Audience Feedback Research

Industry Audience Research: Who Are The Specific Audiences For Particular Products?

When looking at specific audiences for particular products, one site that is exceptionally helpful is YouGov Profiles, which collects data in order to present the 'typical fan' of this product. For this reason, I used YouGov Profiles to find the typical fans of some popular indie pop artists. These were Bastille, The 1975, Chvrches and The Wombats. 

One of the first things that can be noted when looking at these results in the gender of indie pop fans, which appears to be a mix between female and males. This therefore suggests that indie pop is not gender specific, and does not attract or cater towards one specific gender. For this reason, when making our own indie pop music video, we will not only avoid catering towards a particular gender, but we will also ensure that the music video is effectively gender neutral and can therefore be enjoyed by both genders. 

Another important aspect that can be noted about the typical fans of indie pop is that they tend to be around the age range of 18-24, although this does not necessarily mean that there are no fans older or younger than this range. However, this does tell us that when creating our music video we should keep in mind that our audience is young, and ensure that our music video caters towards this age and is relevant to their time. It also allows us to know what the best age for our performer should be, as young fans often appreciate young artists more than they do with older artists.

Lastly, the profiles above also allow us to understand the style and fashion sense of indie pop fans, which is, apart from The 1975 fan, fairly casual. The majority of the fan profiles show fans wearing jeans and t-shirts, and this therefore gives us an insight into what our performer should wear too. If the fans dress casually, we will ensure that our performer also does, as this allows fans to relate with the artist and also adds to the laidback, carefree atmosphere of indie pop music.

Industry Audience Research: What Do Real Audiences Consume?

Industry audience research from sophieb17

Unconventional Music Video: 'Da Funk' - Daft Punk

Although the majority of music videos share and follow particular conventions, there are also on occasion some videos that do not. One key example of this is 'Da Funk' by Daft Punk, which goes against a large number of conventions throughout it. The first is that, throughout the music video, the narrative is the primary focus whilst the song itself is effectively used as backing music. The characters talk over the music, therefore drawing the audience's attention away from the music, rather than towards it. This is, as a result, a strange method to use in a music video, which the sole purpose of is to showcase the song. Another aspect of 'Da Funk' that is unusual is that the volume and clearness of the music depends on where the character is in respect to the camera, as the song is supposed to seem as though it is coming out of the character's boombox. For example, when the main character is looking through a shop window, and the camera is on the other side of window to the character, the music sounds low and muffled. This is a strange thing to do within a music video, as it distorts and mutes the music, therefore not allowing the audience to properly listen to the song. Lastly, this music video is also unconventional in terms of its narrative. Whilst it is not unusual for music videos to have slightly vague storylines, the storyline for 'Da Funk' is exceptionally vague, with many aspects of the music video being unexplained or not being hinted at to have a deeper meaning. Some examples of this are the main character's broken leg, or the fact that he's a dog. This therefore confuses the audience and, as the music is not being presented as the primary focus, causes them to focus on working out what the narrative is about rather than truly listening to the music. It is for these reasons that 'Da Funk' is an unconventional music video.

Director Study: Francis Lawrence

Though Francis Lawrence creates very different music videos to the type of music video and narrative that my group and I want to create, there are several aspects of Lawrence's work that we can incorporate into our own project. One key example of this is the editing, as Lawrence uses a varying range of editing on and off beat in a way that keeps the video dynamic and interesting to watch. For this reason, we will be likely to take inspiration from Lawrence's method of editing. Another way in which we have taken inspiration from Francis Lawrence's work is in his wide variety of shot types. In his 'Bad Romance' video, Lawrence uses numerous different creative shot types and camera movements to make the video unique and interesting to watch, and my group will ensure that we use this example for ideas to use in our own music video. An example of this is the shot in 'Bad Romance' when the camera pans sideways, slowly bringing Lady Gaga into the frame. 

Our Chosen Song: 'Shark' - Oh Wonder

For the song in our music video, we have decided to do 'Shark' by Oh Wonder. Oh Wonder is a British indie pop band consisting of the duo Josephine Vander Gucht and Anthony West. We have chosen this song as we feel it is fitting of the indie pop genre, and we have already been able to come up with some ideas of what our music video could be about, based on the lyrics and atmosphere of the song itself.

One example of this is that we could do a music video with a vague narrative, which features a teenage girl walking along the street visiting places that she visited with her ex-boyfriend. As she sees places, there are cuts to flashbacks of her time with him, paired with cuts of her lip syncing as she walks. We are also planning to use editing such as eyeline match and split screen.

Conventions of Indie Pop Music Videos

Analysing Pop Music Videos 2

Analysing Pop Music Videos

Carol Vernallis's Theory Behind Music Videos

Andrew Goodwin's Theory Behind Music Videos

Album Cover Analysis

Low Budget Music Videos

Despite being a low budget music video, this group's recreation of 'Just Got Paid' appears fairly high budget, due to the effective use of editing, camerawork and mise-en-scene. One of the first examples of this is the costumes. As the whole group are wearing suits, this not only connotes high quality and wealth, but it is very stereotypical of boy bands to all wear the same outfit, with only small alterations between each one. This therefore made the music video appear more genuine, and added to the quality of it. Another aspect of the music video is the fast-paced editing, which works to make the video seem energetic and adds a high energy to the atmosphere, therefore making it appear higher budget. In addition to this, the video also uses lighting to a high standard, such as when the group are standing in a line and a light comes on behind each member in succession, revealing their silhouette to the camera. This is a typical piece of lighting often used in music videos which, similarly to the costumes, makes the music video appear more genuine and high budget. Furthermore, the use of a handheld camera, when paired with direct mode of address, makes the audience feel as though they are a part of the video -- therefore immersing them in the video, and making it seem higher budget than it actually is.

Another example of a low budget music video which appears high budget is this version of Imogen Heap's 'A-ha!', which features a large amount of editing, mise-en-scene and camerawork. One of the most prominent pieces of editing is the use of superimposition, which is used several times throughout the music video, in order to give a busy and distorted atmosphere to the music video. This is therefore effective in making the music video appear high budget, as it replicates professional music videos of its genre well. Secondly, the music video also features extreme closeups, which maintain a sense of mystery to the girl in the video as you never fully see her face, and therefore adds to the suspenseful atmosphere -- once again improving the quality of the video and making it seem higher budget by following the conventions of its genre. Furthermore, the music video also uses a large amount of props, such as a music box and rope. These, on occasion, relate to the lyrics (such as the use of the rope on the word 'tied' in the lyrics) and therefore create a link between the song and the music video. They also work to add to the unnatural, eerie atmosphere of the music video, which once again relates to the genre and therefore gives the impression that the music video is high budget. Lastly, another piece of editing used in the music video is the use of a black and white filter, which on occasion highlights the colour red. As this colour could connote danger or blood, this contributes to the creepy atmosphere of the music video, and as a result, once again follows conventions of the genre and feeling of the song.

                                                          

By watching these music videos, I was able to consider what similar methods I would like to employ in my own music video, in order to make it look high budget despite actually being low budget. One example of this is the use of lighting in 'Just Got Paid', when the silhouette of each member of the group is revealed by a light behind them turning on. This method would be great for a music video in the pop genre, as it is quite a stereotypical effect, and therefore if I choose to do a pop music video I could include this. Another piece of music video which I could take inspiration from is the close up used in 'A-ha!' which shows a close up of the singer's lips as she mimes the words. This particular aspect of the music video is used in a wide range of genres, such as pop and rock, and therefore can be used in a large amount of music videos I may choose to do. It also works with grittier, more alternative music videos to create a mysterious atmosphere as it doesn't show the singers face. Lastly, another shot which I may also take inspiration from for my own music video is the use of a close up on one of the group members feet as he dances in 'Just Got Paid'. This works to show the artists talent, and is often used in a variety of different genres of music video. For this reason, it would be an interesting shot to use in my own music video.

Advertisement Research

Rock Music Video Analysis: 'Teenage Dirtbag' - Wheatus

This music video is typical of its genre as it, similarly to Green Day's '21 Guns', includes close ups of instruments and characters faces. In addition to this, the music video also cross cuts between performance shots and narrative, showing the band not only miming to the song but play the instrumental too. Lastly, the music video is also typical of the rock genre due to the fact it has a steady pace of editing.

Rock Music Video Analysis: '21 Guns' - Green Day

 



This music video is typical of the genre of punk rock due to the fact that, unlike pop music videos, it includes no dancing whatsoever. It also has a large amount of close ups that are not necessarily of the singer miming, such as the close ups of the characters and instruments. Furthermore, the video also includes gritty mise-en-scene that is typical of the genre, such as the bullet holes and the overall dull, sepia colouring of the music video. Lastly, the video also cuts to the beat.

Pop Music Video Analysis: 'Shake It Off' - Taylor Swift

This music video is typical of its genre (pop) due to the fact that it features the artist and involves a large amount of singing and dancing, which it crosscuts between. The music video also features a direct mode of address, which is very typical of pop videos, and this makes the audience feel as though they are a part of the video. Furthermore, there is also a wide range of colourful costumes used in the video, and the singer is miming along to their own song throughout the video.

Pop Music Video Analysis: 'Uptown Funk' - Bruno Mars

This video is typical of its genre as, like many other pop music videos, it includes cross-cutting involving singing and dancing sequences, bright costumes and the singer being featured in the video, as well as fast-paced editing and an overall energetic atmosphere. In addition to this, the singer is also miming along to the lyrics throughout the video, which is once again a typical convention of pop music videos.

Conventions Of Music Videos