Research on Music Videos 2

Stephanie:

Justin Bieber ft Chris Brown - Next to you
'Next to you' does and doesn't follow the conventions of a music video for example it has a narrative, which directly relates to the lyrics - we also see performances from the artists which most video's now have. The video starts with some dialogue, this could show it not following conventions although many video's are now starting to do this. The video is cut to the beat, with a large range of shots being used - the opening shots are very slow as the mood is quite calm, but once the beat starts to pick up the editing is much faster with some shaky shots to add to the effect. Although the editing is quite fast, the mise en scene is still shown very well by the different type of shots used. At 4.34 the narrative picks up, and quick fast shots are used to show what is happening, this isn't a usual video convention. Lip syncing is used during the performance parts, and the artists occasionally look into the camera, to make the performance more personal. Finally, a typical music video would last 3-4minutes, however 'Next to You' challenges this by lasting 6.04minutes.


Jessie J - Nobodies Perfect
'Nobodies Perfect' does use most typical conventions of a music video. This video has a narrative, however some viewers may find it hard to understand. This could be due to the different settings used and the fast paced editing. It also starts with dialogue, which doesn't have reference to the song. The video is defiantly cut to the beat - as i said before the editing is very fast so we see many different things quickly, so we don't have long enough to understand what is fully happening. At the beginning there is a medium shot held for 6seconds, this shot helps us to establish the 'setting' of the video, which isn't a typical convention. At 1.37minutes the song is interrupted by clocks making a noise, it follows the mise-en-scene; however this doesn't usually happen during a video. Lip syncing is used throughout the video, as performance and narrative are both used at the same time- something else most videos do not follow. During the performance parts, she looks directly into the camera, which makes the audience feel more connected, a typical convention. Lastly, the video us 4.13minutes which is the typical length for a music video. 

Research on Music Video's

Evie:

Chase n Status - 'Let You Go'
Chase n status - Let You Go, uses some typical conventions such as it uses a narrative to tell a story that it fits the song, however it doesn't use performance and the artist does not feature in the video. Throughout the song there is dialogue to tell a story, this interupts the song and this isn't usual for a music video. The video is cut to the beat, as when the tempo gets faster quick cuts are used, this is also represented at the begining of the video as it is slow tempo and the camera movement is slowly zooming in, and the shot is held for 12 seconds. No lip syncing or direct contact is used withing the video as it is centred around an ironic situation and can also be seen as offensive to some people. The typical convention which is obvious is that the music video is 3-4 minutes long. 


Evie:





Bruno Mars - The Lazy Song
Bruno Mars  The Lazy song, goes against typical conventions, for example the whole video is filmed as if it is a webcam, and so it is one consistent medium shot, which is very out of the ordinary for music videos, as with varying shots it keeps the music video from now being boring, however as there is alot of choreogrpahy and a comedic effect it keeps the audience entertained. This also relates to that the video isnt cut to the beat of the song as there has been no obvious editing technique used. The music video is all performance with no narrative however it includes a full dance routine in a 'living room' setting.However, one convention used within this video is that you can tell the style of the music through the images seen, as in this video you would be able to tell that it is a light hearted medium tempo and relaxed song. Lastly, another convention used is that the video is 3 and a half minutes, so it is within time keeping of conventional music videos. 

Production Tips

DO'S

• Variety of shots - having a variety of shots keeps the music video entertaining and interesting, that way the audience won't get bored of what they are watching.
• Cut to the best of the song - cutting to the beat of the song is a typical convention of a music video therefore to make the video a music video this is necessary 
• Video relative to genre - this is important as the music video shows the image of the artist, if the artist is going for a hard image, they can't have a soft video as their audience won't understand. 
• Relevant cast - casting is important to make sure the video has the maximum effect, casting someone that doesn't fit the music video idea won't make the video look good. 
• Narrative -having a narrative makes the music video more interesting and allows the audience to understand the song better, and the artist.
• Different settings - having different settings also allows the audience to stay entertained and interested in the music video.
• Lip syncing in time - lip syncing in time to the song is key to make the video look profession - if the lip syncing is out of time the video won't look good.
• Appeal to Target Audience - the target audience is the people who will watch the video, therefore if the video doesn't appeal to them, they won't watch it.

DONT'S 

• Wear school uniform - wearing school uniform in the music video makes the video look unprofessional, even if the characters in the music video are supposed to be wearing uniform, making the effort to find another specific school uniform outfit will make the music video look that much better.
• Shoot in/around school area - shooting in and around school is such a familiar and easy setting, this shows very little effort from the group to find a location, once again even if the music video is set in a school, the group should make effort to find a location somewhere else to keep it interesting.
• Hold shots for too long - in a music video it is essential that there are a variety of shots that don't last too long in order for the audience to remain interested.

Conventions of Music Videos

Throughout a music video there are certain conventions that can be see in most music videos no matter what genre of music, these are:

• One person is main character - this is usually the artist but if the act is a band then the main character is usually the lead singer of the band.
• Performance/Lip syncing - this is when the artist sings the lyrics directly to the camera, this convention is how a music video can be easily separated from a short film/film since in a film the character never looks at the camera, whereas in a music video this is a frequent occurrence.
• Narrative - music videos usually have some aspect of narrative, this a story line that is seen throughout the video. It is usually cut in between the lip syncing of the video.
• Cut to the beat of the song - this means that the shots are cut to fit the pace of the song, if it is an upbeat fast paced song then the editing of the shots will be very fast, with shots that last no longer then a couple of seconds. 
• Different settings - not all one place, as this could get boring, music videos usually have around three different settings and change between the setting throughout the video, but have one main setting.
• Variety of shots - shots are important in a music video, a music video usually have three times the amount of shots compared to a film, as the shots have to be cut to the beat of the song.
• Music fades out at the end - the music usually doesn't come to a blunt end, it's usually a soft fade out, along with the music video.