Key points from "The Kindest cut: functions and meanings of music video editing."

1. "the editing seems to have a rhythmic basis closely connected to the song."

2. "Music video's disjunctive editing keeps us within ever-changing surface of the song."

3. "graphic match" "Such an edit joins two shots through shared compositional elements such as colour or shape."

4. "Low-angle shots are used more extensively in music videos, partly because they reproduce the relations among audience, performer and stage."

5. "This edit might contain a roughened edge (say, a bit of film leader and a white flash sandwiched between the shots) that makes it work like a jump-cut"

6. "Music videos and Hollywood films share a basic premise: that visual information can be communicated by cutting between three kinds of shot - long, medium and close up."

7. "Camera movement in music video also differs from that of film. Most music videos make such extensive use of the dolly that a static shot seems anomalous."

8. "Music video image is relatively discontinuous. Time unfolds unpredictably and without clear reference points."

9."Showcasing the star"

Star Theory

Imagine  Dragons



I think they are Performers because they haven't got a alternate image and come across as themselves as normal people.

A star is relative to who you like and what you like. This means an individual will see someone as a star when someone else will not or as much of a star due to their personal tastes. In perspective of Imagine Dragons they are not quite as well known, as their marketing is not as pushed like other stars like Miley Cyrus.

There is a normative image about them making it hard to tell if they have created a persona. Although there outfits match genre conventions (dark with denim) but still look casual.

Miley Cyrus

Star - Created a persona. She acts her age by being youthful at 21 just coming of age to drink. She is quite rebellious in her actions both in her music videos and in public appearances, almost always trying to stand out in whatever she's doing.
She has a disregard for social values as she dresses inappropriately for example in the music video "Wrecking  Ball" she is wearing almost nothing during the video. She has also succeeded against all odds because she is hated among many individuals.

Richard Dyer's paradox 1 states that "The star must be simultaneously ordinary and extraordinary for the consumer."
In relation the Imagine Dragons they come across as casual, normal ordinary people but are extraordinary because of their talent, record label and stage presence.

Textural analysis of a music video using Mulvey's "Male Gaze" theory

http://youtu.be/yyDUC1LUXSU

Song: Blurred Lines

Artist: Robin Thicke

The video supports the theory, it does this by having a lot of scantly clothed girls surrounding men, this highlights that men are seen as dominant. Their dominance can be seen by their suits as there are symbol of authority and power stressing the a patriarchal with it being in contrast with the girl being naked which comes across as vulnerable and manipulated. The mans body language suggests ownership due to his close, intimate hold of the girl, making it seen as an object for his gratification.

In contradiction the girl appears to "play along" with mans flirts, not being forced to do something she doesn't want to do. Also that their is "shared gaze" between the characters, which means that you are looking at both of the characters and not just the woman. 

 

    
This shows the representation of women as a sexual fantasy from a heterosexual male point of view and large amounts of scopophilia. The video suggest to the viewer that the men have some form of authority/control over the women whom seem to only be their to be looked at. Although the women seem to be "playing along" with the men's activity.


This image highlights the active and passive features of the theory. The man appears Animated whilst the girls seem to be static, this suggest that the man is in control (as if they are under his spell) and has told them not to move. There is representation of women as a sexual fantasy and from a heterosexual male point of view in the picture above there is 1 fully dressed man and 3 minimally dressed girls, which is a typical male fantasy and he is covering his groin with his coat pocket.

Music video genre texural analaysis

http://youtu.be/ScNNfyq3d_w

Song: Castle Of Glass

Artist: Linken Park

Genre: Rock

The Music video has very low saturation and dull colours throughout with a key theme of conflict and warfare.  The video also remains a state of sadness which is seen quite a bit in rock videos.


Throughout the video there are instances of actual soldiers and in game footage of "Medal Of Honour: Warfighter" which fits with the conventions of rock music.
Although at the beginning it is slow paced and quite which doesn't fit the conventions of rock music.
The video does support Fiske's theory "genre relfectthe zeitgeist" as the setting for the video is current conflict and military. It also supports Hodge and Kress as it's connection to a video game, the game publishers probably asked for a lot of things to be added and to keep inside conventions.

Godwin's music video analysis

(Glam rock)
(A style of rock music first popular in the early 1970s, characterized by male performers wearing exaggeratedly flamboyant clothes and make-up)http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/glam-rock


Bowie's make up, hairstyle and outfit tell the audience the genre (glam rock). The video also has constant shots of Bowies face (showing off his glamour) and he is the only person in the video on a plane white background so the audience is only focusing on Bowie. Some of Bowie's movements relate to some parts of the song they only seem to amplify the lyrics, the video is mainly him standing around looking glamorous. There is a high demand from the record label as Bowie is never out of shot and there are constant close ups of his face, this seems to be support a motif. There is no notion of looking, there is only one image at once, there is only a slight voyeuristic treatment of the male body and there are no clear intertexual references. 

CD cover analist