The slow motion in this scene is used for effect, and to cause shock. It shows an abusive father attacking the mother, which is obviously something which the audience are going to be affected by seeing. It also provides something for the rest of the music video to contrast to, with the faster paced following once the young boys have left home, suggesting again the common convention of 'breaking free' and a better life.
This close up shot is significant as it presents the idea of longing to escape reality as such. The darkness from the room the boy is in, as shown in the last picture too, contrasts from the brightness of the outside world.
This crane shot, which features the young boy in the window to the right of the frame, which slowly moves out and away from the scene shows the contrast between the run down part of town in which the boy resides and the riches of the city with the sky scrapers.
The first thing seen in the music video is establishing shots of the location. This location contrasts from the usual in music videos of this genre, where it is much more likely to be the case that they are in either a luxurious house or somewhere near the beach on a Balearic island. However, it is commonplace that in music videos of this genre for the lead actor to have
A recurrence in the music video is the use of a birds eye mid-shot over the bed. It is used in order to show the lead female and her daughter in an 'ordinary' setting. It is especially effective where there is part of the narrative between each return to this shot. This shows perhaps less ordinary scenes, such as them 'breaking free' [this itself being a convention from this genre], this then creates a strong effect, perhaps making the audience feel that they too can be almost 'heroes' during the day, and then go back to a normal life.
Another feature of this music video is the soft focus pan. This is due to the fact that the original shot of a midshot of the girls arm, with the tattoo in the centre of the frame is quite shocking. Because of this, the soft focus lessens the impact, with the pan round to the lead females arm with the same symbol suggests a deeper meaning. The symbol itself is the artist's logo, however in this context it almost elevates them to a 'clan' as such.
This low angle shot is seen when there is the lyrics 'I tried carrying the weight of the world', which is said in Goodwin's theory, where he says that music videos are a visual representation of the lyrics. The low angle shot of the buildings make you think that they are carrying the weight of the city, and in a greater context, the world, on their shoulders.
This genre often features some kind of performance in order to convince the audience of their talent. In this case, the lead female of the music video is shown in the audience of a festival which the artist is playing at, having no personal link. However, it has some suggestion that the artist 'saved her' as such from her bad life, and furthermore, that she belongs, what with us seeing the same symbol tattooed on her arm, enforcing the idea of a 'clan'.
One prominent feature of this music video is the use of the black and white filters. The effect of this is to show the narrative as a recount. It is though he is thinking of his past in the times when he is with his girlfriend, and the times when he is performing, the black and white shows his sadness.
There are some elements of the video following Goodwin's theory, for example at 2:25, he sings: 'my head's under water but I'm breathing fine' and it shows him underwater, sinking, with bubbles as though he is 'breathing fine'.
The video follows conventions of R&B music videos with both performance and narrative parts of the video. As well as the fact there is a male artist, with an attractive female character. The common feature of a lot of videos in the genre is to have a relationship, perhaps encountering issues, and then there is a happy ending, showing them married. The wedding is particularly contrasting, as the rest of the video is black and white, and then the time when they are happy, is in colour.
This video features lots of close ups of props. One of the conventions of R&B music videos is usually to show a lot of modern technology to portray the lead star as wealthy. One example is there being many close ups of telephones, although now they seem old-fashioned, the video is set in 1985, therefore at the time the telephones used may have been considered as fairly high-tech. There's also different types of shots, including a pan and close up, of various guns and weaponry. This may be due to the fact the idea of gang culture has an undercurrent throughout the R&B genre. It contrasts from the image of the male lead we were getting at the beginning of the video, where he looks sharp and clean, in his costume of a white suit. You would not expect him to be involved in organized crime. It is shown to be him going to rescue his girlfriend, however, therefore showing as an almost 'hero'. Again, this is another convention common in R&B music videos, with the lead characters, or artist, being thought of a bad guy turning good. Some of the dialogue at the beginning of the video has connotations of seeing the female as a possession. For example, 'he took what is mine, now I've taken what is his'. This may be a representation of males views on females at the time this was set, 1985. However, it could relate, again, to the R&B genre. The females are seen in quite a voyeuristic way, shown with the tilt of camera when the female is in her underwear at the beginning.
This video features the common convention of R&B music videos, with the story of a male and female couple.
There is use of colour and black and white filters. In this video, the black and white filter is used when they seem to be rehearsing, and then there is no filter in the time they are together, in a more natural way.
The use of the colour filter, is the pink overlay when he sings 'that girl'. This almost emphasises his point, relating to Goodwin's theory of lyrics being presented with the video.
Wherever I am, I feel a storm rushing in
You come closer, we're like trees in the wind
You say hold on, you say we're over now
It's been going so long, I see our bridges burning down
You were right this world we're living in ain't real, it ain't real
The outside's quiet but you could be silent,
I'd still hear you, you can't hear me
But when you wake I'll be gone, I know the way back but I feel so lost
Maybe in time, I'll move on, if it can't be me then I know they'll be one
It's 5am I'm lying thinking
Of how I let you down I should have paid you more attention
An' all of my mistakes I hope you know that I regret them
An' all the times I told you I love you I really meant them, meant them all
I took in way way much more than I was giving, giving
The past looks so much better than the present
And we can't keep on fucking like it's nothing we're not changing
The feelings that we have for one another and it's making
Everything much harder cos it's always amazing
And when I'm with another girl it's never quite the same thing
You said I never cared I'm telling you that you're mistaken
The city that we lived in never helped the situation
Tell me all the time we spent together wasn't wasted
I love you more than anyone I mean it when I say it
But when you wake I'll be gone, I know the way back but I feel so lost
Maybe in time, I'll move on, if it can't be me then I know they'll be one (x2)
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After unsuccessfully gaining permission through Twitter and Facebook, we decided to ask him at one of his concerts. Hollie and I both asked him when we met him after the gig, where he gave us spoken consent.
I am pleased with the effects over the pictures, the way the green is brought out in each picture. Also, how the tone of the image is fairly calm. The clarity is also clear enough I feel, without being too sharp and therefore again toning the harshness of the image down.
The problems with the digipack I feel are the fonts and colours used. With the trees in the background it was hard to find a colour that wasn't too garish, yet could be seen over the dark green and then also the lighter patches. I also do not like the different colours on the front and back, however, again we had a problem with getting the text to be clear enough with the colours of the image.
Overall, with this being my first real attempt at using Adobe Photoshop I am pleased with how it went. It means I have some idea of what to do when it comes to making our real digipack, and also how to think of the colours and fonts which could be used when taking the picture for it.
I am pleased with how our video went, especially the lip syncing. I think throughout the video it looks as though the artist could be singing the song, and this is something we will definitely use our skills in when it comes to our real video.
I also think it closely follows the shots as seen in the original video, which we had planned using the storyboard. This gives us an insight into how many seconds the average cut is, helping us when it comes to planning our main video.
Costume: We decided on a pale pink lacy top as it is quite girly, without being too obvious. We done this because we wanted the portrayal of the 'pop princess' to appeal to both males and females. For the males it would be the 'girly' girl for them to admire, and for the females the 'independent woman' who isn't overly girly and is making a life for herself.
Shot type: We decided to use a mid shot of the artist as you could get enough of the facial features in clearly, along with some of the body. Also with the setting being in the woods, you could still see some of this, to give a sense of innocence.
Equipment: For the digipack we used the camera on my phone as it would be easier than using a digital camera, and would be a lot quicker to upload. It was also easier when we were shooting as it is more compact with built in memory.
The video shows a van travelling around a city as a pirate radio station, with speakers on top which has will.i.am rapping about the issues around the city and how we should take care of each other. The camera also jumps to other members of the Black Eyed Peas rapping/singing. Whilst this is going on we see various clips of people putting posters up all around the city of a red question mark, which is linking to the ‘Where Is The Love?' title.
The bands genre is American hip hop which is targeted at teenagers who enjoy more urban music which is different and discusses issues that are perhaps delicate. The video is alike to other American hip hop videos in the fact that they are basing it on a very controversial issue and show the characters in the video as being vulnerable and perhaps angry about what is happening. The lyrics to the song are suggesting that America is facing a time of racial discrimination and divide between different races, and people are being hurt and even killed because of this fast expanding feud within the community. This helps relate to the audience in the fact that as they are of a young age they are more likely to experience some form of discrimination as they are growing up and the lyrics helps them to understand that this shouldn’t be happening and it needs to be stopped before other children or anyone else gets hurt.
The area in which the video is based is quite a run down looking city in the middle of America. All of the characters shown in the music video are from all types of ethnic backgrounds, this helps to attract the audience as it can appeal to every ethnic background and therefore they can feel as if the song is more personal to them.
All the artists in the videos are dressed in very urban style clothing. The males in the video are wearing either hoodies or sunglasses which represents a laid back style which doesn’t particularly stand out or include very elaborate colours or design. Fergie (the only female artist) is wearing a very plain outfit of a white strappy top and dark trousers, however she is wearing very obvious large jewellery which is noticeable to the audience. This shows that the costume of the video is not the main focus of the piece. However the prop of the question mark poster is made very apparent to the audience throughout the video and is shown as being a representation of how the video is asking the question ‘Where is the love?’. This image will make the artist and music popular due to the fact that it is a lot alike to what members of the target audience would choose to wear as it is clothing that is very common and can be worn in everyday life. Throughout the video the characters are constantly giving eye contact to the camera and focusing all of their speech to one place, this gains popularity from the audience in the fact that they feel as if they are actually being spoken to and the lyrics are directed at them, which will help them to remember all the lyrics and elements of the music video.
The video starts with a close up handheld image of a crumpled poster with a red question mark. There is then shots of various people sticking these posters in places, making the song seem like a protest. One slighting unusual editing technique used is a vintage style filter. This could be to do with the fact they are protesting about racial equality and talking about racist organizations such as the KKK, so is a link to history.
The band members often have close ups, and usually shot from a low angle, which shows their importance. Their is a significant camera angle of eye level, with close up on children's faces. It is especially significant due to the fact that the children are clearly all of different ethnicities, relating to the songs message of equality.
The music video has a positive image of people of different ethnic backgrounds. It shows them all to be equal, setting a good example to young people who could be watching the video. The moral of the video is to treat everyone equally, and not to discriminate.
I think the video has a very strong message, and provokes thought from the viewer about how they treat people. I like the importance of the idea they are sharing, and is good compared to a lot of music videos which are purely to show the singer/band.
The Mr Brightside video is based around an affair between a woman and two men who both seem to be in love with her. Throughout the video we see this one particular woman kissing other men and dancing with them, whilst this is going on one of the men is playing with his band on stage, we continuously see him looking over to the women and showing his heartbreak and jealously of how she is with other men.
The setting seems to be some sort of party or gathering of both men and women who are all dressed up in smart clothing. There is also the idea of it being burlesque, with the outfits being fairly upper class, yet the women almost being 'play things' for the men, and performing a show for them.
The genre for the music video is rock/indie and the target audience would be people aged late teens/ early 20s. The reason why this video would attract this audience is due to the fact it is based on a love affair and heartbreak about a young couple who are going through a hard time, which is what people of that generation are more likely to relate to.
This video is alike to other videos of its genre in the fact that it is quite edgy and about a subject that can affect many people at some point in their lives.
The lyrics suggest that the main character and lead singer of the band has been through some sort of break up but has got through it, however by seeing this girl again and with other men it has made him feel jealous and obsessive. As he is going through in his mind what she is doing with these other men it is making him more and more upset and is struggling to handle. It appeals to the fact in the fact that every teenager will go through this at some point in their life, and some watching the video could already have.
The name ‘The Killers’ signifies that the band are quite a energetic lively band who sing about emotions and subjects that are hard hitting. I think the artist wants to portray a tough exterior due to the fact that in terms of mise-en-scene he is wearing very dark colours, apart from his waist coat which is quite a bright colour, showing the audience that he maybe more emotional on the inside and things may affect him more than people think.
The props used such as the brightly coloured chairs along with the extravagant characters in the video portray his as being quite creative and thinking out the box, as he might not want to conform to the norms of a music video. The image will make the music/artist popular as he is being honest to the audience and showing how he truly feels and he is not afraid to show himself as being vulnerable. By using all of these different ideas he is showing that he is spontaneous and interesting and doesn’t just copy others.
The music video starts with a fade, with an establishing shot of the band on a stage. There are then close ups on the characters in the video, followed by a zoom onto the main singer. This is a low angle shot, showing the singers importance in the video.
There is also use of eye level angles, with various actors/singers, these are used to suggest different emotions, some could have sexual connotations.Women are portrayed in a dominant way, however there is suggestions of scandal perhaps, with several girls surrounding one man, and cuts between one woman with two different men. There is also one shot of a woman being cast aside, and pushed away, by a man which suggests she is not as powerful as she first thought.
Although this video has examples bad for young people to follow, e.g. cheating, it is clearly theatrical, and therefore many young people are unlikely to follow their lead.
In my opinion, the video is enjoyable, however, some links are not clear between the song and the video. Personally, I prefer music videos to be more realistic than theatrical, following a narrative. For example in the music video of 'I Love You' by Woodkid, it shows a mans struggle, and incorporates religion and beliefs.
The slow motion in this scene is used for effect, and to cause shock. It shows an abusive father attacking the mother, which is obviously something which the audience are going to be affected by seeing. It also provides something for the rest of the music video to contrast to, with the faster paced following once the young boys have left home, suggesting again the common convention of 'breaking free' and a better life.
This close up shot is significant as it presents the idea of longing to escape reality as such. The darkness from the room the boy is in, as shown in the last picture too, contrasts from the brightness of the outside world. 
This crane shot, which features the young boy in the window to the right of the frame, which slowly moves out and away from the scene shows the contrast between the run down part of town in which the boy resides and the riches of the city with the sky scrapers.
