My media analysis:
By Calum McDermott.
In the second year of my A Level Media Studies there is great focus on the forms and conventions of what I create. This includes my media product in the form of the music video my group member, Amber Needham, and I created for Years & Years song “Desire.” Although, we created a new musical duo, “Cupid & Medusa,” who we would be if we were real artists and releasing this song. Therefore, I thought I’d write into the school magazine to inform other students of how to analyse forms and conventions in relation to other media products and theories too.
The inclusion of binary opposites:
For example, Levis Strauss’s binary oppositions theory can be applied to it. This is because the audience may view our female character as being heroic for being independent and breaking up with a guy for treating her badly. This also means the male character may also be labelled as a stereotypical villain. Again this challenges the forms and conventions of real music videos, (as the theorist Laura Mulvey states) we are shown to be living in a patriarchal (male controlled) society. Like Justin’s video, which is noticeably colourful, we also followed the convention in relation to colour since we were inspired to create vibrant senses. These scenes are also references to Calvin Harris & Disciples’ “How Deep Is Your Love” video which helped us to develop this convention as it allowed us to emphasise the chaotic connotations of love and pain.
The storyline:
Our media product also follows similar genre conventions in the form of narrative and interpretive storylines associated with these videos. However, the video follows a non-linear, multi-stranded narrative which involves a teenage girl going throw a break up. Instead of editing our music video in a chronological order like most of the other videos I studied (which would make them liner and are mentioned throughout this analysis), we made use of cut-a-ways to create an original style of music video which challenges forms and conventions since it includes flashbacks. We used these to develop our female character’s storyline and create a sense of catharsis for the viewers since it emphasises stereotypical feelings of heartbreak associated with the loss of love.
(genres). Although, since my group developed her storyline and challenged stereotypical forms and conventions since there is an absence of explanations it makes it relatable to the audience and their relationships. Therefore, it could also be argued our female character is a counter-stereotype within an original storyline which I think helps to make our media product unique, interesting and would aid it in becoming popular if it was also a real media product.
Student exclusive!
Like Gaga’s video, we also used a form of storyline revolving around a girl suffering from a “bad romance.” However, like the “Bad Romance” video it can be open to interpretation, but in a different way. This is due to our media product not completely explaining why the female and male characters were going through a rough time in their relationship. By focusing on and including a single character like these other real dance/pop music videos it presents her as being a stereotypical character associated with videos of the same (genres).
Although, since my group developed her storyline and challenged stereotypical forms and conventions since there is an absence of explanations it makes it relatable to the audience and their relationships. Therefore, it could also be argued our female character is a counter-stereotype within an original storyline which I think helps to make our media product unique, interesting and would aid it in becoming popular if it was also a real media product.
Goodwin’s conventions continued…
Another of Goodwin’s conventions is that there will be a relationship between the visuals of the music video which either illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics of the song. My media product uses these forms and conventions. For example, scenes include the use of wide-shots and close-ups of the male character to show him giving a rose to his girlfriend which illustrates that there is a “desire” between them since this prop stereotypically connotes love as the song lyrics also suggest. It is amplified by scenes such as where they hold hands which develops the audience’s view that they once were in love.
However, my group have contradicted the lyrics which relate to romance by creating a video that focuses on the loss of desire and the breakdown of a relationship. This is insinuated from scenes where the female character text’s her (ex) boyfriend that that was his “last chance.” As a result, my group has challenged Goodwin’s conventions of other real media products, for example, by focusing on a storyline which revolves around the loss of desire and follows the lives of people in a relationship, with focus on the female character. This is different to real media products such as the official music video for the song by trio Years & Years which emphasises their male frontman Olly Alexander.