Explain how representations in music videos are chosen to promote the artist. Refer to one of the music videos you have studied to support your answer. (10)
Representations are made in music videos to promote the artist such as David Guetta’s Titanium and the representation of being different. David grew up very isolated in school he would rather be alone and did not have many friends, he received a lot of criticism from his Muslim parents about his DJing and how he needs to get a proper job and music would not be a career. David wrote in his songs about how they ‘shoot me down but I won’t fall’ which could be linked to how he deals with and ignores the criticism being voiced towards him.
The representation of the supernatural is also apparent in the music video from when the little boy pushes the soldiers away, makes the teddy bears float and the bike speed up. This can promote David as it shows him as an out their character who people should follow as he is different, and his next music could be just as quirky and mysterious.
The camera effects can create the representation of the supernatural because clips such as teddy bear clip where the camera is on a low angle, it helps the audience to see what the police officer is seeing and helps build the confusion of the scene and creates a supernatural atmosphere where the audience is in the same state as the police officer.
The editing can also create the supernatural representation by the speeding up of the bike scene when the camera is tracking the bike going through the housing estate, this helps build the representation because it shows the bike as supernatural as it is going at a very high speed and shows how David Guetta wants to create this representation.
The Mise en scene of the video has many supernatural themes such as the close intertextuality to the film E.T. in props such as the bike and in actors such as the main character being a child. This creates a supernatural feel because the video links with a heavily supernatural film who people can relate to the video and then relate to the artist which will help promote the artist.
The sound was completely cut out of the video except the music to help create the supernatural representation, this is because people will be completely focused on the lyrics and not the words coming out of the people’s mouths, also having people’s lips moving but nothing coming out is quite strange and supernatural and helps to show the representation of the supernatural.
To conclude music videos like David Guetta’s Titanium help to show representations which can promote the artist due to ideas such as the supernatural themes in Titanium shown by the camera, editing, sound and Mise en scene throughout.
