Andrew Goodwin's Theory

Andrew Goodwin's theory had 6 conventions

1. Relationships between lyrics and visuals which illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics- Links lyrics with the video.

 

2. Thought beats seeing the sounds, relationship between music and the visuals which illustrates, amplifies or contradicts the music- Links beats with video

3. Genre-related style and iconography present- Video links to the genre of the song; props, costumes, setting, hair and dancing.

4. Multiple close ups of the main artist or vocalist-creation of a star image to promote a recognizable brand image- Camera angles to make the person in the video look powerful

5. Voyeurism often plays a major part, especially in relations to females- Angles used to show the male gaze. Voyeurism is looking/staring at things.

6. Intertexual references to other media texts may be present, especially in humorous videos- Clearly influenced by another video.

Key aspects

1. Thought beats- Where you see the sound; uses a unique voice and tells a story.

2. Narrative and performance- Whether it uses a story or a performance; depends on the genre, uses lip syncing and is realistic. For example Sam Smith Stay With Me uses a narrative where as

3. Star image- Increases awareness and interest; for example Elvis Presley

4. Relation of visuals to song; Amplify, disjuncture and illustrate.

Technical aspects

- Camera; Angles used to present video

- Sound; Pace

- Mis en scene; Costume, setting, facial expressions, make up etc.

- Editing; Cuts

Examples in one music video

The scientist by Coldplay

 

 

In this music video many of Goodwin's conventions are used/seen. To start with the video has a strong relationship between the lyrics and the video. For example the lyrics 'Im going back to the start' are sung and in the video, the narrative is the singer walking backwards and showing a car crash being shown in reverse. 

This also links to another point of the theory where thought beats are used. For example at the time of 1;38 the video shows the feet of the walker going backwards, this is shown in time to the beats of the song. The beats are slow which has the same pace as the footsteps.

 

Shown at the time of 3;00 the same happens, as the beats changes slightly, the man gets into the car, the song pauses and the lyrics 'Im going back to the start' are heard again. This again relates to the narrative in which the man is reviewing the car crash. This explains the slow pace and lack of facial expressions and colour. The pace however speeds up when the car starts to move to show the power in the narrative chosen. The facial expressions towards the end are different, the two people are both smiling which shows how before the accident the two people were happy whereas the man after (at the beginning) is distraught.

 

There are several close ups used to show the star of this video which is the singer/driver. The very first thing we see is an extreme close up of the singer which zooms out, this tells us he is the star of the video. He is positioned centre of the frame and the zoom slowly shows us where he is to start off the sad story to the music video.

 

As well as close ups, extreme long shots are also used, for example when he is walking through the forest the camera looks down on him from faraway to show he is the only person in the video and shows he is centre of attention.

 

 

Strong examples of voyeurism

'Can't remember to forget you' By Shakira and Rihanna

 

The images below are screenshots I have taken from the music video. I have selected these particular images as they are typical examples of one of the conventions Goodwin explains which is voyeurism.

 

 

 

These four images show the female singer in a lack/thin layer of lace clothing which allows the audience to see parts of her body such as her hands lower down and her shoulder and chest. These particular views attract the male audience and shows the 'male gaze' in which interests the audience to watch this performance.  

 

 

 

Also shown here, the two images show lack of clothing which presents skin and typical 'male gaze' body parts in which suggests the two girls are more of an object to be stared at.

 

I found that the genre with the most voyeurism in the videos is dance.

 

Strong examples of thought beats

'Countdown' By Beyoncé and 'Bounce' By Calvin Harris

 

 

 

The images above are screenshots taken from the music video of countdown by Beyoncé. They are two different shots shown separately one after the other. There are other shots just like this but with other colours. The beats in the song changes quite quickly and when these beats change, the colour of the image changes. This is a thought beat as there is a relationship between the music and the video pace.  

 

 

Also taken from the Beyoncé music video of 'Countdown' the image above shows the position of the hand on the singers face. This movement of the hand is done in time to the music in the video when the word 'softly' is sung. At this point, the timings are accurate as the hand moves to the pace of the lyrics. This may also be seen as an example of relationship between lyrics and the videos narrative.

 

 

 

Lastly, taken from the music video 'Bounce' by Calvin Harris the two images above show thought beats. The top image with the writing 'bounce' is also shown with the catching of a tennis ball in the background. This is a thought beat as the ball is caught with the same time as a beat in the song.

 

The second image also shows a thought beat where the male seen in the centre is jumping in time to the pace of the music.

 

 

Strong examples of genre-related style

 

Music can be many genres...

 

 

Below are some examples that link the genre to what's in the music video.

 

 

Taylor Swift is an example of the genre 'pop' and shown in the screenshot image I used is a typical video image of this genre. In most pop music videos a performance is used and has a simple narrative. Colours are bright and the lighting is very key in the video. Normally pop videos are seen either outside or inside and have a lot of settings and props.

 

 

 

 

 

The Beatles are an example of rock. The image of the video shows the view of the band on stage therefore is a performance. Most rock genre videos are based around performance and displays a lot of instruments. Dark colours are used a lot to show the atmosphere of listening to a live band in a dark venue.

 

 

 

 

One other example of genre and video would be soul, the image above is a screenshot from Sam Smith 'Lay me down' which has a typical video for the genre soul. They are found normally in dark settings with low key lighting because it fits the typical slow pace of the song. Shots are slow to fit the pace of the music.

 

 

Strong examples of close ups and star image

 

'Love on top' By Beyoncé

 

 

In this music video Beyoncé has many close ups which make her the star image in the clip. She is also the only female which also shows she is the main role in the video. She is positioned in the centre of the frame alot which also makes her the star in the music video.

 

 

'Thinking out loud' By Ed Sheeran

 

As well as close ups, low angles are used like in the video above by Ed Sheeran. The camera focuses on the couple dancing and makes them appear as the star image as the camera looks up to them showing they are important and superior.

 

 

'Bad romance' By Lady Gaga

 

In this final clip I have chosen to show star image is 'Bad romance' by Lady Gaga. This clip from the very start also shows the star image being used. This first shot is of the female singer surrounded by many people. Although all the people she is with are dressed nicely and are bold individuals, Lady Gaga still stands out as she is in the centre and is wearing a gold metallic colour which differs and stand out from the blacks and whites of clothing in the rest of the image. Not only this but she is sat on a large chair whereas everyone else is either standing or sitting on the floor showing she is superior.