Neha Raithatha

How have you used, developed or challenged conventions of real media texts? Music videos are problematic mediums in establishing conventional norms as every music video is unique and therefore may create its own conventions. This could be due to the proliferation in technology, viewing platforms and the shift from audiences as the consumers to audiences as the producers through internet websites such as YouTube. Additionally, to establish whether my music video has used, developed or challenged conventions, one must be aware of the conventions of one particular genre; however it is questionable what the genre is. It could be that music videos are a discreet genre, in which the video is described by the type of music. However, one could also argue that a genre of a music video could be defined by the type of video i.e. whether it is narrative or performance. Another consideration may be that music video genres are defined by the artist themselves, such as with Michael Jackson or Lady Gaga videos as they all follow similar conventions. Another issue in deciding whether my video conforms or deters from the conventions of a music video is the idea that there is a high degree of variability in the micro and macro features of the music video as well as in techniques and technology used. Due to the difficulty of narrowing my video down to one single genre and picking out a set of conventions to compare it to, I believe that overall my video has not only used some conventions of other music videos, but also developed and challenged them too. One micro feature of music videos to consider when analyzing the use of conventions is media language. Using media language as a tool of communication through the video to the audience explains how messages are communicated through signs. Saussure describes a sign as a combination of the signifier and the signified. The signifier is a commonly agreed interpretation, whereas the signified is a culturally agreed interpretation. However due to every individual seeing the world through their own unique lens, these signs are often polysemic, which means that they can have a number of various meanings. In turn, these signs can be broken down into symbolic, iconic or indexical signifiers. An example of this in my music video would be the letter that the protagonist finds. One can break this down to be an iconic signifier of the communication between two people by linking it with the shot of a man writing a letter. However, if it was to be broken down as an indexical signifier, someone who is able to link the letters to the meaning of the song would be able to realize that it is actually a love letter that a man is writing to his lover before he goes away to war. This is due to the cultural knowledge that the audience member would have about young love and the meaning of the song itself. Here, the letter acts as a metaphor to convey the last connection that the protagonist has to her lover and the strength of their relationship as the letter has still lasted, even after her lover had passed away. Furthermore, one must also consider macro features such as the audience when analyzing the use of conventions in a music video. Firstly, effects theories such as the Hypodermic Needle Model, Cultivation theory, Desensitisation theory and CopyCat theory all suggest that audiences are all passive and accept whatever the media states. However I believe that my music video challenges this as it does not force any opinions or thought upon the audience. The fact that the lover remains anonymous adds an enigmatic feel to the entire video and allows audiences to make their own connection between the characters in context of the song. For example, some may believe that the man writing the letter is actually a family member who has passed away at war rather than a lover. The second audience theory which came around was the Uses and Gratifications theory. This theory began to suggest that audience are active participants and in fact, it is audiences who use the media

Neha Raithatha
in order to gain pleasure from it. I believe that my video does not only use, but also develops this idea as it does aim to not only pleasure the audiences, but make them question their own relationships and requires them to use their imagination to figure out what the couple in the music video had been through. A third theory is the Reception theory which unlike the effects theory, suggests that audiences are active and make decisions about the media themselves. Stuart Hall proposed an encoding and decoding model which suggests that producers encode their media texts with certain messages and that the audience chose to have either a preferred reading (where they agree with the values portrayed), and opposition reading (where audiences disagree with the values) or a negotiated reading (audiences have mixed views about the values in the text). I believe that my target audience would have a preferred reading as my video portrays a narrative that all girls between the ages of 15 and 24 can relate to and it is probable that all of my target audience members will have felt isolated and alone once they have lost their loves whether it be through a break-up or something more traumatizing, like the death of the lover in my video. However, a feminist may have an opposition reading of my music video as they could believe that the video demoralizes women by making them seem dependent upon men for happiness, even though this is not the message that I had originally aimed to encode throughout the music video. It is likely that women of an older age would have a negotiated reading as they may be able to relate to the protagonists feelings of losing a love and feeling isolated without him from their teenage days, however may now feel more mature and believe that it is not the end of the world if one loses their lover. Therefore, it is clear to see that even by using certain conventions, such as a pop song being about love and conforming to a piano rock song by a female mostly focusing on her emotions, different audience members can understand the micro features in different ways and therefore it would seem as if I have not only used these conventions, but challenged them too. I have developed the conventions of the narrative of my music video, as it could be considered both episodic and linear. Through the garden scenes from Hyde Park, I have tried to convey a clear linear structure of the girl walking through the archway and coming across a letter that her lover had written for her, which is portrayed by the shot of a man writing the letter once she picks it up. Additionally, it is later revealed that her lover has passed away at war and that this is a letter that he once wrote for her by the shot of her laying down a poppy wreath, portraying a clear and linear storyline. However, the rest of the studio footage is in no particular order and when considering the internal and external footage together, it could be argued that the video actually has an episodic narrative as it jumps from the performance scene, to the studio scene, then to the Hyde Park scenes throughout the video in no particular order. Furthermore, the use of the restrictive narrative is shown as clues about the relationship between the male and female characters is only shown through clues such as him writing the letter as the video progresses. And in addition, the fact that the lover is kept anonymous adds an enigma which in turn makes it seem like the narrative is restrictive as the protagonist clearly has more knowledge of her lover and their relationship than the audience do. Moreover, when referring to representation as a way of assessing the use of conventions, Antonio Gramscis theory of Hegemony allows for an in-depth analysis. Gramsci used the term hegemony to describe the process of agencies of power, controlling the majority by perpetuating dominant values. These agencies could be parents, the government, religion, education and even the media. In my music video, the hegemonic norm of a heterosexual relationship is supported through the use of a female character reminiscing over her relationship with her male lover. Additionally, the fact that the protagonist is a woman and feels lonely after losing her lover supports the dominant ideology that woman are the passive and more emotional gender.

Neha Raithatha
Lastly, in relation to technology, I believe that my music video definitely challenges the conventions of earlier music videos as I was able to use more advanced technology and therefore the conventions would have also advanced and developed. For example, conventionally, if someone wanted to get a moving shot, they would have to hold the camera in their hands or use a steadycam to get these movements, however due to the proliferation in technology, I was not only able to get moving shots using the crane, but I was also able to create movement with my static shots for the performance scene using the position and scale motions on Adobe Premiere CS6. Using these new technologies allowed me to create movement in my video in a way that develops the conventions of music videos.