Planning: Music Video Pitch For Imagine Dragons "Demons"

Planning : Creating An Online Mood Board

I created a mood board to do with the band Imagine Dragons and collected a range of images associated with them. To find these images i went on Google and typed in Imagine Dragons to see what images I could pick out. I also watched some music videos from them in order to find out images that I could possibly include in my mood board.
Click here to view my mood board.  On every image I have included a comment on what the image is and how it is referred  to Imagine Dragons. Below are some images of my mood board, the  first images on the left and right are the view it gives when rolling over that image.  I also included images showing the band members as well as their social networking sites that they can be found on. The rest of my images are shown down below.

Imagine Dragons: Demons

Research: Lyric Analysis: Imagine Dragons, Demons

I analysed the lyrics to song called Demons by the band Imagine Dragons, this song is about what some people experience in their minds and can't get rid off them, these being demons, some people may be having horrible thoughts and they just can't get rid of these demons. This is an emotionally mixed song because it starts off slow just like a sad song but then it kicks in and then becomes a song that a lot of people would like.



The first verse has some sad references and I picked out some lyrics which are "when your dreams all fail and the ones we hail are the worst of all", these lyrics mean that when someones dreams fail, they just give up on them and are unsure what to do in the future.

In the pre chorus, all of the lines have sad references in them such as "i want to hide the truth, i want to shelter you, but with the beast inside theres nowhere we can hide", these lyrics mean that the truth hurts a lot of people and they want to shelter their feelings as well as it is impossible to hide from the beasts.



The lyrics in the chorus are " when you feel my heat, look into my eyes, its where my demons hide, don't get to close, its dark inside", these lyrics are a metaphor of just how close someone needs to be to feel someones heat, as well as a persons eyes are known to be the windows to the soul so people are able to see these demons.



The second verse of the song is "at the curtains call, is the last of all, when the light fade out, all the sinner crawl" this is saying about how when a person closes their curtains, all bad things get revealed.  The last few lyrics are "so they dug your grave and the masquerade will come calling out at the mess you made", this is saying that everyone is waiting for you to fail.

The second pre chorus is "don't want to let you down, but I am hell bound, though this is all for you don't want to hide the truth", this is about no one wants to be let down but however there is a dark side to it all.



Finally the lyrics to the bridge are "they say its what you make, I say its up to fate, its woven in my soul, I need to let you go" this is someone being blamed for their wrong doings and that they are trying to be good.



I then went over to a website called worditout and then used the lyrics from Demons to create a mood board from. The 2 most popular words are demons and hide, Demons would be one of the most popular words because it is the name of the song therefore it would get a mention. Hide would be another popular word because it is a song about demons and how people are trying to hide from them.

Research: Who Are The Target Audience For My Artist?

Lewis is 17 and lives in Kettering, his biggest passions are music and media studies,  Lewis always listens to music whenever he can because he is very interested in music which is why he is a big fan of media. Lewis listens to music in a range of different ways such as on his Apple devices (iPhone and iPad), on websites such as YouTube etc. When doing his school work, he listens to music as it keeps him focused and stops him from being distracted from others. Lewis loves listening to all types of music apart from heavy rock and classical as this he find classical boring and just despises heavy rock. His 2 favourite genres would be dance and hip hop.

Lewis wishes to go to festivals and concerts, but he is unable to get to them easily because of travel arrangements and money, he watches all kinds of festivals on YouTube and other sites. However, he does go to a lot of parties with his mates.Lewis mates have the same interest in music as he does and he is always telling his mates about new songs that have came out and getting his mates to listen to them. Lewis' favourite bands/singers are Imagine Dragons, Kendrick Lamar and Drake. If i asked Lewis what his favourite song would be from all 3 choices, it will probably be Imagine Dragons, Its Time.

Lewis really wants to drive as soon as he can in order for him to go to these concerts and festivals which he is dying to go to. Lewis follows all 3 of his favourite bands/singers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to see what they are up and so they can keep up to date with them as well as seeing what his friends are up to and interacting with them.  He doesnt like reading music magazines because he isnt a reading type of guy but watches interviews of them on the internet, one thing I have noticed about Lewis is that he doesnt dress like any members of his favourite artists which is unusual because so many people do, but he is just a casual dresser.

With the improvement of technology, Lewis very rarely buys CD's because it is all free on the internet and he always uses Spotify as as way of listening to music because he can create playlists of all of his favourite songs easily and for free. He also listens to music on TV and on various websites. When listening to music, he has a very strong interest in watching the music videos and how much they relate to the song, this is because he likes the story that goes on in the video and how he can use these for inspiration when it comes to him creating his own.

His music choice isnt influenced at all by other family members which is a bit strange because when you are a child, you listen to a lot of music that your parents listened to but he isnt that type of person. I asked about the 3 selections and why he likes their music, he told me about the lyrics in the song are powerful and the beat that goes with them as well which makes it sound amazing.

Research Into Existing Music Video: The Script, Superheroes

My 3rd and final video I am going to be analysing is called Superheroes which is by The Script. Just like the first 2 music videos, I will be identifying the 3 factors which are use of camera, editing and miss-en-scene. I will be using these codes in order to find out how the actors in the music video are portrayed. The image below is the notes that I took down when analysing the music video.

Use of Camera

At the start of the music video, there are multiple shots of the location which is therefore showing that where The Script are performing, it shows that they could be seen as Superheroes because of the country that they are performing in. The image to the right shows that because of the condition of all of the houses. The use of camera also provides close up shots of the person singing, so the audience can see that throughout the song, there is more than one person actually singing the song. The use of camera also shows the black character who is seen as a superhero to his daughter because of how well he treats her and he is also portrayed as being dressed really smart and walking his way to work showing that he is doing everything he can in order to provide for his child, the image on the right shows him sorting his tie out in order to look well presented. But later on he is seen changing in different clothes from being a smart individual to a trash man, this may be because he doesn't want his child to see the conditions that he works in, this image shows him searching through the trash. But this man doesn't care about the conditions that he works in, all he cares about is being able to provide for his child. The use of camera also shows his love for his child as well because there is a scene where both of them are on the bridge and they start running towards each other and in the morning he greets her with a smile on his face. So this male shows the audience as him being a superhero to his daughter.
One final use of the camera shows that the male character has a huge distance to walk in order to get to his work location because the camera looks over his shoulder in which there is a train which he is looking at therefore it is showing the male that he may not be financially able to pay for the train in order to get to work.




Editing

The use of editing in this video has been shown quite well, The beat matches the cuts that have been used and is not off at all meaning that it looks really good and works well. Another use of editing has been shown to portray the male as being quite poor and he is doing everything he can in order to help his daughter, this is because the use of editing shows the male dressing up smartly in a suit and then halfway through the video, he is then seen as wearing what a tartan would normally wear, therefore portraying this male as a hard worker and his work conditions are not the greatest. Also I noticed that when the song was getting to the chorus, the cuts gradually got much quicker as well. The use of editing also shows this male as a loving father because when both him and his daughter are on the bridge, the use of editing shows the girls emotions as they see each other therefore they start running towards each other on the bridge. The lyrics also match the editing as well because the lyrics were "fire in their eyes", the shot is

someone lighting some sort of flare therefore the use of editing matches the song. The use of editing also gives the main singer more time on the screen than the other singers so the audience can clearly see the main singer, but the use of editing cuts to the different singers as well.



Mise-en-scene

The costume choice for the characters have been used really well, this is shown with the band members which are associated with Indie Rock and therefore wear dark clothing. The costume choice for the black male characters vary in terms of being portrayed as a poor person and that he lives in a place where it is not the nicest of places to work and he gets portrayed as a smart intelligent individual because of his choices of clothing in terms of him wearing a suit. The lighting used in this song is good as well because there are dark aspects which show the mood of the song at these points and then when the chorus kicks in, the lighting changes.  There are not many props used in this video but the one that get used is important is the bag because the black male uses this bag to change into his work clothes, instead of wearing a suit, he then changes this into clothes that he uses to work as a trash man.

Research Into Existing Music Video: Imagine Dragons , On Top Of The World

The second music video I chose to research into was Imagine Dragons On Top Of The World, just like the first video, I will be analysing the 3 different codes in this video. The use of camera, mise-en-scene and editing. While looking at this music video, I found a lot of different ways of how these codes have been used to portray the actors/actress'.

Use of Camera

At the start of the music video, a low shot is used to show the young boy on his little go-kart and he makes his way in front of all the other people which are watching the TV because it is the day of the moon landing which is being watched by everyone around the world. The next shot is a close up of one of the singers and is showing him getting ready to go out. There is a mid shot of the singer saying good bye to his family as he prepares to go out in which this is the same for 3 of the characters but for the final one, he is on his own on his motorbike which he then speeds by showing the audience that he is late.  The camera goes back to the people watching the TV waiting patiently for something to happen. The camera also shows each of the singers walking across a zebra crossing, this is a reference to the Beatles album cover which they did years a go. The camera is also showing 2 of the singers cars in the background as well. The camera then changes to a close up of a security alarm and then CCTV footage of all 4 of them entering a base of some sort. The camera then tracks down to show a person standing at the
fence looking excited as of what is going to happen next. The camera then reveals all 4 of the singers entering their space clothing and each of their family members waiting on the edge of their seats looking excited.The camera then shows someone exiting the spacecraft onto the moon with the words "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind". The camera then tracks back to show the audience that there isnt a moon landing is is taking a punt by saying that it was all filmed in a studio and that it was fake. But on the TV screens, it all looks real and genuine. Then the use of camera also shows a crows of people entering the place where they were and it shows them joining in with them and them having a good time. Most of the shots in this video were still and there were very few that were moving. Also at the very end, it goes to the singers performing the song where at the start they were acting.

Mise-En-Scene

For mise-en-scene, I found quite a lot of factors. At first the representation of the young boy in his go-kart and he had a foil hat on while watching the TV, this could show the audience that he wants to become an astronaut because he seems very engrossed when watching the TV. It also represents a young child via the use of creativity. The TV that the people were watching looked extremely old as well so it shows the audience that this was filmed a long time a go. But the shots were filmed in colour whereas the TV didnt really have any colour to it. Next we look at the appearance of each of the characters, they all have very different styles and live in very different places. The first guy that comes on screen is seemed as being quite successful because of his suit jacket that he is wearing and the clothing of his family as well as the props in the background. The second character can be seen as a bit of a "hippy" simply because of his hairstyle, the glasses and the headband that he puts on. There is also a trailer which he possibly lives in and the people who he associates with are seen to look like him. His vehicle is also very old fashioned and not many people have those cars nowadays. The third character is similar to the first but he seems to be very posh and quite old fashioned simply because of his household and the way he and his family are dressed. His children look exactly like him because of the same old hairstyle and the car he drives is very old fashioned as well. The last character is seen to be very into his motor bikes because he is seen sitting on his bike putting his helmet on whilst wearing his leather jacket. They are then seen wearing their astronauts suits which they were able to get a hold off and this links to the song name by saying that they are "On top of the world" because astronauts go out in space and saying that they are literally on top of the world. The use of camera equipment is also showing the audience that they are filming the moon landing in a studio a long with all the props that are used such as the boom microphone, multiple cameras and the clapboard. The technology used by the families very much relate to their personality because of the "hippy" family, it seems that they are using a radio. The lighting used is very bright because the song is very upbeat so it suits the song perfectly.

Editing

The use of editing is important because the clips need to tell a story and if the editor just puts them in a random order, then it is not going to look good because it will just ruin the video. The use of editing shows that each of the characters gets equal amount of time on the screen because of the close ups of each character then it goes to them interacting with their family then setting off in their vehicle, this is the same order except for the last character who is just seen on his bike speeding off. A transition  is then used,  when the jeep goes by the camera, the shot follows it emerging into a new shot. An alarm gets some time on the screen so the audience know what it is and then there is CCTV footage of the 4 of them walking in. The use of editing is also hiding the characters outfit when they are getting changed but then the use of editing shows the 4 of them putting on their helmets at the same time. The shot of the little boy comes back and is looking excited then it goes back to 2 of the singers looking at each other confused. This could be linked to the boy looking at the singers. The use of editing also shows the 2 little boys from the "old fashioned person"  as being confused as of they have no idea what is going on. The studio of the moon landing gets a lot of time on screen so the audience can see that they are "taking a punt" at the real moon landing because of people saying it was fake. The cuts get much quicker because the tempo of the song increases whereas at the start, it wasnt as fast. The 4 singers at the end are getting a lot of time on screen as they are being congratulated by someone.

Overall this is a really good music videos because it is telling a story of how they are on top of the world which is the title of the song and is good how they have linked the video to the name of the song. The lyrics used are really good as well which relate to the song well.

Research Into Existing Music Video: Imagine Dragons, Demons

The music video I chose to research into was called Demons and the band that sing this song are Imagine Dragons.

Use Of Camera 

Looking at this music video the use of camera shows a lot of different aspects. This is a flashback of a persons life and it is on about their Demons therefore the use of camera shows the audience what demons she has inside and this video shows the woman, looking at a coffin showing the audience someone close has died and then there is a close up shot of the picture which she is holding, showing the audience that someone very close must have died, The use of camera also shows that the woman is alone in room. This has been shown at 0:40 - 0:52. There is a close up shot of the womans face before we see anything else, this shows her facial expressions and straight away people think that she is very upset.

In this image the boy seems to have a mark around his eye, before going into the flashback, it could be seen that his demons would be getting beaten up by someone possibly, the boy is also wearing a hoodie with his hood up to try and hide it possibly. The use of camera also constructs this boy as a classical teenager, this is because of his appearance, and what he does in his spare time, just like a lot of other teenage boys. This is shown at 1:52 - 2:00. There is also a glimpse of trophies in the background which he may have won, showing the audience that he may have been into his sports.

The camera also shows the audience the venue of the video and people can clearly see it is a concert with Imagine Dragons performing the song.

Mise-En-Scene

This video is in a really dark room with very little lighting and the characters are not wearing vibrant colours, instead they are wearing quite boring and dull colours which suits the purpose of the song because it is about demons. The woman who was at the funeral, she was wearing very dull colours because black is a connotation of death. There is also very little lighting in that room as well which shows that she is at a place which is a very upsetting place to go. I have also explained about how the teenager has been dressed and has been represented as a typical teenager. There is also another flashback of a black male in the army, a lot of people may not expect the black man to be a hero because of the stereotypical representations.A lot of people would've expected it to be a white male. The start of the song is very dark and the singers are not easily visible, but then when the song kicks, more lighting is shown.

Editing

When the chorus kicks in, a lot of the cuts are really quick because the tempo picks up a lot, but when the song starts to slow down, the cuts are a bit longer and matches the beat of the song, this is makes the audience think that it is a good video because the music matches the song. The flashback effect worked really well because it looks so real but it is great how it has been put together.  I also noticed that when the flashbacks occur, it is a lot slower compared to the actual performance, this suits the song because it matches the beat and doesn't make it too quick.

Overall this is a very good music video of how peoples demons have been constructed such as the different effects that have been used such as making the flashbacks look realistic and believable. I
also think that this song has very powerful lyrics making it a good song to like. I picked some lyrics which I find quite powerful which are "At the curtain’s call is the last of all,when the lights fade out, all the sinners crawl" these lyrics are very powerful because it is saying about when the curtains are closed and the lights fade out, bad things are revealed.

Reflecting My AS Media Grade

I got a grade D in my AS media exam and I got 115 marks, I was 5 marks off a C, if I had prepared more and worked harder I would have achieved that grade C, because I didn't, I saw the consequences of what happens when you don't put the work in. For A2 Media, I will make sure that I put all of my hard work in, in order to achieve that C grade or even higher if I make sure that I prepared more and took more time revising.