conventional and unconventional

Through looking at a number of different music videos, there is an obvious 'criteria' for typical genres of music video. For example, hip hop videos tend to use fish eye effects, aswell as showing images of wealth, such as gold jewellery, limosines and jacuzzis. This genre also often uses conventions like birds eye view shots, and girls dancing in settings such as clubs or boats. Artists such as Lonely Island have used these conventions to create tongue in cheek videos. An example of a stereotypical serious video is 'Hypnotize' (Notorious B.I.G) which uses the majority of all hip hop conventions:





Unconventional music videos are mainly created by unconventional music artists who push boundaries within their genre, such as Aphex Twin, who use all means to create interesting and challenging media. One of my favourite unconventional videos is Chris Cunningham's video for Leftfield's 'Afrika Shox'. This video raises issues regarding race which would be otherwise ignored in more conventional videos, whilst using more varied styles, camera shots and angles, the video also portrays a more real life and hard hitting narrative to fit with the music. The use of regular, every day mise en scene shown through panning and establishing shots makes a more hard hitting impact on the audience, whilst the edited and muted colour gives the video a timeless effect; connoting to the audience that the racism portrayed is not one which will go away.



One of my favourite music videos is Justice's 'Dance'. The video is quite simple, as it uses a series of midshots; following the two artists as they walk through a building. The fact that the audience never sees their faces creates an enigma, which also acts as a hook. The animation used on their t shirts also draws in the audience as another hook. The simplicity of the video and childish animations reflects the music; computer generated. Personally, I think the video fairly conventional, with its use of hooks and effects, however its simplicity stands out to me and creates an interesting music video.