Applying Key Terms to Music Videos

Freytag's Five Act Dramatic Structure

Freytag suggested a five act dramatic structure, usually for screenplays but also related to films and music videos, for example. It is usually shown as a pyramid.

The first act is the exposition, which introduces the characters, settings and plot. This usually ends with an incident.
Act two shows rising action, which complicates the problem created by the exposition.
The third act is a climax, where the plot reverses, for example going from lucky to unlucky, or the other way around.
Act 4 is when the results of the incident play out, usually a conflict which puts the ending in doubt.
The fifth act is the denouement, which shows the consequences of the conflict or incident playing out.

Kaiser Chiefs- Oh My God

This video also brings up a lot of questions which get answered late on, and it's become a theme of music videos i have seen. They set up instruments in a warehouse, and in uniform so it looks like they're at work. They begin setting up normal ones, like drums for instance, and when they start blowing up rubber guitars and assembling plastic instruments you get the feeling that they will play instruments no matter what, showing their devotion to their music, to their fans but in a funny way. When it comes to the chorus, you realise they're showing literally what they're singing about. The line 'never been this far away from home' is mirrored by the group being in situations they clearly wouldn't usually. For example, on a snowy high cliff, and in a strip club inside a sort of prison. This shows they're out of their depth, but carry on anyway. Although it seems like they're showing unrealistic settings at the start, you get the impression they mean they're 'far away from home' in the context their music has taken them places they haven't been, or never expected. You can clearly tell when it is the climax to the song, and this is shown clearly in the video as well, from strange drawings on the screen, as if it's showing their imagination. This is also true for the denouement, which is shown by the scene slowing down, and the lights turning off.

Arcade Fire- The Suburbs Analysed

This video brings about a lot of questions that you want answering, making you want to carry on watching to find out the answers to. For example you can hear sirens, and see a boy in an apron, and want to know what's going on. This is clever because anyone that hasn't seen the video, or heard the song before would be enticed to carry on watching, making them (like me) enjoy the song and want to listen to more. The message of the song is clearly shown in the video, especially the line 'moving past the feeling' which is shown by the small group of friends having fun riding their bikes together despite the chaos going on around them. You get the feeling that they don't care about the danger or consequences of doing what they are, maybe because the army that is in their area doesn't either. The friends are very protective of one another, as if they are their own army, protecting their friends from the real army and the dangers they hold. The last part of the song/video shows one of the group at work (which explains the apron) when another boy comes in and begins hitting him. It made me think about the way people release their anger at the army being in their area, either by having fun and protecting your friends, or taking it out on other people like what was going on in this scene. For such a short video i felt as though it really explains things you overlook, like the importance of friends and how to deal with situations that might arise, and for that reason it's a very interesting video.

Two Column Storyboard

Summary- The video begins with a balaclava falling from a tower block, and gets found by a boy. He puts it on and gets 'possessed' by it, making him do things he wouldn't usually do, such as stealing. He struggles to get it off, and when he does he can't remember what he's done. It gets left in the flat he stole from, where it is found by a girl who puts it on, and again gets 'possessed'. This carries on with different people finding it, until the original boy who finds it wants it back, so follows the last person with it, and gets it back.

Analysis of Focus Group

I carried out a focus group with 3 members of my sixth form, asking them the questions on the list, and noted down their responses. After looking at what they said and comparing it with what i found from the questionnaires, i realised there were some huge similarities and differences. 

In the questionnaires, i found that people like the conventions to be kept, so if it's a rock song, it needs to be a rock video. People also agreed with his when i asked them in the focus group, saying that it makes more sense when videos stick to their own genre. However, one person said that they completely disagree with that, and you can do whatever you want, as music is just an expression of how the artist feels. This goes against what i found in my questionnaire, so i thought i'd ask more people to see what they thought. I asked other friends and family members that question, and found that 40% of people said that they should, and 60% said they shouldn't. 

People said in the focus group that they watch music videos to be entertained, so we had to take this on board when thinking about our video. We wanted to make it funny, by involving things people don't usually see. In relation to PSY's video for Gangnam Style, everyone liked the video, because it's so unusual. People also commented on the story behind the song, and said that Korea was known for being a strict country, so they never thought they'd see something like that. Although we won't be able to shock people like that video did, we can make a video that makes people laugh, and is unexpected from the genre without completely leaving the 'indie' spectrum.

Actors, Props and Locations

What we need in order to film.


Actors:
Boy 1- Jack Malone/James Collins/Reece Nicholls
Flat Tenant: Emily Fallows
Boy 2: Jamie Sheppard/Jamie Hall/Luke Flint
Car Driver: Louis Brown
Mum: Rachel Fallows
Little Girl: Mia Sheppard

The actor in bold is the main actor we're hoping to use, and the others are backups in case they can't make it.


Props:
Black balaclava x2
Car
Flat
Phone/IPod/Camera
Bag
Casual clothing

All of the props on the list above we have, with the exception of the balaclavas, which we will purchase before filming.


Locations:
Int. flat
Ext. flat
Stairway
Int. car

Risk Assessment

Risk- Icy Floors (falling over)

Overcome by… walking slowly, wearing shoes with grip.

Risk- Balaclava flying from window (wind)

Overcome by… having a spare balaclava, just finding it on the floor

Risk- Injuries in drag from car

Overcome by… consent forms, being careful

Risk- Girl 1 falling in struggle

Overcome by… having no sharp/loose objects (tables, shoes)

Risk- Drive (other cars)

Overcome by… careful driving, checking license, no speeding

Risk- Car crawl (other cars)

Overcome by… crawling on pavement side

Key Personnel & Their Responsibilities

It is important to have clear responsibilities within the group, so we divided responsibilities and made a list of them. This means that if there is no food on set for the crew, we could refer to this and find out who was responsible for that. 

Director- All (Tayla, Emily, Jack, Harry)

'A director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in film making. They control a film’s artistic and dramatic aspects, while guiding the technical crew and actors.'

Editor- Tayla & Emily

'An editor is part of the post productive process of film making and is in charge of selecting and combining shots into sequences'. (When it comes to editing, the group are splitting into two pairs.)

Camera Operator- Tayla, Emily, Harry

'Responsible for physically operating the camera and maintaining composition and camera angles through a given scene or shot.'

Costume/Props- All (Tayla, Emily, Jack, Harry)

'Responsible for designing costumes for a film production and for the purchasing/acquiring of any props needed in a production.'

Writer- All (Tayla, Jack, Harry, Emily)

'Writers are responsible for producing the pitch and storyboard.'

Producers- Tayla, Harry, Emily

'Ensuring everything to do with the production goes well, everyone is on time etc.'

Locations- Tayla and  Emily

'Responsible for deciding which locations will be filmed in, and scouting them to ensure they’re acceptable.'

Hair/Makeup- Emily

'Does the actors/actresses hair and makeup to make them in keeping with the filming.'

Storyboards- All (Tayla, Emily, Jack, Harry)

'Responsible for drawing up storyboards in time for shooting.'

Caterer- Emily

'Responsible for proving refreshments and food for production team and actors.'

All quotes taken from http://www.wikipedia.org/ 

Contributor Release Form

This is a blank copy of our contributor release form, which we will give to each actor involved in filming. This will avoid anyone pulling back their contribution at the last minute, which would be devastating as it would involve re-filming. 

We are students producing a music video for our BTEC Creative Media Production course. In order to meet legal requirements, please read our following terms and sign below:

1)   I …………………………………………………… understand and agree:

a)    That you, the producers, may record my voice and likeness and that all or some of my recorded contribution can be included in this video.

b)    That you do not have to use my recorded contribution, but if you do, you may edit and use it in any way you wish.

c)    That the programme may be exhibited in all media and formats.

2)   I hereby assign to you the producers, the entire copyright of my contribution to the music video.

……………………………………….     ………………………………..

      (Signature)                                                     (Date)

Contingency Plan

A contingency plan is important to avoid having problems on the day of filming and having no back up plans. These are the three main problems that could come up on the day of filming, and the way we will overcome them.

In case of rain…

Film interior scenes first, if the rain persists we will provide the actors coats with hoods, and ensure the camera is protected at all times. If the rain is really heavy, and we’re unable to film, we will reschedule filming for another day.

If an actor is ill…

We will make sure they let us know as early as possible, so we can delay filming for backup actors to get here. We have two backups for Boy 1, one backup for Boy 2. Other actors such as Mum and Little Girl can be replaced with one of the crew to transport the balaclava down the stairs.

If the camera breaks…

We will take all necessary precautions to avoid this happening, but in a scenario where something does stop us using the camera, we will have another, smaller, backup. 

Focus Group

Do you think the content of a music video has to relate to the genre?

James- yes, definitely, there are so many conventions that have to be kept. I suppose that they can be changed in some circumstances, but it’s best to just keep to your genre.

George- Nah, I think you can do whatever you like in a music video, its not like there’s a  list of rules you have to kept to. Music is just an expression, how the artist feels, what he thinks about whatever the song’s about. A video can completely contradict that, if that’s what the artist thinks, the video can do whatever the artist wants.

Lots of music videos are filled with random bits of footage, why?

Ryan- They’d get so boring if it’s one thing all the way through, or just one long shot of footage.

James- you need to break it up more, so there are different things that keeps the audience entertained.

Ryan- some things need to be included so you get what the story’s about, in a way. If the main things told in the big part of the video, but you need to know something else, something random, they need to show it like that. So I guess it’s not really random, in a way, it just looks random to us.

Why do you think Gangnam Style was so popular?

James-It’s so funny, and so unexpected. It’s not just a music video, it’s about the opposing cultures in Korea.

Ryan- It’s a happy, funny Korean man dancing like a horse, what more can you ask for in a music video?

George- It’s not the video that made it popular, the song started it all off and people wanted to know whether the video would live up to that, and it did so they watched it more and more.  It’s so unusual to see a Korean acting like that, it’s portrayed to be such a strict country, then you see that, it’s not what you expect.

Do you think music videos are worth the money?

George- definitely, yeah. If you think how much they cost to make, it’s a risk you’ve got to take, like Gangnam style wouldn’t be where it is today without the video. I’d bet that in the first weekend that Breaking Dawn came out, it made less money than Gangnam style did. Music videos don’t cost nearly as much as movies do to make, and some songs sell loads more than movies do, its just the risk you’ve got to take.

Ryan- they’ve got to do it to promote the music.