Planning Cinematography -Miss Miller

Planning Cinematography 

Introduction

Cinematography is important to consider within a music video as it allows you to see what camera shots will be used for specific parts of the video. Different camera shots help show the audience different things about the artist, for example there costume, facial expressions or position in the camera. Writing down our ideas as a group and panning them on the picture above had allows us to see what camera shots we are using, what ones we need to include and the reasons for them. Cinematography also helps establish what is happening within each scene, within music videos when the camera shot changes this usually shows that a new scene is taking place.

Analysis

The first use of cinematography we have chosen to include within our music video is close-ups. We discussed this as a group and felt that close-ups within our music video will help to establish the mood and emotion being portrayed to the target audience. Close-ups within the music video will be used on the performance parts of the video rather than the narrative, which will include scenes of the artists playing the piano and singing on stage. The reason for choosing this particular shot is due to the genre our song is. Adele's song Hometown Glory is from the genre of soul, which conventional uses close-ups to show emotions and feelings clearly to the audience. This shot also allows the audience to look at the artist properly and familiarise themselves with the artist, looking at their features and facial expressions in detail. The picture on the left shows an close-up of a woman. From this close-up we as the audience can see she is happy and wants to catch the audiences attention as she is looking directly at the camera. This is the image me and my group want to create, so the audience can create a relationship with the artist quickly and understand the meaning behind the lyrics being sung. Personal experiences are usually sung about within the soul genre so close-ups conventionally allow us to see what has gone on in the past from a realistic look that is being given. Close-ups show emotions and feelings to the audience, although can also be un-conventional due to the fact that soul artists are seen to be insecure and shy, not liking to show there identity and face. Although our artist is Adele who is seen to be insecure as she sings about her bad past, we will be including close-ups within the creation of our music video. The performance aspect of the video will mainly include the use of close-ups although these may be used less frequently in the narrative side. This may be when she is enjoying times with her friends e.g. in the shopping centre to show her happy emotions just like within the performance aspect. This close-up is conventional to the soul genre, and is easily recognised by the target audience which enjoy soul. This is a good thing for my artist as she will be able to express her emotions clearly.

The next camera shot we have chosen to include within our music video is a high angle shot. A high angle shot means the artist can be seen from a different perspective rather than from the front of there action. This shot will take place when the artist is playing the piano in the performance element of the video. A high angle when the artist is playing the piano will show the artist using specific keys on the piano, to show to the audience that the performance side of the video is genuine and is actually taking place properly. The high angles will also show the artists as feeling small and being looked down on by her audience as the camera will be above her. This will represent her as venerable and insecure. By doing this it will also tell the narrative as she is feeling small again when performing just like she did when she was younger in her Hometown, this will reflect on her past, linking in to the black and white effect which will be used on this aspect of the scene. High angle shots are conventional to the soul genre as it shows emotion to the audience. The way that artists are conventionally represented within a soul genre music video is usually emotional and down, and the high angle shot can show this but not in a intentional way, but so the audience can still understand and gather what is trying to be said which is also the representation we also want to create. High angle shots within the soul genre allow the audience to express their emotion in detail, allowing the audience to also see a different perspective on things instead of a straight on shot from in front of the artist.

A panning shot is the third use of cinematography we have discussed and chosen to include. A panning shot is a camera movement that involves moving the camera horizontally to either the right or the left, the picture on the left is an example I have found. We have chosen to use panning shots when the artist is playing the piano. This will show the artist playing the piano in tune with the music, the panning shot will show her playing the keys and concentrating on the emotion she will be portraying on her face. The panning shot will be smooth and will create an elegant feel to connect to the elegance of the song, the piano will add to the effect of this as a piano is seen to be graceful within music. Seeing as the setting of the piano is located in a small room, this panning shot will emphasis the size of the room and disguise the background and focus on the piano and the artist itself. Linking in with this panning shots are conventionally used to focus on a particular thing such as the artist, and this is what we are going to do to make sure our artist is the main focus and the audience can build a relationship and understand the meaning to this. Many different talents will be explored through this camera-shot as we will see her in different lights and aspects. Panning shots allow a lot of different things to be seen at one time and specifically focus on one thing if they want too. A panning shot is conventional to the soul genre, as it can represent a crowded mind of the artist, expressing depression and sadness.

From more discussion as a group, we have also chosen to use a long shot. We will include long shots frequently throughout. These will include when we are filming different shots of London, when the artist is with her friends as well as when the artist is performing on stage. The shots of London will be edited with faced-paced to add to the effect that is being sent out to the audience. The London long-shots will show buses, cars and people walking past but in fast motion, the shot will show the world going by as the artists stands there and watches. This will represent her life and connect to the narrative as she feels her life has gone by fast and reflects on her past Hometown. All of this will take place in one shot. The fast paced will emphasise the fact that London is very busy and crowded in comparison to her previous hometown in a small village where it was quiet and close-connected. Within all of these shots we are able to see things such as costume and body language. Body language is very important for the audience to see as it connects to the feelings and emotions being portrayed through facial expressions. Body language also helps to tell the narrative of the story and express and emphasise emotions e.g. if the artist was angry then they would hold there fists and hands upwards. Within our music video we are going to show body language when the artist is on stage as she is expressing her sad emotions. This long shot will also show her as lonely as she is on stage by herself and no body surrounding her. This will show the artist as being un-happy as she sings about her past hometown. A long shot is conventional to the soul genre as is it emphasise the settings in music videos as a lot of things can be seen and taken from a long shot, as we don't just see the artist and background too, it is also an easy way to portray costume and body language and reoccurring colours.

The last shot we have chosen to include is the camera-shot of point of view. A point of view allows us to see the setting from the artists point of view. This shot will be used within our music video when the artist walks out on stage before her performance begins on the stage. The point of view will help the audience to relate to the way she is feeling and to follow her footsteps in the way she is moving up in the world. This gives the artist the opportunity to be in the artists shoes and get to gather the feelings that the artist is feeling at that time. These emotions will be things such as nervousness, vulnerability and shyness. The audience will be able to feel happy after these emotions as they discover how the artist feels within her own hometown. These point of view shots that will be used are conventional to the soul genre as they can show the narrative in a wider perspective within a soul song and allows the audience to see a wider picture. We aim to include this in our music video and let the audience share her experiences with her audience allowing a relationship to be made easily.

Conclusion
My research form this post has helped me to see why it is important to plan in advanced and how the cinematography aspect is so important within a music video. Our different points of cinematography show that we are going to use various amounts and all for different reasons to connect with the song and to show the artist in different ways. This has helped us to use different cinematography uses in specific places to help with emphasis and to show body language and emotions of the artist. I feel that this post has helped me a lot and i will include all of these things within my own music video as i will be ready and planned ahead.