key changes music video
TRANSCRIPT
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Key Changes Music Video
Drum & Bass genre
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Early 90s
Music Video Name: Congo Natty- Junglist Release Date: 1993
Camera Angles shots and movement:
There are a great deal of close ups in this music video. They predominantly are of either the artist face or of the musical equipment in
the studio. The close ups allow the audience to clearly see the tape recorder, or microphone, or CD decks,; representing a genre that iproud of their musical making abilities. This also appeals to the audience greatly; they are almost taken through the musical engineerinprocess, and with that, can feel more attached to the song and for the target audience their favorite artists. Using the uses andgratification theory the audience is not only entertained but informed with how music is created in that contemporary era.
I must note here that there are a lot of shots that show the artist singing. This is an important note for later in the PowerPoint and isexemplar of how much the genre has changed.
Here we can see a low angle shot of the Artist; establishing him in a position
of power, in the studio, he is seen as something powerful and almost godly
to his fellow producers. The low angle close up shots puts him in this powerfu
l position, and he is subsequently looked up to by the audience.
Movement: There is also a gradual track in to the artist as he sings. As we move towards him
It is a reaffirming of how important he is. The audience identify with his status
Of power.
Wide shots are also used to a create extent; they prominently convey
the theme of togetherness amongst these people. Interestingly, this
music video revolves around the Rastafarian religion. It combines boththese cultural elements of togetherness with the drum & bass (at the
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Editing:
The editing is very basic in this music video. It consists of a great deal of standard editing; continuity editing as the characters
enter the studio and place the tape in the recorder etc.. There are two main editing points that should how ever be noted.
1. The music video uses graphical editing. The music video unfolds as a narrative almost; reaching the studio, smoking
some drugs and then Djing their music to what seems to be a small drum & bass gathering of mainly older males. It isinteresting how the music video is edited to freeze frame at the beginning on certain shots that show characters and
then graphical editing is used; their names are written over the shot and their character names in the video. The
audience will appeal to this as it is not merely a music video where a series of shots are strung together but that it follows
a narrative. This connects the audience far more, broadly defined, even in the early stages of when music videos of this
genre were created this idea of having an interesting and highly cinematic storyline to the narrative has always been
present.
Editing technique two.
The second point is that the speed of certain shots has been either sped up or slowed down. This seems
to be highly conventional to the drum & bass genre as it seems to be that in the early 90s this convention
has been established. As many would define the drum & bass genre as being cool, this notion of using
slow motion allows the director to present the characters in such a manor. It would suffice to say that slow
motion not only makes characters actions more easily visible but it does, indeed, make them look far
more stylish. This editing technique is in keeping with the stylish nature of the music video and is a
representation of an extremely stylish genre.
Song title appears in a
blood red colour above
a freeze framed image.
Some would argue thatthis use of blood red,
coupled with this image
of a group of
aggressive looking men
presents the genre to
be one associated with
violence. This is an
alternative
interpretation.
Slow motion shot that
then becomes a freeze
frame. Example of two
editing techniques that
are both stylish,
conveying a cool genreassociated with cool
people.
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Paragraph on the Mis-en-scene:
Briefly, this video depicts themes of togetherness and love through its characterization of the characters; music brings them
together. Set in the studio for the majority, poster images ofBob Marley (the iconic musician that brought marijuana and music
together), musical equipment and and posters to underground drum & bass raves can all be seen in the shot. This conveys a
tight nit, close and cultural community that is highly associated with the Rastafarian music. In fact, the song itself has various
reggae elements that make it a part of this movement.
Smoking is a key element in this music video; the artists are seen rolling marijuana and smoking it, and many people would arguethat this is promoting drug use as their use of it almost brings them closer to each other and to the icon Bob Marley. Even in the
early 90s, before the initial rise of MDMA, marijuana has always been a key element to the drum & bass genre. It is a symbol ic
representation, I believe, of love in amongst the people and it is therefore depicted in this video and throughout the genre.
The characters are wearing highly conventional clothing associated with the genre; baggy clothing, no suits or formal wear. Hats
and bandanas on their heads and wearing T-shirts and jackets two sized too big, it is very conventional and will appeal to the
audience for that matter.
What really appealed to me in this music video was the juxtaposing
colour scheme. At times, there is what seems to be a blue wash
over the image, than in the studio a more warming orange that
perhaps seeks to represent the togetherness of these people. Then,when Djing, the infamous strobe lighting that seeks to be a
symbolic representation in itself of the rave culture permeates
through the shots, and finally, there are shots that are desaturated
entirely and become black and white, with the contrast taken down to
a certain extent. There is a conjunction of a various colours and this
creates a lively, entertaining and constantly fluctuating music video
that would appeal to the audiences through its unique use of colour
and style.
The music video is unique in that it resembles that of a documentary.
Cinematography in the music
video.
Shows the
baggy clothing
of the artists
and music videoactors also.
To a certain extent the use of marijuana is
glamorized; poster of Bob Marley smoking
the illicit drug almost haloed by the warm,
orange coloured wash.
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Late 90s.
Music video name: Ed Rush - BacteriaRelease date 1998
Camera angles, shots and movement
The majority of the music video is shot in POV. This allows for in-depth
character exploration; we see the narrative, and all its bewildering
imagery and symbols through the eyes of our protagonist who looks to
be battling with his sanity. It is this that will appeal to our audience as
they really feel engaged with the character, relating to the monotony of
his everyday life (such as putting on shoes, brushing teeth), yet
intrigued by the state of his psyche.
Further emphasizing the character exploration, and further still, the
instability of the characters mind to a certain extent is that the musicvideo consist mainly of Hand held camera work. This results in a
somewhat fragmented delineation of the narrative, that seeks to
represent the recklessness of the characters mind.
This music video consisted far more of hand held shots (shots highly
conventional to the drum & bass genre) than
Congo Nutty- Junglist. Perhaps, as time progressed,
this became more of a convention to the genre hence
why it is used to excess here.
The video has very few long shots, extreme long
shots. Broadly defined, the director has strayed
away from these shots as they would, in a sense,
connect the character to the world as much of itwill be visible in the frame. He is not part of the
world, his isolation is presented through the
excessive use of close ups and extreme close ups,
for example of his eyes, that depict a tinge of
madness. There are indeed slightly controversial
themes portrayed in this music video, but this only
makes the video more conventional to the genre.POV Shot
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Editing:
What is the most striking editing technique used in this music video is that, I would say,
90% of it has been sped up. This is not a speed of around 150% however, I would place
it at an even faster speed, around 200%: it is extremely fast footage.
I believe such an editing style is used because it is, as many videos of the drum & bass
genre have shown, highly conventional. Also, it allows the audience to watch theprotagonists entire day; all the monotony involved in every day activities, that would take
an entire day to show in normal speed in the space of 6 minutes. The director is able to
play with time so to speak.
There are very few shots that are slowed down; seeking to break the speed of the fast
shots and provided the viewer with a brief break, before they are thrown back into the
fast tempo. The way in which the fast shots and slow shots are edited is very
meticulously. Some shots are in fact edited overt he other: for example, the boystanding, his silhouette only at the camera in slow motion and then a fast paced image
of his face played over it. This all seeks to convey this idea that this boy is relatively
unstable.
Similar to other music videos of the early 90s and
to the genre in general the footage has been edited
at times to be in black and white. This gives the
music video a sense of realism. Furthermore, the
audience would recognize this as being highlyconventional to the genre as this is now in the late
90s, they would have been exposed to far more of
these videos and this use of desaturation as the
genre evolved from the early 90s. The use of black
and white, juxtaposed with colour presents the
genre to be one of many emotions. Black and white
is at times symbolic of his insanity, depression, and
then the tinge of light that is the rare colour shots
amongst the desaturated ones is arguably
symbolic of the beauty in the world. This is a clear
It is important to note also that this music
video lacks continuity editing. This is
because such an editing technique would
suggest a sense of stability and order; this
video has none, the somewhat random
presence of the cat, candle, washing
machine are all intermixed in such a manorthat reaffirms the character insanity.
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The initial and most important thing that I would like to discuss regarding the
mise-en-scene of this music video is that it is very dark.
The colours; firstly in their desaturation, and then coupled with the abstract
nature of some of the shots and the content of them (a solitary cat, a boy
staring at himself in the mirror) all convey this somewhat eerie atmosphere.Arguably, this represents the genre in a mysterious and quite scary manor to
say the least. The target audience however would appreciate such a dark
music video as they are aware of how unique of a genre drum & bass is,
tackling the topics and themes that other genres would dare to reach.
There is no element of love however in this music video that Is represented in
the other music video studied on this PowerPoint. There is no unity ortogetherness, key themes of the genre, only one boys solitary journey ( until
the end where he meets the girl and then arguably there is a sense of love).
The themes covered in this music video are that of obsession and isolation,
and this is shown through his obsessive filming of the cat and his solitary state
through most of the video.
He seems to not care about his appearance; his clothing is highly conventional to the genre, again,
baggy clothing, non branded clothing that appears dirty and over worn through the music video.
There are various conventions that relate to his teenager identity. His converse, the bands worn on
his wrist, even the act of him eating cereal and doodling upon his pad with a pen. Clearly, this music
video explores the world of a teenager, and also, an outsider. It will suffice to say that the strugglers
of the social economic backgrounds would relate to this character, and with that, the music video
could appeal to them greatly.
Mis-en-scene
Dark, almost demonic
representation of genre Drum
& Bass with the use of red and
black.
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Furthermore, the use of long shots in this music video add
to its comical element. Using a long shot and extreme long
shot to show the, it will suffice to say, overweight man
dancing topless in the street places various normal objects
that we see everyday in the frame: For example cars,
lampposts, shops. This makes his down right bizzar antics
far more humorous as the normality of the surroundings is
juxtaposed with his peculiar behavior. These shots,coupled with the actions of the protagonist, present the
drum & bass genre to be an entertaining, amusing and
unique genre that can intermix comedy (shown here) with
serious and poignant societal issues (exemplified in the
other music videos studied).
2000s
Music Video Name: Pendulum - Slam Release date: September 2005
Camera angles, shots and movements:
Compared to the other music videos studied, Slam consists of a great deal of panning shots
and dolly shots. Exemplar of this is this Mid shot framed, tracking shot of the protagonist,
tracking backwards as he walks forwards. This shot almost isolates the character; a man
suited and well dressed walking aimlessly through a market of casually dressed individuals. It
seeks to make him look out of place, and the outsiders of social economic groups in the
audience could relate to this character through the camera work alone.
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Editing:
How the genre has changed since the early 90s is exemplified through the editing of this music video. Firstly, this music
video cuts its shots on the beat of the song far more than the earlier videos. This is exemplified to the greatest extent
before the drop of the song, where Jump cutting is used to fragment the shots on the beat ( the speed of shots increase
as the beat speed increases). The use of jump cutting firstly allows the editor to edit such shots easily with the beat, as
continuity editing at times would require perfect timing of shots. Jump cutting does not. Moreover, jump cutting is a
representation of the building reckesslens and instability of this character as he begins to undress in public. As soon asthe song drops rhythmical editing is used to join a selection of shots to the timing of the music.
The genre is represented, through the editing as being slightly reckless but more importantly a free spirited genre that is
not restrained by anything. Jump cutting represents how they are cutting through the constraints placed by society: to
act responsibly and quietly in public. Drum & bass says NO to this.
What seems to be highly conventional to the
genre is this notion of fluctuating the speed of
shots. Videos in the 2000s adhere to thisconvention, and almost exceed it, with the Time
lapse style of editing used in this music video.
The protagonist stays still in the shot while the
pedestrians around him move at an extremely
fast pace. What this represents, arguably, is that
his life is flashing before his eyes and that he
must remove himself of all societal constraints
(symbolized by the shirt, tie, suit that he wears at
the beginning) and just do what he pleases to do.
The use of time-lapse is a clear example of a key change
occurred. As editing technology has improved it is now pocreate such an effect. We did not experience such editing
the 90s videos studied.
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Mise-en-scene:
1. The mise-en-scene of the early part of the music video exudes binaryoppositions. There is the protagonist who is formal and well presented withhis clothing. This is contrasted entirely with the civilians who are dressed inan informal, relaxed manor. The use of these binary oppositions is to
perhaps really highlight how the formality in our lives (going to work, 9-5 etc)really does make us boring and monotonous.
2. Similar to many drum & bass music videos the setting is out and about onthe streets/town. This connects the genre to every day living. We can seeshops, restaurants, clothing stores and fast food joints in the background. Itis highly conventional to locate a drum & bass music video in such alocation as themes of humanity and people are always presented in D&Bmusic videos, and what location better expresses the versatility of humanitythan a town or a city?
Finally, as it is filmed during the daylight the atmosphere created through the lighting is one that makes the
audience feel cheerful. The sun is seen is several shots, there is no presence of cloudy sky's, rains etc. This
use of sunlight could arguably be a use of pathetic fallacy; the protagonist is so happy, dancing in the street
topless, free of his uniform and work commitments and the weather is a representation of this. Broadly defined,
this drum & bass music video conveys themes of happiness and love. There is no indication towards any form
of drugs (which some would consider to be a rarity in a D&B music video), and therefore it is a video suitable
for all ages, to a target audience that is far broader than other D&B music videos, ones that are specifically notsuitable for children due to the depiction of drugs and adult themes. The fact that it is such a humorous video
also adds to the family orientated notion of this video.
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Music Video Name: Rudimental- Feel The Love Release date: May 2012
Camera angles, shots and movement:
With this music video being produced in 2012, we can see the clarity in the cameras used instantaneously. The footage is crisp and
lacks in the, at times, grainy aspects of a low resolution camera that we experienced in the early music videos of the 90s.
I believe that out of all the music videos studied in this key changes element of my coursework, that this music video consisted of
the most variety of shots; perhaps this is a more contemporary convention, and that as the music genre has become more popular
since the 90s, less amateur producers are direction the music video, the budgets are higher and more experienced and talented
directors are involved.
There are indeed also a great deal ofclose ups; of both the horses faces and of the
children and town residents. At times we cut directly from a close up of the animal to aclose up of the Childs face, thus, symbolically presenting them as being alike in their
purity. This music video strays away from the themes of violence and destruction so
prominent in many drum & bass videos and seeks to only highlight the unabridged
beauty within nature.
Some of the close ups, especially of the people in the video, are of a low angle. Some
would argue that this shows their superiority to the animals, how they are in power. But
I would dispute this fact; the music video shows an equality between the animals and
the people throughout, and therefore the low angle is almost a representation of how in
power the animals make their humans feel, as in they give them the strength and
The Tracking shot is key and used a great deal in this music video. It is a shot that
captures the graceful movement of the horse and great speed. The camera is most
probably mounted to a sturdy dolly and the camera man follows the horse. Thegenre, due to such elegant shot is presented in a graceful and almost peaceful
manor. Although the music sounds are so hard hitting and loud the juxtaposition of
the swift beauty exhibited by these beautiful creatures in their movement creates a
sense of complete tranquility.
Mi
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Mis-en-scene
Noting first upon the setting of the music video, we are graced with the open out doors. Thenarrative seems to unfold in the streets and fields of a town location which is un known.
It is cold weather so in terms of clothing everybody is wearing large jackets (puffers) glovesand hats. The Mise-en-scene makes a clear class divide through the clothing of the charactersin the music video. One man riding upon the horse is wearing gold chains (a reflection upon
his wealth), where others are huddled around a fire bin for warmth in the street wearing dirtypuffer jackets. However, although there is a clear representation of different classes the unityis in that everybody is happy. This overwhelming illation through the music video representsthe genre to be one that judges no body and promotes only happiness.
This screenshot exemplifies the beautiful cinematic element to this
music video that adheres towards its mise-en-scene. In the shot
we see the man riding his horse in what appears to be isolation.
He is alone with his animal, nobody is around, and yet this
isolation is not one where being in a solitary situation conveysdistress or of one character being an outsider, due to the beauty
of the shot his isolation is just seen as alluring. It is defining him as
a character and through the narrative as being in need of nobody.
Beautiful shots such as this filmed with such clear depth of field
and eloquence are a key change in the genre; this would not have
been seen, to such an extent, in the early Drum & bass music
videos.This is a screen shot of one of the protagonists, the young boys, home and the
images on his wall. This whole scene that lasts approximately 15 seconds has an
entirely different colour to it. I believe this to be the use of soft lighting when
filming, but then perhaps a brown filter is used over the main light. There is this
brown wash to the scene that the others do not exhibit (they show a grey, white
colour to their scenes due to the snow and natural lighting outside). The purpose
of this brown wash is to, arguably, convey the notion of safety amongst our
homes. That warm feeling we get when arriving home and being safe is
represented here, and the images of what appears to be the boys ancestors with
horses is a narrative technique that informs the audience of the boys past quickly
and efficiently. The audience would appeal to this as they can gage howimportant horses have been to this protagonists bloodline; they are portrayed with
such pride. This juxtaposition of lighting is also something highly conventional to
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Editing
Compared to the their music videos, there is a lack of
jump cutting (which I would argue to be the most
convectional editing technique to the genre next to speed
fluctuation). Jump cutting connoted to instability and
recklessness of characters usual in the genre. These
characters exhibit no recklessness, no violence or
aggression, only the conventional themes of love and
unity. Jump cutting, then, would not be a fitting techniqueto reflect such themes. The cuts would be too hard, here
they are fluid and eloquent due to the use of rhythmical
editing. They do increase at times as the beat does but it
is always through smooth and graceful cuts that exhibit
no disjointment. Part of this is again due to the slow
motion. What this does is represent a genre that is clam
and graceful, that is exemplifying the theme of love to the
audience throughout.
This slow-motion shot really
does exemplify the similarities
between humans and horses.As the protagonist and best
friend sit in the dinner, facedopposite each other talking
their horses out side the caf
are in the frame almost doing
the exact same thing through
the windows. Who is
mimicking who? Who owns
who? This is a very clever
shot that would appeal to the
audience through itsintelligence. The theme of
friendship is portrayed, which
Cut then to a shot of the horses
outside, and we can assume that likethe two friends inside, they are
conversing.
70% I would say of this music video has actually been edited
to be in slow motion. This is a very conventional editing
technique to the drum & bass genre, and in this music video I
believe the slow motion is used in excess to capture ever
movement of the characters and the horses in detail. We know
that animals twitch their ears and move their lips so quickly
that we do not even pick up on it at times; slow motion
however does, the audience would identify with the animals
movements and with the characters similar movements (for
example eye lashes flashing, movement of the boys eye brows
and lips), and again there is an equality established between
animals and people. Without this slow motion, this message
that Feel the Love conveys would not have been clear, it is
therefore a necessity to the music video.