The Last Shadow Puppets - Aviation

Despite having finished my music video, I was intrigued by The Last Shadow Puppets' 'Aviation' that was released today. It comes as a continuation of the video that they released last week, 'Everything  You've Come to Expect'. I previously wrote about how the first video was extremely ambiguous so I was interested when 'Aviation' appeared to be a continuation. Both videos feature the same location, a beach, and the same actress, who is wearing the same costume. This makes it clear to the audience that these videos are linked without explicitly stating so.

'Aviation' is set before the events of 'Everything You've Come to Expect'. Much of the mystery surrounding 'Everything You've Come to Expect' was due to the lack of a clear explanation as to why, or how, the artists were buried in the sand (below left). 'Aviation' shows the lead up. The artists are shown digging their own graves at gun point (below right), the 'why' is still not explained, however, it gives the audience some satisfaction in knowing that there is a partial backstory to the events of 'Everything You've Come to Expect'.

I thought that the idea of having linking music videos was very clever and is an idea that my group could have used if we were to create another music video. Videos with multiple parts are usually of the indie genre, like our music video, as these videos tend to be more narrative-based. Follow-up videos allow for, either, a more ambiguous video that can later be explained, or two videos that tell a more complex story that couldn't be told in the space of a single video.

   

The Last Shadow Puppets - Everything You've Come to Expect

Today the new music video for The Last Shadow Puppets' 'Everything You've Come to Expect' was released. I found it particularly interesting as there are 9 different versions that were uploaded to YouTube, 1 listed and the remaining 8 only accessible by following the link in the description box. This led to a lot of confusion amongst fans when the music video seemed to change with each viewing, some videos being shot at different times of the day and others containing different costumes. The result of these slight changes is an eerie atmosphere created by the familiarity of each video but with hard-to-determine changes.

I think that having multiple videos is very fitting for the song as it is fairly repetitive with its melodies and lyrics, particularly the repetition of the lyric 'everything that you've come to expect'. This line fits perfectly with the effect of multiple videos as the viewer 'comes to expect' certain elements in the video only for them to change, for example, two videos contain a woman playing a violin in the background and one video even cutting to black halfway through, shocking the audience.

Below is a video showing all versions simultaneously:



The music video conforms to Andrew Goodwin's music video theory. There is a clear link between the lyrics and the visuals, the lyric 'coastal air gets a girl to reflect' is shown through the beach setting and the lyric 'dirtbag ballet' is shown through the ballet-like dance of the woman in the video. The lyric 'I just can't get the thought of you and him out of my head' is also shown as the woman flitters between the two men (the artists) that are buried back-to-back in the sand. There is also a link between the music and the visuals due to the calm, slow-motion movements matching the slow paced song, this calming element is enforced by the beach location and the single, smooth take.

'Everything You've Come to Expect' conforms to the conventions of a performance video, with lip-synching and close-ups of the artists being included. However, unlike many performance videos, the artists play a secondary role here, with the woman being the main focus, many sections of the video not even showing the artists' faces clearly, if at all.

Overall, I think that the concept of these videos is extremely interesting as they have challenged the format of the music video whilst also generating publicity and 'hype' for the band's upcoming release of their album, also titled 'Everything You've Come to Expect', due to fan speculation on the 'meaning' of the videos. This shows how creative decisions and challenging conventions can have an impact on audiences and therefore publicity and future sales.

Final Shot Inspiration

After abandoning our original idea of having the final shot of our music video be the performer exiting the maze in sophisticated clothing, we started to look at other options. We have decided to have a final shot that is the same as, or very similar to, one of the first shots of the music video. We wanted to create a video that is cyclical in nature, the idea of a 'cycle' alluding to our video's theme of being trapped and trying to escape.

The images below show one of our first shots (left) and our final shot (right). We felt that these help to make the narrative clearer, the first shot shows the performer entering through a doorway, the final shot shows her leaving or 'escaping'. We felt that this was a fitting shot as it is a clear end to the video - the performer walks out of the shot, leaving little room for confusion for our audience.

   

Another music video that has used this technique is Bear's Den's 'Above the Clouds of Pompeii':



   

The image of the hand is very important in this music video as it symbolises a connection, the video shows a dance between an elderly couple, this is a very intimate moment. The image of an empty hand is also very significant as the woman is shown to be in the man's imagination, the emptiness mirrors his loneliness. This music video showed me how a powerful starting and closing image can have a very strong effect on audiences as this makes the video more memorable. It also helps to solidify key themes, this was important to do in our music video as our narrative is quite vague.

Kaleidoscope Practice

Inspired by Zayn Malik's 'Pillowtalk', we wanted to include a kaleidoscope effect in our music video. We felt that the interested patterns had a hypnotic quality that links to the lyrics of our song 'hypnotic' as well as the spiral shapes linking to our staircase location.

We used Final Cut Pro to create a compilation of different kaleidoscope shots. We imported different shots from different locations as this provided us with a variety of patterns and colours. We found that moving shots create more dynamic kaleidoscopes over still shots as these lack the pulsing, spiralling effect that we felt is better suited to a music video. We exported the Final Cut file and then imported this footage to our iMovie project so that we can add these effects to our music video.

Here is our kaleidoscope video:

Son Lux - Undone

I really like the music video for Son Lux's 'Undone'. The video shows a woman running through a forest and corn field, the obvious theme of the video being 'escapism'. This is very relevant to our own music video as 'Undone' expresses most of the same key themes, for example, escapism, desperation and feeling trapped and lost. The constant movement throughout the video (the dolly shot that follows the woman whilst she runs and the shot where the camera circles around the couple as they dance) adds fluidity and also reinforces the idea of escapism as movement connotes the idea of travelling.



I think that this is a very interesting shot as the camera follows the woman as she runs around the corner. The camera movement makes the viewer feel as though they are moving with the woman, this could perhaps allow them to empathise with her character more and her need to escape. I think that this would work well within our music video as we hope to include multiple shots of our protagonist running in various locations.



I really liked this shot as it makes the woman appear more distant to the audience, the plants creating a barrier. This creates a more disorientating atmosphere and presents the woman as helpless, the claustrophobic composition making her seem trapped. I think that we could use a similar shot in our music video in our Capel Manor Maze location as there will be plants and maze walls that we could film through in order to achieve a similar look.



This is one of my favourite shots from the music video. I like the effect of the people's actions continuing into the next shot, even more impressive is that the second shot is in a different location. This helps to link the two contrasting locations together and makes the transition seamless. This could be effective within our music video as we are including numerous contrasting locations, we don't want the transitions to be too jarring for our audience.

Intertextuality

Goodwin's theory states that music videos often contain intertextual references. This means that music videos refer to other existing media products, such as film or T.V. This can help to create and build meaning within a music video as the audience is already familiar with the concept that the particular video may be portraying.

For example, viewer's of Taylor Swift's 'Love Story' will be able to easily understand the narrative and themes of forbidden love due to the video referencing the Shakespeare play 'Romeo and Juliet'. These references can be found in the lyrics 'You were Romeo' and 'My daddy said stay away from Juliet', as well as the period costumes worn in certain scenes. The 'Romeo and Juliet' references take place in the artist's imagination, creating two parallel narratives, one set in the past with explicit 'Romeo and Juliet' references and one in the present that modernises the story.



Another example of intertextuality is Madonna's 'Material Girl' that references the film 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes', specifically the musical sequence 'Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend'. Madonna is shown in a very similar pink dress to the one originally worn by Marilyn Monroe, this creates a clear link between the two products. The composition of certain shots is also very similar, with both Madonna and Marilyn Monroe being surrounded by suit-wearing men.

   

This technique could prove to be very useful in making our narrative of being 'hypnotised' and wanting to escape more clear to the audience, providing we find a relevant source. However, it could also be quite limiting for our music video as it would draw comparisons to an existing product, taking away our product's individuality. As our target audience is described as 'individualistic', it would, perhaps, be wiser to create a wholly unique product as this would be more appealing to them.

Zayn Malik - Pillowtalk

Zayn Malik's 'Pillowtalk' conforms to Goodwin's music video theory. There is a clear link between visuals and the lyrics, for example, the chorus contains the words 'paradise' and 'warzone', both of these words are seen written on body parts during the video. The binary oppositions are shown throughout the music video with various imagery. The idea of a 'warzone' is shown through aggressive looking special effects that appear to 'shoot' out of the performers, as well as aggressive behaviours being shown, such as screaming and fighting. The idea of 'paradise' is reflected through calmer shots that contain less special effects, focusing on the performers. Floral imagery also supports this idea.

'Warzone':

'Shooting out' effect

'Shooting out' effect

Screaming

Fighting

'Paradise':

Calmer shots

 

Floral imagery

As a group, we found the movement of shots and the kaleidoscope effect (shown below) featured in the music video to be the most inspirational, and relevant to our own video. 'Pillowtalk' contains constant movement throughout the video, this adds an element of fluidity between shots and creates more seamless transitions. This is an editing style that I think could work well within our own video, the idea of movement being particularly relevant due to our theme of 'escapism'. The movement also becomes more exaggerated due to the spinning, spiral-esque shots that serve to disorientate the viewer. The kaleidoscope effect is the most interesting of these moving shots due to the geometric patterns that it creates. These patterns have a 'hypnotic' quality and would work well within our video and our lyric 'hypnotic taking over me', a kaleidoscope would solidify the link between lyrics and visuals.

The War on Drugs - Under the Pressure

I found the lighting and editing techniques in this music video to be very interesting. The video is extremely simple, it is entirely performance based and includes minimal locations, typical of the indie genre. What it lacks in an interesting narrative, it makes up for with various interesting editing effects.

I like the layering effect of the shots pictured below as this helps to create a more fluid transition between shots, this is an idea that could work well within our video as we have many locations that need to be linked together. I also like the bright, unrealistic colour palette. As this deviates from the usual conventions of the indie genre, specifically, having a black and white colour palette, the music video is made to be more exciting and unique, making it more appealing to the audience.

The transluscent layered shots combined with a complimentary colour palette help to create the calm atmosphere that the song evokes. This shows how editing techniques can enhance a particular atmosphere. As we are now beginning to edit our music video, we will need to think about what effects could be used to enhance our themes of disorientation and hypnotism.

 

I particularly liked this shot as I like the lighting effects that have been used. The layered shots of different effects, such as small moving 'dots' of light and long horizontal rays of light that swipe across the frame, compliment each other as well as the calm, slow-paced song. The repetitive nature of the light's movements also reflects the repetitive aspect of the song, this creates a strong link between the music and the visual, linking back to Goodwin's theory.

Creating a 'Star Image'

I found the music video for HAIM's 'Forever' to be very inspirational. The video's shots are predominantly of the artists, identifying them as the most important element of the video. The emphasis on the artists helps to make them more memorable and recognisable, creating a 'star image'. This video is very similar to our music video, as we have also mostly included shots of our artist.

We want to ensure that we include many close-up shots of our artist in order to conform to Andrew Goodwin's music video theory that states that close-ups help to create a 'star image'. By making our artist a 'star', she will be more recognisable and, therefore, more popular and successful.

 Our video is currently more performance-based as we are yet to complete filming in some of our locations, such as the Capel Manor Maze. So, at the moment, our narrative isn't very clear. HAIM's video has also shown me that, despite being performance based, a narrative or idea can still be conveyed. This has made me less anxious about not having an obvious narrative in our music video.

Mini Mansions - Death is a Girl

I like the lighting used in Mini Mansions' 'Death is a Girl'. The video takes place in a police stations, with the narrative of the artist's being taken in for questioning. Due to the setting, interesting lighting effects have been used, for example, high-key lighting and fast, bright flashes occur as the artists are being photographed for their mugshots. Flashing and strobing red and blue coloured lights can also be seen, linking in with the idea of police (red and blue being the colour of a police siren). The lighting helps to make the video more unique and dynamic as there is a range of different effects, from high-key to low-key, from still light to flashing light. The flashing is also in time with the music, flashes occurring on-beat, this links to Goodwin's theory of having a relationship between music and visual.

We have already included lighting effects in our music video. We used a hand-held light with coloured filters whilst filming in the studio in order to create flashes. I would like to add more lighting effects in our other locations as this could help to create a disorientating atmosphere, enhancing our narrative of feeling lost and confused.


I particularly liked this effect as having multiples of the same shot being shown simultaneously adds to the feeling of confusion. The shot evokes feelings of being in a daze or being 'hypnotised', this effect could work well within our video as we also want to convey the idea of hypnotism.

Arctic Monkeys - Leave Before the Lights Come On

I found the music video for Arctic Monkeys' 'Leave Before the Lights Come On' very inspirational. The female character in the video has similar characteristics to the protagonist in our music video, particularly her feelings of desperation. She is shown running throughout the music video, this is an idea that we also want to include in our video as it portrays ideas of escapism, our key theme.

I like the way this music video has been filmed, especially the shots starting at 3:31 that show the woman running from different angles. The quick cuts that alternate between the front view and back view create a disorientating atmosphere, the fast pace also creating a frantic and desperate feel that help to capture the feelings of the character. I would like to incorporate similar shots in our music video as I think that this desperate, hurried energy is well suited to our fast paced song as well as our narrative of a girl trying to escape her normal life. This technique would be good to use in our Oxford Street car park location as it contains a staircase that will be featured towards the end of the song, which has a faster pace, so will suit the increasingly distressed atmosphere.

Below are stills from the video showing the different camera angles:

     

BFI Visit

Today we visited the British Film Institute where we received a talk from Tom Woodcock about the history of music videos. I think that this was very beneficial as I have learnt more about how music videos have progressed, the videos shown also provided inspiration for our own music video.

Here is the presentation that we were shown:

 

I found the video below, dating back to the 1930s, particularly influential. I really like the repetitive geometric shapes. I think that it has a very psychedelic, 'hypnotic' feel, relating to our song and music video. I think that the bright colours would work well in our Brick Lane location, we are hoping to film there on Friday. I think that we should keep this video in mind when explore the area on Friday as we will be looking for striking graffiti, I want to find something similar to the brightly coloured repeated shapes in this video.



We were also given tips on how to create a successful music video, this was helpful as we were able to see what tasks we have completed and what we still need to do. The 10 steps are as follows:

1. Asses Resources - Performers, technical kit, locations, props/costume (we have completed this step as we have researched all of these aspects and have made firm decisions that have been stated on our shooting schedule)

2. Warm Up - Lip synch practise, preliminary task (we have completed both of these tasks)

3. Recce - Limit locations, photos and footage, access to light and power (we have limited our music video to 4/5 locations, all of which have been researched, we are also using a battery powered light in order to avoid power supply issues)

4. Pitch - Treatment, moodboard (we have already pitched our idea and created moodboards)

5. Planning Beats Idea

6. Plan Everything - Storyboard/animatic, actors/locations and costumes prepared in advance, shooting schedule (we have thoroughly planned our music video, including all of the factors stated)

7. Shoot - Multiple angles (the locations that we have already filmed in were shot from many angles multiple times)

8. Edit - Synch up footage, upload rough cut and get feedback (as we haven't reached the editing stage we will have to refer back to these tips, it was useful to be told this in advance so that our editing process will be slightly easier)

9. Evidence - Research, photos, test footage, behind the scenes (we usually do all of these whilst we're filming)

10. Evaluation

Erving Goffman

Goffman's theory describes how men and women are usually presented in advertisements. Typically, men are presented as superior and dominant through strong body language whilst women are frequently presented as weak and submissive, usually seen in sexual poses. He also highlights the prevalence of female dismemberment, individual body parts, such as legs or lips, are shown with little regard to the person they belong to, thus, turning women into sexual objects. He also states that male authority is presented through voiceovers, usually sounding powerful and confident. Voiceovers are predominantly by men.

The advert below by 'Gucci' is an example of Goffman's theory in practice. The man is presented as powerful and professional as he is wearing a suit, compared to the woman who is wearing an extremely short dress. Furthermore, the woman is also in a provocative position, emphasising her sexuality.

Roland Barthes

Barthes likened a text to a ball of threads needing to be untangled, each thread standing as a different approach to how a text can be interpreted. A text can be open (with multiple approaches) or closed (with one clear approach). Barthes' 5 narrative codes are as follows:

Hermeneutic Code:

Any element of the story that is not fully explained and hence becomes a mystery, this is achieved by avoiding the full truth or providing partial answers.

The Enigma / Proairetic Code:

Builds on tension, referring to any other action or event that indicates that something else is going to happen, this gets the reader guessing as to what will happen next.

The Semantic Code:

Connotation within the story that provides additional meaning over the basic denotative meaning.

Symbolic Code:

Similar to semantic code but acts at a wider level, organising semantic ,meanings into broader and deeper sets of meaning.

Cultural Code:

Refers to anything founded on some kind of canonical works that cannot be challenged and is assumed to be a foundation for truth.

Ferdinand de Saussure

Here is a useful Slideshare that I found that explains Saussure's theory of semiotics:

Applying this to music videos:

In this shot from 'Snap Out of it' by the Arctic Monkeys, the signified is the idea of sadness, this is shown through the signifiers of the black nail varnish (black has connotations of death, mourning, sadness) and smudged makeup and tears (showing that the woman has been crying).

In this shot from Ed Sheeran's 'Thinking Out Loud', the sign of the dancing woman signifies femininity and sexuality, the silhouette emphasising her body. The sign of the colour red also signifies sexuality as red connotes passion and love. 

Tame Impala - It Feels Like We Only Go Backwards

'It Feels Like We Only Go Backwards' perfectly fits all of the key characteristics of an abstract music video - there is the clear repetition of images as well as a vivid colour palette whilst not containing a perceptible narrative or lip-synching.

Applying Andrew Goodwin's theory, this music video is typical of its genre. As expected for a psychedelic rock/pop song, there are bright colours and geometric shapes and patterns. The constant movement within the shots also helps to add to the 'trippy' atmosphere. There are also multiple links between the lyrics and visuals, for example, when the lyric 'It feels like we only go backwards' is heard, the shot zooms out and the images move further away, they appear to be 'going backwards'. 'Call my name' is accompanied by the visual of a talking mouth. The repetitive lyrics are mirrored by the repetitive images, particularly the reoccurring 'human head' motif. There is also a link between the music and visuals, for example, the shots are cut on beat and the movement of images is in time with the music, matching its pace. Whilst there are no close-ups or shots of the artists, the name of the band appears at the start of the music video, reminding the audience of their brand and enforcing the 'star image', albeit in a more subtle way.

Even though this music video is of a different genre to the one that we hope to create, I have found it inspirational. The video has a psychedelic feel and repetitive images link to our song choice, particularly the lyric 'hypnotic taking over me'. The bright colours would also suit the upbeat tone of the song. I think that the group could find similar images in our Brick Lane location that have been graffitied on walls. I also like the spiral movements within the video, I think that we could incorporate this technique by having spinning camera angles, this would add to the theme of hypnotism.

Below are stills from the music video displaying the bright colour palette and geometric shapes that I want to emulate in our own music video:

    

Shot Idea - Spiral Staircase and Possible Locations

On our storyboard we included a shot of our character, played by me, running down a spiral staircase. When thinking of how to frame this shot, I drew inspiration from 'When the Sun Goes Down' by the Arctic Monkeys, which also has a shot of a spiral staircase. I think that the extreme low angle, achieved by placing the camera directly under the staircase, looking up, has really captured the beauty and intricacy of the staircase's structure. A confusing, disorientated atmosphere has been created as the shot appears as though it could be looking upwards or downwards, I think that this would work well within our music video as we want our shots to emulate the character's feelings of being lost and trying to escape. The spiral structure also fits in with our idea of having repeated circular shapes throughout our video, for example, round sunglasses and a birds-eye view of a round maze. I feel that this will help to enforce the theme of 'hypnotism', linking in with the lyric 'hypnotic taking over me'. I like the gritty look of these stairs, I think that this would be in keeping with our other filming locations. I think that, unlike the Arctic Monkeys' video, our shot should be from above, looking down, as this would make the character appear more vulnerable, emphasising her lost mindset.

When the Sun Goes Down

We have thought about various possible locations that we could film this shot in:

Covent Garden Tube Station:

We liked the idea of filming at Convent Garden tube station as it is an easily accessible location and we liked the tight, narrow look of the stairs as we feel that this adds an element of claustrophobia that further adds to the idea of trying to escape, however after looking at the location, it appears to be quite difficult to obtain a birds-eye shot like the one we have envisioned.

Oval Tube Station:

We were attracted to this location as, not only is it easily accessible, but we will also  be capable of filming from above. The spiral shape can easily be seen, so is ideal in evoking a 'hypnotic' feel. I think that the yellow paint on the steps is quite distracting and doesn't fit with our desired colour palette, it is too bright.

Premier Inn - Blackfriars:

We liked the round shape of the stairs, however, we feel that the staircase is too bland and 'clean', we wanted a grittier location that would be in keeping with our other locations - Camden and Brick Lane, both of which have very vibrant atmospheres. As these stairs are within a hotel, it would also be difficult to get filming permission.

Queen's House - Greenwich:

This is one of the most famous and most photographed spiral staircases in London, we were drawn to its beauty. However, we felt that it was too 'pretty' with not enough grit to match our other locations. We would also be unable to film here as the house is currently closed for renovations.

Henrietta Place Car Park - Marylebone (CHOSEN LOCATION):

This staircase is located in a public car park just a short walk from Oxford Circus tube station, making it easily accessible. We liked the grittiness of these stairs as they are not particularly well kept, I think that this helps to symbolise the character's deteriorating personality. Even though these stairs are not circular like other ones that we have looked at, I think that the geometric, harsh angles work in our favour, adding an edgier feel.

Capel Manor Maze - Filming Permission

Before filming at the Capel Manor Maze, we checked their website for details about their filming and photography policy. It stated that we should email them about our reason for filming, below is the email that we sent. We are still awaiting a reply.

Wolf Alice - Freazy

Wolf Alice's 'Freazy' has a very hypnotic feel to it due to exaggerated colours and camera angles. This links to our music video as we want to present the theme of 'hypnotism' in order to create a link with our song's lyric 'hypnotic taking over me'.


I like the over-saturated colour palette within the video. I think that this could work well in our music video in our colourful Brick Lane location as it would accentuate the bold colours and patterns of the graffiti. This would also help to create a greater contrast between the brightness of this location and the dark Camden location.



This shot appears to have been filmed using a fish-eye lens or edited with a fish-eye filter, this creates a distorted look. I really like this and would like to include a similar effect in our music video as it connotes ideas of a distorted reality which links to our music video's theme of hypnotism.

Ariana Grande - Focus

Today the group looked at Ariana Grande's 'Focus'. We were particularly inspired by the shot (shown in the extract below) that features the artist sat in multiple circular shapes as they rotate, creating a spiral effect. The idea of a 'spiral' is very fitting for our music video as we want to present the idea of 'hypnotism', spirals and circles being key images in order to convey this theme.

The bold contrast of the white circles and black background creates an eye-catching pattern which, again, has a hypnotic feel whilst also capturing the audience's interest. The artist's silhouette against the white also emphasises her as the focal point of the shot, building on the idea of the 'star image'.

I think that we could incorporate a similar shot in our music video. The idea of having multiple images of the artist being shown simultaneously could be achieved by layering shots in iMovie. We could also include similar patterns and shapes throughout the video - we have already planned to film a spiral staircase.