Adele
"Rolling in the Deep"
Directed by Sam Brown
In the video we can see Adele sitting in and empty room
and singing. The video cuts between different scenes
which include; a dark figure dancing in a dust covered
room, many glasses filled with water vibrating in time to
the music, a drummer playing but with his back to the
camera, pottery being smashed against a board at the
bottom of the stairs and a model of a city which has
sparks falling down on it.
I have chosen this video because i think there are
many reasons it is so good. The mood of the song
is well visually represented and has emotion
impact. The editing is to the beat. Also the
composition of the shots, in my opinion is well
thought out. I must not be alone in thinking that
this video is fantastic as it has won numerous
awards such as ‘Best Editing, Best
Cinematography and Best Art Direction.’
Although this video hasn’t necessarily got a story to it, the song is still represented in a way
which you can understand emotionally where the song is coming from. It expresses
loneliness, destruction and the sense that it has powerful
impact. The glasses that vibrate show the power and
strength of the song. The china being thrown and
smashed suggest anger. The fact that Adele is alone in a
large room which appears to be unused or abandoned add
to the effect and mood of the video. In fact the drummer
and the mysterious figure are alone in their scenes too.
Even the lighting amplifies the mood and sense of disappointment, sadness and abandonment.
A scene in the video that stands out to me is the
dancing figure that causes the dust to rise. It stands
out to me because its visually pleasing. It looks
magical and mysterious however at the same time
cold and isolated. The black plastic covering the walls
make the scene look harsh and uneasy. This contrast
between the dancer and the room create a bizarre
effect. I like how the dancer’s movements go with the
music. As well as movement in the video being in time to the beat, the video is also edited
skilfully especially near the end.
This music video was directed by Sam Brown who has also done work for The Fray, James
Blunt, The Foo Fighters and Corinne Bailey Ray. Therefore working with a range of styles
and genera’s. I believe this video is similar to his other work in the sense that all his work is
very visual and well composed.
Oren Lavie
“Her Morning Elegance”
Directed by Oren Lavie
The stop motion video begins with a girl in bed asleep. The girl
the moves across the bed but still lying down; she walk,
sometimes she swims and even cycles. Occasionally Oren joins
her with what she is doing at the time. It’s like she’s
sleepwalking while lying down.
I chose this video because
i like stop motion
animations and i think video in particular works very
well. I appreciate how much work goes in to make an
animation. It took the people involved 3 weeks to
storyboard and 2096 still photographs were used in the
making of this stop motion animation. They were played
together to create motion and movement. I also think
that it is very imaginative and beautiful.
My favourite part of this video is when the girl falls into water,
and swims with socks that are supposed to be fish. I think this
stands out to me because her movement looks more realistic.
Because when you are in water you aren’t walking on the
floor, you are suspended in an environment that appears to
have no gravity. I also like the use of the socks; i think it’s
cute and amusing.
Oren Lavie Directed this video however he isn’t the only
important person used to create it. You also have Yuval
and Merva Nathan who helped direct and were also
animators. Eyal Landesman was the photographer. A
while after it was released they then decided to go back
to the original photographs and sell them. This video
was such a hit it even inspired other directors and
videos, like the TV commercial, ‘Target Dreaming Girl
Commercial.’, that was broadcasted later that year.
Katy Perry
“Last Friday Night”
Directed by Marc Klasfeld
In the video Katy plays Kathy Beth Terry who is a typical
nerd fully equipped with braces and glasses. She wakes up
confused. Then flash backs are shown that reveal the
nights antiques. Rebecca Black is having a party and
encourages Kathy in. Kathy likes the footballer to whom
she has no chance until Black gives her a full makeover. It
is a good night for her.
I didn’t chose this video because i think it’s amazing,
because i don’t, but because I think it’s amusing and
fun. It is different to what you would expect from a
video about a party, especially as its Katy Perry. It’s not
her typical style. Also i think it is good because it has
quite a few famous people involved such as Kenny G,
Actors from ‘Glee’ and Rebecca Black.
Kathy Beth Terry is almost the complete opposite
of Katy Perry. Katy Perry is often viewed as a sex
symbol and a party animal, but for people to see
her as a nerd with no social life is entertaining
and unexpected. Other short video clips were
made using her alter-ego where she talks about
herself. Even Facebook and Twitter pages were
made for her character and have become a hit.
I can’t pick out a certain scene which i like the
most about this video. However i think the clips that go with the credits at the end, are the funniest.
There is about 2 minutes dedicated to the credits. I know it’s not exactly a part of the music video
but i think it really adds to the amusement.
The American director of this video, Marc Klasfeld, has directed videos for many musicians such as
The Script, Avril Lavigne and Jay-Z. Over the years he has won many awards for his work. As well as
directing music videos he has worked documentaries
and commercials. While being interviewed he said,
"The inspiration was obviously John Hughes, but also
a lot of my own music videos that I did for Alien Ant
Farm, Sum 41, Nelly and others,". He also expressed
why he likes making videos, "I always enjoy making
these pop-culture mash-ups where comedy and
random celebrities get mixed with the music into
this brand-new thing."
Bibliography:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolling_in_the_Deep#Music_video.
http://www.thedirectorsbureau.com/directors/42/
http://www.hmegallery.com/makingof.php
http://wn.com/Target_Dreaming_Girl_Commercial
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_Friday_Night_%28T.G.I.F.%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc_Klasfeld
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1665776/katy-perry-last-friday-night-video.jhtml