Generic Conventions of a Music video

In this blog post I am going to discuss the generic conventions of a music video. There are 3 regular types of music video which follow the conventions:

• Illustrative: This type of music video tells a story and is often performance based. These type of music videos are typically about love or romance. An example of one of these is "Can't Feel My Face" by The Weeknd. 
• Amplification: Amplification is where a music video is interpreted using creative ideas. These videos will still have a direct link to the song. An example of this is "Humble" by Kendrick Lamar. 
• Conceptual: This type of music video may not have anything to do with the lyrics of the song and are known to be very abstract. An example of one of these videos is "Technologic" by Daft Punk.

Camera Shots

Camera shots in music videos usually jump a lot from long shots to close ups and extreme close ups. The close ups are usually on the protagonist of the music video and the extreme close ups are usually of the main character lip synching. Camera Movement; There are normally very generic shots that are made such as:

• Whip pans 
• Fast dolly tracks 
• Fast overhead crane shots OR tracking shots to follow the running, walking or dancing of performers

Editing

Due to the fact that this is a music video, there needs to be an abundance of continuity editing and fast cuts from things such as aerial shots to extreme close ups and therefore this will allow the audience to remain captivated and enticed. However, there are exceptions, Some ‘continuity editing’ used such as atmospheric ‘dissolve shots’ such as in Sinead O’Connor’s ‘Nothing Compare to You’.

Lighting

Expressive lighting is a key and in my opinion fundamental feature of music videos. Extreme artificial light can be used to create the ‘bleaching’ effect on pop stars faces, this is done in order to make the singer seem ageless. Also the use of switching from colour to black & white or sepia to indicate a shift from chorus to verse is sometimes used but not very often and not with the genre that I will be basing my music video on. Also lighting effects such as strobes or flashing needs to be identified. Computer generated imagery is also a popular use in music videos to create futuristic sets and brightly coloured backgrounds which is mainly used in mainstream music as they have the big budgets for their videos.

Mise-en-scene

What to look for in a music video. Is there a theme? Does it link back to something, whether that be something relevant in contemporary news? A film that maybe the song features in? An example is 1-800-273-8255 by Logic addressing the increasing issues of suicide and homosexuality among teenagers. Does the video’s mise en scene follow the need for authenticity in performance videos by using the concert hall or rehearsal studio setting? (such as Can't feel my face by The Weeknd) Or is there an intentional ‘parodic’ setting to exaggerate star image and conclusively to show off how rich they are as in many rap and r&b videos with a focus on glamorous icons such as exotic locations, beautiful cocktail bars and stunning beachside houses with infinity pools and expensive villas leeched with young models.