Music Video Analysis - Digital Technology

Digital Technology

We decided to use a panning shot of London to set the scene for the video, which is set in London. We had to use a tripod to keep this shot as steady as possible, so that the panning shot looked as professional as possible. We also edited the raw footage in iMovie to make it look more interesting, as the original footage was taken on a very grey day, and that didn't fit in with the theme of our video. We used the 'saturation' and 'brightness' controls on iMovie to make the shot look brighter and more eye catching as well as making the shot more genre appropriate, and fit the cheerful vibe of the song better.

In this shot we had to use the zoom out control on the camera, so that the shot looked like it was following Ruby. We felt that lots of shots in our video were still, as we did not really have the technology for lots of good panning shots, and the video did not looks as effective. This meant that we had to include movement in shots when possible, so we tried with this shot. It was quite an issue to get it right, as I had to pan out at the exact same pace that Alice was walking, so we had many out takes. This worked in our favour though, as towards the end of the video we used one of the out takes towards the end of the video that zoomed out too fast to break the fourth wall. This also made the video look less formal and made it more personal to the fans as the clip looks more like a 'behind the scenes' clip rather than having been shot specially for the video.

To again break the fourth wall in the video and involve the viewers in the video a bit more, we use the tripod to wobble the camera when Ruby storms off after getting annoyed with Ken while playing tennis. This make it look as if she has hit the camera, therefore showing that there is a camera there. This shows that the artist is aware she is being filmed, and almost means she comes out of character. It is also symbolic, as it shows her sense of aggression and frustration with Ken, so the viewer understands the storyline and realises that she is not happy in her relationship.

Magazine Advert: The Comparison

After designing two different magazine adverts, both in the style of musician's adverts who my target market would be fans of. I thought that the one on the left was quite striking and bold, but quite dark and not as eye catching, however I also thought that the one on the right didn't have enough information on it. I posted this image on Facebook, as I thought that it would be better to ask the consumer what they would prefer as an advert. This is a few of the results:

As you can see by these replies, the result was that the second advert was preferred to the first, as it is 'fresher and more modern', and 'less is more'. I have decided to tweak the second one as well, as it isn't quite perfect yet, but the basic frame is much more popular than the other one. I was going to do a graph for the results, but as the results are all the same but one, so it wouldn't be a very interesting graph. For the sake of making my blog more varied, however, here it is:

Magazine Advert Analysis - Jessie J

Magazine Advert Analysis - Marina & The Diamonds

Magazine Advert Analysis - Florence + The Machine

Useful article

I just found this article in 'I' newspaper, and I think it seems very relevant to the collective identity part of our exam.

Nicki Minaj - Stupid Hoe

This is the video for Singer Nicki Minaj's newest single, Stupid Hoe. It's hard to know where to begin with this female representation, but the use of the derogatory term 'hoe' in the title might give viewers a clue about the level of sexism in this video. The fact that it is used by a woman, as well, is possibly even worse than if it were used by a man as it shows conflict between women (in terms of the conflict vs. unity theory). The song is about Nicki's 'rap nemesis' L'il Kim, which again shows a childish and slightly pathetic attack on a fellow female with probably equal levels of talent, money and fame. The director, Hype Williams, is well known for being the director for videos such as Beyonce's 'Videophone' and Kanye West's 'Gold Digger', both examples of videos that very much focus on the male gaze, and feature women in skimpy outfits. Hype also has connections to the porn industry, having photographed Kim Kardashian for Playboy magazine.

One of the first shots of Nicki herself is her holding a seemingly impossible pose, that looks a bit like a dancer in a musical box. This links to the previous shot of her dancers playing with a skipping rope, showing there are a lot of childish references in the video. Other examples include her holding a 'barbie' logo, wearing a pink party dress and holding a lollipop, and the constant focus on her eyes. This shows her as 'innocent' despite her provocative dancing, and shows her as easy to manipulate, and the focus on her eyes makes her seem doll-like, again as innocent. Many of her poses are also held very still, which again make her seem like a doll. This shows her as having not much of a mind for herself, and instead complying to male's fantasies and desires, going against her obvious talent in rapping, and making it overshadowed by her representation. This could conform to the idea that men don't like a talented woman, as they feel threatened, so they promote her sexuality to make them feel more comfortable.

Another theme in the video is Nicki being 'caged', and transforming into an animal. This is again derogatory and shows her as merely a pet, and not a human with her own mind. The dancing on all fours in the cage also shows her as some kind of slave to men, again conforming to the submissive role females often take in videos of this genre.

Finally, the use of editing is very successful in portraying Minaj as some kind of unhinged schizophrenic, for example the very fast-paced shots that almost look as if they're showing two shots at once, as well as the incredibly creepy enlargement of  her eyes when she is standing on the oversized chair. This again adds to her image of submission, and shows males that she is easy to manipulate, adding a perverted side to this image of childlike innocence.

Overall, the video is a good example of how negatively women are portrayed in the media, and how, under the pretence of post-feminism, artists like Nicki Minaj are used in this way to sell records and increase video views on Vevo and YouTube.

CD Analysis - Wallis Bird

Wallis Bird is an Irish folk/punk/indie artist, which  is quite different in genre to our artist, bu I thought that the theme of this cover is particularly interesting, as it includes unusual graphics and artwork.

This cover also uses a font that looks like handwriting, which looks really unusual and adds a personal touch to the album, making the consumer think that that might be the artist's handwriting. 

The artist's website and credits are also included on the cover...

As well as a barcode...

And the production company logos on the spine.

The combination of drawings and photos also give this album cover a scrapbooky feel, and the black background and white writing makes it look like the album is a chalkboard, an element i really like, as it makes me think of childhood and youth, which is the theme we are trying to show with the use of barbie dolls. 

The various illustrations throughout the cover also add a childlike theme, that I will find useful when making my cover.

There are also lots of credits for the band, which isn't usually done as much with mainstream pop music as the main artist is the focus of the music. This shows how indie musicians are usually a lot more reliant on their band, and tend to keep the same band for as much of their music as possible, whereas in pop the musicians are usually only employed for particular songs, meaning the solo artist doesn't develop much of a relationship with their band.

The use of lots of pictures also adds to the scrapbook feel of the cover.

I have found this album cover particularly useful as it has given me some inspiration for the themes of my album cover, and has shown me the difference between various genres and their look, and what is important to focus on in my genre.

CD Analysis - Anjulie

I don't have many digipak CD cases, as I tend to buy albums on iTunes nowadays, but one of the few I do have is this album by Anjulie. She isn't very well known about, but I thought this was a perfect example of an indie pop female solo artist to look at for inspiration: 

The cover features another stylised photograph of the artist, as well as the bold triangle graphics, which are quite eye catching and introduce the colour scheme.

The CD is black with some triangles and the logo on it, making it stand out, but still work well with the theme of the CD cover.

The booklet is inside a slot, which is often the case for Digipaks.

The booklet also features the lyrics in a colour font that works with the colour scheme. I also really like the idea of combining graphics and photograph to create the artist's dress.

Another thing I have been seeing in these CD covers is that most of the booklets include a 'thank you' page, which I will probably include in my own CD cover, as it adds a personal touch as well as being fitting with the genre of the artist.

CD Analysis - Katy Perry

A far more mainstream artist than Marina, however I think that the styling again is something to look at in this CD cover:

The case includes many pictures of Katy Perry at the MTV performance the CD is of, which is typical for this genre.

The font is quite rounded, and there is a clear pink, white and black colour scheme throughout the case.

The pink strawberry on the CD stands out against the black background, and it helps the consumer to see that although it's not a studio recorded album, this is still an official Katy Perry recording.

The inside booklet also contains lots more pictures of Perry, along with some credits.

I think that this was a useful case to look at, as the eye catching pop art graphics and photos of the artist are very typical to the genre and apply to our artist's look and styling.

CD Analysis - Marina and the Diamonds

I decided to start analysing some CD covers more in depth, as again I though it would help me gain some inspiration for my own digipak. This Marina and the Diamonds CD is not a digipak, but it thought that the style would be useful, as we considered her look when deciding on our artist's image.

Firstly, I like the use of the font, which is the same on the whole cover and looks a bit like handwriting, almost as if the album was a scrapbook. I think that the effects on the portraits of Marina are also really interesting, and makes the artist look almost unreal, which shows at first glance Marina's style, with only a picture of her face. The tapestry background also gives the album an 'aged' look, which works with the album title - 'The Family Jewels', which gives the idea of something old and passed down.

The case features a lot of pictures of Marina, showing that this is her album and that she is the star. The photos all have the same theme which makes the cover look more 'together' and shows a running theme.

The CD itself is just plain silver, with the Marina and the Diamonds logo on it.

The background for the CD is also the same tapestry.

The inside booklet also features the handwriting font, as well as the lyrics for the songs and a couple more pictures.

I also looked at some various codes and legal things that I will have to include on my cover to make it look more authentic.

Overall, I think that this was a good CD to look at, as the styling is similar and I may consider using photoshopped photographs of Alice to create a stylised image of the artist.