Understanding Program Formats

Multi-Camera, Understanding Program Formats

Multi-camera is a technique used for a lot of different types of television, and for a lot of different reasons. 

Live events: Football Match: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB0spy6xsPk
Live events are filmed and aired in real time, with action being shown as it happens. Some examples of live events include, sports games, awards events, some concerts, festivals. sports games and awards events are aired live so because it means that the audience at home receives the same knowledge as people watching at the event. A lot of people bet on sports games and being able to watch as it happens can be very exciting.
Coverage of Action is important in sports games like football because the audience at home are eager to know what is happening every second of the game. Multi-Camera is used during football games so that the audience can see the match from every perspective. Being a part of the action is such a huge part of watching a football game, and allowing the audience to see the game from different points of view allows for a lot of hype and excitement. Maintaining viewer interest is important during football games also. Maintaining interest means maintaining viewers for the channel during the two hours that the game is aired over. Because of the length of the matches. Even the most enthusiastic football fan wouldn't want to watch a game from one camera angle the whole way through. If there was a fixed camera over the pitch for the entire game viewers would get bored. They would not be able to follow all the action as it would be hard for viewers at home to make out the details of the game, they would be unable to pick up any emotion in the players face.
Any anger, excitement, hope on the players faces would go totally unseen by the audience at home. It would also be very hard to make out which player has possession of the ball with a fixed camera over looking the whole pitch for the full 90 minutes.

A steady-cam being used
(bottom left corner)

Steady-cams are used a lot during football matches, this gives the camera operator the freedom to go wherever he feels he needs to go in order to get exciting shots that the audience will enjoy. Although steady-cams are used a lot today, locked cameras with only the ability to pivot and zoom used to be used to follow the action of he game. Being able to pan the camera and zoom in on players faces was good but didn't give the camera operator or editor the freedom that steady-cams allow. This freedom includes being able to get right into the action, and capture every moment of the game for the audience at home. Although the atmosphere, and excitement of actually being in the stadium for a game can never be recreated for television, the fact that the audience can feel as though they are actually on the pitch alongside the players makes up for it. Like I have said before, the audience at home will have the advantage of seeing the looks on the payers faces, and studying every foul, goal, or trip. Supporters who are watching in the stadium might watch the match again at home, and realise that they missed an argument between 2 players, or that they didn't realise a certain player was that angry about the other team scoring.

Multi-camera simultaneous recording is used during sports games for this reason exactly. The audience at home doesn't want to miss any of the action so all cameras will be on throughout the game to make sure the editor always has something to cut to and if something important happens, the editor can cut to it straight away so nothing is missed by the viewers at home. Having all cameras recording at all times means

that not one second of action goes uncovered. Almost always, there will be one of two cameras that are constantly focused on the ball, and nothing else. The sole job of the cameramen operating these cameras is to follow the ball, while others might be looking out for drama among the players, or the managers, and crowds reactions. Multi-camera simultaneous recording is also useful when it comes to instant playbacks. The more cameras recording the game from different angles, the easier it is to pick a shot to show as an instant playback. Nine out of ten times, there will be several fixed cameras set up behind both goals. These cameras are placed this way so that if there's a goal, the producer can replay the clip straight away, and can even use both angles to make the clip more exciting.

High angle shot of goal 

Shot of the goal from directly behind

A close up of the look of joy on Rooney's
face after a goal

Instant playback can make an already excited audience even more excited or an already disappointed audience even more disheartened. Slow motion is often used when showing playbacks during football games. An example of this this football game at 40 minutes and 32 seconds. Rooney jumps in the air after scoring the first goal of the game. This technique is used to amplify the excitement of a goal, show something that might be missed in full speed, a hand ball for example, or to capture the look on a players face after a goal.
is during

A low angle shot of the England manager
after Brazil scored their first goal 

A close up of the Brazil manager
celebrating their first goal

The shots used during a football game can help with communicating meaning to the viewer. While the viewers at home are never going to be able to experience the atmosphere like the audience in the stadium do, camera angles and camera movements can help relay the overall mood of the day. If one team is losing the game by a few goals, an extreme close-up, low angled shot of the team manager, or a supporter looking upset might be shown, to give the audience at home an idea of the atmosphere in the stadium. Low angled shots can signify sadness, editors will use these codes to make the audience at home feel happy, sad, hopeful, or hopeless. If the editor chooses to show a high angled fast pan shot of the audience, or a close up of the teams manager celebrating after a goal, it communicates to the audience that something good has happened. Using close ups, and extreme close ups allows the director to make the audience at home feel as if they are there in the stadium with their fellow supporters. The director want the audience to feel happy with their fellow fans, sad with their fellow fans, the director also wants the audience at home to empathise with the players, by showing close ups of their faces throughout the game, the director can achieve this. Close ups can also give the audience at home a slight advantage on the people in the stadium as they are able to get as close to the action as possible.

A high angle shot of Brazilian
supporters celebrating a goal

The use of both diegetic, and non-diegetic sound is used during televised football matches. Throughout the game the audience at home are able to hear the diegetic sound of the crown in the stadium, as well as the non-diegetic sound of the commentators.
Being able to hear the audience in the stadium can add to the mood of the game. The director want the audience to feel as if they are there in the stadium, being able to hear whats happening in the stadium can help towards this. Commentating is used to help the audience to understand what's happening on the pitch. It is also a good way to fill space, if nothing is really happening in the game, the commentators might start talking about previous games, or players score records. This ties in with maintaining the viewers interest.

The score is always shown in the top
left hand corner

Graphics and visual effects are used in football games. The score is shown in the top left hand of the screen over the top of the game. Other effects that are used are logos, or idents, that are used to transition from the game to a playback and then back again. The score is placed over the top of the action at all times so that the audience at home can keep up with the score. Some audience members might tune in late to the game and will want to know who is winning straight away. The graphics that are used as transitions are used to break up the live action from the playbacks. Without something to indicate to the audience that they are coming away from the live action, there could be confusion regarding what is going on in the game.
Lower third graphics are used when one player leaves the pitch and another comes on. This is to make it clear to the audience who is leaving the game, and who is joining so that they can continue watching without confusion.

Graphics explaining who is leaving
the game, and who is joining.

Football is a fast paced game so the speed and mix of the cuts match this. Apart from when going in to a instant playback, there are no transitions, just fast, straight cuts to the next shot, this is most likely to ensure that none of the action is missed. Although the ball, players, cameras and cuts move very fast, the mix is actually relatively slow. To avoid confusing the audience, the editor will try to stay on one shot for as long as possible. A longer shot will last maybe 10 seconds before cutting to the next one. Like I said, although the mix is slower than you might expect. The camera is constantly moving to keep up with the ball, players, and action.

Public events: Britain's Got Talent, Graham Norton Chat Show 

Public events are shows that anyone from the public can be involved with.  
Multi-Camera is also used for chat shows and various other audience based shows such as X Factor, Come Dance With Me and Britain's Got Talent.
Coverage of Action: Multi-Camera is used on shows like Britain's got talent so that the audience at home can see every ones reaction to the performances. If there is a fixed camera on the performer and the judges, audience, and hosts are never shown, it can make for a very boring watch, but being able to see how the audience and judges are reacting adds to the entertainment, and maintains the viewers interest. This is also used to manipulate the viewers emotions. Communicating Meaning 
The Viewer: The reaction of one judge can sway the reaction of a nation watching at home. This means that producers can make the public feel certain ways about certain contestants, this is usually for entertainment purposes, but can also be used to make the audience feel emotion for a contestant. If a contestant is telling a sob story to the judges, one camera might be picking up one of them with a tear in their eye, this will mean that viewers at home will feel empathetic towards the judge and the contestant.

An example of using multi-camera to manipulate an audiences reacting is Susan Boyle's audition on Britain's Got Talent in 2009. When Boyle stepped onto the stage she was sarcastically wolf whistled by a member of the audience, as soon as this happened, the shot changed from a long shot of Susan on the stage to a close up of Simon Cowell's face looking very surprised at the fact that anyone would wolf whistle Boyle. Boyle, with the camera back on her, then responded with a hip movement and 'And that's just one side of me' immediately, again, the shot was changed to a close up of Cowell's face, When Boyle explained that she was hoping to become a professional singer, shot changed again to a close up of one of the audience members faces looking in disbelief that this woman would be able to sing professionally. This happened again when Boyle said she aspired to be like Elaine Paige. Although this sounds completely inhumane, because of the editing and the way the cameras were focusing on certain peoples facial expressions, the audience reaction at home was to play along with the disbelief as well.

Disbelief from an audience member

The shots then went on to change from judge to judge, none of them looking particularly hopeful that Boyle would be the next Elaine Paige. The audience at home jumped on the band waggon and weren't expecting anything too special either.

When Susan started singing 'I Dreamed a Dream' from Les Miserables. The audience were shown Cowell looking completely shocked, followed by Amanda with her mouth wide open. A camera in the wings even picks up the hosts reaction before the shot changes to the audience clapping and cheering. Throughout the performance multiple camera shots and angles are used to show the audience standing, and applauding and the judges various facial expressions.

Without the use of multi-cam the audience at home wouldn't have experienced the doubt from the judges and studio audience and the reveal that Susan is in fact a spectacular singer wouldn't have been so dramatic. The director wants the audience to feel shocked, and amazed, and maybe even a little bit guilty when they realise that this woman is actually a brilliant singer. All of this is achieved by using multi-camera simultaneous recording. The audition process of shows like Britain's Got Talent and X Factor are pre recorded, edited and aired months later but the way that they are edited give them the feel of live television. This rings true for a lot of chat shows and game shows as well. For these types of programs, all of the cameras will be switched on and recording the whole time so when the editor comes to put the show together, any shot that they feel will get the desired reaction from the studio audience will be put in as part of the show. Taking Susan Boyle's audition as an example again, the reactions of the judges and the audience could have come from an act at another point in the day, but because the reactions fit with how the editor and producer wanted the audience at home to feel they might have been put in for effect to provoke these feelings. 

Chat shows will use the same technique so that if someone says something funny or one of the guests has a good reaction to something the host is saying, everything is recorded and can be used for effect in the final edit. This helps to maintain the audiences interest as they are not just being shown a back and forth between the host and the guest, they are getting genuine reactions and interactions and an insight to everything that the studio audience can see. This coverage of action can make the audience feel closer to the guests on the show as if they are sat in their living room with them. This is the reaction that the producers want from their audience as the intimate feel of chat shows is what makes them so popular. In this clip from The Graham Norton Show, the audience is asked if they have read 50 Shades of Grey. When one man puts his hand up to say that he has, the shot changed almost straight away to show a mid shot of the audience member. This was done so quickly and easily as a result of multi-camera simultaneous recording.

Crane shot of presenter and audience

In a typical recording of 'The Graham Norton Show' some of the camera angles and types of shots that are included are; crane shots of the host and the audience, using a crane to allow the camera to
capture high angled shots gives the audience at home a good view of what's going on in the studio. Using a crane also allows the camera to follow the action. Every week, the show has a performance from a singer. After their performance they will walk from the stage, on one side of the studio, to the couch, on the other side. The crane follows them with fluent movement, the more smooth the movement is, the more at ease the audience at home feel. A lot of the time, the aim of shows like this is to make the audience forget that they are watching a TV program. Fluid movements can help to achieve this.

Following the singer from the stage to
the sofa

After the opening credits at the start of the show there is a crane shot which changes from high angle to a mid shot of the host. Another advantage of using multi-cam is that the editor can show the audience what they should be looking at. Using a mid shot shows

Mid shot of the host

the audience that their full attention should be on the host.

Long shot from behind the audience

Other shots that are included in a typical episode included; long shots of the host from behind the audience, this will sometimes be used to show an audience reaction, or simply to be able to fit all the guests and the host in one shot. If everyone on the sofa is engaging in a back and forth, the audience at home will want to see everything that is going on, this is when a long shot is usually used. The cameras that capture the long shots from behind the audience are likely to be fixed cameras, this means that as well as showing all of the action and audience reactions, it is a good shot for the director to cut to if none of the other cameras are picking up anything good. Mid and close up shots of the guests are also shown as they talk and answer questions. Like I have said, the idea of chat shows like this is to make the audience feel as though they are in on the conversation, so showing the guests close up in a two shot, if two of them are having a conversation, of a single shot, if one of them is answering a question, means that the audience can feel as if they are closer to these celebrities that they may never meet in real life. The audience likes being close to the action as it makes them feel like they are a part of the conversation.

Close up of a guest

Mid shot of the guests

The cameras also pick up multiple angles around the sofa so that however the guests sit and whatever might happen throughout the show, the audience at home can always be part of the action. The visual style of the show is bright, personal, and glamourous. The bright, and glamorous background gives the show a star studded feel, and engages the target audience, while the intimacy makes the audience feel as though they are there on the sofa with the guests. If the studio was dark, and the cameras were all set on a long shot, the audience would feel left out of the action, and the mood of the audience would reflect the darkness of the studio. Visual style is all about delivering what the audience would expect to see, and is important to keep in mind when creating any type of show. For example, during a TV drama, the audience would expect to see darker tones shots, more close ups, and faster cuts, but in a comedy, the tone of the whole show would be brighter, and lighter, and the shots would be longer, usually involving 2, or more people.
In the way of sound, the audience at home are always able to hear the studio audience and their reaction to what's happening on stage, this helps to provoke he desired reaction from the audience. The Graham Norton Show, like most chat shows, revolves a lot around humour, the director wants to make the audience at home laugh. Being able to hear the studio audience laughing and having a good time can create a stronger reaction from the audience at home. The audience at home are also, obviously, able to hear the hosts and guests the whole time.
The speed of the mix and cuts vary depending on the point in the show, at the beginning of the show, the mix was slow and was settle on the host for a few seconds before cutting to a different shot, the cuts are all fast straight cuts to the next shot. There are no fading cuts at all. As the guests get talking on the couch, the mix starts to gather some pace but is ultimately quite slow moving. The show is supposed to be a casual wind down at the end of the week so cutting to each new shot too quickly would ruin the mood of the show, the audience at home might become confused as to who is talking, or feel left out of the conversation, this could effect viewing figures.

The shows title showing over a crane
shot of the host

At the start of the show, after the title credits, the title of the show comes up on screen over the first shot of the show which is the crane shot coming into a mid shot of the host.

A picture of young George Clooney
being shown on the TV behind the host

A clip being shown in full screen for
the audience at home

Inserts of pictures backing up the hosts
jokes at the start of the show

Other graphics that are shown throughout the program are inserts of clips and pictures relating to what the guests and host are talking about, for example, a screen shot taken from the weeks episode of Newzoids that features a caricature of Miranda Hart, a guest on the show in episode 5, is shown in full screen for the audience at home to see. Another example is a picture of a young George Clooney that is first shown in full screen for the audience to see then shown on the smaller TV behind the host. All of the pictures shown in full screen are also shown on the TV, which is put behind the host so that when the camera settles on the host talking about the picture, the audience are able to still see it. The movie clips are shown in full screen to the audience at home but are played to the audience in the studio on the TV screen. The clip has to be played in full screen for the audience at home so that they can concentrate fully on the clip and not what's going on around the TV in the studio. Playing the clips in full screen also means that the audience can see a lot more detail. The last shot of the clip stays paused on the TV behind the host for a while after it has been played while the host and guests talk about it.
At the start of the show, the host tells a few jokes, some of these jokes will be aided by pictures that are shown in a pip style. The pictures are not being shown to the studio audience in the same way that they are being shown to the audience at home. The image that shows on screen for the audience at home has been edited in, the images were most likely shown to the studio audience on the night using smaller screens around the studio.
The Graham Norton show is filmed in advance, edited and then shown on a Friday night. During on particular episode, that aired on the May 8th, the day after the general election, the host mentions the election and goes on to make jokes about how he should know who's won, 'I'm really glad that those people won' making it fairly obvious that he can't possibly know because the polls hadn't been taken when the show was filmed, earlier in the week.
At another point in this episode, Greg Davies, a guest, is asked a question by Miranda Hart, and is caught scratching his nose, when a joke is made saying that he might have been picking his nose, he says "Can you do it again so they can use it" in a jokey manner. What he meant by this was to re shoot the question and he would be ready with a funny answer and they could cut out the part when he is scratching his nose in post production. Unfortunately for him, they left it in, probably because the producers thought the initial footage would get more of a reaction from the audience at home.

Constraints of studio, or location environment
When filming anything for television, a lot of decisions need to be made before hand in order to ensure the best outcome for the show. A lot of productions will have the choice to film in a studio, or on location. There are a few things that the producers will need to take into account, these things include lighting, sound, accessibility, and time limits. Usually sets are built with a lot of space behind the camera for all of the lighting, and equipment to fit. One benefit of filming in a studio is that there is more space for lighting rigs, filming on location will either be outside, where there is a great deal of space for lighting, or somewhere inside, for example, the house in the first season of American Horror Story. This house is otherwise known as the Rosenheim Mansion, this is an exceptionally large house that allows for lighting to be set up with enough room for cameras as well. Lighting rigs in a studio are useful because it means there is no guess work, the director knows exactly what can be achieved with lighting in a studio whereas on location there will be natural light to work with as well. This isn't always a good thing, as natural light can cause unwanted shadows, or overexposure. Some shoots will be able to benefit from the natural light, though, as the right amount of natural light means that less electronic lighting will be needed. There are obviously windows in the Rosenheim Mansion which will let light in, this can be stopped with blackout blinds if the window is out of shot, another way that lighting can be manipulated on location is by placing a light facing in through the window making it look as though the sun is shining through.
Sound is another thing that producers can never be sure of when filming on location. When filming outside there are elements such as wildlife (birds, dogs, cats etc.) weather (wind, rain etc.) and traffic that might disrupt the sound when filming. You wouldn't come across these issues when filming in a studio. The sound in a studio is also a lot more controlled with personal microphones than on a location shoot. This means that the audience is able to hear what the actors/presenters/guests are saying a lot more clearly.
Accessibility regarding cameras, lighting, vehicles, etc. Television studios will have designated parking areas for cars, vans, and trucks that are carrying people, equipment, props etc. but locations might not have this luxury. Production teams might find that they have to squeeze all of their vehicles into tight spots in order to make the most of the space that they've got. Having the capacity to fit cameras and action in a scene on location can sometimes be tough. Using the house from American Horror Story as an example again, the house is so large that the cameras can fit into the rooms comfortably leaving enough room for the camera to pick up that the house is large. While some scenes will probably have been shot in a studio, the kitchen scenes for example, the house could be used for most of the scenes throughout the entire series. This saves time, and money on creating multiple sets as everything is all in the one house already. The house is built on a large plot of land, so there would probably have been enough room for any vehicles to park during production.
A lot of programmes that are set inside a house are often filmed in a studio, an example of this is Mrs Browns Boys, the whole show is set in 2 different locations in the house, the kitchen, and the living room. Mrs Browns Boys is filmed in front of a studio audience, so needs to be filmed in a studio. This means that the rooms are fixed in a stage like setting, this is so that the audience can see what's going on during the show, but it also makes it easy for the cameras to get in and film the action. Since the camera never needs to turn more than 180 degrees, anything behind the camera line is rigs, studio space, and audience.
When it comes to filming in front of a studio audience, the crew is large, and the process costs a lot of money. This is because people will be needed to setup, and standby lights, cameras, set, as well as other things. These people are needed, and will be paid for the whole of the production, including rehearsals. They are needed to stand by the equipment incase of any malfunctions, or changes in angle, or position etc. Because shows like Mrs Brown's Boys is filmed in front of a studio audience, every scene will have to be rehearsed much like any other play, musical, or show. This means that instead of just needing a lighting and camera team etc. throughout filming, they will also be needed throughout the rehearsal period. Although this can be costly, it does mean that everything can be filmed, and finished a lot quicker. With shows filmed in front of studio audiences, everything is set up, the show goes on, and then everything is edited very quickly in comparison to other TV programs. Everything will be filmed in one night, even if there are a few slip ups and a scene has to be filmed two, or three times, everything is already set up in place so it's just a case of calling action again, and carrying on. With TV dramas filmed with less cameras, however, everything will take a lot longer. Although the team will be a lot smaller because there is less equipment involved, with a scene involving two people for example, the lights, camera, mics, and actors will have to be set up in order to capture one persons actions, and reactions, and then everything will need to be set up again, to capture the same scene from a different angle. Scenes like this can sometimes take over 6 hours to film, and so, in turn, will cost more money. Either way filming for TV is expensive whether it's with a large crew in a small space of time, or a smaller crew in a large space of time.

Analysis of 2 music videos

Ways in Which Music Videos Can Reach a Specific Audience

The 2 music videos I am going to be analysing are Guns N' Roses - 'Paradise City' and Flo Rida - 'GDFR'
Guns N' Roses are a rock band and Flo Rida makes R&B and Hip Hop. I chose these songs because I think they contrast well. 

Guns N' Roses - 'Paradise City' 

The Guns N' Roses 'Paradise City music video was directed by Nigel Dick, cost $200,000 to make, and is 6 minutes and 49 seconds long. Dick used footage from the bands tour with Aerosmith plus a little bit from their appearance at the Monsters of Rock concert in the UK. They thought that using concert footage would make a good music video.
As well as using live footage from the concert, there are some shots of the band members exploring the city and chilling out backstage. This sort of video would attract an audience because people are always interested in what their idols get up to in their down time.

Performance videos are very popular with rock bands and has been done in a lot of different ways. The first rock music video that a lot of people had easy access to was Bohemian Rhapsody' by Queen. In this video, footage of the artists performing is used as well as using special effects and more artistic shots of the band. This started the pattern of rock bands creating performance videos, and set an expectation for rock bands and their music videos. This has stuck for 40 years, and today, every rock band is more than likely to create at least one performance music video. 'American Idiot' by Green Day shows the band performing the song in front of a giant, green American flag. The camera angle is low in the shot I have included. This is used to make the band look bigger and more intense. Rock music and music videos are all about sounding and looking 'epic' this kind of camera angle makes the band, the set and the instruments look pretty epic. The effect that this kind of angle has on the audience is positive. It gets the audience excited for the music and the video. In comparison to the 'Paradise City' video, the band are not performing to an audience in this video but are instead, performing to whoever is watching the video. This creates a connection between the band and the audience as the performance is just for them. 'Little Monster' by Royal Blood uses the idea of a performance video as well as using black and white. The use of black and white gives a gritty , real look to a music video.
Using black and white shows that the videos aren't glamorous. The effect makes music videos look cheaper and more real. This is the look that rock artists are going for. A lot of rock music videos are set in warehouses or car parks with bright lighting and big speakers. This adds to the idea of a raw performance. It can make it look as though the band just decided to set up and film a performance out of the blue.

There isn't a narrative in this video as it is just about the band rocking with the fans and enjoying their tour. This is typical of a rock video as musicians of this genre just want to rock out and enjoy themselves. Even in videos that do involve a narrative, there is likely to be a performance aspect to the video at some point. An example of this is All Time Lows 'Kids in the Dark' There is the suggestion of a girl who is witnessing arguments between her parents. Her distress is made obvious by the camera angle. She is shown through a high angled shot which makes her look very small and vulnerable. She is invited by other kids going through the same thing to a party where they are able to forget their home life and have fun. This is put together with performance shots of the band. Rock artists have always been all about the music and pride themselves in creating art rather than some of the processed, run of the mill stuff that a lot of pop bands are producing at the moment. This is why rock artists aren't often seen standing still singing down the lens of the camera. Boy bands set out to appeal to teenage girls and so they are depicted in their videos as heart throbs who stare lovingly into the audiences eyes. Music videos like this use close up shots to engage with the audience and create an intimacy between the band member and the viewer.  Rock bands are trying to appeal to fellow rockers and the best way to do this is to show their audience how much fun they're having.
Performance videos help to illustrate this to audiences. In the 'Paradise City' music video and the 'Kids in the Dark' video, both bands are playing their instruments and having a lot of fun with the music and the performance.

The video uses cutting to the beat throughout the video, mostly notable at 0.33 seconds into the video. This kind of editing makes the video easy to watch and helps the audience get into the beat of the song and enjoy the music more.

Flo Rida - 'GDFR'

Flo Ridas 'GDFR' is a hip-hop /R&B track and the video reflects this well. There are a lot of techniques and conventions used that are commonly used in hip-hop/R&B.
This music video starts with a scripted introduction, this sets up a story line for the rest of the video. This genre of music often uses a set up in their music videos to give the song a bit of extra meaning. An example of this is in 'It wasn't me' by Shaggy the story that Shaggy had been caught cheating on his girlfriend is set up and then the song goes on to explain the situation. The lyrics in GDFR don't reflect the story line in such a way but it gives the video a purpose. This particular story line revolves around 2 female basketball teams training and competing against each other. These woman double up as backing dancers. Scantily clad backing dancers are common in hip-hop music videos. In the video for 'Candy Shop' by 50 Cent, there is a group of girls in red PVC showing off their dance moves much the same as the girls in 'GDFR' another example of the use of woman in hip hop music videos is 'Gold Digger' by Kanye West.  Using attractive girls who aren't wearing much gives the music videos sex appeal, which attracts young men. The sexier the woman, the more the video will get talked about and the more men will watch the video. 'Candy Shop' was released in 2005. At the time, the PVC, sports caps look was seen as sexy and attracted a lot of attention from young males which is the target audience the video is aimed at. Fashion changes and what young men find attractive changes but good looking girls wearing barely anything is always going to attract attention. In all of the shots I have included, the camera is at a low angle, looking up. This makes the woman look more powerful, confident and sexier. The more confident the woman, the sexier she seems. This angle also ties in with the 'epic' theme I talked about earlier. The low angle makes the woman look epic and powerful which makes them extremely desirable to men. Having woman like this in music videos helps the audience to escape into a world filled with beautiful woman and fast cars.
Alot of techniques that Hip Hop music uses are taken from rock music videos. The 'epic' angle is an example of this. 

Artists in hip-hop videos are often shown wearing some sort of sports gear. This is sometimes because the artist is sponsoring the brand of the gear and the artist is required to show product placement in their music videos. Product placement is when a celebrity is paid by a company to promote their product. There are a lot of music videos that promote Nike and Beats by Dr. Dre at the moment. Sometimes, though, artists wear sports gear because it fits in with the story line or the artist wants to come across as sporty and fit. In the GDFR video, the sports gear is being worn because it fits with the story line. Other music videos that show the artists wearing sport gear are; the 'Ignition (remix)' video by R Kelly and in the video for 'Ms. Jackson' by Outkast. The sportswear in this video has the name of the song on it which helps people remember what the song is called.


The body language of the artists in this video resemble that of a lot of hip hop artists. They are using their hands to make gestures a lot and are making big movements with their arms. Artists like Eminem, Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa also use their arms a lot in their videos. Big movement in the hands and arms makes the artist look bigger. It's a way of showing the audience dominance. Specific movements including pointing at themselves and any gesture to do with money are definite ways of showing off to the audience. Another reason hip hop artists use their hands a lot is to show that they are getting into what they are saying. This also helps the audience engage more with the artist as it is a lot less boring watching this then it would be to watch the artists standing still and delivering the lines.
Artists of this genre spend a lot of time addressing the camera. They are often placed in the centre of the screen as if to say 'I'm the centre of attention' in the shots I have included the artists are always in, or near the centre of the screen with other things or people behind or to the side of them. This draws the attention of the viewer towards tge artist. If there are expencive objects behind the artist, they might position them to catch the audiences attention as well, this remins the audience of the wealth and power the artist has. The shots are less intimate than shots used by boy bands. This is because the artist is not trying to get affectionate and cosy with the viewer like boy bands. The cameras are also further away to allow for hand and arm gestures to be made. without getting the gestures out of shot. 

Low angled shots are used a lot in this music video. Rappers and hip hop artists often use lower angled shots to show authority or superiority over the audience. These angles show that the artist has power over the audience and makes them look important, giving a 'larger than life' effect, and reminding the audience that they are the ones watching the artist. They chose to watch the video because the artist is worth watching. If the artist is showing off to the audience or talking about how much money they have, the angle will show superiority to the audience. 'I have more money than you, therefore I am higher than you' The GDFR video uses these angles to show superiority. This is obvious because during the video there are shots of fast cars and big motorbikes. These are all used to show the viewer that the artist is well off. It's a way of saying to the audience that the artist is so successful, they can afford to have any type of car or motorbike or big house in their videos without breaking a sweat. This attracts audiences because it creates something for people to aspire to. "I wish I had that car" "If only I could afford a house like that" People like seeing things that they can aspire or escape to for a few minutes, it takes them out of the real world.
Other artists like Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Ne-Yo use this technique.

The technique of cutting to the beat is used during this song. Notably at 0.25 seconds. This helps the audience to get into the beat of the song and enjoy the experience more. It also helps the audience to get into the beat of the song as the editing will make the sound more noticeable. Another music video that uses cutting to the beat is 'Uptown Funk' by Bruno Mars this editing technique runs the whole way through the video but can be seen at 2 minutes 15 seconds for reference.

Using the idea of a crowd around the artists without the video being a performance video is used in GDFR. This can help to build up a hype and get the audience engaged and excited for the song. It could be argued that this technique has been borrowed from the rock genre of music videos. A lot of rock videos will show the band performing to a crowd.
 Other music videos that use this technique include 'I Don't F--- With You' by Big Sean, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg.
Audience shots are often filmed close up to the audience so the viewers of the music video can see the audience within the video enjoying the sing or cheering for the rapper. A lot of the techniques used in Hip Hop videos are to make the rapper look bigger and better. 

The video uses mise-en-scene to show the audience that the artist can afford expensive things. This is shown in the form of motor cycles, cars and jewellery. This has to do with the idea of superiority. The use of expensive things suggests that the artist has a high status and a lot of power. This induces a kind of respect from the audience. A lot of other hip hop and R&B music videos use this technique. Ne-Yo, Chris Brown and Tyga are among the hip hop artists that do this.
Close ups of cars and girls and money are often used in Hip Hop to make sure the audiences eyes are drawn to them meaning the audience will understand that the artist can afford nice things. the shot I have included from Ayo of Tyga looking at a black car is an over the shoulder shot. This means that the audience is watching Tyga, look at his car. This gives a 'You can look but you can't touch' feel to the shot, again, showing that the rapper has superiority and is bigger and better than the viewer. This king of ego trip in Hip Hop videos should deter people from wanting to watch them but a lot of people who do watch them feel as though they need to escape from their own lives. They could be stressed at work or school, or have just gone through a bad break up and seeing something that they can aspire towards, no matter how unrealistic, can give the viewer a release, even if just for a few minutes.




Some music videos use a technique called intertextuality. This term is used when one text makes reference to another. Intertextuality can link in with allusion, referencing, homage, parody, and links to another artist. I have written about all of these techniques in this blog post.  According to Dictionary.com, the definition of intertextuality is; 'The interrelationship between texts, especially works of literature; the way that similar or related texts influence, reflect, or differ from each other' 
Artists often use intertextuality within their music videos to give their target audience something they can relate to. An example of this is Iggy Azalea's 'Fancy' The whole video is a reference to the 1995 film 'Clueless' which has become a cult classic. Azalea's typical demographic is females between the ages of 14 and 25. Iggy herself was 5 years old when Clueless was released and a lot of the girls that her music appeals to are very likely to have seen the film given their age and the cult status of the film. There is a lot of iconography that is instantly recognisable throughout the video, from the logo at the start to the costumes.

Both of the top pictures here are screen shots from the music video for 'Fancy' and the bottom pictures are from the film 'Clueless' The costumes in the music video are almost identical and are an obvious reference to the film. 


The logos at the start of the music video and the film are also very similar. The font is identical and the colours are similar also. 




The music video also includes a reference to the scene in the film where Dionne nearly crashes her car into a truck.
All of these references made the video very popular between Azalea's demographic who immediately recognised what the homage was referencing to. Intertextuality has such an effect on audiences because they already have prior knowledge of other texts. This is an advantage when using intertextuality to reach an audience. 










One of the most famous cases of intertextuality stems from Robert Palmer's 'Addicted to Love' The woman in this music video have become iconic and the idea has been used over and over.

 

The closest reference to this music video was made by Shania Twain in her video for 'Man I Feel Like a Woman' which used the same kind of backdrop, but instead of the iconic woman with red lips, Twain used male models. This could be seen as a statement being made by Twain that woman aren't just objects to be put in the back of a music video and that the woman can be in the spotlight pushing the men to the back. This idea is reflected in the lyrics of the song, which include 'The best thing about being a woman is the prerogative to have a little fun' and 'Man, I feel like a woman'

Like I have mentioned before, Palmer's addicted to love video has been referenced multiple times in music videos, and films. Some examples include, the film 'Love Actually' in which a character has released a single that he's trying to get to Christmas number one. A shot of the music video for 'Christmas is all Around' is shown. The woman in this are obviously a reference to Addicted to Love. In this case, the reference is used for comedic effect. 

Another example is in Robin Thicke's 'Blurred Lines' which uses the same iconic red lip. Although this is a less obvious reference the idea of woman being used as props is still present, and, like I said, the red lips and vacant expressions reflect the Addicted to Love video very well. 

There have also been a lot of re makes and parodies of the song and video. Glee did their own version of the song as well as a few amature remakes on youtube. 

Legal and Ethical Issues

This post explains some of the ethical issues that making a music video might involve.