While considering different songs I could possibly use as my music video, I decided to look at some music videos from the genre I am thinking of doing, but also some similar genres as well which will generally use the same aspect in their videos. I am going to do this so I can see what I liked the most about each video because this will help me in knowing what type of thing I would like to do for my own music video. I have chosen four different music videos which I personally like and enjoy watching - I have written a paragraph on each to explain what it is I like about the video and why it may influence me when constructing my own music video.
Panic! At The Disco - This Is Gospel
The genre of this song is Alternative Rock and contains both a performance and narrative which have both been merged together as the singer is playing the main character. I personally like this music video because of the way it has been edited - the audience obviously know that the video was not all filmed at one time, but it has all been combined together to make it look continuous which also creates continuity. I think one of the best editing features in this video is when the singer is strapped to the table and closes his eyes, when he next opens his eyes, he is seen on a white background which turns out to be portable and he is then dressed by other people. This scene presents that different techniques can be used to change a scene because at the beginning of this scene the singer is actually laying on a white bed, but the cameraman was able to change the scene smoothly and effortlessly by putting a white background behind the singer. Moreover, I love the range of camera angles that have been used as it makes the video seem obscure, but it also allows the audience to see everything that is going on in the video. I also appreciate how the lyrics of the song complement what is being shown on the screen as when the singer sings 'bury me alive' the audience are able to see that the singer has been buried alive and as soon as he sings 'let me go' you can see him jumping out of where he has been trapped which is demonstrated in slow motion and this conforms to Andrew Goodwin's theory that music videos often have a relationship between the music and the lyrics. At the end of the video you can see that the singer is trying to escape but has been captured and tied up by ropes which are stopping him from getting away - I really like the use of this editing because it presents how the singer is unable to get away from what he feels he is trapped behind. However, by the end of the video you can see the singer running into the light which is a metaphor for people who 'see the light' after they have died.
The use of lighting in this music video also creates an atmosphere for the audience as at the beginning you are able to see that the singer is laying down on the bed in the dark and as soon as the beat of the song kicks in the lights then turn on and the doctors begin with their different hand gestures which could also conform to Andrew Goodwin's theory that there is a relationship between music and visuals in a music video. Furthermore, after the singer has been injected, the audience can see that as he closes his eyes, the lighting gets darker, but as soon as the next verse begins the lights come back on to present how the singer has passed on and is now alive in a different world. Overall, I love this music video for a range of reasons, but I mainly like it because of the use of editing which allows the audience to see the singers emotions both mentally and physically as through the use of the narrative we are able to understand how the singer feels, but through the use of certain props we are able to see that metaphors have been created to allow the audience to understand the singer. This video has influenced and helped me in the planning stage for my music video because I would like to use a range of different editing skills to get the result I want in my music video and this video helps me to see what skills could be used. Also, I know how important lighting is as it presents what a person is feeling or can even help in conveying the meaning of a song. I decided to look and see if I could find a video behind the scenes for this certain music video and instead of finding a video which shows how this video was made, alternatively, I found a video that explains the meaning behind the video, but also shows some areas where the video was filmed and how it was filmed. I think this will be helpful for me because it allows me to see how some of the effects were created and I will also be able to use those effects myself to help me create the idea that I may create.
Here is the video I found in relation to this music video:
Angels and Airwaves - The Adventure
The genre of this song is again Alternative Rock - however, in this music video there is no narrative as it is purely performance. The main thing I love about this music video and what also stood out to me the first time I saw it was the use of editing and cinematography. This band are known for commonly including space related features into their music and are often categorized in the 'Space Rock' genre. This is the reason that when the band are performing together you are able the stars outside of the window and I love how this video presents that the band are in a new world and are free to do what they want. Both a time-lapse and montage have been used in this music video and this is appealing towards me because the audience are able to see how quickly the day can change into night and the idea of the montage is to show how civilization have gone through so much in life, like the war for example, and they are still able to get through it all and live happy and this is mainly why the band are presenting that you should live your live to the fullest. All of the locations used also demonstrate how the singer is free to do what he wants and be his own person. In relation to cinematography, I like the different angles that have been used and also the various use of depth of field and pull focuses because there are frequent low angles which are used in the bushes to see the singer walking around alone and this represents the fact that the singer is meant to be by himself and no one is meant to see him and it allows the audience to see what it is like to be free. Depth of field has been used a great deal in this video and it allows the audience to see what is important in this video and what should be seen. The different use of long shots also enables the audience to see the location that the band are in and how they stand in relation to the huge world around them.
I also love being able to see the band play the instruments themselves as it makes the video more fascinating as I am able to see them play live and identify how they like to present their music towards their audience. After all, this is personally one of my favourite bands, so I enjoy watching them play live. The use of lighting is also essential as at the beginning of the video you are able to see the band members walking through a tube (which was created in such an interesting way) which represents that they are going to a new world - highlighting the fact that the band are doing what makes them all happy. The lights slowly begin to turn on at the beginning of the video to express how the performance is about to start and that a new life is going to begin. Again, I would say that my favourite feature in this music video would be the use of editing because I believe that it presents who the band are and how they can relate their music to the real world. I think this video has influenced me by showing me that the use of editing is very important when presenting the song visually, but also it is a good effect to use because it engages the audience as it often presents how different people perceive things. Due to me liking this band and their music video so much, I have previously watched a video for the making of this video as I was intrigued as to how the video was created and how the cameramen worked with the band to create what they wanted to and I feel that after watching this I now have a better understanding of what goes into constructing a music video and even though I do not have all of the best and most expensive equipment, I am still able to create something to this standard but perhaps just in a different way as this video has taught me that I will not need a massive camera crew just to create a video and will be able to do it on my own if I want to.
Here is the video for the making of the music video 'The Adventure':
The All-American Rejects - Gives You Hell
The genre of this song is Pop Punk and includes both a narrative and performance, but again they are occasionally merged in with each other throughout the video. Again, the main aspect I like about this music video is the use of editing as the whole music video is about the singer being dressed up as two different characters and pretending he has different personalities - one where he is portrayed as the typical rock star that is always up late and making a large amount of noise and the other is the stereotypical good boy who will do everything he is told - throughout this video both of the characters argue with each other as they both purposely annoy each other. This is one of the biggest editing techniques that has been used in this video because the singer will have had to film one scene as one character and then film another scene as the other character and then it would be edited together to make it look like they are two different characters. I also like the mise-en-scene that has been used in this video because you are able to see that both the characters are just normal people and can equally get annoyed by each other. The use of the houses and daily tasks that both the characters undertake also presents that they are just normal people. In addition, the costumes used allow the audience to know the difference between the characters, so we know who is the protagonist and who is the antagonist - however, there isn't really a protagonist and antagonist because it depends which side the audience believe is in the wrong. In relation to cinematography you can see that mainly simple and straightforward camera angles like close ups, long shots and establishing shots have been used - this keeps the video quite simple, but the angles used are suitable for the song because the video shouldn't include any fast editing or things moving quickly because it wouldn't help in representing the characters and all the audience will want to see is the characters so they can understand how they differ from each other.
At the very beginning of the video there is a use of synchronous sound where the audience can hear the water tank and the woman blow a kiss to the singer - this has been shown to allow the audience to know that both the woman and man are about to sleep, but it then cross cuts onto the other male character waking up where he sings the lyrics 'I wake up every morning' which is reinforced as it is the evening and the singer is just waking up which expresses the diverse personalities between the character. This also conforms to Andrew Goodwin's theory that in music videos there is a relationship between the lyrics and visuals. Again, like in the previous music video I have shown, you are able to see the band perform live in this video which I find is appealing because I would like to see the band playing their own song and want to see what they are like when they play live. I would again probably say that my favourite thing about this music video is the use of the editing - this is because I like how the same person can be on the same screen twice but being portrayed as a different character. This music video has influenced me for when it comes to me planning and creating my music video because it has shown me that the use of mise-en-scene and clothing is very important when trying to make an audience understand the characters in a music video and I will have to think carefully about how I will dress my character/s and how I will want them to be portrayed towards the audience. Similar to the first video I mentioned, I decided to look and see if there were any videos which presented how the video was actually created, I was able to find a video - however, it does not go in as much detail as the one for 'The Adventure' by 'Angels and Airwaves' does, but I believe that this will help me in figuring out what type of things to do in my music video.
Here is the 'behind the scenes' video for this music video:
Blink-182 - Always
The genre of this song is Pop Punk/Punk Rock and includes a performance, but also a weak narrative which shows the band members following around a woman while lip syncing the lyrics to the song. Again, like all of the other music videos, I like the editing the most in this video and the editing can be seen throughout the whole of this video as there are three different members in this band and the video uses the rule of thirds to split up the different members, but it appears in the way that they are all doing the same thing. However, it will occasionally show the same body parts of one member, but just at different times to make the video more intriguing. I personally find this feature interesting because it splits the screen up more and encourages me to look at different areas of the screen so it will keep me engaged in what is happening. In relation to mise-en-scene, the band are dressed in suits which does not often conform to their genre - however, the way they have styled themselves through their hair and make up presents that they are still the genre they are known for and this is captivating to me because I am able to see the band I like performing in the way they would usually perform, but they are also presenting themselves to the audience in the way they want to be seen.
On top of that, I like the use of cinematography in this music video because there are a lot of zooms in and out which help express the band member more and allow the audience to know who they are and what they are doing. Also, there are a lot of pans around the room to present that the whole video is filmed in one room which has all been edited together to make it look like it is all happening at once which is interesting to watch because you know that it couldn't all be filmed at once as that would take a lot of practice, but you are able to see that the different thirds have been filmed at different times because there is each member in each third. I also enjoy the use of lip syncing in this video because you are able to see the band members lip sync the words even if they are not the one who actually sings the song at that time. Overall, I would again have to say that my favourite thing about this music video is the use of editing because I like how I am able to see all three of the band members at one time where there are all in the same position in relation to the camera, but also it is fun to watch because it means I want to watch the video more than once and possibly three times so I can look at each individual screen to see what is going on. This video will help in influencing me because it has given me a range of ideas that I can use for my music video and I could possibly split screens to show the audience that there is more than one thing happening at once and it will hopefully make the audience want to watch the music video again to see what happened in the side of the screen they may perhaps not have watched.
Overall, I can see that I generally pay particular attention to the use of editing in a music video and I think this is the part that interest me the most, so when it comes to creating my music video I will be thinking a lot about editing and how I will be able to use that concept to make people enjoy the video and want to watch it again and remember it. The editing plays a huge role in the process of generating a music video, so I think that it is beneficial that I enjoy this part more than others - however, I will need to pay a lot of attention to the filming side of the music video as well to enable that I will be able to edit some good footage.
The genre of this song is Alternative Rock and contains both a performance and narrative which have both been merged together as the singer is playing the main character. I personally like this music video because of the way it has been edited - the audience obviously know that the video was not all filmed at one time, but it has all been combined together to make it look continuous which also creates continuity. I think one of the best editing features in this video is when the singer is strapped to the table and closes his eyes, when he next opens his eyes, he is seen on a white background which turns out to be portable and he is then dressed by other people. This scene presents that different techniques can be used to change a scene because at the beginning of this scene the singer is actually laying on a white bed, but the cameraman was able to change the scene smoothly and effortlessly by putting a white background behind the singer. Moreover, I love the range of camera angles that have been used as it makes the video seem obscure, but it also allows the audience to see everything that is going on in the video. I also appreciate how the lyrics of the song complement what is being shown on the screen as when the singer sings 'bury me alive' the audience are able to see that the singer has been buried alive and as soon as he sings 'let me go' you can see him jumping out of where he has been trapped which is demonstrated in slow motion and this conforms to Andrew Goodwin's theory that music videos often have a relationship between the music and the lyrics. At the end of the video you can see that the singer is trying to escape but has been captured and tied up by ropes which are stopping him from getting away - I really like the use of this editing because it presents how the singer is unable to get away from what he feels he is trapped behind. However, by the end of the video you can see the singer running into the light which is a metaphor for people who 'see the light' after they have died.
The use of lighting in this music video also creates an atmosphere for the audience as at the beginning you are able to see that the singer is laying down on the bed in the dark and as soon as the beat of the song kicks in the lights then turn on and the doctors begin with their different hand gestures which could also conform to Andrew Goodwin's theory that there is a relationship between music and visuals in a music video. Furthermore, after the singer has been injected, the audience can see that as he closes his eyes, the lighting gets darker, but as soon as the next verse begins the lights come back on to present how the singer has passed on and is now alive in a different world. Overall, I love this music video for a range of reasons, but I mainly like it because of the use of editing which allows the audience to see the singers emotions both mentally and physically as through the use of the narrative we are able to understand how the singer feels, but through the use of certain props we are able to see that metaphors have been created to allow the audience to understand the singer. This video has influenced and helped me in the planning stage for my music video because I would like to use a range of different editing skills to get the result I want in my music video and this video helps me to see what skills could be used. Also, I know how important lighting is as it presents what a person is feeling or can even help in conveying the meaning of a song. I decided to look and see if I could find a video behind the scenes for this certain music video and instead of finding a video which shows how this video was made, alternatively, I found a video that explains the meaning behind the video, but also shows some areas where the video was filmed and how it was filmed. I think this will be helpful for me because it allows me to see how some of the effects were created and I will also be able to use those effects myself to help me create the idea that I may create.
The genre of this song is again Alternative Rock - however, in this music video there is no narrative as it is purely performance. The main thing I love about this music video and what also stood out to me the first time I saw it was the use of editing and cinematography. This band are known for commonly including space related features into their music and are often categorized in the 'Space Rock' genre. This is the reason that when the band are performing together you are able the stars outside of the window and I love how this video presents that the band are in a new world and are free to do what they want. Both a time-lapse and montage have been used in this music video and this is appealing towards me because the audience are able to see how quickly the day can change into night and the idea of the montage is to show how civilization have gone through so much in life, like the war for example, and they are still able to get through it all and live happy and this is mainly why the band are presenting that you should live your live to the fullest. All of the locations used also demonstrate how the singer is free to do what he wants and be his own person. In relation to cinematography, I like the different angles that have been used and also the various use of depth of field and pull focuses because there are frequent low angles which are used in the bushes to see the singer walking around alone and this represents the fact that the singer is meant to be by himself and no one is meant to see him and it allows the audience to see what it is like to be free. Depth of field has been used a great deal in this video and it allows the audience to see what is important in this video and what should be seen. The different use of long shots also enables the audience to see the location that the band are in and how they stand in relation to the huge world around them. 
I also love being able to see the band play the instruments themselves as it makes the video more fascinating as I am able to see them play live and identify how they like to present their music towards their audience. After all, this is personally one of my favourite bands, so I enjoy watching them play live. The use of lighting is also essential as at the beginning of the video you are able to see the band members walking through a tube (which was created in such an interesting way) which represents that they are going to a new world - highlighting the fact that the band are doing what makes them all happy. The lights slowly begin to turn on at the beginning of the video to express how the performance is about to start and that a new life is going to begin. Again, I would say that my favourite feature in this music video would be the use of editing because I believe that it presents who the band are and how they can relate their music to the real world. I think this video has influenced me by showing me that the use of editing is very important when presenting the song visually, but also it is a good effect to use because it engages the audience as it often presents how different people perceive things. Due to me liking this band and their music video so much, I have previously watched a video for the making of this video as I was intrigued as to how the video was created and how the cameramen worked with the band to create what they wanted to and I feel that after watching this I now have a better understanding of what goes into constructing a music video and even though I do not have all of the best and most expensive equipment, I am still able to create something to this standard but perhaps just in a different way as this video has taught me that I will not need a massive camera crew just to create a video and will be able to do it on my own if I want to.
The genre of this song is Pop Punk and includes both a narrative and performance, but again they are occasionally merged in with each other throughout the video. Again, the main aspect I like about this music video is the use of editing as the whole music video is about the singer being dressed up as two different characters and pretending he has different personalities - one where he is portrayed as the typical rock star that is always up late and making a large amount of noise and the other is the stereotypical good boy who will do everything he is told - throughout this video both of the characters argue with each other as they both purposely annoy each other. This is one of the biggest editing techniques that has been used in this video because the singer will have had to film one scene as one character and then film another scene as the other character and then it would be edited together to make it look like they are two different characters. I also like the mise-en-scene that has been used in this video because you are able to see that both the characters are just normal people and can equally get annoyed by each other. The use of the houses and daily tasks that both the characters undertake also presents that they are just normal people. In addition, the costumes used allow the audience to know the difference between the characters, so we know who is the protagonist and who is the antagonist - however, there isn't really a protagonist and antagonist because it depends which side the audience believe is in the wrong. In relation to cinematography you can see that mainly simple and straightforward camera angles like close ups, long shots and establishing shots have been used - this keeps the video quite simple, but the angles used are suitable for the song because the video shouldn't include any fast editing or things moving quickly because it wouldn't help in representing the characters and all the audience will want to see is the characters so they can understand how they differ from each other. 
At the very beginning of the video there is a use of synchronous sound where the audience can hear the water tank and the woman blow a kiss to the singer - this has been shown to allow the audience to know that both the woman and man are about to sleep, but it then cross cuts onto the other male character waking up where he sings the lyrics 'I wake up every morning' which is reinforced as it is the evening and the singer is just waking up which expresses the diverse personalities between the character. This also conforms to Andrew Goodwin's theory that in music videos there is a relationship between the lyrics and visuals. Again, like in the previous music video I have shown, you are able to see the band perform live in this video which I find is appealing because I would like to see the band playing their own song and want to see what they are like when they play live. I would again probably say that my favourite thing about this music video is the use of the editing - this is because I like how the same person can be on the same screen twice but being portrayed as a different character. This music video has influenced me for when it comes to me planning and creating my music video because it has shown me that the use of mise-en-scene and clothing is very important when trying to make an audience understand the characters in a music video and I will have to think carefully about how I will dress my character/s and how I will want them to be portrayed towards the audience. Similar to the first video I mentioned, I decided to look and see if there were any videos which presented how the video was actually created, I was able to find a video - however, it does not go in as much detail as the one for 'The Adventure' by 'Angels and Airwaves' does, but I believe that this will help me in figuring out what type of things to do in my music video.
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