The video introduces Sam Beeton as a musician and discusses his music career. It provides samples of his songs and footage of him performing to give viewers a sense of his sound. It also interviews Sam about starting his own record label and releasing a song monthly to subscribers through his Record Club. Sam discusses particular songs and videos, including one for Burberry that increased his profile. The video utilizes various shots of Sam playing, performing, and being interviewed to both discuss his music and give live samples throughout. It aims to provide essential biographical context and samples to introduce Sam Beeton as an artist.

1. Analysis of “Sam Beeton
[Official EPK]”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gIO7aBihqc

2. The clip opens with the studio version of
track ‘Under The Fence’ playing in the
background, synced with footage of Sam
performing the track. The second of
these shots uses a sideways track to
show Sam playing guitar. Straight away
you know that the clip is about Sam and
you also get a taste of what his music
sounds like. The clip from the start is
really well lit which gives it a welcoming,
quite cheerful feel.

3. This is followed (after around 18 seconds of the track) by a shot of
Sam talking but not looking directly at the camera. The track
continues to play in the background for a few seconds until it is
replaced by the audio of Sam playing ‘Rain Down On You’. The
topic of discussion for this first section is when Sam set up the
label Sweet Luigi with some friends, which seems a good starting
point for viewers who might not know much about Sam.

4. Whilst Sam is still speaking, there
are a couple of other shots
included which help to break it up
slightly as the same shot for a long
time might get boring. The first of
these is an over the shoulder shot
whilst he is talking which has been
made black and white in the
editing process, creating a quite
aesthetically pleasing image. Then
there is a shot of Sam playing
guitar seemingly in the studio.
After these there is again the shot
of Sam discussing releasing music.

5. The topic seems to come to a
close and there is a break
between it and the next thing
Sam discusses which is his
Record Club. This break is
through a short clip of him
playing guitar in the song which
has been playing in the
background. The shot is only
very short and the camera
zooms into a close-up of the
guitar. This is then followed by
the interview shot again, where
Sam begins to talk about the
Record Club. The room itself in
which this ‘interview’ scene is
taking place seems fairly
welcoming and comfy, and
pleasing to the eye, it’s also
nicely lit.

6. He explains the Record Club and that it means he is able
to release ‘a song a month’ to subscribers, and quite
fittingly a shot of him recording in the studio is shown.
The track from before, ‘Rain Down On You’, continues
to play fairly quietly in the background.

7. As Sam finishes a sentence the volume of the track grows
and Sam is shown performing it (in the same place that
the interview is happening - continuation.) The room itself
gives the song a really nice sound as it echoes a bit. The
performance is a sort of taster of what subscribers to the
Record Club get.

8. Whilst still speaking about the Record Club there are shots of Sam packaging the CDs and
decorating one sleeve with a stamp, showing that it’s a very personalised thing to be a part of.
After these shots the clip returns to the same shot of Sam speaking whilst sitting on the sofa,
where he continues to explain a few of the benefits of the Record Club, both for fans and for
himself. Throughout this the audio of Sam playing ‘Rain Down On You’ continues, and there is
then another shot of him performing the track, and after this the track fades making way for
another.

9. There is a close-up of Sam tuning his guitar, such close-ups of
musical equipment seem to be used often in this type of music
documentary.

10. As Sam starts to speak again there is a shot of him walking down a
quiet road which is probably near to the studio. The cameraman
follows Sam creating a tracking shot. This shot is followed by the
same again of Sam speaking, and he is starting to discuss particular
songs of his.

11. When Sam mentions his song ‘My
Doll’, audio of him performing the
track starts, and is followed by
footage of him doing so. Firstly using
a mid-shot from behind, tracking
sideways. Then by a close-up of his
guitar, which zooms out to a mid-
shot.

12. After this, the song fades slightly but
continues to play in the background as
Sam describes how Burberry saw a video
of him playing the track and asked him to
record it for their Burberry Acoustic
Sessions. The same black and white edit
as before is used for a couple of the
shots in this sequence, as well as another
close-up of the guitar.

13. After speaking about it,
footage of Sam’s Burberry
session is played for just
over 20 seconds, towards
the end of which Sam starts
to speak again about filming
the session in a graveyard
‘up the road from the
studio’.

14. Sam is again shown speaking, and mentions that the video received a ‘ridiculous’ amount of views.
Another black and white shot from the side is used, followed by another short clip from the session.
Sam goes on to explain that the song is, after that video, perhaps his most known/requested song,
showing that being a part of the Burberry project benefitted him. As Burberry are a really high profile
fashion brand, it gives the impression to the audience that to have been recognised by them, Sam
must be good!

15. There is next a short section about another of Sam’s tracks;
‘Good Natured Child’. In the interview mid shot Sam is
shown talking about the track for a few seconds, explaining
a little about it though also remaining quite elusive. After he
introduces the idea of the song, there is a 20 second
section of the song’s video.

16. The song fades and another (‘Never Know Love’) begins shortly after.
There is a video of Sam performing this track, synced with the studio
recording of it, though before this (perhaps to break up the live
performance video and to make the transition of the sound easier as
its more prolonged) there is a short black and white mid shot of Sam
walking around the town in which the studio is. The recording of Sam
performing the track is all in one shot, keeping it simple and the focus
on the music instead! The angle of the shot means that the audience
can only really see Sam from the shoulders upwards, so although he is
playing guitar it isn’t shown - even more focus on the singing. The clip
of Sam performing the track is interjected by a short section of
interview where Sam talks about the process of writing the track,
something which fans aren’t likely to already know and would find
interesting - during this section the music fades slightly but continues
playing in the background.

17. The footage of Sam singing tracks across slightly, when
an out of focus plant begins to fill the screen, signalling
the end of this shot. There is then another section of
Sam talking about the process of writing and recording
music, first using the straight on mid shot, but then
repeating the black and white shot from previously in
the video. The song still continues to play in the
background but is again faded.

18. After Sam finishes speaking, there is a particular moment in the
song where the acoustic guitar is prominent, and there is a close-
up of Sam playing the guitar in sync with the studio recording.

19. The song continues and there is a montage of a few clips
of Sam, in all three of the shots, a black and white effect
has been added. As with before this gives an interesting
feel to the shots, and slightly emphasises that they’re
separate from the audio in that section of the clip,
which is what the audience’s focus should be on. First is
the interview shot which is repeatedly used, in a
moment between talking, as he is shown to be joking
around - a good sign as he isn’t a musician who takes
himself too seriously! There is then a shot from the
studio of Sam hitting a drum - possibly the one which
can be heard throughout the song.

20. ‘Never Know Love’ still plays and the shot of Sam
playing the song is used again, as with before the shot
tracks sideways slowly - perhaps not very noticeable but
creatively it helps as the transition between this and the
next shot may have seemed slightly jumpy if the camera
had just been in the same position for the whole shot.
As with before there are some more shots of Sam walking around Godalming with the music still
playing in the background. The black and white edit is used again. The song fades slightly towards
the end of the second shot, as Sam starts talking about the future of his music... He says “You
never know what’s around the corner” (as he looks over his shoulder - subtle humour) After
these shots there’s another one from the interview when Sam is speaking. Using this shot brings a
close to the scene as it breaks the two scenes up. The song also completely fades in this shot,
making way for ‘Under The Fence’ which plays once again.

21. As ‘Under The Fence’ starts playing there is yet another black and
white shot, a fairly close-up shot of Sam, panning upwards as he puts
a hat on.

22. The song continues as there are a couple
of shots of Sam performing the track -
again synced with the studio recording.
The second shot is a close-up of the
guitar, such shots are typical of music
documentaries. The fact the recording is
outdoors means the scene is lit well.
The track fades slightly as there is a final
section of interview with Sam continuing on
the previous topic of the future of his music.
The straight-on shot is used, as well as the
black and white shot. This shot could be
noted to have a sense of ‘hovering’ as it is
much less stable than other shots - perhaps
the camera isn’t on a tripod.

23. The song picks up again in the finishing
moments of the video and a single shot of
Sam is used from the outdoor
performance of the track. The lack of an
edit keeps it simple and once more the
focus is kept on the music itself. Towards
the end of the shot a black out fade is
used, followed by Sam’s logo. If this were
a TV documentary the credits would have
been shown at this point.