2. Context
Released in 2005, with the album “From Under The Cork Tree” When the single
was released it reached No. 9 on the ‘Billboard Hot 100’
They have sold 2.2 million records (as of Feb 2014) and is a certified platinum single.
No director is mentioned for making the music video, however it’s iconic and genre
conventionalised style reinforces the star image of Fall Out Boy.
The film is based around homecoming dance at a school where the band play both
themselves as the dance entertainment, but also as the ‘nerd’ group of the school.
By the end of the video, Pete Wentz has become part of the mainstream crowd at
the school.
The video also references other fall out boy songs and music videos such as “A Little
Less Sixteen Candles, a Little More "Touch Me" is played as Pete Wentz asks the
3. Gratification Theory
The origin behind the theory was that during the 60’s, the first generation of children
that grew up with TV, were now adults and media theorists discovered that audiences
were making choices on what they wanted to consume for individual reasons. Bulmer
and Katz expanded on this in 1974 and showed that audiences used media for:
-Diversion from real life (to submerge themselves into an alternative world/ be
interpolated)
-Personal Identity (connecting with characters and situations within media/ learn
values and morals from it)
-Personal Relationships (identifying with artists/substituting characters for themsleves
to work through problems/ for interaction)
4. Age Demograph
The target audience for Fall out Boy is similar to Gameplan as they both have a demograph of young adult females
at the average of 16-25 year olds. For example, the location for “Dance Dance” is a homecoming dance which is
conventional for the audience, as they are at the age of going to dances like this and prom. It allows a connection
between the characters on screen and the audience to be made and immersing the demograph into the surroundings
of the alternative world the music video is creating. The music video shows the band as their ‘high school’ selves and
emphasises the connection between the artist’s music and their target audience’s age. By putting themselves in that
role they are showing the audience what they were like at their age. This could relate to the gratification theory as
the audience can then enforce an influence upon their personal identity.
Gameplan, uses this age range as the target audience to accentuate the idea of escape that’s wanted within a young
adult’s life and the fine line between reality and illusion. Our whole music video is based around one girl's daily life
and the only thing that makes it better is through dreaming and ‘escaping’ to these alternative worlds. Through the
use of mundane tasks such as getting the bus, shopping and school work while then being transported into a fantasy
forest and beach, the gratification theory works on a level of diversion, not only for the protagonist within the music
video, but the audience watching at home.
5. Gender Demograph
Male: The music video shows how the stereotypical ‘nerd’ in high school is able to become popular by joining a band/ listening to this
music which emphasises to the male target audience. The costumes between the bands high school self and the bands ‘rock pop self’.
Between the two outfits it shows the development of being ‘cool’ through immersing oneself in the rock pop genre of music.
Female: Although there isn’t a lead female protagonist within this music video, their are different types of girls that the audience can
relate and conform to allowing the gratification theory to be effective. This is shown through the majority of the dance being made up
by girls, and the shot of the girls sitting on the benches. It shows that their music appeals to the mass majority of the female population.
Female Demograph: The female audience would be able to relate to the character within our music video as she is of the same gender
so could be used through the gratification theory to submerge someone into an alternative character, to allow them to be someone else
for a while. Through mise en scene and costume, her life is relatable to a female audience as she wears modern but slightly ‘rock pop’
influenced clothes and has the same situations like most females at that age.
Male Demograph: Although they wouldn’t be able to connect to the protagonist in our music video’ as easily as females, they would
still be able to relate through some of the problems the character goes through such as arguments between parents and wanting the
freedom to escape from their mundane reality.
6. Class/ Ethnicity Demograph
Fall Out Boy have a primary Demograph of white Americans. This is due to factors such as the location of the
music video being set in an American school which allows the audience to relate to the people in the music
video and the music. In addition, their secondary audience would be other english speaking countries, as they
would understand the lyrics of the song. They are globally known and are popular within the charts as their
talent is worldwide recognised. As for class, the band appeals to the mainstream, so consequently the working
class as this is the biggest section when referencing class. (both C1 and C2)
Although Gameplan primarily appeals to a white British audience due to the English conventions running
through their video such as the use of beach huts, their secondary audience would then be the western society,
1st world countries such as America and west Europe. They also are targeting a working class audience which
quintessentially targets the mainstream.
