Music Video Assignment

The Purposes of a Music Video

Music Videos can have many purposes, they can be used as a great advertising tool or a shocking turn of character. An example of a turn of character would be the recent Miley Cyrus image turn that caused great publication and controversy, The Music video 'We Can't Stop' showed this shocking transformation that is speculated to be purposely done as to cause maximum publicity for her music, obviously the controversial music video was watched millions of times  in just a few days at this current moment the video has 506,110,134 views on YouTube this generates  her millions of dollars in advertising revenue and is overall a massive success, however her public image was some what stained as her former status as a role model for younger audiences was shattered as the video showed numerous drug references that showed them in a positive light whereas most should be anti-drug and promiscuous sexual references which glorified having guilt free sex with anyone this again obviously angered parents and peers as the majority of her fans are aged between 12 and 17. Above is the video in question I would say prepare yourself but it really wouldn't cut it.  

Music Videos can have other goals than just money and shock for instance they can be used to tell a story whether sad or funny, they can be used to express an artists feelings through the story told via a music video an example of a music video that is used to convey a feeling would be the music video to the song 'So Far Away' By Avenged Sevenfold. The reason the music video is displaying emotion is because it was originally written for someones dying relative but after the tragic death of the bands drummer it was released as a tribute to him, The music video features the four remaining members of the band playing in a studio and also driving a car through a neighborhood Throughout the video, flashbacks of the four play. They are shown as children playing in a garage, then teens playing and hanging out, and stealing alcohol from a store. There is a scene in the video in which a young Sullivan is depicted riding the handlebars of a bike being ridden by a young M. Shadows, kicking over a metal trash can on the street. During the bridge, a collection of photos and videos of the Rev play. It ends with a clip of the band members hugging, the song sad in its nature is amplified by the music video by 100% mainly because of the 'coming of age' story it tells.

Music videos have also been used to show an artists talent as a film maker or director and talent as an actor a good example of this purpose would be the music video to the song 'Bad Motherfucker'By Biting Elbows. The Music video is a amazing example of directing and synergy as the song was made to be a music video, front man Ilya Naishuller (Russian Born, Educated in England) shows off his directing talent as well as his vocal skills, the video has a perfect mix of directing and cinematography utilizing the use of a first person perspective via a GO PRO camera and an energetic and wild stuntman, the video also uses great special and visual effects, However the purpose of the music video is quite clever acting as a portfolio the Music video has allowed him to be able to go on to direct a feature length film using the same style of first person ultra violent action this in my opinion was the videos purpose all along as it got him the nick name of the 'Russian Tarantino' the video again propelled them into the spotlight gaining new fans every week, as of now the video has 25,604,874 views on YouTube.

Styles and Conventions of a Music Video      

There is lots of different styles of music videos some can tell a story, some can just playing showing off their skill sometimes they are used to convey a strong emotion that the band/artist is feeling, a big technique used in music videos is 'cutting to the beat' this is when a series of edits or cuts are employed in post to make the video so it and the music move as one. There is also a lot of conventions that can be found within music videos for example Allusion is where a music video is filmed so it makes it looks like something actually happened but it is actually just edited together nicely this is also used in films for example a car or plane crash, a music video might reference another artists dead or alive for whatever reason linking one artists to another is another convention of music videos, Lyrical interpretations is when the video has a scene that shows what the lyrics are actually saying for example in the music video 'Little Piece Of Heaven' the lyrics describe stabbing someone 'Fifty Fucking Times'(1:15) and ripping someones heart before their eyes(1:20)

the music video in turn shows the act of stabbing someone and ripping out their heart right before their eyes. 
There is some different styles of music videos for example there is a performance based style which is a music video that shows the actual arist(s) performing a live gig as a official video an example of this would be the music video 'This Means War' By Avenged Sevenfold the video plays off as a video that showcases the craziness of their fans in South America.
There is also the style of a more narrative music video which tells a story to the audience whether sad or fun an example would be the before mentioned 'Little Piece Of Heaven' which tells a story about dark love and err some not so nice stuff.Music Videos can also be surreal which guarantees them to be quirky and fun and sometimes silly although some can have a darker undertone. There is also the style of animated music videos, these types are becoming increasingly popular for an example I would refer you to 'Little Piece Of Heaven' as this music video is animated (thank god)it can make use of different angels and cinematography styles much more easily if a live action one had to make the same shots.
A one shot music video is quite unique in the sense that it can be hard to achieve as it might require some fast moving and camera trickery a well known one shot music video that made clever use of zoom is 'Imitation of Life' By R.E.M the video is unique because the video is just short loop of footage of a big pool party outside, and every couple of seconds the camera zooms into a little individual event that is taking place it shows that then zooms out to a wide shot then back into something else that is happening rinse and repeat for 4 mins.