Andrew Goodwin's 5 Key Aspects

Andrew Goodwin, a director of music and also an organist for 37 years, composed a theory which outlined that there are 5 key aspects when it comes to analysing a music video:

1. Thought Beats (seeing the sound)
2. Narrative and Performance
3. The Star Image
4. Relation of Visuals to Song
5. Technical Aspects of Music video

Thought Beats:

This is when the video is edited in such a way that the visuals are in time with the beat of the music, resulting in the imagery matching the message of the song to give the audience a clearer understanding of it. These visuals can also be repeated throughout the song, for example during the chorus to hold emphasis on this message.
This aspect is common in music videos, and is effective as the video tends to make more sense with the lyrics.
An example video in which this can be seen is Weak by AJR, in which it is repeated a lot in the chorus to give us this shaky effect, referencing to the meaning of the song which is about being weak and that nothing is wrong with that.

Narrative and Performance:

Goodwin explained that the artist should become a part of the story of the music video to avoid a traditional narrative. By doing this the artist can perform as well, and this lip syncing creates a clear connection between the story and the role that the artist has in it, also making it more believable and relatable for the audience.
An example video that shows this aspect is Heathens by Twenty One Pilots, in which there is a narrative due to the song promoting the film "Suicide Squad". The artists, Josh Dun and Tyler Joseph feature in this narrative and its setting, a prison, but also have a role in the performance of the song, still taking place in the same location.

Star Image:

The star image is believed to hold a vital role in music videos, as the effect that they have is that the video is made more interesting to the audience and can be what initially catches their attention to watch it. The way in which the star is also portrayed can also make the video unique, as well as creating a public image in which the artist can use to promote their music and become easily recognisable.
Within the music video, close-ups and/or repeated shots of the artist show this star image by putting them at the centre and being the main focus, which is shown in the example below: Havana by Camila Cabello. The is the main star in the music video and is in most of the shots, making the story more interesting.

Relation of Visuals to Song:

This principle suggests that the audience should be able to see a clear relationship between the lyrics of the song and the visuals of the video. There are 3 ways in which the music video promote the song:

1. Illustrate- the video can use a set of images to illustrate the meaning of the lyrics to create a better understanding for the audience. It is the most common method used.
2. Disjuncture- This is when there is no relation between the lyrics and video, and the meaning is completely ignored.
3. Amplify- The meanings of the song are manipulated so that they are shown constantly throughout the video, and drummed into the audience's vision.

Technical Aspects:

These aspects hold the music video together, via camerawork, mis-en-scene, editing, sound and special effects.
Use of camera- consists of the speed, movement, editing,cutting and post production of the video.
Lighting and colour- creates and sets the mood by holding emphasis on important aspects of the video.
Mise-en-scene- is vital in order to make the video realistic for the audience.
Beat- the cuts fit with the rhythm to entertain the audience, as it sounds better to them when this technique is used.

This theory has helped me and I hope to apply it to my own music video by using all 5 aspects, as I want my artist to have a lot of star image and to be on camera a lot, for the action of the video to match the beat of the song, there will be both narrative and performance, and I would like to illustrate the meaning of my lyrics using conceptual imagery to get it across to the audience.

The Sound Video Analysis

The Sound Analysis from AmyBullmore

I really liked this video, especially the neon lights, and will be taking inspiration from this to put into my own music video, as the neon lights has this 80s vibe which I want to have in my own video.

Youth Video Analysis

I have taken inspiration from this music video which I hope I can incorporate into my own music video. In this video I really liked the fairy lights, and hope to use them in my video, and I love the colour scheme as it just 'shouts' electropop, and the theme matches this genre too, the whole video is about being carefree and partying and being happy, which I'd like in my video.

Richard Dyer's Star Theory

This theory is split into 3 areas:

1. The star as a construction
2. The star as a commodity
3. The star as an ideology 

Construction:

In this section, Dyer states that the star is just a construction and not a real person. The ways in which a star is constructed can be through methods such as music videos, magazines and advertising.

An example is Miley Cyrus, who is famous for acts such as twerking and her famous music videos such as Wrecking Ball. However, it can be said that this is all just for show as the star wouldn't incorporate any of this into her private life, as it is just a construction of acts to appeal to the audience.

Commodity:

The stars here are produced to create a profit off of merchandise such as posters and shirts. In order to be successful and generate large amounts of money, these record labels will create similar stars, making them follow certain trends or patterns in order to obtain this profit. This can explain why so many boy/girl bands are similar, for example, One Direction or Little Mix. It is these type of artists that follow the similar trends as they have been known to have a large following, especially One Direction. The audience for them is also similar, consisting of teenage girls whom can be encouraged to be fans of both of these bands due to having similar features to suit their interests.

Ideology:

The star can represent social groups and views, which in turn create ideologies/ The fans as a result then copy their style and want to be like them and share these views that they have. Referring back to Little Mix, they all have unique styles which the fans may want to copy. They can also relate to one band member in particular and focus on their style, meaning that there is a variety in which a large and varied audience can be generated. 

In terms of views Little Mix is all about power within females and not being dependent on men, but being your own person, which can be inspirational and passed onto their fans.

The Paradox of the Star:

Dyer explains an additional point to his theory in which there is a paradox of the star due to:

1. The star must be both ordinary and extraordinary
2. The star must be both present and absent

Ordinary + Extraordinary:

This means that the star should be ordinary in a way that they can relate to the audience and have a connection with them, but also extraordinary, such as their amazing talent that they possess, which can result in them being idolised by the audience/public.

Present + Absent:

This part shows that the star should be present in the lives of the fans via factors such as merchandise, social media, chats between friends, etc. However, they are also absent due to not actually being there for the fans to 'reach'. An example is One Direction, in which posters up in fans' rooms mean they are somewhat present, as well as being a topic of conversation with friends due to a large fan base that they had accumulated. But in reality, they are not actually present for the fans to talk to or interact with.

Example:

Below is a music video of one of my example bands, Little Mix. In this video they all have their own character that follows are short narrative, and appear as school girls, their target audience.

I will be applying this theory to my video as I will be constructing an artist and their style and merchandise, creating a role model for their fans to follow and look up to, part of the ideology and commodity section of this theory.