MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSIS

'Leto', Psycho Killer - Talking Heads:

This music video has been taken from a scene from ‘Leto’, a 2018 Russian film directed by Kirill

Serebrennikov. The song used is 'Psycho Killer' by Talking Heads, however this version is

performed by Alexander Gorchilin & GSh.

The main feature of this video is its use of animated motion graphics. This is extremely effective

as not only is it a unique & unconventional way of emphasising both the performance & the lyrics,

but the illustrative style also helps connote anger through various representations.

Having certain words or phrases from the lyrics portrayed visually, through graphics, draws attention to them & their meaning. For example, visually showing the words, 'psycho killer' & 'runaway' emphasises them & makes the audience more aware of the message of anger being shown.

These representations are made throughout the video in various ways, an example being the use of select colour. Although the video is in black & white, red has been used effectively to reference both the blood shown on the protagonist & to signify anger, danger & violence through strong colour associations. In this video, the red is related to the main characters. This presents the audience with the idea that they may be considered more dangerous & powerful compared to the other, perhaps weaker, characters.

This video consists of one continuous shot, meaning there is minimal cuts & editing. Because of this, the camera tracks the protagonist, ensuring that the audience is mainly focused on their performance & following the actions they make. The cameras swift movements are highlighted through the use of an unstable camera. This not only makes the action more tense to watch but also relates to the characters moods as we become aware of their instability.

The action in this video is fast paced to match the tempo of the song & the narrative structure. This is emphasised further through the quick illustrations & characters performance & movements. Towards the end of the video, the tempo slows down. This change is also represented visually by using calmer, more subtle graphics.

This video shows strong representations of class & gender. The main characters are all male which shows gender dominance & inequality. We are also shown different attitudes between the higher & lower class citizens on the train. For example the protagonists act carelessly & are being disruptive & violent towards others whereas the minor characters are much calmer.

What Do You Mean - Justin Bieber (Lyric Video):

'What Do You Mean?' is a song by Canadian singer & songwriter Justin Bieber, released for his

fourth studio album, Purpose (2015). For this song, three music videos were released. One being

for commercial release, another as a lyric video & an additional dance-style video as part of a

series of short films commemorating the release of the album, known as 'Purpose: The Movement

Version'.

The lyric video was directed by Brad Furman & features skateboarders, Ryan Sheckler & Chelsea

Castro. This video is another example to use animated motion graphics. Here, the technique has

been used to emphasise the performance & narrative as well as being a interesting way of visually

portraying the lyrics.

The overall aim of this video is to present the skater subculture & social conventions revolving around it. Through the animated motion graphics, the 'NO SKATEBOARDING' sign is emphasised & therefore the audience becomes more aware of the skaters rebellious attitudes when they intentionally ignore the sign.

The editing in this video is slow paced to add to the laid back vibes from the skaters & to match the tempo of the song. A variety of shot types have been used to show the action within the video, for example, the establishing shots have been used to show the location & setting of Los Angeles whereas the close-ups have been used to show details of the action. The use of central framing & rule of thirds helps to draw attention to the protagonists - This is then emphasised further by following their movements through tracking shots. A few clips are also shown in slow motion as another way to draw attention & allow the audience to focus on details.

This video has 2 main protagonists - one female & one male. This shows the positive representations of gender equality & how the skater subculture does not focus around one particular gender. Towards the end of the video, Justin Bieber is seen which makes the audience aware of the artist behind the video & helps to promote his brand.

This video is all in black & white which contrasts to Justin Bieber's other music video's which usually use vibrant, bold & saturated colours. This technique helps make the video stand out from his others as well as being used to make the illustrative elements more visually predominant.