Below are the two ideas we came up:
Idea 1: Natalia
Song: Imagine Dragons ‘Warriors’
Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Pop Rock
Narrative Structure: Narrative and Concept
Narrative:
Non- Linear Narrative. The video opens with establishing shots of an old
factory in dust and clearly demolished/ ruined. There are close ups of blood
and bodies who look defeated. The scene flashes back to the begging and shows
two opposing gangs approaching the factory. Both look aggressive and
intimidating, clearly ready to fight. The video resolves around the fight and
towards the end both groups fall and no one wins (scene goes back to the
beginning), which shows the audience that violence is never the answer.
Concept: The
video will try to show the audience that violence is not a way to resolve
conflict. The factory is a personification of balance which falls after the
gangs clash and start the fight. Throughout the narrative there would be shots
from world war or current affairs to show the everyday issues of today’s
society and apply the idea to real life.
Characters:
Two groups
of ethnic young males who compete with each other. Stereotypically ethnic males
are associated with gang culture and fighting, therefore audiences can draw
deeper meanings from the video and characters. Gang members are also characters
who today’s youth will be able to associate with which will broaden my target
audience.
Mise En Scene:
- Setting: An abandoned factory. This is conventional of an indie band as they tend to use obscure and isolated locations.
- Lighting and Colour: Predominantly natural and low key lightning to show the dark nature of the video and message behind it. Also the track is quite dark which will complement the lighting.
- Body Language & Facial Expressions: The gang members would have aggressive and open body language and facials to show their anger and rage towards the opposing gang. It also marks their territory and intimidates the viewer.
- Iconography: The key objects will be weapons which will aid the gang members during the fight.
- Costume: The gang members would be wearing white vest and casual trousers which complements the indie genre as generally such videos are casual and don’t glorify characters or artists.
Application of Theory:
- Hegemony: The gang culture became widely prominent amongst youth and the ‘masses’. Many young people lack job and education opportunities and turn to gang culture.
- Barthes: Cultural understanding. The Western society and suburban areas are known for gang culture and high crime rates.
- Todorov: This idea subverts Todorov’s theory as the narrative structure is subverted and nonlinear which develops the idea further.
- Aristotle: Themes of violence and rivalry are common within youth and can excite them or worry them depending on their own experiences.
Advantages:
- It’s a unique idea with an original narrative
- It has a strong and meaningful message behind the video
- There are links to historical and current affairs which can broaden the appeal
- The characters will appeal to the mainstream audience despite the niche soundtrack
Disadvantages:
- It will be difficult to shoot in an abandoned factory as these places may be unsafe
- It will be hard to shoot a falling factory as it’s not safe too and hard to capture
- It may be hard to gather a lot of people and film them at once
- The fighting can be a hazard to the actors’ health
- There is no performance from the artist and even though it is common for indie bands to just portray narratives, my audience could feel detached from the performer.
Idea 2: Bibi
Song: This is Gospel – Panic! At the Disco (Piano Version)
Genre: Pop/ Indie
Narrative structure:
Performance and narrative:
Performance: The artist will perform and appear in the music
video to ensure he makes himself familiar to the audience. He will sing and perform during the chorus
and build a connection with the viewer.
Narrative: The narrative will include the main artist
arguing with his female partner because she cheated on him. There will be shots
of them fighting and close ups of her crying while the man ruins their
apartment and possessions to symbolise and end to their relationship.
Characters:
- Male (artist) – The artist will dominate the music video as he will perform throughout the video. He will be young in order to let youth connect with him and his experiences.
- Female (girlfriend) - she will be trying to persuade her male partner that she is innocent. Despite her cheating the audience will feel pity and empathy for her and still feel connected to her as a character.
MES:
Lighting: - Low Key Lighting- In order to make it more
mysterious and dramatic but at the same time convey the dark mood and their
melancholy and break up.
Colours: Black & White throughout to show that their
relationship is no longer ‘happy’ and ‘colourful’ as it used to be.
Costume, hair & makeup: Both characters will wear usual
clothes such as shirt and trousers. The female character will wear a natural
makeup, whereas the male character will have a stylish hair. This will allow
the audience to connect to the characters as they will find them familiar and
regular.
Facial expression & body language:
- The male should have a regretful facial expression and body language suggesting that he doesn’t want to lose his girlfriend but at the same time is hurt to have her cheating on him.
- The female should will also have a regretful facial expression due to her unfaithful behaviour and show that she still lives the male and wants to fix her mistake.
- When both characters will begin to argue, their body language will be aggressive. Furthermore, when they finish to argue their body language will be more approachable and calm to show possible reunion and a hope to their relationship.
Setting:
A house - where the
argument between the male and female takes place. This is a regular and familiar setting which
will allow the audience to feel attached to the narrative.
Application of Theory:
- Popular Culture: The idea of heterosexual relationship comes under popular culture as ‘straight’ couples are very common among us and follow the common ideologies and Hegemonic values of marriage, family etc.
- Aristotle: The theme of love will evoke the audience to feel empathy as many of the viewers will be able to relate to the feeling and their ‘young love’ as evident in the video.
- Todorov: The common narrative structure of start, middle and end compliments Todorov’s theory of narrative structure and it is a clear structure for the viewers to understand.
- Goodwin: Close ups of the artist to glamourise him which is common in pop music videos. There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals as he sings about love and ‘letting go’. There will be a narrative and a performance.
Advantages:
- The characters will be easy to find.
- The narrative will appeal to a wider audience, as females may relate to this situation. Males will also find the narrative appealing due to the females that will perform in the video and their past relationship experiences.
Disadvantages:
- The narrative may be perceived as too mainstream, typical breakup situation and therefore may not attract audiences.
Here is a questionnaire I made after all the feedback I gained from my team mate. The numbers in brackets shows the result that the audience picked.
1. How old are you?
10 – 15 (4)
16 – 21 (6)
22 – 30 (10)
31 + (0)
2. Do you have an occupation?
Yes (15)
No (5)
3. Do
you enjoy listening Pop/Indie music?
Yes. (19)
No. (1)
4. What do you enjoy seeing in a Pop/Indie
music video?
Male Artist. (8)
Female Artist. (2)
Dancing. (4)
Glamorous location. (6)
5. What do you feel is the best clothing to
wear in these videos?
· Suits. (0)
· Casual Clothing. (6)
· Tracksuits/hoodies/bomber jackets. (14)
6. What themes do you expect to see in a
Pop/Indie music video?
Love. (4)
Happiness. (3)
Death. (2)
Drug/Alcohol. (4)
Miserable. (7)
7. Do you find it more enjoyable if there
is a storyline in the music video?
Yes. (11)
No. (9)
8. Do you watch /focus on the music video
or just listen to the soundtrack?
· Watch and
listen. (10)
· Not focused.
(7)
· Don’t watch
but listen. (3)
10. Do you think star image should be used in
these kinds of music videos?
Yes. (15)
No. (5)
11. Do you find it less enjoyable if censorship
is used in this specific genre?
Yes. (9)
No. (3)
Don’t mind. (8)
12. How old do you feel the characters in the
music video should be?
17 - 22 (14)
10 – 16 (6)
13. Should the scene give visual example to the
lyrics?
· Yes, every
scene. (7)
· Yes, but not
all scenes. (10)
· No I dislike
any lyrics linking to the visuals. (3)
14. How should the lighting in this video be?
High pitched lighting. (7)
Low-key lighting. (13)
15. Do you think the
artist should promote their personality through Pop/Indie music video?
Yes. (15)
No. (5)
16. Do you normally
prefer the main artist to be portrayed as a role model or someone that is
relatable to you?
Role model. (6)
Relatable. (6)
Both. (8)
17. Do you prefer to
see a band or a solo artist in a Pop/Indie music video?
Solo Artist. (18)
Band. (2)
Conclusion:
Overall, taking everything into consideration was useful as
it made the idea more realistic and allowed us to understand who’s idea was the
clearest and could be story boarded. We also shared, our personal opinions and
looking at the advantages and disadvantages of each idea. When creating my
final idea, I adapted my learning from previous lessons, including the theories
that we researched, such as Hebdige, Goodwin and Popular Culture, seeing if
their theories we useful to my idea, which was more effective as it made my
idea stronger, giving me a greater chance of pushing for the idea to be chosen
as the group's final idea. We have decided to go with my idea as it is the most
original and the genre of the song, which is Pop/Alternative is most likely to
appeal to the target audience, which is supported by the narrative as it
includes a young couple and the struggle they face within their relationship.
Therefore, after considering everything, we are most likely to go with my idea
as we also liked the song and figured that it would be easy to find a female
artist.
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