Our music video uses a number of techniques and conventions used in alternative music videos including slow-motion, desaturation (grey-scale) and close-ups of band members; this is further combined with splits between the narrative of the video and the band members performing the lyrics.
A convention used within our video and common with alternative videos is the mise-en-scene regarding the location and the appearance of the girl. Our music video is abnormal as it portrays a young woman who is wandering aimlessly around a damaged tank with the girl herself wearing nothing but a ragged t-shirt, with pale skin and dark eyes. Regarding the camera work there are a number of close-ups of not only the band playing the drums and doing the vocals but also the girl in the narrative which is a common occurrence with alternative videos.
Our music video conforms to the structure used in alternative music videos regarding narrative and band placements. The music video splits between shots of the girl in the narrative and artists providing the vocals with the main focus on the lead vocalist who gains the most screen time which references back to Richard Dyer’s Star Theory. However unlike the majority of alternative rock videos that focus mainly on band members our music video has an even collection of screen time between the band and the narrative and only one instrument is seen being played throughout the entire video.
The choice of using grey-scale is a common convention and was decided upon when the group looked at a collection of pre-existing videos such as "Seretonin" by Mystery Jets and “Take Over The Break’s Over” by Fall Out Boy. Our music video used black and white as a way to emphasize the message behind the video, the narrative regarding the how the “common man” is angry with their character and life and wants to rebel against society. Looking at these pre-existing products and merging them with our ideas allowed us to create a conventional alternative music video.
Regarding the overall theme of the video there are a number of techniques used in terms of editing that are conventional in alternative videos. For example there are a number of fade-outs to the next sequence as well as cuts to black screens while the lyrics still play. These transisitons between sequences were created to make the video feel more fluid. Also there are a number of jump cuts within the video and have been set in time to the beat of the song as well as the playing of the drums.
While the video covers a number of conventions relating to alternative rock it also subverts with the narrative for example most alternative videos follow a strict structure and meaning in combination with the lyrics which is immediately picked up by the audience. However our video is far harder to deduce from a first viewing and our target audience will most likely understand what the message is behind the video.
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