Post 6 - Conventions of a music video

Conventions

There are many conventions of a music video, which are seen in the music video for a variety of different reasons.

•  The artist will usually appear in the music video, and will usually lip-synch along with the lyrics.



For example, in the music video for 'Heart Attack' by Demi Lovato, Demi appears in the video, performing her song through lip-syncing. This makes the video act as a promotional video because we can see Demi performing her song and we know that it is her song, instead of someone else's song.

• The song will be the soundtrack to the whole video, it will start and end when the music starts and ends.

For instance, Paramore's music video for 'Ignorance' starts and ends at the same time as the music starts and ends. This means that the viewers will not get bored when watching the music video if they just want to listen to the song. Also, the audience know immediately what the song is.

An example of a music video which does not follow this convention is Fall Out Boy's song 'Sugar, We're Going Down'. The moment before the song starts introduces the main character in the music video, rather than just going straight into the music video.

• The video will usually have three or more different locations which may change with each verse or chorus.

The music video for 'Iris' by Goo Goo Dolls mostly has to different locations; the tunnel, where the lead singer is dressed in black, and the room where he is wearing a red coat. These two locations are very enclosed and away from everyone else, which emphasises the lyrics "I don't want the world to see me, because I don't think that they'd understand" in the chorus.

• Sections of the music video will be filmed in the studio, most often the performance parts.

In The Script's music video for 'The Man Who Can't Be Moved', sections such as this one are filmed in a different location to the part of the music video which holds most of the story. This shows the audience that the band are actually performing the song, and the other two band members are seen, rather than just the lead singer.

• The video will usually contain some kind of narrative, often intercut with performance shots.

In the music video for 'Teenage Dirtbag' by Wheatus, the narrative matches the lyrics of the song. This makes the song easier for the audience to understand. It also creates a story for the music video to make it more interesting to watch.

• The video will contain a range of camera movements and camera lengths and angles.

The different camera movements, lengths and angles seen in the music video for 'Check Yes Juliet' by We The Kings gives the video a dynamic look and creates an energetic atmosphere. This makes the video more interesting for the audience to watch. The different shot types and angles will also prevent the music video from looking repetitive. Close-ups are generally used when the lead singer is lip-syncing and mid shots or long shots are generally used for performance shots.

• The editing will be cut to the beat and in the form of montage editing.

An example of this is in the music video of 'Stay Together For The Kids' by Blink-182. When the music hits a climatic beat in the chorus, the boulder hits the house, destroying it even more than it already was. The montage editing at the beginning of the music video is cut to the beat of the song, which makes it easier for the audience to watch. The transitions between the shots are very smooth which also makes the video better for the audience to watch.

• A slow motion effect is often used to create a sexy or slick feel for the music video.

In Coldplay's music video for 'Charlie Brown', slow motion effects are used to emphasise the actions of the characters when they are performing stunts such as jumping from high places and flips. This makes them look more slick and gives the music video a more surreal effect.

• The video will be based around a concept rather than a story.

This is seen in Avril Lavigne's music video for 'Here's To Never Growing Up'. The concept of this song is the idea of not growing up, which is shown through the use of shots of people acting like teenagers and having fun. The concept of the music video highlights the lyrics of the song and matches the idea of the song.