Demographics are memorable characteristics of media consumers such as age, gender, race, education and income level or occupation. It is a common and traditional method of audience research that uses the populations statistical information, their characteristics and the work that they do to distinguish different groups of people.(These groups are shown in the table below.) By looking at these demographics, it helps an institution to understand how to target a product to a specific audience which then allows them to shape their product to appeal to this group with known viewing habits.
A - Upper Middle Class
Predominantly, upper class people are more associated with listening to classical music. It is expected that when one visits the opera, people will not be dressed in tracksuits, because these people would generally be from a lower class, such as D, or E. There are very few classical music videos on YouTube, which reflects the lifestyle of the people from this class. They might not have time to watch music videos, therefore there is no need to produce them.
B - Middle Class -
C1 - Lower Middle class - People in this class
C2 - Skilled working Class -
D - Working Class - Generally, people from the working class tend to listen to music that is presented too them. This means that their music taste will consist of chart music because of the environment that they are in. The radio might play whilst at work, meaning that this musical style start to become recognisable, therefore appealing. However, this might mean that they listen to forms of rock in order to escape the work environment.
E - Casual/Lowest grade workers - These people may listen to music which they feel reflects their lifestyle, such as rap music, or merely consume what if fed to them on chart shows. A graduate student from a company called "CalTech" did some research which studied the relationship between musical styles and bands and the SAT scores of the people who listened to them. He found that the smartest students listened to Beethoven (average SAT of 1371) and the students who rung in at the bottom of the SAT scores listened to Lil’ Wayne (average SAT of 889). This can be seen in the chart of results below:
This leaves several questions unanswered in relation to cause and effect.Do you choose music based on your intelligence? Is it related to the individual's personality? Can listening to certain types of music heighten, or lessen your intelligence? Do people gravitate towards a certain type of music because they are smart and think that it will make them seem smarter? However, it does show a correlation between music preference, and intelligence. This is useful when analysing which genres of music are more popular in relation to where they stand when considering what demographic they are in. It gives an insight into the relationship between social class and music preference, because it is likely that someone working in a managerial position would have a higher SAT score than an unskilled manual worker.
Gerry Veenstra (author and professor at UBC's Department of sociology) states that:“Breadth of taste is not linked to class. But class filters into specific likes and dislikes”.
http://www.trinity.edu/mkearl/str-musc.html
C1-D
I aim for my product to appeal to people from these demographics.
Conventions of form are held with all music videos, and are unchanging. Conventions of genre are determined by the genre of the music behind the video. Music video itself is a genre, intended to appeal directly to youth subcultures by reinforcing generic elements of music genre. Genre conventions stay the same but the style (the look of something) changes between genres. It is a medium known for being experimental and controversial. David Bordwell (1989) stated that any theme may appear in any genre.
The conventions of music video differ from one genre to another. For example, in the rap genre, the mise-en-scene often includes cars, females wearing what is generally considered as 'provocative', and would be set in an urban area. There are often violent references included in the video, with cinematographic techniques such as a low camera angle to reinforce this concept of power which is a dominant theme alongside money in the rap genre. I looked at the videos in YouTube's "electronic" playlist, and recorded things included in the mise-en-scene. I did this because The audience for electronic music has different needs, therefore providing a different visual experience. Doing so helped me to gain an understanding of conventions throughout different genres.
The videos that I looked at when conducting my research into electronic music videos are as follows:
I also did the same within the indie genre, this helped me make a comparison between the different elements included in the mise-en-scene, and gain an understanding of the different cinematographic techniques used.
The videos that I looked at when conducting my research into 'indie' music videos are as follows:
In contrast to the videos from an electronic genre, videos for indie music seem to contain similar, if higher levels of violence, and tend to promote the use of alcohol and/or drugs more frequently. In addition to this, there is little reference to futuristic technologies. This explains the difference in audience interests. It makes sense that people who enjoy 'electronic' music, which is produced in a more electronic way than indie music, are more likely to consume music videos that are more focused on technology because it is something that appeals to them. In 1989, David Bordwell stated that any theme may appear in any genre. This means that despite certain themes being more prominent in any specific genre, they are not bound to this genre.
I picked out any noticeable editing techniques, and elements within the mise-en-scene which reinforce the themes presented in the videos. I also noted the locations used, and by creating a visual representation of the videos using images that I have gathered using google images, I have managed to gain an understanding of the general atmosphere that tends to be created by 'indie' music videos. In general, they seem to reflect non-conformity, by using elements that are often associated with negative connotations. Examples from the videos I have researched include: fire, graffiti, metal gates, violence, smoking, and the consumption of drugs and alcohol.
Genre is a a tool that aids us in studying texts and audiences responses to texts by dividing them into categories based on common elements. Daniel
Chandler (2001)
argued that the word genre comes from the French (and originally Latin) word
for 'kind' or 'class'. The term is widely used in rhetoric, literary theory,
media theory to refer to a distinctive type of text. All genres have sub genres, meaning a genre
within a genre.This means that they are divided up
into more specific categories that allow us as an audience to identify them
specifically by their familiar and recognisable characteristics (Barry
Keith Grant, 1995)
Steve Neal - Dynamic genre
(1995) stresses that “genres are not ‘systems’ they are processes of systematization”, this means that they are dynamic and evolve
over time.
Jason Mittel - Cultural categories
In 2001, he argued that genres are cultural
categories that surpass the boundaries of media texts and operate within
industry, audience, and cultural practices as well. Industries use genre to
sell products to audiences. Media producers use familiar codes and conventions
that very often make cultural references to their audience's knowledge of
society, other texts. Genre also allows audiences to make
choices about what products they want to consume through acceptance in order to
fulfil a particular pleasure.
Rick Altman - Genre pleasure
In 1999, Altman argued that genre offers audiences ‘a set
of pleasures’. These consist of:
Emotional
Pleasures: The emotional pleasures offered to
audiences of genre films are particularly significant when they generate a
strong audience response.
Visceral
Pleasures: Visceral pleasures (‘visceral’ refers to internal organs) are ‘gut’ responses and are defined by how the film’s stylistic construction elicits a physical effect upon its audience.
This can be a feeling of revulsion, kinetic speed, or a ‘roller coaster ride’.
Intellectual
Puzzles: Certain film genres such as the
thriller or the ‘whodunit’ offer the pleasure in trying to unravel a mystery or a puzzle.
Pleasure is derived from deciphering the plot and forecasting the end or the
being surprised by the unexpected.
Nicholas Abercrombie - Hybrid genres
Nicholas Abercrombie suggests that 'the boundaries between genres are shifting and becoming more permeable'. The conventions of each genre shift, new genres and sub-genres emerge and others are 'discontinued' (though note that certain genres seem particularly long-lasting). Tzvetan Todorov argued that 'a new genre is always the transformation of one or several old genres
David Buckingham - Genre as change
This is the idea that genres are not fixed, but are constantly changing, and evolving over time. In 1993, Buckingham argues that 'genre is not simply "given" by the culture. Instead, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change’.
Over the years genres develop and
change as the wider society that produce them also changes, a process that is
known as generic transformation. Christian Metz in his book Language
and Cinema (1974) argued that genres go through a typical cycle of changes
during their lifetime:
Experimental Stage
Classic Stage
Parody Stage
Deconstruction Stage
He believed that children and young people have identities that don't exist at all and are constantly changing. He looked at their interactions with electronic media and believes that the constant change of media is to do with their constant change in identities. The media shows the bad sides of society and the world and therefore means that parents keep their children hidden from this reality. With children and young people spending a lot of time around the media, they are learning too much about the world and are constantly changing their identities, views and opinions based on what they observe.
The official video: (Cloud Nothings - Stay Useless)
The second single from the album "Attack on Memory" was "Stay Useless," released December 9, 2011, and received a Best New Track designation from Pitchfork Media.
Lyrics:
Can I see, what’s going wrong with me?
I used to have it all, now I’m alone
I’d never say, I’m better off this way
I need something to do, somewhere to go
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time
How can I feel, so utterly unreal?
Like nothing I could do, would make things change
I’m stuck in here, and I’m tired of everywhere
I’m never gonna learn, to be alone
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time to stop moving, I need time to stay useless
I need time
Analysis: The title "Stay useless" instantly connotes an unsettling sense of idle tranquillity, from which the individual in question cannot escape. It is a frank, and self depreciating portrait of a familiar kind of anhedonic ambivalence. The lyrics, in their entirety, describe a youth struggling to find their place in society, but could be interpreted in a multitude of ways due to the ambiguous nature of the song. Dylan Baldi, the lead vocalist and writer of the song, was seeking a reason to leave college and make a living in such a way that was more befitting of his interests. This song seems to reflect this notion, both lyrically and visually (in the official video). The official video offers an insight into the life of a youth, which is made clear through the mise-en-scene we as an audience are resented with. For Example, the video contains a yellow school bus which is an iconic American symbol representing the educational system. This in addition to the costume of the character; a hoodie, which instantly signifies youth shows what stage of life the individual is in. This may explain why he is going through the struggles presented in the song.
"all" - The lyrics surrounding this suggest an element of loneliness that consumes him, that he cannot get rid of despite his efforts. "All" refers to what he has lost, which in relation to the word alone, suggests a loss of people. These people may include a partner, family, or friends. It also makes the audience question why he is alone.
"alone" -This implies the loss of a support system. Mental illness is taboo, and it is a possibility that the individual feels this way because he feels as though it cannot be discussed. Other people don't seem to understand what he is going through.
"Stuck in here" - This makes the audience question exactly where "here" is. It could denote a literal, and specific place, or a a bad head-space. It could be a reflection of the way his career is going
"tired" - The individual in question feels physically and mentally drained.
"utterly unreal" - What is happening seems uncontrolable. The individual may feel as though they are in disbelief that they have been struck with such an illness. It also connotes the idea of out of body experiences, and moving through life feeling ungrounded.
"Like nothing I could do would make things change" - Here, there is an implied theme of mental illness with a distorted sense of reality. It leads the audience to question if he has tried to change things, or if he feels so helpless that nothing change in order help him. People often feel helpless when suffering with mental illnesses.
"I need time to stop moving" - This connotes the idea that he is 'moving' but his actions feel useless. He needs this time to reflect on his life, and his career, and some 'down-time' to process what is going on in his life. It is possible that this shows how, as a youth, he feels like he is made to make important decisions that will impact greatly on his future. This concept is reinforced by the repetition of "I need time". Feeling Helpless, he needs this time.
"I need time to stay useless" - The use of the word "stay" suggests that the individual already feels useless, and he wishes to stay this way. By stating that he "needs" time dramatises the song, showing it is empirical that he gets this time in order to sort what ever he is trying to sort out.
Lyric Timings:
0 - 24s
Instrumental
-26s Can I see
-29s what’s
going wrong with me
-31s I used to
have it all
-35s now I’m
alone
-38s I’d never
say
-41s I’m better
off this way
-43s I need
something to do,
-46s somewhere
to go
-48s I need
time to stop moving,
-52s I need
time to stay useless
-55s I need
time to stop moving,
-58s I need
time to stay useless
-1m I need time
to stop moving,
-1m 3s I need time
to stay useless
-1m9s I need time
-1m12s How can I
feel
-1m 14s so utterly
unreal?
-1m 17s Like nothing
I could do
-1m 20s would make
things change
-1m 22s I’m stuck in
here
-1m 25s and I’m
tired of everywhere
-1m 28s I’m never
gonna learn
-1m 31s to be alone
-1m 34s I need time
to stop moving,
-1m 37s I need time
to stay useless
-1m 39s I need time
to stop moving,
-1m 42s I need time
to stay useless
-1m 45s I need time
to stop moving,
-1m 48s I need time
to stay useless
-1m 53s I need time
-1m 59s Oh, oh, oh
-2m 4s Oh, oh, oh
-2m 10s Oh, oh, oh
-2m 14s Oh, oh, oh
-2m 18s I need time
to stop moving,
-2m 21s I need time
to stay useless
-2m 23s I need time
to stop moving,
-2m 26s I need time
to stay useless
-2m 29s I need time
to stop moving,
-2m 31s I need time
to stay useless -2m 37s I need time
Throws arms out in disparity, looks angry with a melancholic undertone
Kicks a bin
Hurts foot
Finger presses button
Crosses road
Pushes door open
Lock door
Flicks kettle on
Birds eye view of hot coffee
Grabs paper
Looks at paper
Close up of date
Throws paper on table
Opens bedroom door
Plays guitar
Starts miming
Breaks fourth wall
Cut between different shots in accordance to lyrics connotations
Close up of eyes opening wide
Pulls head back, change to a shot on the side and see it is drawn back so he can nut his mirror, back to portrait shot, screen goes back as his forehead hits the camera in slow-mo,
Reverse shot of the fist coming away from the screen(a punch to the lens played backwards)
(cont...)
Idea 2:
Main protagonists: two teen boys; (1), and (2).
(1)Close up of putting trainers on
(2)Close up of pulling zip up on hoodie
(1)Close up of hand grabbing metal bar
Both come out of garage laughing
Walking down a back street (filmed from behind)
(1) hands the (2) the bar
turning onto a field, he conceals it in his clothing
Finds a football in a bush
Close up of joyous face
(2)Football footwork
Penalties, bins as goal-posts. None get saved. Quick shots of each attempted save.
Low MCU of striker signalling to leave
(in the back street) stupid dancing, running with the ball in his hands, cut to a closer shot
(2) pushes (1)
(1) falls slightly, throwing the ball directly into a young boy's hands.
Handheld shot of alcohol on the shelves of a corner shop
Extreme close up of (1)'s eyes, looking suspicious, darting side to side
Cut to shot of (1)'s hand grabbing beer
Cut back to eye shot, looking in the direction of the till/woman at the till
Cut to shot of woman at the till who is occupied with a customer
Cut to a body shot of him concealing beer inside his coat
Two shot (2) has a bottle in hand, trying to fit in pocket
Woman looks up, points
(cont...)
Idea 3:
Song choice: "Where is my mind" by the pixies.
fish eye lens
filmed partially in third person - as if the protagonist is unaware of the camera
filmed partially with third person narrative - including point of view shots.
video including: scenic shots (ie, skateboarding, blowing smoke rings in coloured lighting - reinforcing demographic related stereotyping)
Locations: protagonists own bedroom, his friends bedroom, skate-park
In this section we do not see the protagonists entire face.
(wake up) BIV angle
POV angle showing closed blinds
blinds open, camera stationary, shows grim weather outside
light on - match on action ECU
handheld POV as going down the stairs
open front door MCU
opens into friends bedroom MCU
(rewind future section)
opens front door to outside MCU
pulls hat on CU
lights cigarette (stereotyping) CU
show money in hand (change), placed down.
CU uncut shot of ticket coming out of machine - long continuous shot - drug abuse
filmed from a seat behind on bus - protagonist looking out of the window.
stepping off the bus as a WS, look left look right
Location 2: friends bedroom
door scene - match on action - opening from outside CU
Every medium has its own language, or combination of languages that it uses to communicate meaning. Television, for example, uses verbal and written language as well as the languages of moving images and sound. we call these 'languages' because they use familiar codes and conventions that are generally understood. Languages of newspapers: masthead, headline. Media messages are constructed using a creative language with it's own rules. Each form of communication has its own creative language: scary music heightens fear, camera close ups convey intimacy.There are formal codes and conventions, and generic code and conventions. A media text is made up of two things: form, and content. Gaining an understanding the grammar, syntax, and metaphor system of media language increases our appreciation and enjoyment of media experiences as well as helping us to be less susceptible to manipulation.
Semiotics is the science of signs. According to American philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce (1931) "we only think in signs". These signs take the form of words, images, sounds, odours, flavours, acts or objects. These things have no intrinsic meaning, they become signs because we invest them with meaning. Anything is a sign as long as someone interprets it signifying something "nothing is a sign unless it is interpreted as a sign". We interpret things as signs at a subconscious level by relating them to familiar conventions.
He states that there are three types of sign:
Icon/ iconic: A mode in which the signifier is perceived as resembling or imitating the signified..
Index/indexical: A mode in which the signifier is not arbitrary but is directly connected in some way (physically or causally) to the signified - this link can be observed or inferred.
Symbol/symbolic: A mode in which the signifier does not resemble the signified but which is fundamentally arbitrary..
In semiotics, denotation and connotation are terms describing the relationship between the signifier and it's signified, and an analytic distinction is made between two types of signified: a denotative signified and a connotative signified. Meaning includes both connotation and connotation.
Roland Barthes(1967) nothed that s.'s model of the sign focused on denotation at the expense of connotation and it was left to subsequent theorists
death of the author//true meaning comes from the audience//we interpret the signs and give them meaning. In 1977 he argued that in photography connotation can be analytically distinguished from denotation. related to connotation is what Barthes refers to as myth. For Barthes, myths were the dominant ideologies of our time. The 1st and second orders of signification called denotation and connotation combine to produce ideology - which has been described as the third order of signification by Fiske and Hartley (1982).
John Fiske(1982): "denotation is what is photographed, connotation is how it is photographed".
This means that how something is presented can change its meaning. Eg:high angle/low angle.
Paradigms and syntagms
Roman Jakobson (1956), and later Claude Levi-Strauss, emphasised that meaning arises from the differences between signifiers; these differences are of two kinds: syntagmatic (positioning of the audience), and paradi... concerning institution. In film and television, paradigms include ways of changing shot (such as cut, dade, dissolve, wipe). The medium or genre are also paradigms, and particular media texts derive meaning from the ways in which the medium and genre used differs from the alternative.
Evaluating media language is an evaluation of all the mico elements and how they have created meaning to inform us about genre, narrative, representation/ideology, targeting of audience. This therefore requires us to use semiotic terminology to explain our encoding of elements and codes and conventions within our texts. We must also remember to to discuss the preferred meaning (Hall 1980) that we wanted our audience to decode based on what we encoded - could lenk to readings.
I looked at many music videos across different genres to identify the themes that tend to appear. When looking at indie music, and alt rock, these music videos in particular stood out to me because of the way cinematography is used, the way that the song is edited, what is reflected in the mise-en-scene, and how that relates to the song lyrically, and visually. I aim to reflect some of these elements in my final product.
In his book 'Dancing in the distraction factory', Andrew Goodwin points out characteristics and features that can be found in music videos.
Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics.
There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals.
There is a relation between music and visuals.
The demands of a record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work.
There is frequently reference to the notion of looking, and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
There are often inter-textual references to films, TV programmes, and other music videos.
Developed in the 1920s, and 1930s, he theory states that mass media has a direct, and immediate effect on its audience. It suggests that the media acts like a needle, and 'injects' information directly into our brain. Thus, impacting the audience immediately. The theory was developed due to the growing use of television, and radio, meaning marketing was more prominently used via the media. Now, the theory has little relevance and is considered out of date due to the vast amount of information accessible to an audience via the internet, and other forms of media. To an extent, the media brainwashes us and controls us, and who we are due to the ideologies we are presented with. Because we are passive, we soak up and believe the information we are presented with, and all act and respond in the same way to a given stimulus within the media. An audience is powerless in resisting the impact of the given message.
This concept is refuted by the work of Stuart Hall, but supported by evidence from Bandura which aimed to investigate if children would imitate violent behaviors carried out by an adult. In this experiment, the children watched a video of an adult acting violently toward a 'bobo doll'. 88% of these children then imitated the behaviors that they had previously witnessed. This supports the hypodermic needle theory, showing what we see in the media can have a direct impact on an audience. Other real life examples that can be used in application to the hypodermic needle theory, such as the violent attacks resulting in rape, and murder, by a group of deviant teenagers after watching the film Clockwork Orange. Mass media can directly influence an large group of people by 'injecting' this audience with appropriate messages designed to trigger an appropriate response.
Cons of this theory include the fact that not everyone consumes media in the same way, or necessarily believe what they hear. The development of new technologies means that the devices we use to consume media are always changing. We are now more aware of society and how institutions operate, and the sources from which we gather information. we are now used to consuming mdia texts and have learnt the different conventions, meaning we know when to reject messages if we deem them to be insignificant in any way. Newer, and more up to date theories prove that audiences are not simply passive. This makes the theory invalid.
Uses and gratifications model - Bulmer and Katz
In Opposition to the effects model, the audience is active not passive, and uses the text rather than being used by it. An audience will use the text for their own gratification or pleasure. Here, the power lies with the audience, not with the institutions because they are free to consume, or reject elements of the media, if, and when they deem it appropriate.
This means that audiences therefore use the media as a means of escapism.........
Stuart Hall - Reception theory
The
reception theory states that media texts are encoded by the producer meaning
that whoever produces the text fills the product with values and messages. The
text is then decoded by the audience. Different
members of the audience will decode the text in different ways, not always in the way the
producer intended.
Dominant or Preferred Reading: The meaning they want you to have is usually accepted. The audience view the media text in the way that the producer intended, agreeing with the ideology and message behind the text.
Negotiated Reading: This is a compromise between the dominant and oppositional readings, whereby the audience accept the views of the producer, but also their own input and understanding in relation to the text. The dominant reading is only partially recognised or accepted and audiences might disagree with some of it or find their own meanings. They
understand what the institution want the message to be and how they are
supposed to consume the text, however they do not fully conform with the
message.
Oppositional Reading: The dominant reading is refused, and rejected because the reader disagrees with it or is offended by it, due to them interoperating the text in the wrong way. They may be offended, upset and fail to see the
intended message from the institution - especially for political, religious, feminist, reasons etc.
