Magazine Advertisement

Inspiration:
Although I am not creating an advertisement for a film, I found Charlie ST Cloud's promotional poster extremely inspirational. I haven't actually seen the film all the way through, however, I have read the plot and I believe that the DVD cover picture has similarities to the picture I am hoping to achieve for my magazine advertisement for my digipak. Due to the fact my music video finishes with his girlfriend getting run over, I have kind of left it on the cliffhanger on how does he actually carry on without her in his life, to see how the audience would interpret it.The way I can imagine him carrying on without her, would be at first, blaming himself for what has just happened, as it was because of him why she left and ran away. This is why I believe this storyline relates to the plot of Charlie St Cloud, as the protagonist blames himself for the death of his loved one (brother) by making that one decision. Although both storyline differ, I believe they still have similarities in the message they convey.

Analysis:
The picture for this promotional advertisement  I believe captures the true meaning of this film, as he constantly looking up and remembering his brother. By having him looking down at him in the bottom picture, displays his caring and loving side and how he will always look out for him no matter what happens. I also like how both pictures are merged together, portraying the before and after effect of having his brother by his side and then being left all on his own.

My Ideas:
For my poster, I would like to create something similar  by having two images merged together, portraying how the protagonist is before and after everything has happened. I would like to recreate the top picture of having my talent looking up at the clouds and actually being able to see them in his eyes. I think this image would be extremely effective as it links in with one of the quotes from this film where it say "No one ever gets to see what could have been" and by him looking up in the clouds shows how he is reflecting on their time together and what could have been. For the bottom half of the picture, I am thinking of having a image of them both together (most probably walking hand in hand) to show how they use to be before that life changing argument.

Research Into Magazine Advertisements

To help me gain some understanding on what content needs to be included on a magazine advertisement, I thought I'd have a look on the internet to see if Mayday Parade had any existing music advertisements. After searching Google I came across this advertisement which has given me inspiration.....

Conclusion:

Overall, I like the idea of how the poster is kept plain and simple, so that the audiences eye isn't distracted by anything on the page and get the information they want and need effectively. I will try and ensure that when making my advertisement to keep to the convention of their simple design and plain but bold font to stand out and capture the audience's eye.

Finished Scrapbook

After a long day of painting, decorating and sticking down of photographs, I have finally finished the scrapbook that will feature in my music video. Granted there are more than 4 pages in the actual blank scrapbook, these particular pages will be the main ones that will be included in my music video, as I don't have that much time to feature every page in!

Scrapbook

Now I have filmed my happy memories scenes, I decided to buy this blank scrapbook from WHSmith, so I was able to get started on creating the scrapbook for my music video. 

Overall, I had taken roughly 150 photos during filming the happy memory scenes for my music video. I thought it would be best to upload my favourite 40 photographs and the ones that will most likely feature in the scrapbook. I decided to upload the edited pictures instead of the original versions, as these will be the ones that be printed and stuck into the scrapbook.

Filming!

Today I am going to start filming! I thought it would be best to start early, as the days are only getting shorter and the weather won't stay sunny and warm for much longer, so I thought there is no time like the present! As I have the 5 day weather forecast on my Ipod, I have been able to plan ahead some of the days which would be best to shot  the footage for my music video. Due to the fact I have already decided on who my talent is going to be, we have already have organised which days will be best for them to film and know which scenes to do when, so they have an idea of what to do on each day. Below is a shooting schedule of the days I am planning to do the filming for my music video (if the weather does what I hope do to on these days that is!) 

Risk Assesment

I thought it would be a good idea to create a risk assessment before filming, to ensure that I am aware of any precautions I need to take when recording in the locations for my music video footage.

 

Call Sheet

As I am a rather orgnanised person, I thought it would be a good idea to create a call sheet to arrange my time effectively and sort out when my talents (Sam and Tom) are free. If all goes to plan, I will follow the days that we have decided together to shoot the film. However, if I am unable to get all that I aim for on these days or if I feel like I would like to redo a scene (as I am a bit of a perfectionist), I will ask my talents when they are next free to shoot this particular scene. Here is the draft for my call sheet below:

                                                   Call Sheet from Catherine Baker

Organising Actors, Costumes, Props and Locations

Before filming my music video, I need to make some important decisions on who my talent is going to be, what equipment and props I will need to bring with me as well as planning out the locations of where I will take the footage.

Actors:

Due to the fact that I am planning to do a video on a couple breaking up, I will need two people (boy and a girl) to fill these roles. As I will need to do a variety of scenes on different days I will need to ask two people who are reliable and can count on. Therefore, I have decided to use my best friends Samantha and Tom to play these roles, as we all get on really well and they don't mind being in my music video.

Costume:
As I am aiming to capture variety of stages of a "typical" relationship, my talent won't need to wear anything specific but normal day to day clothes.

Props:
The main props that I am thinking of using throughout my music video will be:

• A blanket which they will sit on to display they are on a picnic and laying on the grass on (in case it has rained the day before and don't want to get wet).
• Apparatus from the local park e.g. seesaw, swings etc.
• Food for the picnic e.g. strawberries and chocolate.
• A piano for when the protagonist sings the song.
• Scrapbook to portray the happy memories of their relationship.
• A car from the running over scene.

Locations:
I am planning to stick to a few local locations to make it easier when filming, rather than having to travel too far to get the results I am aiming for. The places I am planning to film in are:

• North park.
• My back garden.
• My hallway for where the argument scene.
• Either a bedroom or living room where the protagonist reminisces through the scrapbook.
• Outside my house for the running over scene and where the protagonist gets caught in the rain.

Reece Photos

Here are the variety of locations where I am going to film my music video:

One of the places I am most probably going to spend the majority of my time at is the pleasure park, which is my local park and is easily accessible to get to and use for my music video. I am thinking of using this particular shot for when my talent are going to be walking hand in hand down the pavement.

The grand stand is also located in the pleasure park, which I will be mainly using to take pictures of my talent dancing for my scrapbook I am making to show the progression of their relationship.

This climbing frame is again located in the pleasure park, where I will get my talent to sit on it somewhere to take more picture of them to put into the scrapbook I am going to make.

I will take both pictures and film of my talent on the seesaw to show the good time they had before it all goes wrong.

The swings will also be included in my music video, again this will be to show the couple's happy memories they once had. I will again take photos of them having a laugh on the swings to fill up my currently empty scrapbook.

The roundabout will be the last piece of equipment that I include from the pleasure park for my music video. I will try and ensure that I record all of this happy memories in beautiful sunshine to connote their happiness and how in love they are.

 This picture is taken from my back garden, which shall be used for the happy memories part (the picnic scene). The majority of "lovey dovey" relationship shown in music videos, have a cute scene included and therefore, I believe that I should stick to this convention.

This is my mother's bedroom, which I am going to use when the protagonist is going to be flickering through the scrapbook reminiscing on the memories they once shared. I was going to use the living room however, my walls are rather full and don't have any space to do the projections of the happy memories there, so this location will have to do instead. As you can probably see there are pictures of me and my sisters in her bedroom, so I will take this into account when filming and remove all the girly things she owns and replace them with manly object, to make it look like his bedroom rather than my mums!

This is where the typical argument scene will be taken. As the majority of my time I am this house I thought it would be the best location to use. also if I plan my time wisely enough my family will be out for an hour where the filming can take place without disturbing them in any way.

Institutional Mode of Representation (IMR)

What is IMR?

IMR stands for Institutional Mode of Representation, which is the dominant mode of film construction. In 1914 this was a particular style that was developed after the turn of the century and became the norm. The purpose of the IMR was to try and attempt to create a fictional world on screen that the audience would feel a part of, almost like they are taking part of the story. This was produced by placing close up of the character's faces so the audience where are to engage with their emotions and feel a "connection" with them. 

How does this relate to my music video?

In theory I would say IMR is relevant to my music video, as I will be telling a story through a fictional world of my main character's eyes. I am using two characters to create a fictional world (a boy and a girl) to help the viewers engage in the narrative, as well as relating to the situation. This could make my audience feel they are either involved in my music video or have a connection with how one of the characters are feelings due to the fact they have experienced something similar in the past. As my video is not linear, it switches from past to present throughout it, leaving 'untold' sections of the story, which the viewers will have to interpret it themselves. This will create a more powerful message in my opinion, ensuring my audience feel something by the end of my music video. I will ensure that when it comes to making my video come to life, I need to consider the relationship of the couple is realistic and that empathy for each character is included.

Detailed Music Video Script

As I am a rather organised person, I thought it would be best to listen to the lyrics of "The Memory - Mayday Parade" and put my ideas (that I came up with on my storyboard) to the timing of the actual song. This will help me in the long run, to not only ensure that I know which part goes where in the song, but it may also save some time when it comes to editing my footage. Although I have just posted a storyboard of my music video, the writing isn't all that clear and detailed so this will be musch easier to read and understand. Lastly, this will help to visualise what I plan to go on at each point of the song.

Music Video Script from Catherine Baker

The main reason I have ended the music video this way is to display how I interpreted this song and not just a stereotypical break up song. I believe after listening to the song and the lyrics numerous of times, they have a deeper meanings and not just about "the memory" of their relationship but of his girlfriend too. At first glance the line where it says "take my heart as you're leaving, I don't need it anymore" implies that he doesn't need her or her love anymore, however, this message seems to be contradicted by "she is everywhere I go". This is where the idea of the title "the memory" wasn't just suggesting that she has left him, but may have left him for good and can never return. Therefore, I am trying to portray that by making one decision (where she either has the choice to turn back and say sorry or run away from the situation) can have an impact on her life, as well as his.

Storyboard

After listening and reading the lyrics to this song repeatedly, I have came up with a storyboard to illistrate my ideas that I have in mind for my music video.

Moodboard

I decided to create a mood board to convey some of my initial inspirational ideas I have came up with to do with the song and the genre of love and heartbreaks. This is to help me gain an understanding of what can be associated with memories and display how love is a complicated thing, before I start creating ideas for my storyboard and the actual music video. 

Analysis of Previous Students Work

I just happened to type into Google "breaking up music videos" and this popped up as one of the main searches. I personally have never heard of this song so had no idea what to expect from the video that these individuals had made. One of the main things about this music video that I liked it how it starts off as your stereotypical "lovey dovey" relationship where they do everything together to convey the "ideal love story". However, as the music video progresses it's the twist in the middle, which makes the viewer realise that being in love was more of a burden for him than anything else. 

At the beginning of the music video, they have a rotating image in black and white of them. This straight away indicates to the viewer that this is either a video about something from the past or that their relationship is a classic love story where it was love at first sight but it doesn’t last forever. The use of the white sans serif font not only shows that time is moving on, but that their relationship is becoming rather boring and sooner or later they will be moving on with time.

One of the clever and ironic shots of this music video is where the protagonist decides to break up with his girlfriend over phone call. During this scene I believe they thought about the mise-en-scene as there is a poster reading “all you need is love”, which is again ironic considering the situation occurring. Not only this but when the singer of the song starts to the sing the chorus “breaking up” the girlfriend lip syncs these words which is effective, as the audience know straight away (if they didn’t already) what is happening.

Representations/Ideologies:
Throughout the music video there are a variety of stereotypes included and ideologies represented, which makes it amusing for the viewers to watch. One of the main examples is the aftermath of the break up, where the girl starts comfort eating with ice-cream and lying in her bed crying over the current situation. This is one of the main stereotypes that you find about girls and how when something upsets them they tend to mop around, unsure how to move on. Another common perseption found in this music video is where the protagonist ends the relationship and doesn't acted fazed in the slightest. In fact, he seems to act like the "macho" man by not getting upset and is indeed relieved he is out of the relationship.By him starting to work out and improve on his appearance, implies he is already over his previous relationship (unlike his ex) and is aiming to impress the next girl that comes along.

Conclusion:
Overall, this video is extremely humorous and was rather unexpected when i first watched it. Although this music video has taken a completely different stamp on a break up, in comparison to what I am thinking of producing, it has made me realise by not sticking a typical ending of a relationship would be more interesting for the audience to watch. Although my chosen song isn't about someone becoming happy because they are now "free" from a relationship, the unexpected twist ensures that it is not like a stereotypical break up, which I too am aiming for.

Target Audience

Audience/Age:
The particular audience I am aiming my music video at will be about mid teens to mid twenties (15-25). This is due to the fact that around this age range most individuals enjoy attending live gigs. I think this age group would be most appropriate as when the band first started out they were in this target market. Also, the majority of songs they sing about it about relationships and how they don't always work out, which reflects who happens during this age, where people find love but sometimes it doesn't always last. I wouldn't say that Mayday Parade is a particularly mainstream band, as not everyone has heard of them before and therefore I am aiming at a relatively niche market. However, with my music video for the song could make individuals more aware of the band.

Gender:
Due to the fact that the theme I am conveying in my music video is romance, this will mainly interest the female audience. However, as I am thinking of including a break up scene, I believe both girls and boys will be able to relate to this storyline, especially if they have gone through this sort of experience themselves. Furthermore, after looking at Mayday Parade's their official website, there are a mixture of fans from both genders, resulting that I shouldn't just aim my music video at one specific genre. Although, some people may stereotype rock music as a more of a male based genre, most of my friends who listen to mayday parade are female. So for those reasons I stated above, I believe it is the best option to aim my music video at both male and females. 

Genre:
The genre of music is rock, however, it is not heavy metal it is more easy listening to, to try and convey a message that the audience can relate to if they have ever been in that situation.

Lifestyle:
The general lifestyle I would expect my target audience to have would either be a student, study higher education such as university of having a part time job, where they have time to attend gigs. I would also say that they aren't necessarily interested in mainstream songs and artists and would much prefer artists that the potential to become popular with the right marketing and advertisement. Additionally, they may have a close group of friends which they enjoy listening and sharing the same music on spotify or other music sites as well as attending gigs every so often. 

Interests:
The main interests that I would imagine my target market doing would them doing would be listening music in their spare time, chilling with their groups of friends as well as attending local gigs or one of the favourite bands concerts on a regular basis. They may even be interested in playing an instrument such as guitar or drums etc.

Socio-economic group:
My target audience for this particular style/artist of music I believe would fit into class D and E. this would mainly down to the fact that most of individuals aged 15-25 will either be students, unemployed or working on minimum wage. Although, they may have a lack of money they would most probably spend it on gigs rather than anything else.

Narrative:
The basic plot I have trying to convey is that sometimes love and relationships can be complicated and don't always work. Usually in life, one decision can change someones life and this is what I am going to try and portray in my music video. The video itself should tell a story and link in with the lyrics as well as the title to intrigue the viewers attention.

Representations:
The main representations I am going to include is to show the difference between the happy memories Vs reality and how the relationship goes from perfect to over in a matter seconds and words.

Why?
The particular genre of music I have chosen to represent my theme in my music video, will be used to attract the niche market that know of the band and will end up growing in popularity due to the process of "word of mouth". Although rock music isn't particularly a niche market, there is a rather lot of this style of music in the charts currently. Therefore, this particular song I have chosen is less heavy metal rock that may not appeal to people and more relatable. This could cause the song/the artist to become more mainstream then never before due to the music video.

Audience Pleasures In Relation To My Coursework

Audiences Pleasures:
The media is one of the most powerful ways of influencing individuals to do something or believe something they have been told. There are many theories that can have an affect on society and therefore, I thought it would be a good idea to research them and then adapt my music video to appeal to my target audience.

One of the main theories I researched was the is the "Two Step Theory", which I believe fits to my music video the most. This theory explains how social influence can play a massive part on individuals beliefs and opinions.

Paul Lazarsfeld, Bernard Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet analysed the voters' decision-making processes during a 1940 presidential election campaign and published their results in a paper called The People's Choice. Their findings implied that the information does not directly flow from the text into the minds of its audience unmediated but is filtered through other people’s opinions who they communicate and interactive with. This means some people may be influenced by their friends or families choice, meaning they are not being influenced by a direct process, but by a two step flow. Therefore, "word of mouth" is a very powerful way of influences people, as individuals like to share interests and recommend particular songs to listen to or music videos to watch.

Overall,  the "Two Step Theory" relates to my music video as the whole concept of the theory. Many people go through break ups sometime in their life and tend to relate to songs to help them get through the tough time, knowing they are not alone. As I am relating my video back to "the memory", I will have to ensure that I maintain typical conventions of a break up song, so people are able to relate to the storyline and that when watching the music video they know what is happening. Otherwise, if I didn't stick to typical conventions this could confuse the reader and not recommend my music videos like people do with existing ones.

Ideologies & Representations

Definition:
"An ideology is a world view, a system of values, attitudes and beliefs which an individual, group or society holds to be true or important; these are shared by a culture or society about how that society should function."

Ideologies are usually repeated to us by institutions such as the government, media texts, education and are carried out through advertisements and word of mouth. As ideologies are shown or discussed daily which makes us internalise them as normal, meaning we accept it's behaviour and don't question the norm. A particular dominant ideology that has become a sort of stereotype over the years is gender roles. For example, a woman's place is always in the kitchen and how boys will be boys - they rough and tumble.

Ideology of my genre:
Although my band Mayday Parade are well known for their rock music (which usually is rather fast up beat heavy songs) the one I am using for my music video, goes against their conventions a bit. This is mainly down to the fact it is rather slow. However, it still has a powerful message that most of their existing songs convey. I will ensure that when creating my ideas for my music video, that I stick to relevant ideologies and representations of the different genders that I include in my music video.

How does this relate to my music video?

By understanding that ideologies can have such a huge impact on individuals, has made me conscious to ensure that I don't represent my characters as "out of character". Therefore, I will be wary of represent each of my character's gender and try to ensure I don't show any inequality in my video music that could damage the success of my final product. Although my song that I have chosen is sang my a male and I will most likely have a male character to play a bigger role, this does;t necessarily mean he is more significant; just telling the viewer a story of his memories he had with his girlfriend. 

Researching Directors

Due to the fact my chosen song doesn't have an actual music video I had to research several other Mayday Parade songs that do have one, to see who directed it. I eventually came across "Stay" and "Oh well, Oh well", which were both directed by "Thunder Down Country".

Thunder Down Country is an independent production company operating out of Columbus, Ohio. Co-Owners Brad Golowin and Kevin Cross have garnered a strong reputation for their artistic eye for detail and their unique talent for making music videos.They have directed over 40 music videos together including; Attack Attack! "Smokahontas", Miss May I"Masses of a Dying Breed", Memphis May Fire "The Sinner", Of Mice & Men "Second and Sebring", and many more.

TDC's clients include: Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group, Independent Label Group, Fearless Records, Rise Records, Metal Blade Records, & Sumerian Records. Their videos have received millions of views online and have been shown on MTV, MTV2, VH1 and FUSE. 

When researching Thunder Down Country, I came across an interview that describes which bands they have been working with, as well as other relevant information when it comes to them creating music videos:

Interview With TDC

Mayday Parade Bio & Music Videos

Branding of my text:

Mayday Parade is an American rock band from Tallahassee, Florida. For the past four years, Mayday Parade have currently released 4 albums so far including:

• Tales Told by Dead Friends
• A Lesson in Romantics and Lancaster's departure
• Anywhere But Here
• Valdosta

There are 5 members who make up this band; main vocalist/keyboardist Derek Sanders, bassist Jeremy Lenzo, guitarists Alex Garcia and Brooks Betts and drummer Jake Bundrick. At first the band went into a studio to record their first EP "Tales Told by Dead Friends" with producer Lee Dyess. During the week they spent recording in the studio, they decided on the name Mayday Parade. The band went on their first U.S. tour with Brandtson and Mêlée, then on another tour with Plain White T's shortly after the release of the EP. Since the past 5 years they've worked with 3 labels before including Fearless (2006–present), Atlantic (2009–2011) and ILG (2011–present). They currently have a website http://www.maydayparade.com where fans can view any updates, see when they are touring and any releases of singles or albums by the artist etc. They also have a facebook page where people can share their views on anything on the page and the band themselves update statuses on their for their fans to keep posted on any news about the band.

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Music Videos

The song is about the progression of a failed relationship. In the beginning the singer is thinking about his love, essentially asking her if she still thinks of him and the love they shared but subsequently threw out. He realises its the end and he reluctantly lets it die, although he still hopes for a bright future. Overall, this song shows that not all relationships do have a happy ending and sometimes they have to go their own way.

 

This song feels like this guy had a long commitment with a girl, but now he's having a hard time getting over her, so he shuts off his feelings until he has more control of them. When he does manage to gain control, he finds relief, but then his sadness comes up again and he misses her. He states that he's willing to take her back if she is willing as well, but instead she tells him she's cutting off contact. Next he explains how he felt he was getting better and her actions are threatening to dampen his mood. He still loves her but has no outlet and regrets the original reason they broke up, and then he restates he'd take her back and explains what's become of him and remembers their time together.

This music video is about two teenagers falling in love during the summer time. Although it wasn't a perfect relationship, he truly loved her. Once the summer ended, they separated and didn't keep in touch. Now the protagonist is thinking back to all of the memories and wants to be with her again. One of the main thing he wonders is why the first time they kissed it was magical and they were so in love, compared to the last where it was a goodbye and they wouldn't see each other again. I like the idea of the music video reminiscing on the memories they once had and would like to use this idea somewhere in my creation.

This music video goes against conventions by not actually including any lip syncing or having the actual band featuring in the video. 

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Conclusion:

After researching the band Mayday Parade, I only came across a few of their songs actually having music videos, which in a way does make it relatively hard for me to find specific conventions that the band seem to follow. From the songs that I found, they were all rather different, as above you can see the first music video is animated, the second one is a hybrid performance and narrative based video and the last one is a cameo (which is where the band doesn't actually feature in it) but follows a narrative instead. I quite like the idea of having a narrative music video where the footage attempts to tell a story through the moving image, as I believe it tells the story better than just the band themselves performing the song in front of the camera.

 As I have come across both hybrid performances and narrative, as well as cameo videos by Mayday Parade, I think i should stick to one of these styles to fit in with their existing creations. Due to the fact they haven't created a performed based video, I think I would go against conventions if I made one in this style and therefore, I will aim to produce a video with a storyline. This could come in handy though, especially if my talent prefers to act rather than sing the whole way through my music video. This will save them getting embarrassed by constantly lip syncing as well as ensuring I stick to the band's conventions at the same time.

 Overall, after listening to the song I have chosen, I would say that the main voice you hear from it is the lead singer. In a way you could say that is rather odd as most bands usually sing parts of the song together, however, in this song the audience are unable to differentiate between each band member, as the same guys seems to sing it all the way through. Therefore, I may decide not to include the band performing in this song, as it seems to be sung from a man's point of view, which I believe will make the video more effective if there is only one person who sings in it. With this in mind, this could persuade me more to produce a cameo video, with a narrative throughout the song (rather than a hybrid performance and narrative) as I feel this style will make it more poignant and effective in conveying the message within the lyrics.

Permission Letter

Today I decided to send an email to the Copyright holder of the track that I am wanting to use for my music video. I went on their offical website and onto the conbtact page to find the management section to send my email to.

 

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Dear Management,

My name is Catherine Baker and I am currently studying A-Level Media Studies at Southfield School for Girls, Kettering, England.

As part of my coursework this year, I have to produce a music video to a song of my choice. I have decided to choose one of Mayday Parades songs “The Memory” as it is one of my favourite songs by them. I am therefore, writing this letter to you to ask your permission to use their song to create a music video for my work.

Please be aware that this video will only be used for my coursework and will not be distributed or marketed in any form. I would very much appreciate it if you would allow me the permission to use this song. I do hope you can help me out with my query.

Many Thanks,

Catherine Baker

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Even if I don't hear back from the company, I am planning to still go ahead with my ideas. However, unless the record label contacts me back, refusing comformation to use their song, then I will I chose another song and start again. I think it is highly unlikeely that I will hear back from them, however, I will keep optismistic.

Lyrics For My Chosen Song

She is everywhere I go
Everyone I see
Winter's gone and I still can't sleep
Summer's on the way
At least that's what they say
But these clouds won't leave

Walk away
I'm barely breathing
As I'm lying on the floor
Take my heart
As you're leaving
I don't need it anymore

This is the memory
This is the curse of having
Too much time to think about it
It's killing me
This is the last time
This is my forgiveness
This is endless

Now spring has brought the rain
But I still see your face
And I can not escape the past
Creeping up inside
Reminding me that I
Can never bring you back

This is the memory
This is the curse of having
Too much time to think about it
It's killing me
This is the last time
This is my forgiveness
This is endless

(This is endless)
This is endless
(This is endless)

Someone help me
'Cause the memory
Convinced itself to tear me apart
And it's gonna succeed before long

This is the memory
This is the curse of having
Too much time to think about it
It's killing me
This is the last time
This is my forgiveness
This is endless
(This is endless)

Someone help me
'Cause the memory
Convinced itself to tear me apart
And it's gonna succeed before long
(This is endless)

She is everywhere I go
Everyone I see
But these clouds won't leave

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Interpretation:

My interpretation of the song is about the memory of break up. Due to the fact it is a male band singing this song, illustrates that the girl ended the relationship (although the reason is unknown). The protagonist seems to have taken the break up rather badly, as his feelings are still raw from the pain and can't help but reminisce about the times they once shared together.

Conclusion:

I will try and make a narrative based music video, as I believe the story will help explain the lyrics to the song instead of the band just lip syncing. I may feature the band in the video or I may not, this all depends on Mayday Parade's conventions that they stick to in their existing music videos. I also believe this song to be very literal and therefore I think it is only right to have a storyline in it to follow the message of the song. For instance, the lyrics of "summer has brought the rain" I could get my talent to walk in the rain to show the changing season are relating to his current mood. Also, where it says "these clouds won't leave" I could get a shot of him looking up into the clouds, to portray they are just hanging over him, like the memories. I am aiming to stick to the conventions of a break up music video, which include an argument scene and how the scenes switch from happy memories to reality. However, I am thinking of creating a twist at the end to ensure that the video has a deeper message and meaning than just "another break up video".

My Chosen Song For My Music Video

After many hours of trying to find a song, I think I have finally found the one! Not only have I found I song which I think will fit in my theme well, it doesn't have a music video either! Therefore, I can interpret the song and it's meaning however I portray the lyrics without having to worry about if it is the same as the existing music video. The chosen song for my music video is called "The Memory" by Mayday Parade.

This is a bonus track from Mayday Parade's second studio album called "Anywhere But Here". Mayday Parade are a American rock band and released this song from the album through both Atlantic and Fearless Records on October 6, 2009. Other songs that were released on the album include "Kids In Love", "The Silence" and "Anywhere But Here". The album debuted at number 31 on the Billboard 200, selling 17,780 copies in the first week. This particular song is written by Mayday Parade and produced by David Bendeth and is roughly about 4 minutes and 10 seconds long.

Digital Techonology

Digital Technology from Catherine Baker

Textual Analysis

Textual Analysis from Catherine Baker

Inspirational Videos

Here are a variety of existing songs that have have given my inspiration for my music video. Although not all of them are specifically about break ups, they are however, about losing someone they once loved. Even though some of the music videos (such as "Here Comes Goodbye" and "Best Thing I Never Had") may not be a typical break up song or illustrate exactly what I am exactly aiming for, the lyrics and the message they portray are along the lines on what I want my music video to convey.

Representations: I believe this is a typical and true representation of a break up song, as it shows the man who has been left alone breaking down. One of the main stereotypes you expect from a couple breaking up is to have a scene of them arguing, which is displayed in this music video. Another common scene you expect from a typical break up song (which is conveyed again in this video), is to switch from the past to present, to represent him reminiscing about the memories they once had.

Representations: Before watching the actual music video for this song and discovering the true meaning of the lyrics, I had interpreted it extremely different. It turns out this song follows on from "What Hurts The Most" by Rascal Flatts and how the woman has been been away for so long since she has lost her son and her father but now she come back to say goodbye. I thought before watching the official video that it was about a break up and how he now has to now come to terms with saying goodbye. The idea of saying goodbye to someone and the memories they once had its an inspirational idea, which I will take on board when deciding what to include in my music video. After watching the music video the main representation and ideology represented was the women breaking down at the lost of her loved ones. Due to the fact women are commonly stereotyped as emotional, this is conveyed in the end of the video when she has to say goodbye.

Representations: To me this is an interesting music video, as it has quite a meaningful message about the ideas of fate and destiny. At the beginning of the video, his girlfriend gets hit by a car and throughout the rest of the song he is trying to convey that "what if we hadn't met then maybe this wouldn't have happened". The title also represents the idea that you can't predict the future and how one decision can shape the rest of your life. One of the key ideologies represented in this music video, is when Jason Derulo runs out to try and save his girlfriend from being hit by the car. Men are typically stereotypes as "macho" and have no fear, so by him sacrificing his life for the woman he loves sticks to these usual conventions. Overall, I like the message this music video conveys and would like to recreate one similar in my music video.

Representations: Again this is another one of the typical break up music videos you will seen which is Hybrid performance + narrative. Throughout the song it switches from the happy memories to were they argue and where he is left alone to show what life was like before and after the break up. This is a typical convention I will aim to stick to as you see these type of scenes throughout typical break up music videos.

Representations: Although this song isn't necessarily about breaking up with someone, there is a part of this music video (1.47-2.02 minutes) which I believe is rather inspirational. I like the idea of looking back on the memories they once shared and how she decided to leave as she wasn't happy with him and this is a scene, which I would like to recreate in my music video. One of the unconventional stereotypes this music video includes though is how a woman is represented as strong, rather than weak and emotional after a bad relationship. This music video seems to convey the message "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" as one of her lyrics in this songs reads "I've finally found the good in goodbye". This heightens the fact that not all woman are weak and emotional like they are typically perceived.