Evaluation Question One

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Text:

In order to for a music video to achieve success it must follow the conventions or defy them in a way that they do not even resemble the features. For me, there were conflictions of different directions that the music video could have gone down. Ultimately, I tried to combine all these features to create my music video.

The song that I have chosen to do is by Florence and The Machine is called “What the Water Gave Me”. The theme of my music video is in a very natural place. The reason why I did this is because of the biblical undertones that the song has – this is one element of Goodwin’s music video theory; the relationship between lyrics and visuals. He said that in order for the music video to be a success, it has to visually depict the lyrics of the song. An example of where I tried to make a visual connection between the lyrics and the visuals would be the forest setting that I chose. It could be said that the religious belief is that nature is god’s stage. This is highlighted by the third shot of my music video, the strut of Monique walking through the forest. This idea of nature’s stage is again amplified by the second last shot of a mid-shot of Monique’s legs walking towards the camera.  As an artist, Florence Welch is very well known for incorporating nature into her artwork and her music videos. This is where I took inspiration from. I think this is was effective in terms of the music video because this video uses the codes and conventions of the alternative genre. One of the codes and conventions of the alternative genre is that the video is meant to make its audience think – for example Florence and The Machine’s video that I took inspiration from. This ties in with the uses and gratifications theory. People need to identify with a music video and more importantly the protagonist of the video – this is one element of the Uses and Gratifications Theory. They need to identify with the protagonist – they need to know that she is “the common girl”. That she has the same hopes and aspirations that they have. This is where I got the inspiration for Monique’s makeup. We chose to have simple makeup – blusher, foundation and a slight bit of mascara to highlight Monique’s natural features .In the close up shot that we first see, I aimed for simple makeup, so that the look was attainable by young teenage girls watching the music video.

When I was making my product, I was very conscious of whether I was conforming or challenging conventions of the indie / alternative genre. The conventions of the indie/ alternative is that typically the subject of the video would be a white protagonist. One of the feedback that I got after my initial PowerPoint is that I was adamant on using a white young female to capture the message of my music video. Although race is not a key player in music videos of this genre, I was sure that I needed someone to show that they conform to the expectations of the genre. What I had not considered is using a black young female to capture the song. Florence Welch is known for having a strong vocal ability. A strong vocal ability that is often associated with black females in particular. This strong voice is often heard in gospel music or popular R&B music today. Therefore it was suggested that when casting the protagonist that I narrow my choices. I still followed my decision to cast a white female to play the protagonist for my music video.

Another debate which was prevalent in the making of my products was the concept of voyeurism. The act of sexually revealing a woman’s body in the interest of a media product. There are two conflicting ways in which females are portrayed in the indie/ alternative genre. One way in which females are represented in this genre is the provocative, subject that highlights the masculinity of the leader of the band. The other representation of women in this genre is that they are quite earthy individuals, usually seen with flowers in their hair and free fitting clothing. This is the representation that I have chosen for Monique. I think that this representation also matched the way in which Florence Welch video. Often described as bohemian, Florence Welch is known for in cooperating this into her fashion as well as her performance. This once again highlighted the biblical undertones of the song.

I also think that the way that I constructed my music video follows the conventions of the indie/ alternative. Most videos will have a significantly large number of close ups in proportion to the rest of the shots. This makes the video feel more personal as the song is usually accompanied by softer and slower melodies. I thought that following this convention was imperative to the success of the music video. This is shown as the first shot of my music video was a close up of Monique looking plainly at the camera. I also think that the use of black and white shots follows the conventions of the indie / alternative genre. Mainly because this genre is based on emphasising the differences between popular music and this genre. I think the fact that there are aren’t true whites and blacks gives it more of indie feel.

 Overall, I feel that because success is not measured in monetary success but rather artistic vision and direction, I feel that it was imperative to stick the codes and conventions of the genre so that the video was not too challenging to its audience.