In this music video there is a narrative on how the character is talking about "No Ro Models", which is a reference to women who look up to talentless reality TV stars. He then relates himself in the same bracket, mentioning that he actually had NO ROLE MODELS when he was growing up... which led him to the question on what it has made him to be as a person in terms of his success, positive mindset and personality.
The first 17 seconds of the music video show an establishing shot, high angle shots and bird's eye view shots of the area the shooting is taking place. We see a spectacular view of the neighbourhood from a very high distance, which allows us to get familiar with the first location. Also, the first 4 seconds IS the establishing shot with the studios name being shown in white in the middle of the screen. (CHOW STUDIOS)
After the first location is set, we see 2 shots of the young teenage boy leave his house, see him in his living room and are then introduced to an entirely new location... The Piccadilly Circus. We see the young boy lip syncing and showing hand gestures faded into the huge electronic curved billboards. Whilst the most popular brands are being advertised, we see him take over the majority of the screen, which is signifies how big he is and also the importance of the situation. We then see a mixture of shots whereby there is constant cutting back to the neighbourhood and Piccadilly Circus. At 44 seconds, we see him relaxing with one of his friends in his neighbourhood. This led up to a new character introduction at 48 seconds, which is a teenage girl. This sets the scene about him talking about "women", backed up by the lyrics..."Don't save her, she don't wanna be saved". Quick cuts of the words "LOVE" and "HOPE" are shown with a flickering effect at Piccadilly Circus. These words were hanging down from the buildings as the city illuminated lights for the night. We see the boy leaning back against a bin building in a parking lot, talking about his past and his level of maturity in the present. He then talks about himself being in a white neighbourhood and having no shame about it, then continues to talk about his perception of women. Also, as he recalls his past and future, the word "celebrity" shows huge impact as we see him on the electronic billboards at Piccadilly Circus. Although they are used for advertisements, many celebrities have been shown on there as well.
We then see the boy and the girl sitting on a wall then walking together... eventually as they walk,(showing no affection along the way) an old lady pushing her portable luggage trolley. This is very significant as the lyrics "Don't save her, she don't wanna be saved" are repeated, signifying that the girl or women that are inappropriate will go on to be old very quickly, indicating that their life is short and how quickly their time passes by. Also, as they were walking together, the girl was smiling at her phone. This signifies she is probably talking to another boy, and could be going into the wrong path of being branded "hoe". We then see the boy in his neighbourhood walking by himself and eating, then talking about how he doesn't want a woman from reality TV shows. One of the lyrics states "bird trap" which expressed how women use people. At the Piccadilly Circus, a shot of the artistic light bird design was shown. The object being stationary, expresses how women keep you to themselves and use boys. We then see shots of him and his girl (friend) smiling and expressing how people do not understand the difference between "LA sisters" and "LA hoes". The sisters are being referred to as normal woman who care about themselves and are conscious people. The so called hoes are being referred to as prostitute like women who carry no dignity and respect whatsoever. The boy believes himself that he envisions the difference between them, hence why he has a successful career.
From 2 minutes and 44 seconds to 2 minutes 57 seconds we see old footage of the American President at the time... MR Bush saying a famous line, and I quote: "Fool me once, shame on... shame on you. Fool me... You can't get fooled again!". This was very meaningful as the next shot was of the boy at Piccadilly Circus saying "Fool me one time, shame on you...". More references of the word "Fool" are then used. The significance of that footage and the boys footage about being fooled shows how woman being looked down upon due to their unjust actions. I really like how the old footage was used to relate to the boys current situation and perception about some woman being branded as 'hoes". The remaining of the music video shows the boy in Piccadilly Circus talking about his regrets and success, and how he has changed as a person. Towards the end of the music video we see the girl smiling with him and then a shot of the boy twirling his arms and body around in happiness all by himself in his neighbourhood, with the lyrics "Don't save her, she don't wanna be saved". This connotes how he is happy by himself. The music video ends with the "LOVE" sign in the city flickering, which is a reminder of the right woman and life in general about loving and being successful. The music video fades out from a white to black screen after the "LOVE" shot.
In my opinion, the editing of the music video was really good. I enjoyed the use of continuity editing throughout the music video, which was complimented by sharp cutting between various shots. The use of the continuity editing really set the scene, as I was able to tell that there is a very clear narrative. The use of the young teenage boys actions and the 2 main locations, alongside the girl really told a story. Th establishing shot, 180 degree rule, 30 degree rule, cross-cutting, match on action and the re-establishing shot were used. All the shots were very smooth and precise, which enabled me to follow along the journey about how the situation has developed. It was very clear for me to identify the story / narrative. I really loved the flickering editing technique. This was used various times in the music video. An example would be the fast flickering of the "LOVE' sign towards the end of the music video. My favourite part of the editing was how the boys footage was faded into the huge electronic billboards at the Piccadilly Circus. I felt that this was a clever move for added impact and affect. Also, parts of the girls scenes had a cinematic feel which looked really amazing and eye catching. The jump cuts were extremely effective throughout the whole music video. The time lapse technique at 3 minutes and 54 seconds to 3 minutes and 57 seconds shows how time is flying by and how quick everything is moving forward (in life) (shows the movement of traffic - life issues - obstructions out the way). The panning and slow motion techniques were also great to see. They were well implemented. I also liked the fast forward and rewind of the footage at 1 minute and 2 seconds of the music video.
The use of colourisation was good but not great. This music video was very dependant on natural lighting and increasing and decreasing brightness of colours and footage. From 3 minutes and 15 seconds to 3 minutes and 17 seconds, we see a mid shot of the boy at Piccadilly Circus, but everything included himself is completely blacked out, and only the electronic billboards are standing out really bright. This was a great use of low key lighting and also highly lit lighting in the same shot. At 1 minute and 23 seconds of the music video we can see and example of natural lighting. The natural lighting expresses the natural and life like feel of the area. The natural lighting was a key feature that was used very well. On the contrary, I would have liked to see more colourisation between 55 seconds to 1 minute and 18 seconds of the music video, as the background was brown wooden sticks of a part of a parking lot. At 3 minutes and 20 seconds, we see a hue flashing effect with a pink screen. I really liked the addition of the pink screen and I would have liked to see more of this. I would have liked to seen various bright colours, possibly highlights or illuminations of anything within the shots between this time frame.
The special effects made sense and were extremely effective. The music video included fast zooming in and fast zooming out, as well as overlapping of footage, fading in and out, footage being shown on the electronic billboards, vigorous shaking of the camera, and also flickering. I would say that the use of flickering would be the main special effect as it was used constantly. There was flickering with white screens in between the footage but mainly black screens. The flickering was very pacy, as the beat and intensity of the music had increased. At 2 minutes and 40 seconds, we see the shaking of the camera as the boy is walking up the stairs, coming out of the Piccadilly Circus underground station. Also, at 4 minutes and 39 seconds of the music video, we see the extreme flickering of the "LOVE" sign at Piccadilly Circus. This music video did NOT specialise in special effects but used the techniques mentioned above quite effectively.
The pace and rhythm of the music video was fast for the majority of it. The first 38 seconds were slow, but as the beat had dropped, the onscreen action was more focused and energetic, as well as the editing itself. There was increased flickering and flashing effects. The fastest onscreen action, flashing and flickering, increase in beat of the music was at 2 minutes and 15 seconds to 3 minutes and 57 seconds of the music video. At 2 minutes and 34 seconds of the music video, we see a slow-motion effect which shows a slow pace of the onscreen action. We can see that after Mr Bush' famous quote, we see a burst of pace, rhythm, action and editing. At exactly 3 minutes we see the boy jump abruptly infant of the camera. This is an example of the rapid burst of energy. The pace and rhythm was very well controlled in terms of increasing and decreasing the moments onscreen and the editing, in order to follow along with the flow of the beat.
The only diegetic sound was the voice of the actual artist / singer (which is being lip synced by the character)
The non-diegetic sound was the music.
The transitioning between the shots were good and efficacious. At 9 seconds of the music video, we see a fast inwards zoom into the neighbourhood. This is showing us in depth, the first location.At 13 seconds we see a fast outwards zoom of the neighbourhood, again expressing the location. At 47 seconds we see a black flash of the girl, coming from a previous shot from the boy. From 1 minute and 26 seconds to 1 minute and 34 seconds, we see a fade effect from the footage itself duplicating and playing on top of one another, and also see the footage fade into the huge electronic billboards at the Piccadilly Circus. From 2 minutes and 36 seconds to 2 minutes 37 and 38, we see another fade effect from the girl being in the neighbourhood, to shining on the swing in the park. This fade effect had started off with a vague slow motion effect at the beginning. At the very beginning of the music video, we see a wipe up and wipe down effect whereby the black borders from the top and bottom of the screen divert, allowing the actual footage to be presented. At the end of the music video, we see a simple fade to a white screen then a black screen. The transitioning effects were of very good use, allowing the shots to seamlessly flow and work together.
The main artist of the music video (boy) got the most screen time, as he was telling a story to the audience and was lip syncing the song. The neighbourhood location as well as the Piccadilly Circus location receive the 2nd longest screen time, as they are the 2 primary locations of the music video. The shot duration varied as the quick cuts especially after Mr Bush' quote were very precise and choppy. These shots such as the close ups and long shots only lasted around 1 to 2 or maybe 3 seconds maximum as the beat was very fast. The longer shots such as the mid shots during the parking lot scene where the boy was having a reflective moment, had lasted around the 5 or 7 second mark. This is because a meaning is trying to be portrayed, allowing the audience to visualise and capture what the important moment is about. The shorter shots are used for added impact and effect, and appear to be more abrupt and exciting in comparison to the longer shots that are used for taking in information and understanding the narrative with some more time to comprehend.
This was NOT a performance base video, as there was a story to tell. The performance only consisted of the girl on the swing, the girl and the boy walking together, the hand gestures and body language of the boy letting out all his expressions and emotions, and also matching hand and facial expressions to the lyrics.
A various number of shots were used. These shots consist of...
- Long shots
- Mid shots
- Wide shots
- Zoom
- Panning
- Close up's
- Establishing shots
- Re-establishing shots
- Bird's eye view shots
- High angle shots
- Low angle shots
- Extreme close ups
- Big close ups
Every single shot mentioned was absolutely important, as it allowed the audience to view the music video from literally all angles. It feels like an insight from the boy's perspective and how the close ups and big close ups would show his emotions, in comparison to the long shots, wide shots and panning expressing the location and describing the atmosphere. The high and low angle shots can be seen as having power, authority and a boost in confidence. The main shot used in this music video was the mid shot. The mid shot captures the constant moments and gestures of the character.
The props used in this music video consists of:
- Cable cabinet
- Mobile phone
- Swing
- Watch
- Ring
The lighting was very highly lit throughout the music video. This is because of the use of the natural lighting as well as adjusting brightness levels and also using shots of the lighted up signs of the "LOVE`" and "HOPE" signs plus the lighted up bird. Low key lighting was only used around 3 times in the music video, lasting for 1 or 2 seconds. Predominantly, natural lighting was the main use of lighting, hence why the music video is well lit throughout.
The costume was simple but absolutely outstanding. The boy had 3 costume changes, ranging from ripped light blue jeans and a white top with red trainers and a black puffer jacket to a dark green camouflage tracksuit and a dark black and blue tracksuit. The girl had 2 costume changes, ranging from a white collared shirt, beige coat and tight fitted dark blue waist jeans to a grey dress and a black fur coat with leggings. The costume choices were very smart as they were showing off the modern look that teenagers would typically wear.
This music video was spectacular. I enjoyed the approach to it, alongside the influx of ideas such as the sole of editing and transitions. I loved the storyline, though I do feel it could be emphasised more interns of the girl and the boy interacting more. The lip syncing was good on a whole, but was not consistent throughout the whole music video. I enjoyed the message that had been portrayed across about the 2 different types of woman (Loyal and not loyal) and also how woman's perception of men doing as they plead is NOT always correct. Overall, this music video was outstanding and mind-blowing and I would give it a firm 8 out of 10.
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