Tomas' favourite music video is 'Here it goes again' by OK GO! I like this one too and has been in a few end of year best videos of the decade etc.It was well thought out and choreographed, simple but hilarious at the same time and you can see it's taken a lot of effort to get it right. Being shot on one take also makes it a lot harder for the performers ( the performers also being the band!) I think it sets a certain standard in terms of alternative videos as it is one of a kind and nice to see the band members doing something rather than playing their instruments!
Alisha's favourite video is Lady Gaga's 'Telephone'. I think this video is epic too, and I love the theme of making the video like a short film, with credits at the beginning etc. Based on Kill Bill with the 'PussyWagon' it has become an advertising bonanza from her fashion to what she uses - Coke Cans in her hair, her 'Heartbeats' headsets and Virgin Mobile. Most of her music videos have been known to be daring and different and I agree with Alisha in that the fashion and Lady Gaga overall made that video, along with Beyonce! There are lots of different scenes in this video like a short film from her being into the prison and then into the restaurant. I love the dancing and the quick reverse shots of Beyonce singing and moving to match the beat of the song.
I also made a facebook group, open to everyone to tell me what their favourite music video is and why. I think this was a good idea to see what people of all ages think of music videos and what theirs is! http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=537028265#!/group.php?gid=107839525940427&ref=ts <
This Is one of my favourite music videos as the genre of music is my favourite, and you can see a definite influence of 80's bands in there such like Dexi's Midnight Runners (walking with their instruments in 'Come on Eileen') and David Bowie, with the colours of the film edited. I like the way the video has been edited and the way the video has been made to look old, like a family video and vintage! This is right up my street in terms of music and the places the band go and the way people come and go reminds me of my teenage life at the moment, a youth club is used and reminds me of my college common room and a bowling alley where i live with a pool bar, where me and my friends hang out and socialize. The fashion the teenagers (assuming so as 'youth' is written on the top) is how a popular subculture of 'Indie Kids' tend to dress looking fresh and cool, with a vintage twist of '80s hairstyles. I think there is a definite influence on their style of music, the way they dress and the style of the video, sort of creating like a teenager's life through a video involving many teens. I love the way the scenes blend in together and there aren't many jump cuts and its mainly group shots to show people socializing, not looking like they are enjoying themselves however, so maybe showing a particular stereotype of younger people being 'moody'!
The story in my perception, is a group of teenagers are like protesting in a way by gathering outside their local 'hang out' which might be being taken away from them or turning into something else. With the banner saying ' forever and ever amen' (the title of the song) give the audience an idea that place has always been there through different generations as portrayed through two younger boys seen in the video, one with a megaphone! this could mean that they want this place to stay because of their generation growing up. It also makes a statement on how quickly children are growing up today, with the modern haircuts on the boy with the megaphone and high fashion.
I just love this video, the song and everything about it, the band member are cute too!
This is most probably my favourite music video ever. I love the Polaroid photographs and the delicate subtle movements of each, one after the other. There must have been lots of photographs taken within these three minutes as Sia lip syncs in the first set of flick pictures, showing a lot of time and attention must have gone into this video which reflects on the song really well. This song helped me through a particularly bad time however I still love it today. Like the Drums video, it is quite simple, well the idea is, but this would have cost a lot more in terms of Polaroid cameras and the photo paper, i can't afford to buy many papers at one time for my camera! It is the singer all the way through with another girl so it's quite a personal song and video for the artist to be in. I love the simple background setting but the emotions on their faces say it all and connect with the video and the song. The part where the camera is moved in fast forward mode up the stairs from the last still image, moving onto another set and a trail going up the stairs shows how any pictures were taken. Some of the pictures are flipped backwards as well as forwards. Many of the pictures are capturing the background as well as her face and some are long shots of her whole body, when she walks or to show what she is wearing to reflect her mood. Some are taken from the side but the main angle is face on showing a truly honest video with the expressions changing,looking at the camera and away,downwards and around her, 'small and needy'. The mirror in the background whilst she is changing into different outfits shows a complication in self body image which i think for my this song is about 'Help.I have done it again.hurt myself again today,there is no one else to blame.' The pictures are showing movement as well as still emotion where she is walking. It's nice to see the pictures being flipped on something, like on chairs and you can see the fingers flipping them and the whole Polaroid photo, i really like it when she walks out the door, it shows where she is walking to , back down the stairs to her holding them and flipping. It's like a photo with in a photo, and the story flows throughout of a girl, the story in story as she looks at herself.
Unfortunately, my next favourite music video there are only two of on YouTube, one of which is too short and the other has no audio! However you don't need audio for the video, especially when this particular artists is one of my favourites also and i love all her other videos as they all share to what I believe a theme similar to Alice in Wonderland. Her videos are always magical and sometimes random, but this one is perfect as it matches the song with the rhythm in the music action matching the 'characters' if you like in the video. I love the fact that the video starts without the music as not many videos do that!The music starts on the camera shot after the first one where these are matched form a close up of her feet to her whole body. the narrative is apparent in all videos i have chosen, however, what the director has planned with the artist in the video maybe different to what the viewer perceives and can make the viewer reflect on connotations they might have with it, in my case it was Alice in Wonderland! I think the costumes and make up add to her quirky style that matches her music as well and the setting looks magical along with the people relating much to Alice in Wonderland with it's many different character's and places. The main narrative of Florence being blindfolded is like playing hide 'n' go peek and with the children there also adding to the effect of childishness.She is also holding a wine bottle which could reflect on someone having one too many! and passing out and this could be like a dream/nightmare with scary faces and the disorientation used in the cameras can reflect this as she runs through the woods. i love the ending where they are all dancing as it is like a communal gathering,like they didn't know each other in the beginning and now they do! I think the narrative for me is why I like this video so much and how it is really fun and quirky! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGrx6etMl0w The old Version. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWOyfLBYtuU There was another video made earlier this year, but i really don't like this version as I heard this song when the original video was out two years ago and I just prefer that one as it holds memories for me watching it and the newer one doesn't appal to me in terms of it's narrative. However I do still love the song and that she has still kept her quirky image! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0629SPfofVI The last video I have picked is The Maccabees 'Precious time'. I love both the song and the video for numerous reasons! I think this video is so cleverly made, and like an experiment in places as it's not perfect but that's what suits the image the band are portraying and I have seen them live 4 times! I love the way it's so simple set in a room with a table and a paper background for the window. It's so sweet and original for when it was made back in 2007. I love the puzzle pieces and the paper underneath for the eyes and mouth looking as though they are talking. I think this is done by taking pictures or filming each shot, moving each little place to see no hands moving it. Similar to Sia's video, it must have taken a lot of hard work and attention to make. There is no particular narrative to the music video just lots of different random pieces of paper that connect to each other. I think the videos I have chosen are very different to those shown to me at the end of my AS year as different skills have been used and certainly time has shown how technology has built. What makes a good music video? For me, a music video has to match the genre and style of music and in someway represent what the whole artist is about and the song. So if it is dance music, I think a lot of flashing lights I used http://www.zamzar.com/ to convert videos form YouTube and save them onto my computer to put onto my blog. The videos of the interviews were from my own camera uploaded onto my computer and uploaded onto my blog!