative of the lyrics whilst using certain techniques and stereotypes to represent the videos target audience.
• Finally, when we first get into the video we hear some background noise of a crowd cheering/screaming which in my opinion is used to create hype and atmosphere for the when the song comes on. This creates tension for the viewer because it makes them want to hear the song.

My Music Video for the Final Major Project

Tighten Up by The Black Keys (Zak Christie Cover) Music Video:

Location Recce for my Music Video

For my music video, it will be situated in and around Bradford College. This therefore made my location recce a lot easier and less time consuming seeing as I already know my way around the location.

For the opening shot of my video, it will be the camera fading in and then panning down a corridor (Which has a wall covered in leaflets+posters) towards an open door. I feel this is the best place to start my video because it will give off a dull look which I’m trying to represent as it shows the main characters emotion at that time. Especially as I will be filming in black and white.

In the next shot, it has an extreme close up of the girl browsing news articles in an empty computer room. The extreme close up is used to capture the girls feeling towards the government and the general story of the music video. This shot will then be countered by a shot of the news articles on the computer screen promoting the laws etc. After 2 articles she comes across a random article saying only “Do You Trust The Government?” The camera then pans to a close up of the girls face before panning down to her phone which reveals a text from an unknown number saying “To hear truths, come to the unused entrance!” The camera then cuts to a close up of the girls face then pans back to a mid shot of her standing up and walking away followed by the camera tracking her into the next scene. I feel that this is the right location for this scene as it will be available for when I start filming and it’s also in a quiet location so we wont be interrupted.

After this scene, we see the girl walking down the corridor that we see at the beginning with the camera using an over the shoulder tracking shot, however there’s an enforcement officer ripping down the leaflets. The girl freezes and the camera then pans round to face the girl and capture her facial expression. After a few seconds the camera cuts to the officer looking menacingly at the girl, the camera then cuts to a mid shot of the girl who hurries past the officer. This is the best location available for this scene because it’s a fairly compact corridor in which will allow me to get the best shots possible to further reinforce the story behind my music video.

Continuing from the previous scene, the girl hurries towards an elevator and presses the elevator button multiple times in an attempt to get away from the menacing officer. The camera shots for this scene are a tracking mid shot of the girl when shes approaching the elevator then a close up of her hand pressing the elevator button. When the elevator opens the camera cuts to a mid shot of the girl looking straight at the camera until the elevator closes.

In the next scene, we have the camera using a mid shot of the elevator opening and the girl walking out hurriedly with her phone in her hand. Once she’s out of the elevator the camera cuts to a close up of her face as she walks through a doorway and down some steps before stopping and leaning against a wall. The camera then pans out to a mid shot of her standing there looking at her phone nervously and occasionally looking over her shoulder. The camera then cuts to the text message on her phone then back to a close up of the girls face before she walks off screen. The camera then stays put for a few seconds then merges into the next scene.

When the camera merges into this scene, it is an extreme close up of the girls face as she walks through college and to where the unused entrance is. However during this scene we only see the extreme closeup. I feel this shot is the best option as it allows the viewer to capture the girls emotion at the time of meeting this unknown figure, also I feel that I can use this to signify the importance of the next scene. Roughly, I will look to make this scene around 10 seconds long as if it’s too long it could bore the viewer.

When the girl arrives at the unused entrance, the extreme close up shot of her face then pans out to reveal the protester sitting on the steps. The protester then looks towards the girl and stands up with a warm smile. The camera then cuts to a close up of the girl as she approaches but before she can speak, the camera cuts to a low angle shot of the officer behind them at the top of the steps. I’ve chosen this shot because it represents the power that the officer has over the protester and the girl. The protester then raises a protest poster in his hand resulting in the camera cutting to an extreme close up of the girl grabbing the protesters hand. After this the camera cuts to the next scene. I feel that this is the right location to use as the entrance is not actually used by college therefore allowing me to film freely, also I feel that with the steps in front of the entrance I could use a low angle shot to show the officers power over the other characters.

After the previous shot, the camera cuts to a mid shot of the girl and the protester and tracks them as they run down the pavement. This shot then allows us to see the action, the emotion of the two characters and being able to see the officer chasing them. This was the best location for this shot because it’s right next to the unused entrance and it also leads to the location in which I will have my final scene.

In this scene we see the alleyway for a few seconds before the girl and the protester run half down. The camera then pans towards the pair, as they are breathing heavily to suggest that they have run a far distance. The intended shakiness of the camera will also be used to suggest that. After a few seconds, the girl hugs the protester but as she does she sees the officer striding down the alley way towards them. When the girl is in the hug the camera cuts to a close up of the girls face then cuts to a mid shot of the officer striding down the alleyway. The girl then pulls away and again grabs the protesters hand and runs off, for this the camera will be in a mid shot of the pair as they run off screen with the officer following behind. This location is ideal for this scene because it’s close to the college and it is a tight and compact area which gives off the idea that the pair feel closed down and compact.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For my final scene it will start with a long shot of the pair running into the dead end then when they turn around the camera will cut to a closeup of the girls face then will pan to the guys face as they see the officer corner them. The camera will cut to a low angle shot of the officer as he just looks at the pair. The camera will then cut to a long shot of the pair and fade to black.

Danny Boyle and the Digital Age

Danny Boyle helped show the benefits of digital cameras through the success of his films like 27 days later and Slum Dog Millionaire as he chose to shoot these films on digital cameras and they became big successes at the time. This helped boost the reputation and reliability of the cameras. Also it helped show the benefits of digital cameras because in 27 days later he set up several cameras in London to capture his main character walking through an desolate and abandoned London. Digital cameras enabled Danny Boyle to do this as he would only have to hold up the traffic in London for a few minutes, additionally he’d have various shots to choose from too because he would have captured the main character from various positions.

Finally, Slum Dog Millionaire helped aid the introduction of digital cameras (Not just because of it’s big success) but because there was various scenes where the camera would chase some of the characters through streets and alleys where this would be impossible for film cameras for numerous reasons.