Task 2= Analysis of music videos

Damien Rice - The Blowers daughter

Performance style = acoustic
Narrative = The music video follows a linear storyline and is about a man who cannot simply stop loving this one person and because of this his mind is possessed by her and so he cannot find anybody new.

Casting and characters = Jude law and Julia Roberts in footage from a film and Damien Rice and a female actress. 
Mise en scene = The music video is filmed upon a isolated sea front. This may be in order to signify the isolation this man feels because he is trapped by his love and therefore he cannot escape the place where she is, in this case on the sea front. The costumes consist of dour clothes and rain macs this implies that because the weather is stormy and is rough as it is raining there relationship has also been through rough times to. The use of heavy waves in the  camera shots and a cloudy sky is symbolic of this mans mood because as the lyrics state he cannot take his eyes of her or move on and therefore his vision is clouded like the sky is obstructed by the clouds.
Editing and images /sound and camera work.
Throughout the music video the footage skips from film footage of a film containing both Julia Roberts and Jude law who in the clip are evidently in love. This therefore signifies straightaway that the music video has gone down the path of a love theme due to what the lyrics entail. This footage then fades to the footage of Damien Rice singing to a girl. This follows the music video convention a performance as he as a artist is performing a song. However he has combined two different types of music video as the footage also plays out a storyline of him being obsessed with this particular girl . The cuts from the footage of the film to the music video is very slow in keeping with the slow pace of the song. The majority of the shots of Damien singing are close ups of his face. This has been done it seems in order to convey the emotion embedded in the song and the pain this man feels. There is also various over the shoulder shots and two shots in order to show the proximity between the man and the women This is because throughout the music video he becomes closer and closer to her but never actually reaches her . Therefore these two shots may have been used in order to help the storyline along and show that no matter how close he gets to her he never actually reaches her. This being symbolic of this women he loves being unreachable to him not matter how much he loves her. The music video also contains some highly effective establishing shots of the sea front where the music video is shot. This seems to have been done in order to show the actual isolation of the stormy place and therefore how alone Damien really is and how lost in love he is.
Animation /technology= 
Damien Rice has gone down the path of using no actual animations in his music video it seems on first glance however the sky may have been re enhanced through computer technology in order to clearly achieve a feeling of gloom and misery to the music video.







Beyonce - Best thing i never had

Performance style = solo performance
Casting and characters = Beyonce , wedding guests , husband and ex boyfriend

Narrative = The narrative is non linear. This is because Beyonce in her music video is telling a story therefore the video contains various flashbacks in Beyonces characters past e.g at prom . The narrative relates to the lyrics about how Beyonces character was to be married to a man but they broke up and how she is looking over there past together because now she is marrying another man and her ex boyfriend is as the lyrics say the " Best thing she never had".
Mise en scene = In the opening of the music video Beyonce is seen getting ready. The clothes she is wearing are of the colour white suggesting the event she is preparing for is a wedding as traditionally white is the colour the Bride wears. As she is shown putting on her wedding dress and a tiara it becomes evident that she is the bride to be as such items of clothing could be meant for no other occasion but a wedding. Some of the footage in the music video is filmed outside as the sun is setting , this is symbolic of the fact that the sun is setting on her past relationship as she now enters marriage with another man.

The other settings in the music video such as a party room and in a dressing room are very bright and colourful. This is symbolic of the happiness that is stereotypically associated with a wedding day because like the room being bright all the guests and the husband and wife are meant to be feeling happy to. The outside shots of Beyonce in a large open space may have been used in order to show the freedom that Beyonce now has because she has escaped the relationship she was once in. 
Editing in images and sound/camera work

The music video consists largely of fast cuts that sometimes slow to a medium pace ,which in turn keep in synchronisation with the music. The camera work used in this particular music video varies greatly . There are many close ups of Beyonces face as she sings in order to display clearly the emotion the song holds. Half way through the music video there is a low angle shot of Beyonce when she is outside singing this may have been used in order to show Beyonce dominance and how she is in control maybe of the music video or it could be of the relationship in the videos storyline.

The majority of the wedding scenes are filmed in hand held shots this seems to have been used in order to add a sense of realism to the video in order to create the idea that an actual wedding is happening and like with all weddings it is being recorded . Therefore this convention used here fits greatly in with the wedding storyline present in the video. Finally the long shot at the end of the music video showing Beyonce walking away is symbolic of Beyonce fully leaving the past relationship behind and moving on mentally as well as physically.

Take that - Back for good
Performance style- Band performance 


Casting and Characters- The band members = Robbie , Gary , Jason , Howard and Mark

Narrative - The narrative takes place on a film set. The story seems to embody the band members feeling down and miserable as they have lost a girl and now they regret it and want her back. Through the use of the sound stage and the black and white colours in the music video the storyline seems to embody a storyline within itself this being the boys being in a film as many hints e.g film lights and film conventions are present e.g a dramatic storyline suggest this.

Mise en scene - The boys in the music video are wearing dark clothes this may have been used in order to convey the mood of the music video this being a dark and saddening mood as the connotation of dark things is usually sadness. Throughout the music video it is raining this may have been done in order to mirror the mood also as the boys are meant to be feeling down and fed up and the rain could be a metaphor for there spirits being dampened.

The black and white image used throughout the music video may have been used in order to keep in convention with the narrative of the storyline of the boys acting in a film as such an effect is generally associated with old Hollywood films this is further suggested by the props used in the music video such as fake lighting because such equipment is used in a film production, therefore signifying the boys are acting for the camera. However the whole wet image may have been used in order to stay in convention with what a boy band entails as such groups are meant to be icons for teenage girls and therefore they must encompass this look in order to gain fans. 

Editing in images and sound - The edits in the music video are generally fast paced this may have been done in order to give each band member there full screen time. The edits are also in sync with who is singing for example if Gary is singing the camera cuts to him then when Robbie sings the camera will cut to him instead. Therefore in general the edits are done to the sound of the music and the pace of the music to. The edits include a lot of effects such as fade in and out this may have been done to make the music video dramatic and in keeping with the storyline of the boys acting in a film or mirroring the dramatic mood they are feeling after losing this girl. 

Camera work - Throughout the music video the camera shots vary greatly. At the peak of the song there are numerous close ups of the boys this may have been done to show the emotion they are feeling as they sing along to the song and therefore the close ups are used in order to display what the meaning of the song  actually is . There is also numerous shots of the rain falling down in order to mirror the dampened spirits of the boys as it is evident from the lyrics of the song they are feeling exactly like the weather, this being  dampened and dismal.

There is also the use of backwards tracking in the music video this was probably used in order to keep in line with the dramatic feel of the music video and how it is like an actual film being filmed. This is because all the way through the music video both movement and camera work are dramatic and exaggerated. This could also have been used to show the strength of the emotion the boys are feeling as they sing along to the song.