Prelim Task Mood Montage

For this task, we has to get into groups and create a storyboard of all the shots we plan to include in our montage. This helped us to get a better idea of what we wanted to include, and how it would pan out during filming. Our montage should include a wide variety of shots, angles and movements. Our creative intention was to ‘Communicate an idea in film’, and our prompt was ‘No man is an island’ and the word ‘determination’.  We then has to come up with some ideas for our montage and turn this into a storyboard mapping out each individual shot we would film. With a minimum of 40 seconds, we has to ensure we had enough shots to fill up this space whilst making sure it is interesting and varied. This sequence should not aim to tell a story, but instead should present a specific tone or atmosphere through the use of angles, movement and vague narrative.

Our storyboard:

My Montage:

Strengths:

  • I think that we were successful in creating good continuity.
  • I think we edited the montage well.
  • I like the short and simple narrative used to communicate our prompt.

Weaknesses:

  • There were certain parts of the edit that were slightly jumpy.
  • The pan was a little shaky.
  • Certain shots could’ve been a little bit shorter.

Overall, I am happy with our montage and think that is has given me good preparation and insight into what doing my music video will be like. I now understand that a simple narrative is effective and can communicate a meaning on its own, without having to include a detailed plot as this can be confusing and uninteresting.

Detailed Music Video Analysis

This is a close analysis of Katy Perry’s ‘Chained to the Rhythm’. We looked at one music video and complete a detailed analysis, looking at the narrative, performance, star image and generic & technical conventions of the music video. This was really beneficial for me as it has widened my understanding of what goes into a music video, and what I need to do for my own when it comes to producing it. It was important to pay close attention to the mise-en-scene and repertoire of elements used to help present a certain genre (Pop), tone, or message for the audience. I also had to decide whether this music video was amplified, disjunctive or illustrative. I came to the decision that it is mainly amplification with some illustrative moments.

This is the music video that I chose for my close analysis:
                                   
My analysis:

(Please click on the image below to see PDF)

 

Music Video Form and Conventions

In this task, we looked at a variety of music videos from different genres, one related to amplification, one was illustrative, and the other was disjunctive. Understanding the differences between these is very important as it helps me when it comes to producing my own music video.  Also, when it comes to developing ideas for my music videos plot, I can knowingly use, challenge or subvert conventional features. These also had different ratios of narrative to performance, this allows me to develop a deeper understanding of how music videos can be made, and what is more/less effective regarding its genre. I will continue to research different types of music videos to see what interests me, and also what is most practical when it comes to filming my own.

Please click on the image below to see PDF: