Mooodboard ideas

After listening to my chosen song again and again, I took it upon myself to create a moodboard of things I would like to incorporate into my music video.

1. Wolves: I very much like the idea of having my puppet being a wolf, and perhaps he is hunting down the three little pigs throughout the song. When there is a break in the song, this could be when he finds out that he falls in love with the last pig. They are also aggressive, will be fun to 'punk up' and the puppet on amazon only costs £14.

2. Hotline Miami/Drive - I like the juxtapose of this electronic, eighties orientated, neon-bubblegum if it was incorporated in the music video. Also, the bright colours and darker, atmospheric undertones are my inspiration for lighting the piece.

3. Ed Sheeran puppet: After watching his music video, the idea of having a human musician and a puppet version of himself wreaking havoc seems interesting and in key with the Jim Henson-esque genre.

4. Punk fashion and slipknot are as close as I have come to whilst thinking about costumes.

5. The beginning of the unknown track reminds me quite a lot of the intro to vikings (written by Fever Ray), so the aggression of that show has bought me onto the ultraviolent way of thinking.

6. Therefore, the Clockwork orange came to mind with its stylish violence and intriguing colour schemes and overall style.

7. In Capital Cities' music video titled "Kangaroo Court", the animal kingdom is depicted as a class system of people in masks; this has nothing to do with what I want in the music video, but there is a scene where red confetti explodes from the pig-butcher's chainsaws, which I am very interested in incorporating.

8. he grungy, disjointed music reminds me a lot of Queens of the Stone Age's ...Like Clockwork album mini-movie, which I adore for the artwork and colours.

Intertexuality | Tarantino

Intertextuality is when a form of media references another. You may have witnessed the Big Band Theory's heavy-handed examples of putting pop culture references into their show in place of actually comedy. Other examples are of adaptations or 'inspiration' for the creation of something. For example, the plot to Lion King was heavily devised from Hamlet.


A director who frequently uses Intertextuality in his work is Quentin Tarantino:


In one of Tarantino's earlier films Pulp Fiction, the character of Marcell's Wife blatantly describes the plot to his later project: Kill Bill, which is, in itself, an insane mesh of pop culture and movie references. There's music from the classic television series Green Hornet, The Bride dresses in bruce Lee's yellow jump suit during the fight scene etc.


Many more examples of intertextuality can be found in this short video:



Quentin Tarantino, In my view, is not the greatest director - but he is one of the most famous due to his successful merger of genres. he himself decided to go into the movie business whilst working at a video store; a friend of him encouraged him to write a script: That script just so happened to be Reservoir Dogs. Since then, many of his films have been salutes to his favourite genres.


Django Unchained (Blaxploitation/Western), Inglourious Basterds (War), Death proof (Exploitation), and Kill Bill (A Samurai movie which is also spliced together with elements of a Spaghetti Western.) The soundtrack itself features music from Sergio Leone's Dollars trilogy.

Puppets & Eminem

Contextually, there is a very fine line between punk and hip hop: Both genres originated from the working class who wish to either escape their hum drum lives or make the world a better play. Anarchy, rebellion and revolution go hand in hand - and musicians such as Eminem are skilled at getting their own personal views and experiences across to their audience in quite a comedic nature. Much like Nerd Rock and Indie Hip Hop, his lyrics are hyper-literate and more narrative than contextual.

In the music video "Ass Like That", he is featured rapping with a puppet on his hand, telling the audience that he can say anything he wants to (very sexist things) if he's behind a symbol or a fun character. This is a metaphor for the music industry and various other platforms in social media: If you are likeable or famous, lots of your mistakes will be ruled off as quirky.

Examples of this vary from Justin Beiber to Amy Winehouse: strong personalities who eventually get away with murder due to their star status; they are puppets of social media and the views of the ruling class (a little bit of sociology in there for you) which keeps the proletariat under the assumption that they too can gain fame if they are talented or hard-working enough: A meritocracy of 'likeableness'.

• Thought Beats: The song is slow and features what I think is called a Tumbi (an Indian string instrument that makes the metallic, high-pitched strums between verses). There are also breaks in the music when Eminem begins to rap in an accent that isn't his own, which is completely out of sync with the slow, melodic backing music. Similar to punk, the lyrics are aggressive and actually conceal a social message.

• Narrative & Performance: The narrative of the music video is that Eminem is shouting out against the media to leave him alone, when he is in fact doing scandalous things such as frequenting strip clubs, making sex tapes and masturbating in a theatre--which he always gets forgiven for because he has a puppet-dog sidekick who can get away with anything.

• Star Image: Eminem is frequently seen being admired on the red carpet by baying crowds, and raps alongside other celebrities. Also, he has an obscene amount of scantily clad back-up dancers as he sings to the camera, creating that theory of looking that caters to an audience of ten year old boy who probably want to be him.

• Relation of Visuals to Song: Eminem and the puppet are lip syncing to the song. A running story of scandals typical to celebrities orientated around Eminem. He constantly drops names of celebrities to improve his credibility - and said celebrities appear as puppets in the video...He also uses a sling whilst singing about his slinky going "doyng doyng (and I quote,) doyng."

• Technical Aspects of Video: At the beginning, establishing shots and crowd scene are quickly shown. There are people cheering. The setting is a red carpet venue and the actors roll up in limousines. Mid shots are a common camera angle due to the fact that puppets and Eminem with a puppet on his hand and most commonly seen. Additionally, there are several low angel shots as Eminem does the typical rapper move of singing into a cameras on the floor to make himself seem taller or more powerful than the audience.

The idea of using puppets in a music video fascinates me. Well, it interests me more than hiring unreliable actors: Puppets are flexible, moderately cheap to make and will stretch me to be more creative in my music video as opposed to lip syncing a person in a plain white background.

Additionally, it is different. The punk genre prides itself in being just that, and it would be a witty take on Eminem's Ass like that due to the fact that the punk song's lyrics are actually quite positive ( and might actually appeal to a younger generation...sans a few curse words here or there.).

Genre

The unknown track I have chosen has elements of punk - and therefore, the videos I shall be exploring will focus on alternative music from different branches of rock and rap.

Fu Manchu - Stoner rock
Flobots - Indie Hip Hop
Weezer - Alternative Rock
The Dead Weather - Blues Rock
Flogging Molly - Folk Punk
Mindless Self Indulgence - Synthpunk

flobots | circle in the square

Flobots are an indie hip hop bad who originally hail from Denver, Colorado. The band formed in 2000 but only gained real success after their single "Handlebars" became a mainstream hit in 2008.

Indie Hip hop (or conscious rap) is a term used for bands within the hip hop genre who operate out of the mainstream. The lyrics are socially conscious and anti-commercial; the artists will focus on global issues such as racism, politics and war. This ties in nicely with the "be who you want to be" lyrics sung in an equally aggressive manner in my unknown song.

• Thought beats: The music is upbeat and aggressive, akin to the unknown song and various other examples on this blog. The singer's delivery of each syllable is clear and tinged with a Blookyn accent; American. Guitars as well as violins are used; these instruments are common in rock genres and are also versatile in painting a picture. The low, thumping strums of the bass at the beginning tells the audience that this song means business, but more experimental, high-pitched guitars and instruments later on catch the ear as something different.
• Narrative & Performance: Initial shot: man with buckets of powder paint. Different shots of the location: broken wood and bits of junk Band playing, paint powder explosions. Jump cuts in key to the beats of music. Man stacking shelves, paint spots on him and can. Sam with courier covered in paint. Spear of paint on music notes. Teacher leaving colour. Kid covered in paint gets beaten up. Rioters in masks running, riot squad grazing truncheon against gate. People smearing 'warpaint', ready to take on rioters. Powder chucked into the air. Paint fight. Cuts to the band playing and rioters fighting. Riot squad begins to enjoy themselves, takes off visors. Microphone drops.
• Star Image: The band are seem throughout the music video performing live.
• Relation of Visuals to Song: The impact of the paint powder coincides with the drumbeats, as well as the banging of the swat team's batons against their riot shields.
• Technical Aspects of Video: Other than the cut cuts of the camera angles, very little editing has been used in the film; the mise en scene has been easily achieved with settings varying from supermarkets to abandoned warehouses. The attire is casual, but can easily identify certain types of social groups i.e., the police with their uniforms and muslim women with their headscarfs.

the dead weather | treat me like your mother

The Dead Weather are a supergroup composed of Alisson Mosshart (The Kills), Jack White (The White Stripes) and Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age). They formed in Tennessee in 2009 and have since spanned the genres of indie, Blues Rock and Garage Rock.
Blues Rock can also be referred to as Southern Rock, Country and Americana: Twelve Bar Blues and extended guitar solos are popular in these genre; clear roots can be found in New Orleans, California and the South.

• Thought beats: The music has a steady but changing melody. The heavy use of drums and guitars identifies the genre as rock; other more experimental sounds are used; the time signatures are not offbeat, the the jolty used of different tempos make for an interesting listen.
• Narrative & Performance: They do no look at the cameras once, which may make the audience feel as though they are watching a short movie. The narrative is both abstract and story-based. One gets the feeling that this is how all arguments between couples should be resolved - or it's at least how it feels as the tear tear into one another with sub-machine guns.
• Star Image: Jack White and Alisson Mosshart are the two front men and women of the band; therefore, they feature in the video as a duelling couple.
• Relation of Visuals to Song: At the beginning of the music video, there is a shot of a spinning bomb with its tip sparkling. As the bomb spins fast, the music's volume increases. The two lead singers are [aptly] singing the lyrics at one another in a confrontational fashion.
• Technical Aspects of Video: Most of the music video is filmed using an extended tracking shot. Other technical specs include the computer generated gun blasts and bullet holes that actually shine like through the two singers.

flogging molly | drunken lullabies

Flogging Molly is an Irish-American Punk band. They originated from California (much like Weezer and Fu Manchu).

Celtic punk is punk rock mixed with traditional Celtic music--founded in the 1980s by The Pogues (a band of punk musicians in London from Ireland). Said bands will often play covers of traditional Irish or Scottish folk and political songs, as well as original compositions. Common themes in Celtic punk music include politics, culture, religion, drinking and working class pride. Their music would not be out of place aboard a pirate ship, if pirates had access to hair dye and electric guitars.

• Thought beats: The sound is fast paced and a broad range of instruments are used such as accordions, violins, banjos and electric guitars. The time signature is quicker than most genres, even compared to punk; the sound is loud, the lyrics are aggressive overall, it looks and sounds as irish as the music video.
• Narrative & Performance: The narrative of the music video is of a typical Flogging Molly fan getting ready for a concert by skateboarding to various pubs and drinking profusely--to a point that he has to hitch a ride from people on scooters and [unsuccessfully] avoid moving traffic.
• Star Image: The band itself are performing in the video, however, the main focus has been put upon the protagonist and his journey to the gig. As a form of exploiting their star image, lots of their four-leafed clover logos are shown on clothing, their posters in the protagonist's flat, and shots are taken of their gig tickets.
• Relation of Visuals to Song: Tie in well to the music video. Lyrics such as: 'Cause we find ourselves in the same old mess Singin' drunken lullabies' seems as good as any a way of ending a song just where it started: where as very hung-over man wakes up in his flat, covered in celtic paraphernalia.
• Technical Aspects of Video: Many of the shots are deep and less focused on the musicians, unless they are shown in mid-two shots or with the crowd, which homogenises them and their fans as equals. The cuts are quick and the costumes are simple. It is believable and there are no signs of abstractness in this music video.