1b – Media Language

I am going to discuss media language in relation to my advanced portfolio which was a music video to the Little Comet’s song ‘One Night In October’.

The type of narrative that the video falls into is performance when being applied to Andrew Goodwin’s theory. The video includes a closed, linear narrative as it is based solely on band performance. Within the video there are a range of camera shots such as close ups, long shots, mid shots and extreme close ups, the use of lip syncing, mimed playing of instruments and repetition of shots to keep the target audience captivated. During the editing process of the video, I ensured that there was a mix of long and short clips as well as a range of camera angles such as high angle, low angle, eye level and point of view shots so that the audience do not lose interest and the key focus is on the band throughout. During filming we also made sure that the camera was not always still so used panning, tracking and also tilting. It was crucial to have this range of camera shots and angles to ensure it looks like other indie music videos as we took this common convention from videos we found inspiring. We did this by cropping each individual clip on the timeline to the correct time on our storyboard and also putting them in the correct order and making sure there were not two of the same clip or any similar ones.

Representation of our band members was also important because we wanted them to look like any other indie band so that our video looked as realistic as possible. We found that in most indie music videos, the videos are based solely on simple band performances and there is no clear story to follow. This brings more attention to the band which enhances their personalities so we just let our band member’s act and have fun which did this quite successfully. They made direct address to the camera, made eye contact and also interacted with each other which highlighted their playful acting, personalities and laid back attitudes. Because the song is very upbeat, we wanted to create a positive but simple atmosphere that keeps the focus on the band. This is where our choice of mise en scene was crucial. We chose a very simple set design which was the same throughout the whole video and only had the instruments for props. We shot the video in our school’s drama studio which was perfect because of the plain background and professional lighting equipment. The lighting that we used was artificial and diegetic. We used the spotlights that pointed towards each of the band members making it clear that the focus is just on them. The space was very confined but this is what we were hoping to achieve as we didn’t want the audience to be distracted by any other surroundings. If the location where the video was shot was too big, the video would not be as successful. Costume choice also had to be suitable for the band to look like a realistic indie band. We dressed the boys in ray bans, ankle socks, chinos, shorts, t-shirts, vans and other indie accessories for them to appeal to the target audience and have a recognisable style. Acting was also important because we found that from our draft video, the band members did not look enthusiastic enough and the audience lost interest because they didn’t look like they were having fun which didn’t match the tempo of the song. During the filming of the final video, we both made sure that the band members looked like they were having fun and fooling around. This looked much more effective and looked more like an actual band. The acting really brought out their personalities and enhanced the fun aspect of the song. By addressing the lyrics of the song directly to the camera, it involves the audience more so that they can relate to it. We also used framing and blocking by editing each of the band members into the video when introducing them at the start of the video. We faded the shot in with the kit in and then edited each band member in when the song started.

When editing the video we used cutaways, we synced the music onto the timeline, used cross cuts, parallel editing, transitions, cropped clips accurately to the correct time on the storyboard, put each individual clip in the correct order, adjusted the brightness and contrast of each clip and ensured that there was a mix of long and short clips. We found that the tempo of the music drove our editing as we made changes that we didn’t necessarily plan on making at the start of the process. The genre is reflected in the mise en scene, themes included, performance and editing. The camera work also impacts meaning. For example the movement, angle and shot distance all enhance the representation of the band. We also repeated some shots that we thought were successful but may not have been that recognisable to the audience after seeing it only once. This was effective because it created an interesting contrast and mixed the type of camera angles we used up. We adjusted the brightness and contrast of each clip to increase the quality and make it look more realistic. The framework of the video is attached to the song and ends within the structure so the video is therefore self contained. We used low key lighting, fading at the start and end of the video and our set dressing involved just the band and their instruments. For the framing we created a contrast by moving the band members around physically but also through editing. The positive feedback that we received for the video as a whole showed us that we got the reaction that we were hoping for and the target audience were happy with the final product because of the conventions that we used and the similarity to other indie video that they enjoy and can compare it to.