Thursday 10 December 2009

CW - Evaluation: Forms and Conventions

Using Goodwin's critical framework, our video conforms to the stereotypical music video, via amplification of sound and lyrics through a visual medium such as:

• Lyrics amplified by lip syncing in some sections.



• Sound amplified by cutting rate.
• Sound amplified by performance sections.
• Lyrics amplified through mise-en-scene connotations, e.g. ‘with all their pearly snapping’ is amplified by the housewife talking, CU into the camera, teeth ‘pearly’ teeth ‘snapping’.
• Voyeuristic notion of looking as boy looks into mirror.



• First person mode of address when mother speaks to boy/audience.
• Narrative based.
• Strong relationship between music and visuals.

Traditional gender roles are shown, and critiqued in our music video by displaying stereotypical gender values ironically by:

• Heteronormative discourse, as shown by housewife, and mother with males.
• This shows traditional gender traits, e.g. apron.



• No artificial look on band members, inspires a naturalistic look about the band.



• Artificial look on housewife, e.g. lipstick amplifies the ‘veneer’ of a traditional happy life.
• Function ranking of parents over boy by low angle, and hands on shoulders.

Prefered reading of our text is shown through visual signifiers chosen in our video. Some of these used were:

• Band costumes connote a natural and financially less dependant lifestyle.
• Jumpsuit and ball and chain connote that the unnamed man is a prisoner to his job and in his own life.



• Jumpsuit and suit shown to be same thing when suit is put on over jumpsuit.
• Lighting in band shots connote a happier, less depressing feeling in contrast to the darker shots in the narrative.
• Time lapse from day to night lighting connotes than man has been standing there for a long time (days).
• Woods and treehouse in band shots connote a natural, anti-establishment ideal.
• Shot from fish tank conveys how the unnamed man is trapped within his job and life also, just as fish are in the tank.



• This shot also depicts how he is a ‘mindless drone’, as fish in the tank are seen this way.
• Typing also connotes his job as ‘mindless’.
• Church symbolises a possible spiritual option of a way of life. Religion depicted as mad, and nonsensical through frantic preaching and blurring of the vicar.
• Briefcase and glasses help to connote that the ‘unnamed man’ is a business man, and creates a more formal atmosphere around the character.
• Non-verbal language of ‘unnamed man’ in housewife scene connotes his regret.



• Actions of boy when reading the bible show that he is unsure of religion. This is exaggerated by the preacher moving frantically and blurring.
• Limited facial expressions of characters depict how the traditional ‘happy life’ is just a veneer.
• ‘Unnamed man’ and boy shown to be same person through use of them both wearing the same suit.
• Jumping, smiling housewife and parents connote pleasure in the boy/unnamed man’s chosen lifestyle.



• Grey suit connotes a dull and monotonous tone.

Camera techniques were used to connote different meanings and exaggerate different aspects of mise-en-scene. Some techniques used were:

• In the shot of the parents, we used a low angled shot to signify that they are more in power, and give an intimidating feel to the audience.
• In the jumpsuit scenes of the ‘unnamed man’ we used a variety of high angled shots to convey a less powerful function in the narrative.
• ECU of the boy’s eyes connote thought, and gives the audience a more personal relationship with the boy.



• High angled shot of vicar connotes he has more functional power than the boy.
• Tracking into ‘unnamed man’ at start of video signifies the character as important to the narrative, giving a more personal view of the character, and establishes him as the main character. This is also done with the boy in the mirror.
• Low angle shot of band glorifies their anti-establishment ideology to the viewer.
• High angled tracking shot of boy in jumpsuit signifies how the capitalist lifestyle is glorified by the parents.



• Swish pan of locations establishes places important to the narrative.
• First person mode of address is used to create discomfort in the viewer, to help illustrate the lyrics as an important line to the narrative.

Editing techniques amplify camera techniques and musical sound in the track. Some editing techniques we used to create a visual link were:

• Transition of jumpsuit to suit on the ‘unnamed man’ signifies that he sees them, and hence, the audience sees them as the same thing.





• Montage editing of the band in performance pieces show the band as genuine, which adds to connoting a naturalistic image. It also amplifies the fast paced tone of the music.
• Cutting on the beat also amplifies the sound visually.
• Lip-synching 'too many summers you've enjoyed' illustatrates the lyrics literally, in a visual format.
• Expansion of time shots create a more personal feeling with the character, and signify that what is happening in the shot is significant, grabbing the attention of the audience.
• Compression of time shots create frantic and chaotic connotations, and signifies confusion, which draws the audience in further.
• LS of boy putting on suit establishes location, and exaggerates him being alone, which is then further exaggerated by him being in centre frame. This also signifies that he is alone in his mindset also, when putting the suit on over the jumpsuit.



• The way the suit comes on backwards shot reverse shot connotes that the suit is attracted to him, which further establishes the idea that becoming part of the capitalist lifestyle is inevitable.
• CU of boy in suit to MCU of 'unanmed man' in suit signify that they are the same person in an asynchronous narrative.
• Continuity editing is obeyed in shots to avoid causing discomfort in viewers.
• Some continuity editing is broken in the performance shots to add to the jarring effect of the montage editing.





• Meat shots are used for the band members to create para-social intimacy with the audience and band.

Overall our music video was distinctly postmodern with reference to other texts and challenging dominant ideologies. These were:

• Intertextuality with 'Metropolis' and kitchen and housewife scenes with old fashioned sit-coms, e.g. 'Leave it to Beaver'.



• Ironic that boy spends his life trying to avoid capitalist lifestyle, even though it is inevitible that he then becomes part of it.
• Challenges conventions by renouncing dominant capitalist ideal in society.
• Conforms to genre conventions by promoting an anti-establishment ideology.
• Conforms to genre conventions by depicting monetary success as unimportant.
• Challenging ideological discourse on religion being important, by showing boy rejecting the church.



• Challenges stereotypical views on parents and family by depicting the parents as 'clones' of the 'son' and housewife.





• Playful with 'family portrait' shot.



• Narrative fuzz inbetween band performance shots.
• Reimagining in the way of seeing of society roles, the traditional family and religion.
• Experimental in the way of challenging dominant ideals.
• Meta-cinema as video contains a strong narrative.

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