Social Identity Theory

Viewers seek out messages in texts which support and validate there social identity.
Horward extended this in 1997. Selective choices in (especially media) texts where a form of social identity gratification.

7 Conventions Of A Short Film

Conventions of a short Film

• Non-Diegetic Music throughout, used as a backing track to reflect the overall mood of the film.
• No more than 3 characters, as the films is often too short for more characters to establish relationships and be portrayed to the audience. 
• Little or no dialogue.
• Film is often only shown in one location, so that the plot is simple to follow.
• Story line has to engage the audience from the beginning, its also very simple.
• Characters are basic, audience are shown only the story line on screen and no background detail is included.
• Plot is most often shown in chronological order, again this is to keep the film basic and easy to follow.

Deconstructing A Short Film

The Black Hole
Genre:        
I would say that this short movie is a Sci-Fi due to it being based around a 'black hole' and because it isn't based on a realistic situation. I would also say that it was a comedy due to the ironic ending. I would expect that the audience would predict it to be a 'sci-fi' due to the  title, however i don't think they would expect the humorous story line. 


Narrative:    
This movie runs in a chronological order. It develops quickly due to the short time limit. Finally it is open ended as you don't know whether the man is going to escape from the safe. In addition the film is climatic resulting in the most dramatic part being at the end. 


Characters:  
There is only one character included in the film, this works well as time isn't wasted introducing unnecessary characters or making characters establish relationships. I don't think that the office worker is a stereotypical character for the genre as i'd expect to see scientific characters rather than everyday workers. 


Technical:  
The most noticeable aspect of sound in the film is the fact that there is no dialogue involved what so ever, i feel that dialogue would distract the viewer from what's going on on screen. The sound effect of when the man puts his hand through the black hole is often used in horror movies, this could convey that trouble is just around the corner or heighten the Sci-Fi feel of the film. Close ups of the mans face add humour as his quirky expressions often show that he is planning something, heightening the viewers interest. 
Overall i feel that the sound effects are typical of the genre, however the lack of dialogue isnt, in addition i think that close-up shots are typical of the sci-fi genre however they are used to convey different things in this film. 

Young & Rubicam

Young and Rubicam based their research on Dr Maslow's hierarchy of needs. They designed a way of researching where people stood within this hierarchy in a way that could categorise everyone into different types of people. 

Young and Rubicam used maslows theorys to develop links between brands and character types. They developed this information  into one huge marketing tool. They also found that people from different countries were influenced by differing cultural backgrounds so they removed the effect of these backgrounds. It was called Cross Cultural Consumer Characterisation (4C's). 

The 4C's divides everyone into 7 types depending on their motivation.

1)The Explorer - These are people driven by a need for new discovery, challenge and new frontiers. Their core need is 'discovery'.

2)The Aspirer - Materialistic, acquisitive people who are driven by other's perceptions of them rather than by their own values. Their core need is 'status'

3)The Succeeder - They possess self-confidence, have strong goal orientation and tend to be very organised. Their core need is 'Control'.

4)The Reformer - Reformers are anti-materialistic and are often seen as intellectual. They seek 'Enlightenment'.

5)The Mainstream - These are people who live in the world of domestic and the everyday.

 They seek 'security'.

6)The Struggler - Strugglers live for today and rarely plan for tomorrow. They seek 'Escape'.

7)The Resigned - These are people with unchanging views over time. They seek to 'Survive'.

After studying and analysing the 7 types i'd say that i would fall under the category 'Mainstream'. My life revolves around the people close to me and i often find myself saying 'we' rather than 'me'. I respond most to big established and trustworthy brands and value for money. I also agree that my core need in life is security. 

I then watched a music video without the sound and tried to identify the type of person that would watch it. I chose 'Where's Your Head At?' by Basement Jaxx.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4hFwJm41h4

(FINISH OFF)!!!!

Conventions of Music Videos

After watching and analysing music videos across various years, i have noticed that certain conventions have been followed despite the fact that the industry is ever-changing. 
I found that it was common for videos from 2012 to follow the same conventions of videos released in the 60's. In addition i have also found that videos from different times will deliberately go against conventions in similar ways.


As a class we watched two videos and compared them both. The first was One Directions hit ' That's what makes you beautiful' from 2012 and the second was a hit from the 60's by The Exciters called 'Tell Him'. Despite the 50 year gap between the releases i found that there was a significant amount of similarities between the videos. 

Types Of Music Videos

There are 3 different types of music videos. 

Performance

A performance video is when the artists are filmed performing the song as if they were singing to an audience or viewer. This can vary from the artist miming the lyrics to the camera or a clip from a live performance being shown on screen. This is most common in genres such as rock.  This type of video is very effective as it makes the viewer want to see the artist live in concert, and also makes them feel more involved with the music. 

Concept

This is when there is a story involved in the music video, although it most often relates to the lyrics it can also have no relation to them. Producers will often do this so that the video revolves around something more memorable than the lyrics. 

Narrative

I think that this is the most vague way of defining a video. It involves the lyrics being included in the video in some way or another. This could be by the lyrics being shown on screen or by the video showing the story told by the lyrics.

Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin wrote about music videos in 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory' he described their characteristics through 6 points:


1) Music Videos demonstrate genre characteristics.
eg. stage performance for metal band.


2) There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals
(This can either be acting out literally or going against the meaning. 


3)There is a relationship between the music and visuals


4)The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist will develop motifs that will occur across their work (personal style)


5) There are frequent references to the notion of looking and particularly erotic treatment of the female body.


6)There is intertextual reference
(Film,Tv,Other music videos)

The Purpose Of Music Videos

What is the purpose of a music video?

Eminem & Rihanna - Love The Way You Lie. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uelHwf8o7_U

This video is both a narrative and performance video. It begins with the artist Rihanna miming the lyrics to the camera (extreme closeup) with a burning house behind her. The video is lyrically driven so when the words 'sit there and watch me burn' are sung and image of the house burning appears on screen. The 'male and female gaze' is a technique used throughout. The actor Megan Fox who has previously been voted the worlds sexiest woman stars in the video, this will attract male attention as they will find her attractive, also females will feel encouraged to watch the video as they idolise her, in addition the artist Rihanna will add to this. Famous Actors aren't often included in music videos, so the idea that Megan Fox stars in it suggests that it will act as a talking point for people who have watched the video. For example someone will say "Have you seen the video for Rihanna and Eminems new song, it has Megan Fox in?" this will encourage whoever they're talking to to watch it.
I also noted the similarities in the first ever rap videos and this one. In Funkadoobiests video the rapper shows the same aggressive attitude as Eminem, the artists will dominate the camera and there will be many closeups, i have found this to be a generic feature.

Lady Gaga Ft Beyonce - Telephone.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVBsypHzF3U
This is my second video, i feel it completely differs to the first. I think that this video was primary to the song as it was used to promote the artists profile. I think that the explicit images used in the video are used to shock the viewer and so acting as a talking point and raising awareness of the video's release so that more people view it. It also works using the male gaze, young attractive females dancing in their underwear will attract their attention.I think that the video acts as more of a short movie due to the fact that the lyrics do not play until 3 minutes in and there is dialogue. This video is a cross between a performance and concept video. Although the artists mime the lyrics the actions they make in the video rarely relate to them.

Music Videos I Like

1) Black Eyed Peas - Where is the love?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpYeekQkAdc
This is one of my favourite music videos. I love how it involves the artists in the story. The video immerses the viewer and i feel as though watching the video results in you thinking about it after. I also like how the image on screen switches from the artist miming the song to the story.

2) David Guetta - Turn Me On.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVw7eJ0vGfM
This is another favourite music video. It captures your attention and holds it throughout. Although it doesn't portray the lyrics as well as it could  have, i still feel as though it is successful. Again i like how there is a story involved in the video. I also think that the graphics are amazing and really life like, i think that this is what makes the video so good.

3) Katy Perry - California Girls.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru7Og2-aeRo
My final favourite video is Katy Perry, California Girls. I like how the video relates to the 'sweet' image of California Girls portrayed in the lyrics. The producer has done this by creating a world completely made of candy. I like this video because its so different, and that you spot something different everytime you watch it. The graphics are really good too. I also like how the artists are miming the lyrics. Finally i like how its humorous, you see this alot in Katy Perrys videos.