NEA music video and website first plan

NEA Photoshoot

These are the best photos from our shoot in the media studio. I found I learned a lot about the focus and lighting composition that must be altered to make shots appear more clear and saturated. These images I believe could be used on my website for promotional means such as the album covers. 

Social and Cultural context of Europe and the US 1983

Context of Europe and the US 1983 

Social context of Europe and the US 1983

Europe

Europe had developed a shift to free market politics and a more Neoliberal capitalist system, it had a deep economic turmoil alongside the heightening of the Cold War.

The economy was highly severe with high unemployment and a decline in big industries like coal and shipbuilding.

There were widespread labour strikes, and a surge in peace/anti nuclear activism.

The Iron Curtain was a great physical divide in the globe and the start of the ‘second Cold War’ began after NATO's deployment of Pershing missiles and the Soviet boycott of arms talks. 

Society was on the cusp of the digital age and technology was greatly improving. 

US

Sharp economic shifts to ‘Reganomics’ and deep Cold War nuclear anxieties as well as a sharp surge in technology occurred.

The US was in a recession recovery during this year. 

Service, tech and finance industry prospered as traditional industry waned.

Young Urban professionals (‘Yuppies’) rose in society with a big consumerist and corporate ambition as well as obsession with fitness and designer brands as a status symbol. 

Poverty increased to 15.2% living below the poverty line.

Public fear of nuclear annihilation deeply rooted itself in society and the media. 

Much more technology and media was released by the US during this time. 

Cultural context of Europe and the US 1983 

Europe 

Europe sat at the forefront of superpower tensions, this sparking massive anti-nuclear movements across Western Europe (particularly in West Germany and the UK). 

The continent remained divided by the Iron Curtain ( a split between West Europe and East Europe).

The West embraced commercialism whilst the East experienced deep economic stagnation.

In the UK the rise of Thatcherism and the cut of the Welfare state deeply affected the country. 

It lead to heavy labour strikes and social friction which was also seen in the eras rebellious art forms. 

A sharp turn to career and economic status occurred. 

Post punk and electronic pop dominated music.

Bands like Depeche, New Order and Kraftwerk brought synthesized and futuristic music to the period. 

US

Cold war fears and nuclear threat sparked severe paranoia And pop culture reflected this.

Us launched Operation Urgent Fury, invading Grenada showing a new assertive foreign policy adapted by the US. 

MTV launched 2 years before and completely reshaped US fashion and music. 

Michael Jackson’s Thriller music video was released in 1983 completely changing the music industry. The birth of the modern internet occurred and cellular networks were created in this time. 

Sally Ride became the first American woman to go to space.

Martin Luther King Jr day came to be after legislation was passed in the senate marking it a national holiday in his honor. 

Conservative values and progressive movements collided in this era. 

Political context of Europe and the US 1983 

Europe 

Europe remained divided by the Cold War and the split between West Europe (EEC and democratic countries) and East Europe (Soviet Union and the Satellite states) was deeply entrenched.

US

The US was a political superpower of the time with a democratic, right wing agenda, focused on keeping it’s stance on the world stage and combating/decreasing the power of the Soviet Union.

Key words:

The Cold war- a tense geopolitical/economic dispute lasting from 1945-1991 involving the US/ the West and the Soviet Union/ Satellite states. Only indirect conflict occurred and at its most intense period, nearly resulted in nuclear war.

DEFCON 1- the most severe state of military preparedness in the US, signalling that nuclear war may be or is occurring. It allows for the deployment of their nuclear weapons. 

MK Ultra- project MK Ultra was an illegal CIA program that attempted to discover how to mind control people. It ran from the 1950's-70's and conducted experiments on unaware subjects to develop way to control human minds. It was in retaliation to the fear that the Soviets had already discovered how to do this. 

Ronald Reagan- the former 40th US president who served from 1981-1989. He formatted the idea of the ‘Evil Empire’ and dramatically increased US defense spending and supported anti-communist resistance. He came up with the SDI, a space defense system (theoretical) that forced the Soviets into a technological arms race. He also managed relations with Gorbachev (Russian leader) which played a big part in decreasing tensions between the East and West. 

Berlin Wall- a physical barrier built between East and West Berlin to stop East Berliners fleeing to the West. It was built in 1961 and lasted until 1989 where after travel to the West became free, citizens tore it down. It was a physical embodiment of the separation and tension between the West and East and when it was torn down, a symbol of reunification. 

Steven Spielberg films (1980's)- Spielberg released many major blockbusters across this period (Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T the Extra-Terrestrial, Twilight Zone: The Movie, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, The Colour Purple, Empire of the Sun, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Always). This era of films played majorly on the sci-fi or adventure genres of films. Some of these films drew heavily on Cold War anxieties of the time, specifically fear of the East and nuclear anxiety. 

99 Red Balloons- a famous anti- war protest song written in 1983 by West German band Nena. The song follows the story where a couple release 99 balloons into the sky which are mistaken for enemy missiles , causing an escalation and eventually global war. It was written after the guitarist of the band saw balloons being released in West Berlin and thought about what would happen if the balloons floated over to Soviet controlled Berlin and triggered military paranoia. 

Blue Monday- a 1983 synth-pop track by the band New Order which is heavily associated with the Cold War era. It gets this association also from being used in Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War.

NEA pitch and feedback

30 second clip

 Planning research 

Goodwin and Dyer theories

GOODWIN

Goodwin's theory states that a successful music video contains 5 parts:

contain the characteristics of their genre (of the artist or music)

the lyrics and visuals must correspond

the music and visuals must contain the artist 

close-up and motifs must reference something people want to see or look at

an example of this is:

DYER

Dyer's theory states that a successful celebrity must have 3 things:

star as a construction- celebrities personas are crafted and not who they are in reality

star as a commodity- celebrities are crafted to make money and are a product

star as an ideology- celebrities reinforce certain views or ideologies through their character 

an example of this is:

Music Video examples

Bad Romance music video

Is it a Crime music video

The creation of music videos

Music Video Creation

Avatar BIG ISSUE front cover

 

Genre theory

 Steave Neale Genre theory

Steave Neale's theory, the genre theory places media products into categories based on similar repeated elements. He argues that they are not fixed but rather evolve overtime. Audiences enjoyment of certain elements fuels these.

 The first concept is repetition and difference where sub-genres have made the classification process more complicated. Reference to the real world can identify genre easily. The more reference, the more likely to be more news/history based products. Less reference, the more likely to be more fantasy/fiction based products.  Narrative where story structure can help define what genre a product fits. Products with suspense are more mystery whereas products with presentation are more news article. Genres also can be identified by themes such as science fiction with 'man vs machine'. Character motives also can define genre with anti heroes being used more in crime dramas. Mise-en-scene can attribute to how to identify a products genre such as western films involving deserts, guns and cowboys. Audience appeal also shows this for example romance is more targeted at a female audience. Use of repetition allows audience to identify the components that appeal to them and interact with them. Genres however do always evolve due to audiences wants, contextual influence and economic influence. Media products are also marketed on their ability to combine with other genres. For example Stranger Things combines science fiction with horror. Hybrid genres enable audience appeal, culture mixing and nostalgia to interest their audiences.

The second concept is industry's effects on genre. For example film directors personal styles of movie creation will affect how the movie is produced and the elements/tone of the movie. In Star Wars Abrams added lens flares and poetic stillness on top of the films sci fi aesthetic. Genres also plan for the primary time to release their products such as horror released in Halloween or diet shows at new years time. Marketing functions by using genre as a marketing tool, interest fans of certain genres to consume media products labelled as similar. 

This chapter has explained how complex genres are but how necessary they are for both audiences to enable them to explore and participate in media products that interest them but also the industry in order for it to easily promote and market their products in an easily profitable fashion. This reading has shown me the complexity of genres and how it is not a fixed element but rather a constantly evolving thing.  

Shelter

Good As Gold (2023 Winter appeal)

I chose this video as it shows a heart breaking narrative involving the loss of innocence that children are forces to undergo due to their situations. It represents the sympathetic narrative as the aim  of the video is to make the viewer feel empathetic towards the girl who despite being well behaved gets no presents or nice living situation for Christmas as she wishes. This reflects pro-social behaviour by encouraging audiences to think about how privileged they may be to receive both necessities at Christmas and other presents too. This motivates the viewers to donate to the cause as they will feel sorry for the little girl and wish to give to the charity so young children can experience Christmas as it should be for children (a festive, happy time). 

 

Juno article

Juno Article

The article about Juno speaks on how Hollywood is starting to see the value of quirky movies for niche audiences and how it has a much bigger appeal to modern audiences. Juno tells the tale of a pregnant high schooler who decides to give her child to another family. The edgy story however appealed to a wider audience than intended. Juno previously had struggles with gaining a budget and independent films often can touch on riskier themes due to their low budgets as they don't require huge box office figures to gain a profit. When making Juno there was worries about protests from pro-life people (due to the topics of pregnancy and abortion). Juno was however a big hit with audiences. Juno also having mainstream stars such as Ellen Page famous for Hard Candy and X-Men gained a wider audience from this too. Jennifer Garner was famous for Daredevil and Elektra and Michael Cera was popular for the success of Super bad. This all added to the teenage audience appeal. Juno also released early to take advantage of the buzz for Sciretta. This got the film more attention in awards season and gain it more money for when it is printed. The clever script, characters and distribution plan were all key reasons to its success and eventual Oscar nominations. 

L'Oréal beauty advert

L'OREAL advert for the coursework study of advertising. Age demographic of 20-30 year olds interested in makeup. A part of the beauty industry advertising. 

 

SHSG advert

SHSG ADVERT