This slideshare is part of my A2 Media Studies coursework, the slide is part of my evaluation.

1. Question 1
In what ways does your media product use,
develop or challenge forms and conventions
of real media products?
Bailey Spray
A2 Media Studies

2. A brief insight into our Final Products
• The basis of the task set was to create a music video to song of our choice (my group), we
were to pick a song and create a music video, digipak and magazine advert (ancillary
texts). The song we decided on was ; Endorphins by the dance artist Sub Focus. This song
was chosen by the group as we all knew the song and we all had previously watched the
music video.
• Through creating our music video we tried to stick to the stereotypical codes and
conventions of the music genre through creating a music video. We didn’t want to too
heavily challenge the music genre because from our previous genre research we found
that music videos within our chosen genre provided a range of dance shots and surrealism
such as the song Toulouse by Nicky Romero.
• The digipak…
Figure 1
First shot of the music video

3. Codes and Conventions of a Dance Music Video
• As in any music video to any music genre, there are various elements that
will contribute to make the music genre individual and stand out. For
example with a music video for a the music genre of Rock there is
stereotypically a live performance from the band and with the Indie Music
Genre, the theme is usually casual.
• The main Codes and Conventions displayed in a dance music video are:
• Dancing from characters
• Surrealism
• Mixed Narrative with shots of dancers
• Strong, bright lighting
• Use of the Male Gaze, can differ from both male and female being subject
to the Male Gaze
• Surrealism
• Special effects or certain types of editing

4. Andrew Goodwin, Music Video Theorist.
• Andrew Goodwin wrote the book; Dancing in the Distraction Factory, 1992. The book
focuses on key media concepts, some of the various media concepts into what relates to
my groups work is the how Andrew Goodwin talks about music videos. He states that music
videos demonstrate genre characteristics and often present relationships to lyrics with the
music videos. Andrew Goodwin is also influential in describing that artists demand close
ups to show the music video is about them and they are the main focus point the target
demographic is to direct their address. Andrew Goodwin develops the idea of intertexuality
through references to modern day culture, music videos and television.
• Video conventions will differ according to the genre of music, but there are three key
conventions to consider:
• Narrative: The video tells a story.
• Performance: The video is dominated by live or band performance.
• Concept: There is a theme or concept behind the video.
• The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close
ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across
their work (a visual style).
Figure 2
Dancing in the Distraction Factory

5. Goodwin’s theory related to our music video
Genre characteristics
• In relation to Goodwin’s theory, I believe that my group’s music video fits within Goodwin’s
theories of genre characteristics. I believe that the main codes and conventions in the music
genre my group chose (dance music) are displayed through various characters dancing and
showing a reasonably strong narrative. For example in the song Animals by Martin Garix
there’s narrative to the video and also a lot of dancing to amplify the genre of the music video.
• My music video develops the music genre as the video we shot has scenes and shots of
dancing towards the end of the music video (see figure 3). This is an element of the music
genre as it’s what the music is there for, to make people dance so it’s almost important for our
music video to include this. An example which is similar to our music video is Gold Dust by DJ
Fresh.
• Another genre characteristic I believe my music video develops is the way we display a
narrative of the main character being chased by masked characters through a surreal world.
We decided upon creating a narrative that slightly intertwines with the lyrics of the song. For
example the lyrics say; “The moment I awake I’m chasing signs” and in the music video we
have the main character open their and then later in the video they are being chased.
• Another example of how our music video fit within the
music genre is how my music video doesn’t mime the
lyrics. An example of this being displayed in another
dance music video is in the music video for the Chase
and Status song; Blind Faith.
Figure 3
Dancing for the genre of Dance music

6. Goodwin’s theory related to our music video
Goodwin’s Three Key Conventions: Narrative
• As I have already discussed about the narrative, we aimed to tell a loose based story of the
main character being chased by masked characters in a surreal world which can develop the
music genre as many music videos rely on the surreal dream land as a basis. For example
another music video in which develops the music genre is the Avicii song; Levels. The music
video shows the main character visit a dream land in which he is successful and escapes the
average grey dull work life.
• Our music video includes many narrative features, however it also challenges the music
genre. An example of this in the music video is when the narrative starts to make progress it
automatically then goes back to a previous shot repeated of the masked characters
standing. This challenges the music genre as the music video doesn’t make much progress
as there’s a large number of repeated shots.
Figure 4
Narrative shots

7. Goodwin’s theory related to our music video
Goodwin’s Three Key Conventions: Performance
• Due to me being cast as the main character of the groups music video, I do find it hard to
comment on my own performance because I personally find all my shots are bad acting.
• The performance of the rest of the group however I believe contribute and fit within the
codes and conventions of dance music as all of the actors we asked to perform danced and
acted mysterious, which is what we wanted them to do.
• Performing with the mise-en-scene and the location we decided upon was an ideal place for
us to get the best shots of the actors we could. What I’m trying to say by this is that due to
the mysteriousness of the Knavesmire (set location) we were able to film the music video
we wanted full of mystery and surreal chases. Therefore we could bring the best out of our
performers willing too act as our ‘masked man and woman’.
Figure 5
Performance image

8. Goodwin’s theory related to our music video
Goodwin’s Three Key Conventions: Concept
• As I have mentioned previously, the main theme and idea behind the music video me and
my group was surrealism and dreams. The concept of the main character waking up in a
woodland and then being chased by people in masked only to then give up to the cause and
join the masked foe.
• The idea of surrealism in music videos is quite a common convention and is often displayed
by various artists such as; Nicky Romero, Chase and Status and also Avvici. Two examples of
which I believe influenced the making of this music video is Tidal Wave by Sub Focus and
Tolouse by Nicky Romero. These two songs both fit within the music genre of dance and
they both include features of our music video such as the use of masks (Tolouse) and quick
edits at the beginning of the video (Tidal Wave).
Figure 6
Tolouse, Nicky Romero
Figure 7
Tidal Wave, Sub Focus
• By intertextualy combining the idea of both Toulouse and
Tidal Wave we have being able to compound an idea that
suits the music genre and our own satisfaction.
• On research alone, I did also find that some dance music
videos displayed the inclusion of miming the words of the
song, this shows that the concept we developed for my
music video is that it challeneges conventions.

9. Goodwin’s theory related to our music video
“Close Ups”
• Goodwin proclaimed that in music videos, record
labels will try and get as many close-ups of the artist.
Within the music video that I produced, we didn’t
have the artist singing in the video as obviously we
couldn't get hold of the artist and we didn’t want
anyone to impersonate the artist.
• Instead of having close ups of the artist in our shots
we decided to project our close ups of the main
character and also the masked people following him.
In doing this we challenged conventions as we got all
the characters in close ups.
• This also suggests that the music video doesn’t
promote the brand of the musician or band and the
record label isn’t promoting the artist.
Figure 8
Images of a range of close up
shots from the music video

10. Notable Codes and Conventions of a Dance Music Video
EDITING
• Through the editing phase of the music video we
decided quite early in production we were going to use
quick fast cuts like seen in the Sub Focus music video
for Tidal Wave. Using fast cuts showing the characters
in our music video allowed the target demographic to
distinguish intertextuality from previous videos.
• Towards the end of the music video there is a use of a
match on action shot. The scene when this is displayed
is when the main character is given a mask and then
the matched cut straight after shows him dancing with
the other characters. This is a convention used in many
music videos as it indicates the progression of the
narrative and what will come next in the music video.
• Another code and convention we used in our music
video in which I usually displayed in other music videos
are the use of cut away shots. We used the cut away
shot to cut to an irrelevant shot of something else
happening. An example of this in the music video is
when we would always refer back to the repeated
shots of the characters in masks looking into the
camera. This technique was also used in the Sub Focus
original video for Endorphins as the video cuts from
rebels to armed characters.
Figure 9
Example of quick cut shots

11. Notable Codes and Conventions of a Dance Music Video
Special Effects
• Through the duration of the music video, we
incorporated a range of effects in which show a special
effects element. For example we added effects to the
colouring of various shots like in the beginning we used
a black and white fade. This added mystery and
surrealism to the music video. The use of colouring
effects have been seen in other various dance music
videos such as the Disclosure song; F For You (see figure
11).
• As well as using black and white we also used various
fade effects on the music video. An example of this is
during one for the dancing shots, the camera almost
blurs and makes the video look and feel blurry and
different. I feel this challenges the codes and
conventions of a normal dance music video as many
dance videos don’t include a blurry effect as they are
too busy trying to focus on the singer or main character.
Figure 10
The use of black and white special effects shown in the
Disclosure music video for; F For You and my final music
video.
Black and White special effect

12. Notable Codes and Conventions of a Dance Music Video
Mise-En-Scene (Briefly)
• Characters: The characters within the music videos we produced I feel lack
depth in the building of who they are. By this I mean there is no character
development and they just stay masked characters only out to chase the
main character. This is a genre convention of many music videos as there is
little time for character development as the average song lasts for 3
minutes. However this can challenge the conventions as some music
videos give deep character development like in the music video for the
band Kodaline’s song All I want where the characters are given depth and
a good story line. However this does not share the same music genre of
our own music video.
• Costumes: The costumes we used were not as effective as we would have
liked, for example we aimed to make all the characters where black,
however the music video showed some characters wearing cream
coloured chinos, which wasn’t the plan, at all. This challenges the music
genre conventions because usually all of the characters have a set costume
and know what they have to wear.
• Props: The props we used were very minimal as we basically only used
masks and images on string. The use of props is quite essential to the
narrative of the music video as research ahs shown many music videos use
props to enhance the narrative. An example in which we considered when
pre –producing our music video was the song; Animals by Martin Garix as I
have already previously mentioned. This music video displayed the
characters in animal masks much like our own music video, therefore
showing this happens in the music genre and sub music genre we share.
Figure 11
Characters
Figure 11
Costumes (trousers)
Figure 12
Martin Garix; Animals, Masks

13. Notable Codes and Conventions of a Dance Music Video
Mise-En-Scene (Briefly continued)
• Location: I have already discussed the location and setting however the
location and setting of the music video we decided upon was very
influential in creating the narrative of our music video. This is because the
Knavesmire Wood (location) created a surreal backdrop as it was so dense
with trees and there was no one else around. The idea of being alone in a
mysterious place is common in music videos of this genre and subgenre
because usually the lyrics talk about dreams.
• Lighting: The lighting we used in our music video is entirely reliant on the
outside and the sun. We didn’t add any artificial lighting to the music
video as we shot the whole music video. However we did enhance some
shots with effects to make them seem lighter within production. This isn’t
common in the conventions of this genre as many videos use artificial
lighting like for example in the Chase and Status song; Let You Go, there is
use of artificial light as it bodes well with the narrative.
• Composition: The overall composition of the music video gives the
connotations of mystery and dreams as the main character experiences
various emotions from being scared to acceptance by the masked
characters. This is displayed through composing a range of shots in which
adds saturation in special effects and a various narrative. All of the shots
were placed and designed for a reason and were developed with the
narrative in mind. The connotations for this were that we could create a
music video that fits well with the music genre and also can challenge key
conventions.
Figure 13
Location settings, York
Knavesmire Wood

14. Digipak Evaluation
Brief Description of final product
• The aim of the Digipak we created was to make it as much like the music video as possible, by doing the we
allowed the target demographic to understand a level of repetition and familiarity from seeing the music
video. This convention of having it the same as the music video allowed us to choose the shots we wanted
from the selection we had from filming. For example we have used the same shot of the close up of one of
the masked characters in the music video as well as the Digipak (bottom left). This use of repetition is a
distinct formality throughout the music video and the Digipak because we believed it allows the target
demographic to recognise the artists work.

15. Digipak Evaluation
Common Conventions of A Digipak
• I decided upon pairing these two squares of the digipak to evaluate together because they both
resemble similarities of one and other.
Circular CD Ring: The Digipak square shows a circular
areas as to where the disk is set to be place, this sis a
common code and convention of a digipak as the disk
must be placed somewhere on the album work.
Normally in a normal CD there would be a plastic
indicator that the CD would slot into.
Background Imagery: The background of this shot of the digipak shows parts of the
music video. This was intended and we meant for this effect to take place as it allows the
digipak to give evidence that it’s related to the music video. The Images we decided to
use on one of the shots below shows one of the masked character. It’s a common
convention to include characters from the music video to the digipak. Therefore showing
that the digipak my group created doesn’t challenge conventions.
Figure 15
Disks shots of the
Digipak
The right images: We decided upon choosing these
images for the background of the digipak because they
gave the right image for the band and the song it was
advertising. This means that it gives off the right image
of dance music and promotes the right music gnere
and sub genre.
Use of Special Effects: The use of special effects used in these shots chosen show how
we used black and white and a mirroring effect. The connotations for this were that we
used these effects in the music video and as we wanted to make the digipak to be as
similar to the music video as possible, this seemed logic. Another digipak in which uses
special effects within a similar music genre would be the digipak for Latch by Disclosure,
the artist uses special effects to show graphics on peoples faces.

16. Digipak Evaluation
Common Conventions of A Digipak (Continued)
• I decided upon pairing these two squares of the digipak to evaluate together because they both
resemble similarities of one and other.
Use of Characters: On both of these images it shots it
shows the same characters as were in the music video
and the male character from the magazine advert. This
is often a code and convention as it adds familiarity
through products and products.
Mise-En-Scene: Within both of the shots I have picked from the digipak, the mise-enscene is represented from the music video and on the rest of the images on the digipak.
This use of intertexuality between the music video and digipak allows the target
demographic to understand the similarity between the main product (the song) and by
products. This is also synergy as the digipak is just a by-product of the song and so is the
magazine advert and music video.
Figure 16
Filler shots in the
Digipak
Direct Address: Even though you can not see the
characters faces, it’s evident through the masks they
are looking directly into the camera. This gives the
target demographic the idea they are being looked at
and the aspects of the digipak are aimed at them
because of this.
Special Effects: In these two shots, the special effects are relied on heavily as these two
shots are the only two images on the digipak that aren’t related to either the disk or the
front/back cover. The use of special effects makes the digipak look professional and well
planned out. Many digipaks for the dance music genre and many sub genres like dubstep
use special effects and graphics to enhance their digipaks, for example Modestep (sub
genre of Dubstep) use graphics for their album cover.

17. Digipak Evaluation
Common Conventions of A Digipak (Continued)
• I decided upon pairing these two squares of the digipak to evaluate together because they both
resemble similarities of one and other.
The use of Font: The font used on the digipak are
classic conventions of a digipak as they enable the
target demographic to understand what they are
buying. The fonts we used for the digipak is the same
for the conventions of a track list and main title of the
digipak, this font would be represented with the artist.
Composition: The overall composition of the front cover and back of this digipak tells the
target demographic a lot about the artist. The images used are from the narrative of the
music video. The font used gives the target demographic the idea of what type of music
they will be experiencing. The font we used challenges the music genre as it appears to
be more suited to the rock genre as it has a loud edged look that would be stereotyped
in the rock music genre.
Figure 17
Front Cover and
Back shots of the
Digipak
Barcode: Barcodes have been used for years on CD’s
and magazines, we decided to add a barcode to our
digipak as it’s a key convention of digipaks in any music
genre. The placement of the barcode shows that it’s
out of the way and doesn’t cover any key information
to the target demographic like the track list.
Relevant Information: On the
digipak we had the record label
in the bottom as well as the
information needed from
whom helped produce the
album.
Use of Imagery: We used imagery from the
music video to promote familiarity. This
convention is often seen in digipaks of this
music genre to promote familiarity, for example
the Avicci song; Levels had a shot of where the
music video was filmed on its digipak.

18. Magazine Advert Evaluation
Magazine Advert
The main codes and conventions of a magazine
advert include:
• Record company logo
• Reviews/Ratings
• Retailer details (HMV, iTunes etc)
• Facebook/Myspace/Website details
• A picture of the album
• Release date
• Tracks details
• Tour details
Figure 18
Final finished Magazine Advert for
our chosen song

19. Magazine Advert Evaluation
Magazine Advert , key conventions
Image relating either
the music video or the
song shown clearly.
Title of the artist.
Figure 19
The Magazine advert conventions
Name of the album the
advert is promoting.
A quote from a
reliable source
explaining how good
the album is.
A main character/image
that draws the target
demographics attention
Record labels shown on the
bottom of the advert.
Social Networking sites
to; like/follow/watch
the album on.

20. Magazine Advert Evaluation
Magazine Advert , key conventions (evaluated)
• Social Networking sites to; like/follow/watch the album on:
This is a well know convention seen on many magazine adverts. This
convention allows the target audience understand they can develop their
involvement with the artist via social networking sites like Facebook and
Twitter. This cross convergence of social networking sites issued through
various media advertising like; Television adverts, websites and posters,
see figure 20.
• A quote from a reliable source explaining how good the album is:
Through using this convention it shows everyone that a reliable source
such as Q Magazine highly rate the product. We decided to choose Q
Magazine as it was a reliable well known music related magazine, see
figure 21.
• Image relating either the music video or the song shown clearly:
Having an image that well represents the artist and the song it’s
advertising is a key and crucial area to the advert. We decided to use the
main character of the music video to be displayed onto our magazine
advert. This showed consistency and is often used with an artist’s logo if
they have one, for example the Blink 182 symbol is a dysfunctional smile
and they use that logo on nearly all of their albums and advertisements,
see figure 22.
• Title of the artist:
It seems only logic for the magazine advertisement to have the name of
the artist somewhere on the advert. Therefore showing this is one of the
main and large conventions of advertisements. We opted to use the same
font as in the digipak, this is because the repetition of fonts would look
relatable and inmost cases artists will use the same fonts for their names
and album names, see figure 20.
Figure 20
Social networking sites
Figure 21
Reliable Source Compliments
Figure 22
Image relating to song
Figure 23
Artist name

21. Magazine Advert Evaluation
Magazine Advert , key conventions (evaluated)
• Name of the album the advert is promoting:
This convention is very similar to having the same of the artist on the
advertisement. This convention takes almost identical reasoning to the
convention of having the artist of the song’s name on the advert. It allows
the target demographic to see what product the artist is trying to sell and
promote through magazine advertising.
• A main character/image that draws the target demographics attention:
The use of showing the target demographic the main character draws their
direct address towards the centre of the image. The main focus point of
this advert is the main character in the centre of the advert. The
connotations for having the main character from the music video on the
magazine advert is that it promotes the surreal theme of the music video
as in, the scene where the main character is looking at that certain tree
and sees the masked characters. However in this shot there are no masked
characters in which suggests that it’s all in the main characters imagination
and it’s not real.
• Record labels shown on the bottom of the advert:
Promoting the name of the record label is a necessity in music advertising
as it shows that ultimately they have the power and the artist can not
produce synergy of sorts without having to stick the record label’s name
on the product. Therefore showing we developed the conventions of this
aspect of the music advertisement as we have an image of the record label
in the bottom right of the advertisement.
Figure 24
Album name
Figure 25
Main character, music video
Figure 26
Record label