Carrying out Research

Production Diary #3

Currently I have been carrying out research on music videos and more precisely, this week I have been looking into the history of them. Through always showing an interest in watching music videos by various artists it is quite interesting to see the historical development of how they have got to the point they are at today. With the music industry starting with 'talkies' 'soundies' and 'shorties' there has been a consistent evolution over the years which has been benefited through the increase in technological advances and also through media convergence which has helped with the promotion of these music videos. An example of this is with YouTube where daily, thousands of music videos will be uploaded and shared across the internet.

By researching the history of music videos, it will help me consider what style of music video I wish to produce. Whether I might go for a narrative based video, a performance based video, a lyric video or one filmed against a green screen. It has also opened my eyes to the idea of basing it on a film or another theme for example.

Another aspect of music videos that I have been looking at is the conventions of music videos and have linked research that I have carried out from the other half of my course (G325) with the work I have been doing on this half (G324). Specifically I have looked at representation, genre, media language, audience and narrative. Even though this research is not specific to my coursework, it is interesting to look at how music videos that are shown on the internet and also television can adhere to these conventions. Furthermore, when specifically looking at the representational issues to consider within a music video, I picked up on a few key points when analysing the music video 'If I Were A Boy' by the artist Beyonce through the means of mis en scene.