What is lacking from my blog?

After completing my research, I have peer and self evaluating and reviewed my blog. Some improvements were noticed that can be made to improve my blog. I received 14/20 marks with me being held back on receiving more marks based on the reasons below:

• A need to include more images/examples with attached analysis in my research of Synthpop music videos. 
• A need to include a wider range of media and IT devices in my project to break up more lengthy posts.   
• A clarified sense of the tone of Synthpop music videos.
• A clarification of why I am using long takes in my music video and examples of this in Synthpop music videos.

Follow up: Audience research for Synthpop music videos

Previous research

After reviewing my last questionnaire that I completed for my research into audiences opinions regarding Synthpop music videos, I found some issues that I needed to resolve before beginning planning of my project. These issues were;

• A small sample size
• A lack of specificity in some questions
• A lack of examples of Synthpop music videos given to allow audiences to answer
• Closed questions forcing participants to answer questions even if they have no opinion on the matter
• A level of confusion experienced by the participants in general when answering the questionnaire

I believe the main cause of these issues are that the genre of Synthpop is quite a niche music genre that tests individuals limited knowledge when questioned about it. I feel that I can use the previous results as a good indication of the answers but need to do some more extensive research to have more conclusive results.

Follow up research

For my next piece of research, I have decided to do a more interactive style research to identify the conventions of Synthpop music videos. I have shown 3 individuals who are all present in the room at the time) Synthpop music videos (below). I have asked each individual to take notes on each music video and generally what they notice/features of the video. I gave them some prompts to consider such as props, narratives, characters and music. My intention is to see a correlation between the music videos to see if any similar characteristics came up that allow me to identify conventions of the genre.


Each individual noted down the features that they noticed and I have collated together the three notes from each person per video to make up my final results. Each participant was given instructions to allow the other speakers an opportunity to freely share their interpretation without being discouraged or interrupted at all.


To prevent a misrepresentation of results, I have not told them specifically what I am looking for and have only prompted them to point out features in each music video and then I will draw the similarities between the videos from the responses.
I have addressed the issues of the last piece of research by allowing more freedom with the participants to openly speak and discuss about the music videos where they spoke about the features of each one (allowing me to draw conclusions and subsequent conventions between music videos in the genre).
I was unable to sort the issue of the small sample size but I feel that this new mean of questioning works in favor of the results but not having an overwhelming number of people.
.

80s Style

 Odd Look by Kavinsky

Protovision by Kavinsky

Lone Digger by Caravan Palace

Harder Better Faster by Daft Punk

Modern

 Habits (Stay High) by Tove Lo

Royals by Lorde

Below is a transcribed questioning of one of the showing of the music video 'Odd Look' with the 3 individual's responses.


Key
S= Samuel: Leading discussion
H= Harry: (Male, student, older teenager)- participant
ST= Samantha: (Female, young adult)- participant
J= Jacob: (Male, young teenager)- participant
. 

S: So I'd like you to have a look at the following music video called Odd Look. This is made by an artist called Kavinsky 

H: Mmmmm

S: Heard of him?

H: I think so...yeah

S: Ok...great...so we'll have a look at this music video...It's the genre of Synthpop...Does anyone...sort of know what that is?

ST: The one from.. from the questionnaire?

S: Yeah... from the questionnaire

ST: Oh...Ok
S: Jacob...do you know?
J: Yeah

S: Great...So we'll have a look at this music video first and then have a look at some other Synthpop music videos...I want you to tell me what you notice about the video....you can take notes and I'll pause it if you want me to...just any details about the video that you notice at all
All: Ok

S: So just watch the video and take notes...make sure to put the title at the top so you know which vid-

H:What's the name again?

S: Odd Look

ST: Who's that by?

S: Kavisnky... Jacob it's K-A-V-I-N-S-K-Y...got it?
J: Yeah I have it

S: Ok...I'm going to start now

(Shows video)

S: Ok so take as long as you need to make notes and just let me know when you are done...no rush

H: Ok, I'm done

S: Great...fantastic...how's everyone else doing?
J: I'm done
ST: Just a mom...ent...ok done
S: Great...so could you just tell me what you saw...noticed in the video...

H: Well, it's kinda dark story...the main guy I think is kind of like God or something...um...it feels very like it has an old style
S: 80s sorta?
H: YES! 80s...sorry...I couldn't remember what it was
(More responses given and next video shown)
S: So what I think we'll do is take in all your notes for this video and I'll give out some more for the next one...just say if anyone needs a break at all

Results

Overall, I saw variances in terms of responses. There were however, some correlation between the conventions identified in 80s style music videos and modern music videos as well as similar conventions in both. Here are the conventions that I concluded for the Synthpop music videos taken from these responses.

• 80s style generally had darker tone, narratives and lyrics that dealt with death and similarily negative topics whereas modern was the same but dealt with more social issues.
• Felt that the characters in the videos were generally split by gender (men= mysterious/odd character/god like) (female= damsel in distress, innocent and vulnerable)
• Felt that the sexualization of women was limited and not overly explicit but occasionally present.
• Participants mentioned the male lead more often in these but made reference to the female character (felt that the videos did have the male lead the video but that he did not always completely dominate it).
• Participants were generally able to understand and keep up with what was happening as the videos were not overly fast paced but neither too slow or 'boring'.
• Participants noticed a level of violence in the music videos that they felt was quite unique for these videos.
• They felt that they were like 'mini-stories' that were quite character focused/based.
• There was effects present in them that were either animation or effects added in post on live action.

Audience research for Synthpop music videos

As well as my other research into general and Synthpop music videos, I will also complete some audience research in the form of a questionnaire. I have specifically set out to questions those who are aware,watch/listen to and/or are fans the genre of Synthpop and its related music videos. These people need to be able to answer questions about Synthpop and give their honest opinions.

To find these individuals, I sent out a control question. The applicants who answered yes (As opposed to the answer 'No' or 'Don't Know') and deemed to be aware of Synthpop by myself were then questioned fully. The control question is:

Then I asked each individual (8 people in total) 10 related questions about Sythpop. I have placed the question, results and my response to each question below.

1. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should include dark lyrics?

From this I can see that most people believe that Synthpop music videos should include dark lyrics (as many do). For the song "Nightcall" that I am using for my project, the lyrics are not overly dark but do include a level of psychoanalysis in the line "There's something inside you. It's hard to explain" as the female character studies the male character. This could be inferred as potentially a dark lyric.


2. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should include a dark tone or 'feel' to them?
From this I can see that most people believe that Synthpop music videos should include a dark tone (as many do). For the song "Nightcall", the tone is quite dark and serious with its 'punchy' electronic backing and low auto tuned male voice.

3. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should be quite short in length (3-4 minutes) or longer (5-6 minutes and over)?

From this I can see that most people believe that Synthpop music videos should be quite short in length that is between 3-4 minutes. The original length of "Nightcall" is 4 minutes 15 seconds. Without the long outro, the song is about 3 minutes 40 seconds. I could also instead of cutting the outro off, cut out some of the lyrics but this will be decided at a later date. I feel that this also keeps in with the length of other Synthpop music videos such as "Protovision" (3 minutes 8 seconds) and "Harder Better Stronger Faster" (3 minutes 42 seconds).

4. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should include a male lead/female lead or a split between the two?

From this I can see that most people  are split between whether Synthpop music videos should have mostly male or female leads. Primarily, Synthpop music videos have male leads except there are exceptions such as in Daft Punk's "Harder Better Faster Stronger" where there are both female and male leads. In Kavinsky's "Odd Look", there is a female character who stars quite prominently in the video. For Nightcall and my project, there are both a female and a male singer that share the song and (in terms of my music video) will both lead my project.

5. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should include strong or minimal sexualization of women?

From this I can see that most people believe that Synthpop music videos should have small amounts of sexualization of women in them. This happens in Kavinsky's "Odd Look" with a sexually suggestive shot of the waitress but this is subtle and not overtly sexual. In my project, I will also have very minor amounts of sexualization of women yet nothing extreme.




6. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should include mysterious characters?

From this I can see that most people believe that Synthpop music videos should include mysterious characters. In Kavinsky's videos, his character is extremely mysterious and is a man of no words which further adds to the mystery about the character. In my project, my character is mysterious as the causes of his deformities and issues are unclear as well as his relationship with the female and how that came to be.

7. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should be fast paced or slow and steady?

From this I can see that most people believe that Synthpop music videos should be slow paced but a good majority of people also said that it should be fast paced. Synthpop music videos are generally in the middle with confident paces that are not rushed. This is the case with the Synthpop song "Nightcall" that is not overly fast or slow paced.





8. Do you feel that Synthpop music videos generally should include the subject of death?

From this I can see that most people believe that Synthpop music videos should include the subject of death. This is present in certain Synthpop music videos such as Kavinsky's "Odd Look" but is not a major narrative element of the video. In my project, I plan to have inference to the subject of death but (like with other Synthpop music videos) will not overly focus on it.

9. Watch the following music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Uee_mcxvrw
Do you feel that a black and white style (like the one used in this video) would be appropriate in a Synthpop music video?

Most people felt that it would be appropriate in a Synthpop music video and so I will consider this style and design in my project.







10. Read the following blog post for the song Nightcall for a music video proposition idea:
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=77105270259351241#editor/target=post;postID=8345043584214121383;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=12;src=postname
How likely are you to want to watch this music video if this idea was turned into a music video?

It seems that all those questionned would want to watch this idea if turned into a music video which makes me confident in my idea.

Communication Through Eyes

For my project, I am planning on having the male character look quite daunting with the lack of hair and noticeable scarring. To accompany this, the character will also appear quite isolated and still, only moving his mouth for the lyrics. However, I feel that I also need to consider the way in which the character is looking with his eyes. I have drawn my inspiration for this from the 2006 film "Stormbreaker" starring Alex Pettyfer and will look at the way in which characters communicate with their eyes and the way in which 'The Look of Death' is used.

Stormbreaker (2006) Communication through eyes from samuelpilsworth

As well as this, I will look at the use of communication through eyes in the Synthpop music video 'Odd Look' by Kavinsky.

Between 02:04-02:12, the waitress has been taken hostage by a group of men and the character Kavinsky has shown up to save her. Firstly, the 'lead' attacker leaves the female character and approaches to face Kavinsky. His eyes are a combination of a little bit of fear but also with a hint of a defensive nature in them (protecting the girl that they wish to attack). In the next shot, (although wearing shades that make his eyes unable to be seen) Kavinsky uses a combination of his eyes and actions to communicate. Kavinsky goes from looking at the man, to turning away to turn the 'OPEN' sign of the restaurant off and then returns his eyes (staring at the man) threatening him. Lastly, the camera pans up to the attacker pulling out a flip knife. This character's eyes are far more threatening and focused showing that the man means to attack Kavinsky to stop him from protecting the waitress.       

This has shown me that in my music video, using eye as a means of communication is very important. Taken from a Synthpop music video, I need to add a level of sinisterness and intent in character's eye (as well as other actions) to add a level of mystery to my male character and develop the narrative and meaning in the music video. 

FOSMV: Shot types and Sound

Shot types

Commonly in Synthpop music videos, the shots are medium shots of the character's shoulder and face as shown in modern Synthpop music videos such as Royal's 'Lorde' and is also present in 80s Synthpop music videos such as Kavinsky's 'Protovision'. There are also wider shots used in both modern and 80s style Synthpop music videos. Between these two types of Synthpop music videos, there appears to be a specific focus on each character in the shots with little focus taken away from the characters. This doesn't always seem the case in more general music videso such as Taylor Swift's "I Knew You Were Trouble" where there are shots of the surroundings and environment are shown and take the focus away from the characters which differs from Synthpop music videos.
In my project, I will stick to the shot types used by Synthpop music videos by keeping the shots focused on a character in each shot with most shots being variances of medium shots but also use some wider shots.

Sound

In terms of sound use in Synthpop music videos, there is the use of Synthesizers. This gives a warped sound to the voice of the singer. This is most apparent in Kavisnky's 'Odd Look' (shown in the audio in the video clip below) in the following lyrics: "You are the snake, get around me. And it came with rain". With this example, the unique sound of the singer's voice can be distinctively heard and appears to begin when the men begin to interact with the waitress in the narrative.

Similar sounds of singer's voices can be heard in Synthpop music videos such as Caravan Palace's ' Lone Digger'. In this, the singer builds up as the cats are entering the club and then reaches a peak when the actually enter the club itself. The changes are variances in the sound allow for a change in narrative just is the case with 'Odd Look'. Here, I can see that sound signifiers are often used when certain things like points in the narrative begin.

In my project, I am using the song Nightcall. This song does not have many variances in terms of tempo and volume apart from an extremely distinctive change between the female and male singer. At this point when the change between the singer begins, I plan to change the imagery just as other Synthpop music videos do. I also plan to change shots at the beginning of lyrics to keep the video in time with the singer. This conforms to other Synthpop music videos that use points in the song for a change in the images of the music video itself.  

FOSMV: Mise en Scene/costume/hair/make-up

Mise en scene and costume/hair/make-up in Synthpop music videos from samuelpilsworth

Above is a Slideshare that has been also placed below in a different form
Mise en Scene and costume/hair/make-up

In 80s style Synthpop music videos, costume/hair and make-up are used to create the distinctive 80s look. In Kavinsky's 'Protovision' and 'Odd Look', Kavinsky dawns an unique 'jock' looking jacket, sunglasses and moustache. This look in addition to his 80s style hair and biker gloves bring a distinctive look to the character. A similar jacket is worn by the characters in Lone Digger and is distinctively old-fashioned looking.


Unique 80s style clothing and haircuts are also seen in Daft Punk's 'Harder Better Faster' that is accompanied by a old-fashioned anime style.
For my project, I aim to include a quite exclusive look with my male character (just as is the case with Sythpop videos). The character will be bald with visible scarring and I plan to have them wearing a hospital style gown that will really contrast them with more general music videos and fit in more with the unique style of Sythpop music videos. I will also try to include 80s elements in the video to match the convention of Synthpop music videos.

In terms of props in Kavinsky's 'Odd Look', Kavinsky wears dark sunglasses. These are used in a sense to hide his identity but also as a character motif in the music video. The use of dark sunglasses is also an abnormal use for sunglasses that are meant to be used in the sun.This adds a mysterious element to the character that makes the character unique in the way audiences view him.

In Caravan Palace's 'Lone Digger', there is the use of cigars and alcohol that can link into the dark theme of addiction drawing a contrast with the suits worn by the dogs that make them seem sophisticated and professional.

As Andrew Goodwin wrote, there is the notion of looking in music video that is often used to entice or attract audiences. This is present in Synthpop music videos in music videos such as  Kavinsk'ys "Odd Look". In this,  there is a shot of the waitress from the perception of one of the attackers which also supports the theory of the 'Male Gaze' by Laura Mulvey and acts as an example of minor sexualization in Synthpop music videos.

For the female character in my music video, I am looking to not sexually exploit the character (as is the case with many music videos) but instead treat the character slightly differently as Synthpop music videos do. I will have my female character singing the lyrics towards the camera and will have the character be attractive but will not have them act in an overly self-objectifying way. The character will also be wearing a hoodie and other non-sexually suggestive clothing to better conform to the characteristics of Synthpop music videos that have minor
  

FOSMV: Audience and Performance Space

Audience

Male lead: Kavisnky in Protovision

Synthpop music videos are generally aimed at quite niche audience groups that are primarily select older teenagers and young adults that are male.
This niche audience of Snythpop mainly follow the singer themselves and are drawn by the deeper connotations of the video.
However, Synthpop music videos do contain some other features such as containing male leads to reach out to male audiences that are fans of the singer/performer. This is evident in the following

Male lead of a group of cats in Lone Digger

music videos that contain primary male leads: Odd Look, Protovison and Lone Digger.

Like Synthpop music videos, my project will contain a male character. I will create a piece that is aimed at the same audience that is a more niche selection of people who's interest are more on the meaning behind the music video itself.

Performance space

Habits- Stay High

In terms of performance space in 80s style Synthpop music videos, the videos are often more narratively based and so there is little use of performance space. However, in more modern Synthpop music videos, the performance space is often in front of the camera and in isolated rooms (as shown in 'Habits (Stay High) on the right where she is in a dark room alone). This is also the case in 'Royals' where the singer performs in front of a blank wall in a room alone.

Royals- Lorde

In my project, I will conform to this convention by having my male character perform the song in an isolated room facing the camera.