Pitch Logistics

Before we pitched our idea in front of the class, we finalised our logistics, so that any problems could be ironed out beforehand. These included figuring out locations, actors, props and costumes.

Olivia, James, Frank Notes

Initial Planning

When we first picked out Goin' Down as the song we wished to use, we started brainstorming ideas for the video on paper. First, we printed out the lyrics and made notes on the types of references we should consider, alongside a plan for set-ups.

To collect our ideas together, Frank wrote down his visualisation for each part of the song. I then made my notes alongside his, and then James read over it and discussed his thoughts verbally. This proved helpful, as by this point we were already working on the same idea, but from this point we were able to tie down our key set-ups and moments within the song.

sheets to be scanned in.

Male Representation

Masculine Identity

Using four different clips, I investigated the different portrayals of the masuline identity in music videos. In broad terms, the most obvious split is between the top images and the bottom images, as the bottom two images present men in the traditional dominant male role, whereas the top images show vulnerability.

In Misery by Maroon 5, the lead singer is shown to be the literal punchbag of his love interest. Throughout the video, she subjects him to physical torture, yet he still comes back for more, which is an amplification of the lyrics, which centre around a troubled relationship. The woman is clearly shown to be the figure with more power, which is somewhat unusual in music videos.
A significant lack of confidence and control is portrayed by the lead singer in Coldplay's Yellow music video, as he is presented as walking alone down a beach, getting gradually drenched by the sea spray. This is slightly unusual as male artists do not usually give a strong emotional performance in their videos.
Although The Lonely Island are a comedy band, their video for 'I'm on a Boat' features many of the conventions of male rap music. For example, there are lots of dramatic wideshots that make the singer look empowered, and the men featured are all wearing smart suits, connotating that they are wealthy.
In Starstrukk, 3OH!3 play on the idea of male artists being able to instantly attract women, as by the end it becomes an issue for the singers, as they are pushed into the pond. Like The Lonely Island, they wear black suits, which again suggests that they 'have it all'. This perhaps is in order to make the male audience idolise their lifestyles.

How do you consume music?

The main ways in which modern society consumes music:

Radio

Music Players:

iPods, mobile phones, mp3 players

Computer sites:

Spotify, we7, youtube, myspace, live radio streaming

Television:

music channels, On Demand music videos, TV appearances

Live Performances:

Festivals, concerts

How does our target audience affect this?

Our primary target audience of teenage girls aged 13-20 are usually in possession of a portable music player, such as an iPod, and are generally in reach of the internet. This means that a band attempting to crack the teenage market would need to have a strong online presence, both on music sites like myspace and social networking sites like twitter.  

It would certainly be helpful to consider the different media platforms that we could incorperate into the website; for example we could have:

Photo Galleries

Videos - The Music Video, behind the scenes of the shoots, and interviews

Twitter feed

Facebook feed

Music player

Interactive Games & Quizzes

Researching onedirectionmusic.com

Opportunities to spend money:

The Single

There is a page on the site dedicated solely to buying the debut single, which allows the audience to purchase it through various online shops, such as itunes, play.com and HMV. The single cover is given prominent position on the page, allowing the audience to recognise the brand image. 

The Tour

The site has a page dedicated to events, and on this there can be found a list of all the dates and venues of the upcoming One Direction tour. Alongside this are instructions of how to purchase tickets once they go on sale.

Merchandise

One Direction have an offshoot website linked to their main site, which sells merchandise associated to the band, along with other artists from their record label. Amongst the items available for sale are posters, mugs and clothing, all with images of the band, the band logo and sometimes signed autographs.

Track Shortlist

For our Music Video project, we looked at female fronted rock bands, as there currently is a gap in the UK market for music of this genre. Using older tracks such as 'Hit Me With Your Best Shot' by Pat Benetar for inspiration, we researched modern bands to find an appropriate song.





Our final shortlist included the songs listed below:

Goin' Down - The Pretty Reckless

My Medicine - The Pretty Reckless

Dull Life - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Crazy - Mimi Soya

There were many more tracks that we listened to, including msuic from bands such as Paramore, but we felt that the type of music we wanted was more angsty and angry than what was available in their catalogue. After pitching a rough idea for the music video to our teacher, we were given the go ahead to use our favourite track, Goin' Down by the Pretty Reckless.

Music Video Intertextuality

 Taylor Swift - Love Story

The music video for Love Story by Taylor Swift references the stereotypical princess-centric fairytale, with elements of Romeo and Juliet and costume dramas such as Pride and Prejudice.

Perhaps most prominent of the intertextual references are the allusions to disney princesses, through both narrative and mise-en-scene. In the video, Taylor plays the protagonist who is locked away in a castle, only for a young man to come and rescue her. Visually, the clothes match this set-up - she is dressed in a long ballgown and many of the shots are taken from a window in a castle, bearing much similarity to Rapunzel. As Taylor Swift's core fanbase are females between 8-18,  this reference is instantly recognisable , as most of these girls would have a sound knowledge of disney princess movies, and would be hitting the age of aspiring to have a perfect 'fairy tale' relationship.

The lyrics pay homage to Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet', so it is unsuprising that the video includes some intertextual references to the play. The balcony scene is the most obvious homage, as Taylor is presented on an elevated level whilst her suitor is on the floor below. In terms of costume, the themes of 'Romeo and Juliet' are more noticeable in the male characters attire. Like Romeo, he is shown in some smart traditional mens clothes, but in the balcony scene he is dressed far more simply, indicating that he may be of a lower class in comparison to her.  



The dance sequence in 'Love Story' is highly similar to those in both the BBC serial and the Joe Wright film adaption of 'Pride and Prejudice'. Like Romeo and Juliet and disney movies, Pride and Prejudice is commonly regarded, especially by women, to be one of the greatest love stories of all time, so by including a reference it gives the video a stronger feel of the epic romance it is aiming for.