Drug line campaign

 

Media magazine

username: BodminMedia

Password: mediarocks

EMC English& Media centre

Extra music video analysis (Y13 media study period)

Music Video Analysis.

BTS (방탄소년단) '봄날 (Spring Day)' Official MV

BTS have several factors that have contributed to their exponentially rising popularity, but the most outstanding factor is the deeper message that they deliver through their music. Released in 2017, “Spring Day” is BTS’s longest-charting track. It goes beyond the typical love song and its music video not only includes but transcends past aesthetics. A close visual analysis of the “Spring Day” music video leads one to find a profound message that is up to interpretation. It contains visual elements, appropriately accompanying lyrics, and literary references to Christian Boltanski’s No Man’s Land and Ursula K. Le Guin’s “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas,” all of which lead to comfort in dealing with the loss of a loved one and the overarching concept of “you never walk alone.”

“Spring Day” is regarding the Sewol Ferry Tragedy since the release of its music video, largely because of the number of scenes in the music video that seem to allude to the tragedy. The first allusion can be detected in the opening scene of the music video where Taehyung lays his head down on the train tracks at an abandoned train station. This is possibly a depiction of the survivor’s guilt (feelings of guilt for being the one that survived a life-threatening event while the others did not) that many involved in the Sewol Ferry Tragedy suffered shortly after the accident, with a number of them even attempting or committing suicide.

Furthermore, Taehyung also sings the line, “Will I get to you a little faster if I was the snow in the air,” that is, he is asking if he will reach his loved one in Heaven more quickly if he died now and became a part of the earth. This idea together with the imagery shown in the music video supports the theory that survivor’s guilt is referred to in the music video. 

Another sequence in the video that makes an allusion to the tragedy is the one where BTS member Jimin is on a seashore, alone.

Later he is shown picking up a pair of shoes that was washed up onto the shore, which most likely signifies the loss of a life.

 These same shoes can then be spotted in several scenes of the music video, with their final appearance being in the ending scene of the video where they are hanging on a tree branch. This is also a symbolism for death. In addition to these scenes, there are other allusions to the tragedy that typically go unnoticed.

In the scene at the laundromat, a “Don’t Forget” sticker can be seen on the dryers, while in another scene, a carousel with several yellow ribbons tied onto it is shown. Both these details may seem minor, but are in fact highly significant as they symbolise solidarity with the Sewol Ferry Tragedy’s victims and their families.

In addition, we cannot discuss this particular music video without mentioning “Omelas.” Quite a few times a motel named “Omelas” appears in the video, which is a reference to “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas,” a short story written by Ursula K. Le Guin. This short philosophical fiction is a coming-of-age story told in the utopian city of Omelas where everything is unbelievably perfect. The narrator soon reveals that the happiness of the town depends on the suffering of a single child, that is, the child must constantly suffer in order for the town to maintain its perfection and prosperity. The existence of the child and why the child is left in perpetual misery is revealed to the children of Omelas when they come of age, leaving many feeling shocked and sickened. The city will turn into a dystopia if they help the child in any way, so they are left with two choices: accept the reality for the greater good or walk away from Omelas (Le Guin, 1975)(Wikipedia.org). 

In the “Spring Day” music video, the Omelas motel is first shown when BTS member RM walks up to it while the “No Vacancy” sign is lit up and BTS members J-Hope and Suga are standing outside it talking.

 However, when BTS member Jungguk comes across the motel later in the music video, it is completely abandoned and dark with the “No Vacancy” sign barely lighting up. This scene probably indicates that BTS left Omelas behind because they could empathise with the ones suffering and could not continue to live happily at the cost of another person’s welfare.

Here, BTS is trying to convey to the viewer that although human beings must make sacrifices, they do not have to do it alone and can find comfort in togetherness. This also seems to be a reference to the Sewol Ferry Tragedy, as BTS uses their power of choice to stand up and protect those that are vulnerable and in this case, the victims and their families.

Throughout “Spring Day,” there are several juxtaposing scenes that either cut or zoom out to  highlight the theme of “You are not alone,” which is in line with the title of the BTS album “Spring Day” belongs to —You Never Walk Alone. The initial scenes make the viewers think that a BTS member is alone in a particular setting, but later in the video the full shots are revealed and show all seven BTS members together, thereby conveying their message that no individual is truly alone. 

 BTS and the music video director’s intent here, as seen in their album description, is to provide a “message of warm consolation and hope for the suffering youth of this generation” (BTS Website 2017). “Spring Day,” both the music video and the song, gradually shifts from a sorrowful present to a hopeful future, and the music video is skilfully shot and edited to achieve this ambience. The moving lyrics in the bridge of the song is, “The morning will come again. No darkness, no season can last forever”

These lyrics and the stills illustrated represent the transition from winter to spring. The thawing of the snowy field, the bare tree sprouting new leaves and flowers, and the flower petals flowing through the wind, all signify the coming of a spring day and a brighter future. Spring represents new life and new beginnings and in the music video BTS is approaching it together, tying back to the overall theme of You Never Walk Alone.

BTS’s “Spring Day” music video checks all of the boxes for characteristics that one would find in a quintessential K-pop music video aka visually pleasing scenes, ambiguous storyline, combination of colours, etc. But it can also be considered as essentially different from a typical K-pop video because of the messages within the lyrics and the video. Such messages are a standard and important feature of BTS’s discography and attest to the fact that they are not afraid to move beyond boundaries and discuss topics that are largely avoided by society.

Scene Analysis

  Baby Driver scene analysis:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ARFyrM6gVs

Part 1: The setup. 

(I decided to do this in two parts, the first one to show what Edgar Wright sets up in the first half of the scene, and the second one to talk about the car chase (a personal favorite))

This first scene sets up the movie without any exposition or dialogue. The film will use what the audience hears and sees first to set up the opening. Edgar Wright does this in the very beginning, before we even see anything we hear a high pitched tone that transforms into a musical note giving the audience an idea of who our main character is and who we should be sympathetic towards. The viewers won't find out until later into the film that Baby listens to music because of his tinnitus, but the seed is planted firmly at the beginning. In Baby Driver the sound dominates video, which is different to usual films. So it makes sense that we hear the music before any images in this scene Therefore hinting to Baby's tinnitus and giving audio a crucial role in the film. The three opening shots easily give us context for the setup of the main character and the world it is based in. 

We see cars and a bank, a sign telling us what city we're in.

Then we see Baby's red Subaru fill the screen, defining it's importance for the rest of the scene.

 The second thing we see is Baby's Ipod. Signifying that the music in Baby Driver's soundtrack is also canon in the world of the film itself.

We hear what Baby hears, the music isn't just there for the audience. By making this the second shot of the movie, Wright is also emphasizing the important role that music will play in this film.

Finally we see our main character close up aka Baby:

After Baby hits play on his Ipod, the next four cuts happen to the beat of the music.

As the crew get out of the car. The slamming of the car doors, the opening and closing of the boot and their footsteps as well as the sound of vehicles beeping and passing by, all synchronize with the music. So in the first few seconds, the audience is already introduced to the stylistic tic that will propel much of the most of the film.

48 seconds into the film, the crew's masks go on, and if it wasn't already obvious, it's certainly obvious what they're going to do now.

 This is where another important decision happens. Even though the more interesting thing, the movement of the action is moving into the bank, Wright uses a wide shot and perspective to separate Baby from the crew. And the audience stay in the car with Baby.

This not only gets us comfortable with the fact that the rest of the story will play out from Baby’s perspective, it helps us separate him from the criminal world.

Wright quickly reminds us however, that this separation is just an illusion. The coincidence of a passing police car awakens Baby from his reverie. And Baby’s view of what’s happening in the bank serve as a harsh reminder for us and for Baby of what he’s involved with.

Part 2: The Getaway

 The second part of the scene consists of a car chase. This whole scene has so many short cuts that are about 2 seconds long each. This speed of cutting works here because the scene functions almost more as a musical montage of a car chase, than as a real time depiction of a car chase. There are many apparent jumps, some smaller and some larger, but this all kind of works because of the strong role the music plays. Every sound effect is on beat with the music. We spend just as much time inside the car than out.

 Edgar Wright prioritises showing the feeling of the scene over clarity of physical action. Like in this shot where we don’t see the car swerve over into another lane, but we can almost feel it swerve because we can see the movements and reactions of everyone in the vehicle.

 Of like this moments a few seconds later where we never actually see the car make a u turn, but a shot of Baby pulling the handbrake, and the passengers bodies shifting in their seats as the car turns is enough to clue us into what happened.

 The scene is built around one thing. Baby and his car. The police even take a huge backseat. To me what sets this scene apart. It’s singular focus, Baby and his Car. This mirrors the singular focus of the film, Baby and his Driving. Often in chase scene like this, the lead car just seems to be following a predetermined path. But in this scene it’s clear that they are able to get away because of Baby’s clever driving. Also I find it incredible that there is nobody talking, theres only the character's gasps and the music but you still know exactly whats happening.

Lights, Camera, Action

Friday 30th September

 LO: to understand and practice using the principles of film making.

shot type

shot sizes, m tone meaning

establishing shot crucial 

master shot confirms location and characters in scene, their relationships

used for longer scenes

wide shot (ws) visually represent their relationship in their environment

long shot to show people in full, make statements in all their glory

medium full/ medium long shot top of the subjects head to the waist present subject as confident and confrontational

medium short, above the waist below the waist, above their chest, just above the head utilise a true middle ground approach

MCU medium close up, reduce distraction get intimate with a character head to chest

close up (cu) highlight a change in emotion in a dramatic scene dramatically effective

Extreme close up shot, focus on a features,  emphasis, 

insert shot, used to highlight an important object 

framing

singles, feature s on e character, primary focus used to convey a characters isolation

two shot, both faces must be visible, visual relationship between two characters

three shot, four shot... 

over the shoulder hybrid of single and two shot, focus on one character at a time, perspective on both sides

pov , pov shot with pov audio

insert shot detail, way information is framed is more important 

camera angle

low angle, below a subject eye line, make subject more powerful

high angle makes a subject look less powerful, diminish a character, appear weak. environments, cities, landscapes 

overhead camera directly above the subject, capture details 

dutch angle off kilter image sense of unease, terror or bewilderment, magnify tension, 

eye level, 

shoulder level, slightly low angles but less dramatic emphasise a hight difference, can also advance an affectionate glance 

hip level, 

knee level shot, at knee height, doubling a slow angles 

ground level, to track a characters movements, 

camera movement

Shoot out video                                                                                                                                                       

"Not quite my tempo" Whiplash scene

in this scene Fletcher is getting Andrew to play the drums instead of the core drummer, the music keeps cutting which shows how aggravated Fletcher is becoming, because it's not the tempo he was looking for. This also shows that Fletcher is in control. Not just in the room, but in the film as well. Fletcher raises his hand to stop the band, however this motion causes a cut from the camera as well.

 These are subtle film making ways to build power with Fletcher. Stop after stop diffuses his reaction but not his power. His soft demeanour is coming in contrast to the power he is wielding. We see eight of those stopping motions, and it makes you tired until you get Fletcher bopping his head and turning around only to throw a chair at Andrew. 

The tone has shifted entirely. Before Fletcher threw the chair, we were getting typical shots, single shots primarily of both characters. and the way you frame these shots, is so that way the characters heads are roughly the same size. After Fletcher throws the chair, we get a side profile shot of disbelief focused on Andrew, but Fletcher still shown in a  medium shot 

.These characters are not on equal basis now. The angle and size difference of these shots now show the superiority.

 Until the action finally tilts forward now we see them both in the same shot (a two shot). When Andrew is told to count in tempo and gets slapped in the face by Fletcher, there's a cut on every hit. Since the camera is jumping to the other side of the characters, it looks like a back and fourth motion (to me its almost like a seesaw). 

When asked rushing or dragging, the shot changes, they're now at a hybrid single shot at a low angle to make Fletcher look more powerful.

 Then we come back to that earlier profile with the next shot. In conclusion the scene keeps building tension to give you the same kind of feeling that Andrew is feeling throughout that whole scene. 

Not quite my tempo scene

2nd of November

180 degree rule kept

shakey

too much of a horror movie vibe

music fits filter but not visual

music climax doesn't match visual

could've used a tripod 

Explain the task you were given and what you needed to consider. Explain your specific role and input.

The task given was a shoot-out of our choice, we had to consider the location, setting, storyline weather and the comfort of the people in the video. I was the "director" and editor in this instance. I had also spoken to the actors in question about the scene, how I'd like them stood, the emotions portrayed and their actions.

Explain which conventions you attempted to use and whether they were successful.

 I didn't particularly use any conventions, I used what I knew and had envisioned in my head (Walking towards the camera, the foot shots, the focus on the gun being raised).  

How does your media product convey a clear narrative?

The final product did have a clear narrative, despite the idea not being fully portrayed as it is not well-known to some, the final product ad it's own narrative to different people. However all narratives had a similar theme.

What did you do successfully and what would you need to improve/consider if redoing the task?

I think the idea was well executed, and I managed to keep in mind the 180 degree rule. However if I were to re-do this task, I would have to work on the audio and visual matching and fix the shakiness with a tripod, I was also told that it was giving viewers a horror movie aura. So, if i could redo this task I would try to correct all the filming and editing errors. 

Skills development

 9/09/2022

L/O: research, plan and produce a product in response to a brief.

Genre: Indie Rock

Album title: I Can Talk

Band name: The Revival Division

Songs for the back of the album:

1. Symphony Sickness

2. Runaway

3. Centre of Attention

4. Where u At?

5. Orangeade

6. I Don't Know How I Feel About This

7. Sweet Chaos

8. Syndrome 

9. Rule The World

10. Mixtape

The album's theme and storyline is about running away. It starts with Symphony Sickness,  talking about someone that has had enough of the same four walls and the same small town and how it's taking a toll on the character's mental health. Therefore, in track two "Runaway", -as stated in it's name- The character decides to run away from home in hopes of finding something new and exciting. In this small town the characters disappearance becomes the main focus of the town "Centre of Attention" explains that. "Orangeade" is merely just a filler song, purely just mentioning how everything is going well. The character of this album starts having regrets when things start not going the way they planned "I Don't Know How I Feel About This" briefly shows the doubt that the character is having. In "Sweet Chaos" is showing both worlds: The small town in panic and also how the character is feeling about this whole situation. " Syndrome" is about how the character is feeling homesick and lost, after a while they will find the courage to let everyone know that they're alright and have been finding their way in the world. At this point the character is is feeling on top of the world. Everything has been going their way and they get to pursue their dream of creating music when finally the final song on the album "Mixtape" is the final release. 

Website link:

https://RevivalDivision.com/home

front cover:

back cover:

Album release social media post:

Tour social media post:

Continuity in images, wide gaps and that website needs alot TLC

Media Intro

 I lived in France for roughly 15 years meaning I am fluent in French! I love all kinds of music but there are a few artists that piqued my interests recently, such as: Lovejoy, Mitski and many more. I love gaming, I mainly play The Sims 4 and Minecraft. My first concert was a BTS concert in 2019, right before COVID-19 hit.