Conventions of the Genre

There are many aspects in the conventions of the genre one of which is lip synching. This is important because if you don't then you wont know who is the singer. This also gives the video some character and something to look at. Dancing and background dancers are also good to have because it gives the audience something to look at. A storyline in the video is also important to have because it lets you work with something. Props, costume and make-up are also conventions of a genre because you need to make the characters look in a certain to send out a message. Having quick editing makes the music video look more professional and lets you get the most out a four minute clip. Having the right location and setting really sets the mood of the scene and draws in the emotion.

Top ten greatest music video:

At number 10 it's Nirvana with It smells like teen Spirit. Number 9 was madonna with Vogue, The Verve with Bittersweet Symphony at 8 and at 7 it was Michael Jackson with Billie Jean. This was the song that really launched his career, and it was on top of the US charts for 9 weeks. Robbie Williams was at 6 with Rock DJ, and it was considered controversial as he was inappropriately dressed. At number 5 it was Madonna again with Like a Prayer. This was very controversial as it shows Madonna making love with a black Jesus. It also cost a lot of money and Pepsi withdrew their sponsorship after all the talk. Queen were at number 4 with Bohemian Rhapsody which was at number 1 for 9 weeks in the charts. It took them 3 hours 30 minutes to shoot the video. A-ha were at 3 with Take on Me which used very clever technology but it did take three months to create. The song was out but with no video and it sank through but they re-released it again with a video and it went to number 1 in the US. It took 1400 drawings to create the whole video. At number 2 it was Peter Gabriel with Sledgehammer. This video used very hi-tec technology which created something that was unseen. Finally the greatest music video is by Michael Jackson with Thriller. This video is great because it used a huge production team and it was pretty lengthy too. Michael saw the film 'American Werewolf in Lond' and he wanted to incorporate the idea into his video. It used the most props ever in that time and was a staggering 15 minutes long. It sold 50 million records world wide. It was so good channels had to re-schedual and put the music video so people can see. 

Shontelle - T-Shirt

This is our final choice on the song that we are going to use in the music video, which is by Amanda Lucas. We have decided to use this song because its catchy and good. We can also envisage the way we are going to direct it. We have some ideas on the way we are going to direct the video. I was looking at some videos of artist who remind me of Amanda Lucas' voice.   and the type of song. Then i found a video that inspired me a lot. Its the music video by Shontelle called T-shirt. It shows a lady who is missing her boy friend and feels sad because his not there. It also shows her lying down and singing, and that is what i want to incorporate in my video. 

Copyright rules

Authors own the exclusive rights to their compositions, this is called a copyright, and the composition is protected for many years even if the copyright is never registered with the copyright office.  A composition is considered to be "intellectual property". The copyright may be sold, transferred, or inherited, but the copyright still endures. If any music or lyrics are still under copyright protection

- you cant reproduce the music or lyrics

- you cant distribute the music or lyrics either for free, for no profit, or for profit

- you cant perform the music or lyrics in public

- you cant play a recording of the music or lyrics in public--even if you own the CD

- you cant make a derivative work or arrangement for public use in any form

Permission to use the song:

I asked couple of artist to get their permission to use the song. I emailed them as you can see below from the screen grab. I had to do this because if i didn't then I could potentially get sued as it ma be accounted as copy-writting. Not only I contacted via email but I also went on their Facebook and Myspace pages and asked for permission.

email sent to ask for permission of the song i'm sorry by amanda lucas

Permission to use song by amanda lucas and she also gave us the lyrics but i haven't print screened it because they're are too many lyrics. 

 

Preliminary Task

We had to conduct a preliminary task so that when it comes to shooting the really music video we are familiar with what we have to do. It also helped us understand the process of miming to the song and how to edit each part. It did take us a long time to get it right but we got there eventually. Before we done anything we had to bluetooth the track from the imac to our phones. Then we had to print out a copy of the lyrics of the song so we could sing along with it when we shoot the video. We then had to decide where to shoot the music video and what positions we had to do. We had to do three shots one with both f the singers, then two other shots of the two singers separately. Finally we had to edit each shots so that it matches the audio. This was most probably the most important and hardest part of the task. The end product is shown below:

Here are some screen grabs of the process of making the music video. We had to use final cut express to arrange the video and the audio together. 

We had to use other techniques to make our video look more professional like using layers. This made the film flow and over all look better. Locking the music and the finished scenes was essential because  if we didn't we could lose the work we have done. 

Hot Chips- I Feel Better

As i was researching into music videos i found various ones that were very interesting. This song by Hot Chips called I feel better has a comedic side to it, as it takes the mickey out of a typically boy band. This doesn't really relate to the song but it is a good video because it catches the audience and draws them in.  

Case Study- Jamie Thraves

Jamie Thraves is a director who first started off with making short films at University. He used award-winning films short films as a ‘calling card’ to get a ‘foot in the door’ with the video production company Factory film.

H began by shooting three very low budget music videos (£5,000 approximately for each video)

 This is how the process works:

-          a Commission from a record label sends a track to five- ten directors

-          the directors then each submit a treatment

-          at this stage they do not get paid

-          the director who has submitted the ‘best’ treatment is then commissioned to make the video

-          after then they director is paid

as can be seen for many directors in the business it is a precarious existence where their livelihood is dependant on each commission.

Jamie Thraves submitted treatments for his two best known videos and each was accepted:

Radiohead ‘Just’ – budget £100,000 and took three days to shoot

Coldplay ‘The Scientist’ – budget £200,000 and took two days to shoot

Jamie Thraves used the music video to get into the film business. He has so far shot three films:

-          The Low Down

-          The Cry of the Owl

-          Treacle Jr

Purpose and success criteria:

What is the purpose of a music video?

-to promote the song and the artist

-publicise and advertise

-persuade to buy CD’s and download

-bring in more money

-draw attention to the artist and song

-to illustrate the song

-appeals to a visual audience

-expresses an individuals emotions

-tells a story

-markets an image (powerful image)

-raises awareness of artist

-to make an artistic statement (e.g. Talking Heads- Once in life time)

-product placement (e.g. Christina Aguilera & her perfume in the song Not Myself)

How might we measure the success criteria of a music promo video?

-how popular it is with audience

-how many singles sold

-what number it is in the charts

-number of video downloads

-number of reviews

-word of mouth

-amount of money produced

-number of hits on YouTube

-if there’s lots of publicity (newspaper articles/ TV reports)

-how many times shown on television

-VMA awards

There was a huge switch in the importance of YouTube from TV channels such as MTV.

Top 100 music videos

Continuing from 25 it is Madness with Baggy Trousers, which is humorous. Next were the Radio heads with No Surprise, which was a great music video. It had the main singers face on a close throughout the song. Then water started to rise up his face, which looked like he was drowning.  23 was Britney Spears with Baby one more Time. This video was controversial, as some would say it promoted paedophilia. Justin Timberlake was at 22 with Cry me a River.  21 were the Queen with I want to break Free. This had a massive impact on the band as it brought out Freddie Mercury’s sexuality and people in America stopped buying their albums. The Gorillaz were at 20 with Clint Eastwood. Material Girl by Madonna was at 19 and at number 18 was Beyonce with Crazy in love. 17 were Blur with Coffee and TV; this went on the side of a more comedic side. Outcast was at number 16 with Hey Ya. This video was made after the talks about the band splitting up. R.E.M were at 15 with Everybody Hurts. At14 it was Christina Aguilera with Dirty. This was argued to be controversial as it presented women in a sexual way. This also showed a new person and an adult. 13 was Pink Floyd with Another Brick in the Wall, this portrayed how the band felt about school life. Michael and Janet Jackson were at number 12 with Scream, which was the most expensive video of all time, which cost $7 million. 11 were Cold Play with the Scientist. 

100 greatest music video

At number 44 it’s Kylie Minogue with Cant get you out of my Head. 43 are Dire Straits with Money for Nothing. 42 is Bjork with Its Oh So Quiet. 41 are The Spice Girls with Wannabe. This was don in one shot and it was their first single so it had to be a good performance. 40 is Missy Elliot with Get Ur Freak On. 39 are Pulp with Common People. At 38 it’s Fatboy Slim with Weapon of Choice. 37 are Guns N Roses: November Rain, which was a very expensive and over done video. 36 are Red Hot Chili Peppers with Give It Away. At 35 is the infamous video by Sinead O'Connor with Nothing Compares 2U. This was the video everyone was talking as Sinead started to cry accidentally in the middle of the video. 34 are The White Stripes with Fell in Love with a Girl. U2 where at 33 with The Sweetest Thing. This was an apology to his wife as he forgot their anniversary. Chris Isaak with Wicked Game was at 32. 31 was Eminem with Stan. 30 were Weezer with Buddy Holly. 

Top 100 music video

Continuing from number 59 it is Abba, Knowing me Knowing you, which some would say shot in comic style. The Cure was at 58 with Close to me (11985). Meat Loaf with I'll do anything was at 57, which had a huge budget. 56 was Eminem with without me which mimicked Batman and Robin. at 55 it was Fatboy Slim with Praise you. This video was different as it had a group of people dancing in a mall while people recorded them. Daft Punk was at 54 with Around the World. Wham with Club Tropicana was at 53. Massive Attack was number 52 withTear Drop. 51 was Run-DMC and Aerosmith with Walk this way. Paul Simon was at 50 with You can call me Al. Jimiroquai with virtual insanity was at 49. This video was the first of its kind. it was very technical as it used an illusion of objects hen really they weren't moving. Johnny Cash was at 48 with Hurt. this was a remake from 9 inch Nail. This video really captured his life and was showing an end of an era. The Prodgity was at 47 with Firestarter. 46 was Prince Charming by Adam and the Ants. 45 is Aerosmith with Crazy.

Top 100 music videos

Continuing from 76 it is the Beatles with Strawberry Field Forever. At 75 its Duran Duran with Rio, which was controversial as it, showed fortune when the country was in a financial depression. Wu-tang Clan, where at 74 with Gravel Kick, which was a very expensive video to shoot. Basement Jaxx was at 73 with Where’s Your Head At. This was first of dance music’s and had a low budget. It first starts off with a story. At 72 was Robert Palmer with Addicted to Love, which was also controversial as it had prerogative ladies, which are used like objects. 71 were Bijork with All is about Love. Every breath you take by The Police was at 70. At 69 it was the very controversial video from Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Two Tribes. This video was controversial because it insulted the cold war by taking the fun out of it. It was band off screen in some parts of America. Madonna was at 68 with her song Ray of Light, which was directed by Jonas Akerlund. This video was to show a new and re-invented artist.  The Beastie Boys was at 67 with Sabotage. At 66 was the infamous video by Bob Dylan, Subterranean Homesick Blues, which only took three minutes to shoot and there were no lip-syncing either. At 65 it was Window licker by The Aphex Twin, which was an unusual and surreal video. At 64 was Bijork with Human Behaviour. Number 63 was George Michael with Outside, which promoted him as being gay. His video was inspired by the earlier actions that he had done in America. This video was also very controversial in America. Blur where at 62 with Park life. The Prodgity were at 61 with the song Smack my Bitch up, which was considered as too graphic and inappropriate. Jonas Akerlund, who is an outstanding director as he uses cinematography on point, also directed this video. Finally for this part it at 60 was Eurythmics with Sweet Dreams.

Eurythmics (Sweet Dreams)