Semitotics and Signs

Initial Ideas / tests / influences

I was inspired by the music video "Out of the Black", in this music video aliens attack a petrol station. When the unrealistic explosions and over the top fights and gore take place, the video is animated, this is perhaps for an artistic effect or it is because of the low budget and censoring of the gore. When the chorus of the song plays, the animation starts.

I also want my music video to be partially animated as I could create extreme, over the top situations whilst it is still possible. I would also like the animation to appear when the musc tempo picks up for dramatic effect.




To explore this style, I practiced drawing over frames of a fight scene video I found on youtube (i want a fight scene on my music video) then put them together for a short animation, this is what I got:



Even though the panels of animation are very roughly drawn, when they are put together they look very distorted and the lines have violent movement. I really like this type of effect as it fits the indie rock genre I want to produce a music video for. I feel like my music video is going to have a narrative going on in one diegisis whilst the band / singer is singing in the other diegisis. The animation is most likely going to appear in the narrative diegisis.

Here are a few panels so far I have made 30:

This type of animation was inspired by an animated series I was watching at the time this project was set, it is called Mob Psycho 100. The art style is very roughly drawn and the frames and chaotic and full of straight black lines in order to show the protagonists anger and rage. This aspect could come in use on an indie rock music video as anger and rage is part of the genre's ideology.




Another idea which I have had is the type of narrative my music video has. I have took inspiration from the Dreaming music video by the Smallpools and would like my character to be stuck in a world where he feels trapped and keeps ending up in the same place no matter how many doors he opens. However, I want my character to get more stressed and eventually have a fight with the person who is causing it. I also want more gritty locations rather than a house party scene. The fight will be the main part of animation. I think this fits the indie rock genre well as both the music I am deciding to use is quite violent and disruptive. Here is the Dreaming Music video by the Smallpools:

These are the songs I am deciding on using, one of the songs does have a music video but I feel like I can make it more unique rather than it being footage of whats appears to be a live audience:






I have also had another idea where parts of the animated drawings of the actors actually appear into the real world also, a few examples are Take On Me by A-Ha, and You Better Pray by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus.





Another idea I have had is that the narrative will focus upon the night before the events at the beginning of the video. The protagonist will wake up in the middle of a ran down location and will accidentally run into the events of the previous night by opening doors like in the Smallpools music video - Dreaming. He will get into all kinds of trouble as well as have an animated fight at the end. The end of the music video will then be the same as the beginning as it shows a cycle and explains this.

My idea for this has also been influenced by films:



The narrative of Source Code is about a man who wakes up with a mission to find a bomb on a train. He has no idea how he got there and every time he dies in the process of stopping the bomb, the situation restarts. This type of mystery and confusion I will also like to include in my music video.

At the time this brief was set, I was watching an animated series in which influenced my idea for the narrative also. The narrative for RE: Zero is also very similar to Source Code in which the protagonist comes to life after he has died, only to have to try again and fix his mistakes. This causes an unbearable amount of suffering and stress for the protagonist in which I want to show in my music video.

Music Video Representation - Sven E.Carlson (Media Theorist)

Sven E Carlson made a media theory based on music videos in 1999. According to Carlson, certain music videos go under 3 purposes on why they are made like they are.

1. Commercial Exhibitionist
2.Television Bard
3. Electronic Shaman

1.Commercial Exhibitionist

Artists sometimes make music videos to present themselves as a brand; selling their appearance as well as their musical talent. Not only that, but their lifestyle and fashion sense is also on show.

An old example of this is Jenifer Lopez's "Jenny From the Block" music video (2002)




Jennifer Lopez created this music video to prove to her fans that no matter how rich she gets, she won't change. This is proven by the lyrics as well as the cinematography in the music video.

For example, alot of the shots in the music video are partially covered by objects, this implies that the camera man is hiding/ spying on her. This represents the paparazzi that try and judge her on her actions and on what lifestyle has (she is on a yacht sunbathing) 

This shot also represents the paparazzi spying on her. However she is show in casual clothing, dancing to a song on her own. This convey's the message that she still is a normal human being and hasn't changed due to her celebrity lifestyle. 

The mise-en-scene is this shot also represents her as a normal person and not a celeb who lives a luxurious life. For example, her clothing is very casual and street-like, she is also dancing on a busy road which also represents the urban landscape she originated from before becoming a celebrity. 

A contemporary example of a Commercial Exhibitionist is Beyonce's video; "Drunk in Love" (2013)

In this music video, Beyonce' is selling her body and good looks to the audience, making her girl audience want to be her and making the male audience want a girlfriend like her. This is shown through "male-gazey" close ups of her body. 

2.Television Bard 

This is when artists create a music video that represents a story, because they are singing, they are usually the story teller. 

A contemporary example of this is Lukas Graham's music video "7 years" (2016)

The music video is about Lukas Graham's life and how he became a professional singer.

At the start of the music video  there is a slow motion black and white shot of a burning book moving through the air, this links to the end shot of the music video were Lukas throws his song book behind him and it explodes. The fire and explosion represents the potential his lyrics have and how they have an impact on the world and on his life.

The overall music video shows the story of how Lukas Graham became a professional singer. This is shown by the locations he is in at the start and at the end of the music video. For example, at first he is at a skatepark which is conventional for being where local, lower class youths hang out. 

Later on in the video he is shown on a stage via a tracking shot. This shows his body language as he walks on stage. The next shot is then an extreme low angle of the stage to show how many seats there are at the venue. 

At the end of the music video he is seen with an old man walking and singing the lyrics of his song. This implies that the old man will be him when he's older. The lyrics then go on to explain how Lukas' future will pan out according to him. 

3. Electronic Shaman

These are big budget productions were the artist either has immortal powers or adpots the alter ego of another iconic character, personality or superhero. 

An old example of this is Michael Jackson's music video "Scream" (1995)

In this video Michael Jackson plays the role of a space man who operates a spaceship. This shown through the high amount of CGI used. This is the most expensive music video ever made costing $7 million.

There is also effects in which makes Michael Jackson appear like he is floating through the air. 

A contemporary example of an Electronic Shaman is Roar by Katy Perry (2013)

The costume worn by Katy Perry shows that she has adopted the alter ago of Tarzan or an amazon lady.

At the start of the music video there is a cartoon landscape which also refers to the popular disney cartoon Tarzan. The cartoon text also implies this.

At the start of the music video, there is mise-en-scene of a plane crash ion a jungle, this is conventional in alot of films. This implies that it parodies many adventure films like Indianan Jones and the Temple of Doom.

Male Gaze - Girl in a Country Song (Maddie and Tae)

The music video I will be analysis will be Girl in a Country Song by Maddie and Tae (2014) which points out the problem of Male Gaze and even challenges it:




Girl in a Country Song is a country song as implied by certain mise-en-scene. There are hay bails, the music video is based on a farm, the men are wearing red tartan shirts and the women singers wear American bikini's as that is where the genre originates from.

Gender is represented in the music video by cinematography; there is a high pan of alot of girls in skimpy clothing as one of the first shots, the females dominate the frame. This represents them as dominant to men as they are seen out numbering them.

Later on there is a medium shot of the men reacting to the women in bikini's, there is even a zoom of a
man doing a wolf whistle. This implies that women are not respected in the country genre and are just there to look at.

However there is a close up of a "role reversal" button which causes the day to start again and the men to appear in bikini's. This is implied by some of the same shots being played again except with
men and not women. This shows that the music video is defying gender stereotypes of country girls.

Near the end of the music video there are a series of close ups on male body parts (bum, legs) that are conventionally used on women to show sexy themes.  This also supports that the conventional roles

of gender have been reversed.

The mise-en-scene also shows the music video defying gender stereotypes. For example, it is a cliche' in films of women in bikini's doing a car wash. However this cliche' is defied when it is done using men in bikini's, this is to show  that it is unfair and wrong as it makes the audiences feel uncomfortable when they are made to

"male gaze" upon men instead of women. This creates empathy for women who are forced to look at women in a male gaze fashion due to music video conventions.

There is also men seen with trays of food serving women which also reverses the cliche's of what is expected of a woman.

Mise-en-scene also reveals the conventions of music videos and how they are used in this one, for example there are two locations, one is a stage made out of trucks / four by four cars and the girls singing, the other is the country party in which the roles are reversed. The editing cuts between these two locations to show this is what the singers want.  Cutting between singers and a narrative is also a convention for music videos. Another convention is used at

the beginning and end which is a bedroom scene where the singers are creating / planning the lyrics for the song as well as the music video. This shows that they are rebelling against stereotypes as they want a reversed music video.

Editing is used in the music video to represent gender roles, for example; there is an eye-line match of the men looking at the women, this represents the women as objects that are only there to be looked at. It represents a "male dominated" environment.

There is also a series of slow motion shots of men in bikini's which is conventionally used on women to represent men staring at them, this shows how the music video is going against convention and is quite feministic.

The lyrics used in the song also defy stereotypes as the women in the music video are writing it. One of the singers say "Can I put some real clothes on now?" implying that she believes that women shouldn't have to appear appealing to males. She also says that they "need a little respect" which also supports this.

In Conclusion, all the micro-technical aspects convey the representation that women are equal to men and shouldn't how to be appealing to them if they don't want to. The music video also follows the conventions of the average music video, cross cutting between locations and singers, using pans around the singers. The sound editing was also conventionally synchronous editing. It also follows Country genre conventions  because of the mise-en-scene being conventionally symbolized as the country side in the USA; hay bails, four by four trucks, sunset and acoustic guitars.

     

1B - Representaton

Intertaxtuality - text which alludes to or references to another text.

Some of these references made within a text can be considered iconic and easily recognised because of the style. Referencing certain texts can reinforce the feeling of nostalgia and familiarty to the audience.

1969 -  Julia Kristera (Literally Critic and Sociologist)

 - "The shaping of texts meaning by another text"

-"The use of an intertextual reference in any text is the absorption and transformation of another"

A good example of Intertextuality is Lady GaGa's music video; Telephone:




In the 1950's, there was a very famous glamour model and pin-up girl called Bettie Page, her photos were very exotic and she was iconic because of her jet black hair and fringe. In Telephone, Beyonce appears with the same black hair and fringe, therefore making an intertextual reference.

(Bettie Page)

The security guards in the  music video appear very "macho" even though they are female. This references to a famous US actor and drag queen; Divine. In her career she starred in many camp hollywood films, the most famous being "Pink Flamingo's"



(Divine in Pink Flamingo's)

In telephone there is alot of sexual themes involved along with camp costumes , this references to the French Fashion and Art photographers Pierre and Giles. Here is some of their work:

                                                                                                                                                                               

The picture on the left also references Beyonce's costume as well as the sexual theme's involved in the video.

 This shot also represents the sexual themes as Lady Gaga has chains around her which is similar to the S&M themes that are shown in the photo to the left.

The camp theme in Telephone is shown by the female masculine security guards. 

Another intertextuality is the typography used at the start of the opening sequence. The typography is the exact same as the typography used in the film "Jacki Brown" which was directed by Quentin Tarantino. This text is used as it gives a 1970's retro vibe, which links to all the other intertextual references.

Another reference to Quentin Tarantino is the the car which is called "Pussy Wagon", this is a direct reference to another film called "Kill Bill"

                                                                                                                                                                    

 

Another reference to the "Pussy Wagon" could be the director Russ Meyer who was a director of sexploitation films. These films were made in the 60's and 70's for adult males, which involved alot of women in minimal clothing. One of his films which lionks to the "Pussy Wagon" is called "Faster Pussycat Kill Kill".





Lady Gaga's bright blonde, wavy hair is an intertextual reference to Roy Lichenstein who was an artist of the pop-art style. Many women illustrated in this style were seen with bright yellow wavy hair.



Another pop-artist who is  delibratley referenced is Andy Warhol created prints of consumer products like Campbell's Soup Canns. This is referenced in Telephone when Lady GaGa wears Coke canns in her hair which is another consumer product used in an artistic way.

The ending sequence of Telephone ended with Lady Gaga and Beyonce riding off in the desert with police chasing them. This references a film called Thelma and Louise about two lesbians who are criminals because they murdered a man who was trying to rape them. The two of them go on the run to get away from the police. At the end they get surrounded by police and drive off a cliff together.

(Telephone)

 (Thelma and Louis)

The big onomatopoeia graphic references the 1960's Batman and Robin TV show, in this TV show whenever Batman and Robin get into a fight with villains, big onomatopoeia graphics appear on screen when a punch connects. The costumes in Telephone also reference the show as they are very camp like the Batman and Robin suits. 

Superheroes; Captain America and Wonder-woman are also referenced in the end of Telephone when both Lady GaGa and Beyonce dress up in star spangled banner costumes. These superheroes fit in with the other old, retro references as they were created all the way back in the 1940's.

Fall Out Boy - Irresistible 

Like in Telephone, other music videos have intertextual references also. For example in Fall Out Boy's music video for Irresistible, there is a constant fuzzy effect and consistently cheesy editing all the way through, this refers back to old TV shows in the 1970's as well as VHS tape quality. 

The typography used in the opening sequence also refers to retro, classic films and TV shows in the 70's and 80's. 

(Fall Out Boy - Irresistible)

(Perfect Strangers - 1986 )

(Taxi - 1983)

The typography used is very similar as the typography used in a short film called "Bedussey" that was made by members of the band in the 90's. The short film also had a funky 1980's score to it also. 

The boom box prop used in this video is also a classic reference to 1970's and 80's american street culture. People would carry these round and play them in the street. The members of the band are also playing basket ball which also supports the references to american street culture. 

This music video also subtly references the band's other songs and music videos. For example:

There last album had a series of music video's that lead on from one and other to make a film, in this "short film" the lead singer Pete Stump gets his hand cut off. In Irresistible, he looses a prosthetic hand when he tries to catch a basketball. 

The short film "Bedussey" also appears at the end of the music video to imply that this music video was recorded over it, just like what people did with VHS tapes. I believe they reference this very unknown short film to acknowledge their hardcore, older fan-base who have been around for a long time.

(Scene from "Bedussey")

Another reference to a previous song is when fire works appear around a woman when she looks at one of the band members who just missed a shot. This implies the lyrics: “You and I were fire, fire, fireworks/That went off too soon" from the song 4th of July. 

There are also modern references to trends in the music video. For example, emoji's appear on the actors and band members eyes depending on what they react to. Heart emoji's appeared in a band members eyes because he saw a "Will you marry me" sign. 

Another modern trend reference is a "thug life" edit on one of the men in the crowd watching the basket ball game. This was a trend at the time the music video was released; if someone did something that made them think they looked cool, the video would fade black and white with a title saying "Thug Life". These videos went viral all over social media. 

The bass player Pete Wentz references a Michael Jordan-esque air walk dunk when his team mates pick him up and carry him over to the hoop. This not only references Michael Jordan but it has been a cliche use of basketball humor in many films.

"Teleshopping" commercials are also referenced when the referee gives a woman in the crowd a new pair of shoes. This is shown by a cheesy explosion graphic saying "SALE"

(teleshopping)

Alot of cheesy slapstick moments also happen, for example the bass player gets knocked back by his opponent and turns into a rag doll. This references old 1970's films which make it very obvious that actors don't do stunts.

Another cheesy slapstick moment is when a basket ball player holds one of the band members by the head whilst the band member is trying to punch him. This is an extremely cliche moment in many cartoons.

Male Gaze

The male gaze - objectification of women's bodies in the media has been a constant theme.

Laura Mulvey (1975) - argues the dominant point of view is masculine. The female body is revealed for masculine erotic pleasure (voyeurism)

Women are objectified by the camera lens via close up shots and tilts (conventionally used when woman first appears in films) and whatever gender the spectator is, they are forced to accept the masculine point of view. Women in the modern day watch films and don't realise they are watching the woman in a male gaze form.

John Berger wrote a book called "The Way of Seeing" which quotes:

"men act and women appear"
"men look at women,  women watch themselves being looked at"
"women are aware of being seen by a male spectator"

Examples of Male Gaze:


50 Cent - Candyshop


Nick Jonas - Under You


Fergie - M.I.L.F.$


Examples of Female Gaze

Female Gaze is the modern societies way of equality, if the camera is aloud to look at women erotically, it should also be able to look at men.

Jennifer Lopez - I Luh Ya Papi


Carle Rae Jepsen - Call Me Maybe



Stereotypes in music videos

Codes and conventions in music videos and in the Indie Rock genre