Music Video Theorists

Andrew Goodwin

   With music running through all of his life, Andrew Goodwin has developed many different features to what makes a music video so good, and so successful.
   

1. Seeing the music: Editing cuts so that it corresponds with the music, and the beats within it. In a music video Goodwin says that you should structure the song itself and link that to what you film for it. This means that there'll be different scenes for different verses and maybe repeated ones for the chorus.
2. Narrative & Performance: Sometimes songs don not specifically show what their lyrics mean, so you have to use video to do this. Narrative & performance of a song should keep the audience thrilled and wanting to watch the video over and over. Repeatability is also key, as well as the artist acting as not just a musician, but also an actor/performer to advertise the product being sold, the song. 
3. Star image: The artist doesn't just have to be an actor, performer or musician, they have to be the 'Star'. The artist has to have a specific image, whether it be a style of hair, or clothes or even dance moves. For example, Elvis has the hair and the moves and likewise, MJ has his dress sense and his 'Moonwalk'. This gives the audience something to remember the artist for, and makes them stand out to the rest. 
4. Relation of visuals to song: Specific lyrics, give specific images to each individual. It is the director and the band/artist's job to pick the objects to fit the mood of the song, and to corroborate with the genre also. Repeatability is also used to 'Amplify' certain meanings to certain placed objects in a video.
5. Technical aspects: One of the most important ones (to the director especially) is how the music video is made. There has to be a heavy focus on camerawork, movement, editing, mise-en-scène, lighting etc. etc

Arguably Andrew Goodwin's theory does relate to a lot of music videos in this modern day, but I would also argue that that is only the truth in the majority on one genre, Pop. In other genres such as Rock, Punk or Alternative this isn't necessarily the case. 

Carol Vernallis

   Likewise to Goodwin, Vernallis also has a number of theories or concepts that relate to the way a music video is produced, performed and seen. 

These concepts are:

1. Narrative: The visuals are the response to a piece of music, but there doesn't always need to be a narrative. There are many aspects to 'Narrative' that Vernallis explores, first of all she says that there must be a driving force for the music video but this may not necessarily be the Narrative of the song. The Narrative may appear to be incomplete or the music video will end with no clear conclusion and it will also be presented in a 'Montage-style' with no indication of its meaning but the song itself and the visuals presented. However the Narrative (if any) will often pose questions to the audience, and leave them thinking. These point all link to each other, and it enforces the point of a music video not only being an advert but a piece of Art for many. It's two creative cultures merging into one in order to provoke an intense amount of varied emotions.
2. Editing: The editing for any video is key, but for a Music Video it's extremely important. Vernallis talks a lot about the relationship with the visuals and the music ( a lot like Goodwin), she specifically talks about the editing and its match with the musical phrase or beat. Another important aspect of this particular concept is the idea that in music videos the rules for continuity editing should be thoroughly broken. This could be done either through jump cuts, extreme changes in pace, breaks in the 180 degree rule etc.
3. Camera Movement and Framing: Extremity in music videos seems to be a recurring theme within this theory of Vernallis', and this concept is no different. Extreme close ups, Fisheye shots, and jumps in shot changes is part of this extremity and will feature in many music videos. Each video may have a specific way of using the camera shots, movement and framing and this 'style' will be distinctive to that video. Seeing a music video as art form, this type of aspect works very well as it allows for creativeness and innovation in the filmmaking world.
4. Diegesis (the world in which the music video is created): The themes of extremity, creativity, and curiosity are recurring so it's almost ironic that the next aspect is all about the repetition of shots, colours, performance etc. Repetition is key in a music video because it allows the musician to get their message across through the concept of quantity, and it also means that they can create a world for their song (via the video) that leaves certain objects in everyday life connotations for the audience to perceive and recognise. Vernallis also says though that the diegesis for a music video may be revealed to the audience slowly. Curiosity and the constant jumps of space or time is the same in this diegesis concept too. This does add to the 'Wacky-ness' of a video, but in many ways it makes it more interesting, and something visual appealing.