DNA Application Promotional Video Planning

I was contacted by Fruit Bowl Tech: a start-up technology communications company operating from Milton Keynes in the UK, regarding promotion of their new application known as DNA. Apparently, the company was rather fond of my work on the marketing of other products and services, and believed that I was a suitable designer to reach out to. The company requested that I produce a television advertisement in order to inform and persuade viewers to use their new service. Once I had agreed to consider the offer, I was invited to a meeting with the key members of Fruit Bowl Tech, to discuss the main purpose, message, audience, and branding of the service in regards to visual advertising.
Upon meeting my client, full detail of DNA's purpose was provided, as well as the extent to which it could be utilised. I was given evidence based on tests suggesting that the application would allow collaboration across the world in a shared, global family tree network, enabling relatives to share information with each other. This would ultimately allow users to more easily associate with their current family members, learn about deceased ancestors that existed centuries ago, and appreciate their heritage much more than before. I was also provided with the message that the client wanted me to implement into the advertisement, which was the concept of family. Specifically, it was most important that I make the audience realise the true beauty and significance of the forming and maintenance of bonds between current family members, as well as of the momentous experience of learning about the lives of past relatives. After discussing the application's purpose and message to the world, the client clearly explained the type of audience that my promotion should aim to appeal towards. Consisting of explorers and seekers of their family history, generally between the ages of twenty and eighty, the audience would be the most important aspect of the service. In terms of brand perception, the client obviously requested that the title of the application be present at some point in the video, in addition to the company name and logo being clearly visible at the end of the advertisement. Additionally, the promotion must plainly state that the application is completely free to use, thereby including the downloading, creating of accounts, and receiving of results. Furthermore, although not entirely necessary, it was suggested that I try to include within the visuals a certain shade of crimson that the company is hoping to make people associate with the application, as it is the main colour of the logo, and is used all throughout the program itself.

Due to being told of the application's high potential of enabling users to learn about past relatives that existed many centuries ago, I wanted my advertisement to capture the visual distinctions of previous time periods, along with the fascination that comes from discovering that one's ancestors can be traced back to such periods. Overall, I knew from the beginning that one of the most appropriate ways of promoting this feature was for my advertisement to feature realistic depictions of individuals from certain eras. Such eras would be portrayed through the clothing, makeup, and possessions of each character. This meant that the advertisement would consist of actors using their appearance to represent one of multiple time periods that had yet to be chosen. I performed basic research on the majority of previous eras set after a certain period that Fruit Bowl Tech told me was too unlikely to trace family trees back to. Afterwards, I narrowed the amount that I would include in my advertisement down to ten, based on general appearance. Once I had a general concept in mind, I produced a basic mood board consisting of online images, to help visualise the characters.

The types of individuals that I had chosen were Ancient Greek, Roman Soldier, Viking Warrior, Renaissance Lady, Tudor Nobleman, Georgian Lady, Victorian Lady, British World War I Soldier, British World War II Soldier, and Modern Man. Satisfied with the idea, I began work on the official planning by creating a storyboard to determine the exact content of the advertisement.

The advertisement would begin by fully presenting the first character: a male civilian from Ancient Greece, dressed in a white chiton (form of tunic) worn underneath a red himation (form of wrap), complete with a pair of leather sandals. Appearing from afar at first, the camera will quickly zoom in, keeping the character in the centre of the frame. Once the camera is at least two meters away from the character, it will begin to move horizontally left around the figure, whilst simultaneously moving upwards in a gentle manner, so that the whole attire is shown in full detail. This will last for seven seconds, before the camera reaches the character's face, neck and shoulders. Their eyes, which will be looking at the camera lens since the beginning of the advertisement, are the main focal point at this time, due to being centered in the frame. After three seconds, the camera will turn completely around to the right, in order to reveal the second character, who will be stood the same distance away as the Ancient Greek originally was.
Stood in place as the new figure, he will be donned in Roman Solider uniform, consisting of a galea (form of helmet), chest armour made of metal strips worn above a red tunic, and caligae (heavy-soled, hobnailed, military sandal boots). He will be wielding a gladius (sword) in his right hand, and a scutum (shield) in his left. The camera shall move in the exact same manner, before turning around to reveal the third character.
As a Viking Warrior, the new individual shall be wearing a brown sort of coat made from faux fur (to represent a real animal pelt), topped with a tunic made of linen, above a pair of woollen trousers and leather boots. The character will also be featured sporting a spangenhelm (form of helmet), and shall be holding a bearded axe in his right hand, as well as a round shield in his left. Once the camera has finished presenting in the same fashion as before, it will turn to exhibit the following historical individual.
In order to capture the likeness of a female civilian from Europe during the period of the Renaissance, the fourth character appears in a chemise (long, white garment resembling a nightdress), underneath a leather corset, mostly covered by a full-length, orange gown. Upon her head sits a conical hennin (form of headdress). The camera will perform its movement, and finish by centering the next character of the advertisement.
For the appearance of a Tudor Nobleman, the next individual will be dressed in a doublet (tight-fitting jacket), topped by a jerkin (short jacket) that is slashed to show rich lining underneath. Worn above this is a gown edged in fake ermine (winter fur of stoats), whilst a ruff is sported around the neck. His legs will be fitted with breeches (trouser-like garments), placed above white hose (form of stockings), accompanied by squared-toed, leather shoes. The top of the head will be covered by a bonnet (round, wide-brimmed cap). To complete the look, the character will be using his right hand to wield a rapier (form of sword). The next individual will be presented through the same use of camerawork.
Following on, the sixth figure - a Georgian Lady - shall be fitted with a chemise, underneath a farthingale (hooped petticoat around the hips) worn to greatly extend and shape the woman's skirts placed over. Atop this will be a dark blue kirtle (underskirt), suited below a somewhat lighter shade of blue overgown, which will be fashioned to allow a front piece of the kirtle to show through in a 'v' shape. Although the skirts will completely cover the figure's legs and feet, she will also wear high-heeled shoes to increase height. Lastly, her hair will be tied back into a loose-fitting bun. Once again, the camera will circle the character to display her thoroughly, before turning to reveal the following figure.
Succeeding the previous individual, the next dresses as a Victorian Lady. Therefore, she will be wearing a chemise, topped with a corset, three ordinary petticoats, and a crinoline (structured petticoat stuck out at the back to create a bustle shape). Above all this, she will sport a red undergown that trails on the floor behind, as well as a chequered overgown that is draped over the front and back of the lady, and ruched up at the sides. Despite her shoes not being seen due to the length of the dress, she will wear high-heeled, leather boots to appear taller. Her hair will be curled, whilst being held high at the back of the head, and pushed over her left shoulder. Atop her head sits a small postilion hat, made with a high crown and narrow brim, decorated with a red band and black feathers. After she has been presented in full detail, the camera will move as it always has done to show the very next individual.
To represent a British World War I Soldier, the following character will be donned in a thick, woolen, khaki uniform consisting of a tunic and a pair of trousers. Many pockets will be sown onto the tunic in specific places, as will a set of brass buttons. Puttees (form of wraps for legs) will be worn around the ankles and calves, above ammunition boots with hobnails attached to the soles. A Mark I Brodie helmet must be placed on his head, and fastened securely using the strap that comes out from either side of the helmet, before being stretched around the chin. He will also wear a webbing for carrying kit around his front, back and shoulders. To finish the look, the character will be using both hands to wield a replica of a WWI rifle with a bayonet fitted on the end of the muzzle. As usual, the camera shall record the soldier, before unveiling the individual that follows.
Being clothed in battledress (form of military uniform adopted by the British Army), the adjacent figure matches the appearance of a British World War II Soldier. The man will sport a short blouse with two pockets, as well as a pair of trousers that features a cargo pocket on the left leg, and is enclosed by webbing anklets. He will also wear a pair of black ammunition boots, along with a webbing for carrying kit around his front, back and shoulders. His head shall be covered by a Mark II Brodie helmet fitted with a chinstrap, and coated with a helmet cover (camouflaged netting). Most of the face will be hidden by a gas mask, and he will will use both hand to hold a replica of a Lee-Enfield rifle. Despite the mask, the camera can still present the character's eyes through the lenses, until it turns to display the next figure.
Ending the line of characters, the tenth and final individual will represent a Modern Man by being dressed in a simple, grey hoodie with white drawstrings, combined with blue jeans and white trainers. This modern look will help the majority of target audience viewers to relate to early on in their DNA journey. When the camera has circled the man, and is facing his eyes, instead of turning to the right, it will slowly back away, keeping the character in the centre of the frame. A male voice can be heard calmly saying 'Discover your past. Navigate your present. Achieve your future.'. The visuals will then fade to reveal the application's name and logo, as well as the web address and company phone number, over a background coloured with the shade of crimson used by the service. At this point, the same voice will say 'For free, join and use DNA today. Thank you.', before the advertisement ends. It is important to remember that from the moment that each character appears onscreen, they will not move, remaining frozen in place as if they are statues. Additionally, for the whole runtime, the background used behind and all around the characters will be the same crimson shade that the company hopes people will associate the service with.

For the organised scheduling of tasks, I created a Gantt chart to plan the dates that each duty should be completed by.

A script was required to give to the voice actor that would later be hired, and so I took the time to produce one.









Since the advertisement is to contain no diegetic sound, music is required to suit the visuals. Without any, the video would play in complete silence until the voice-over plays at the end, making the experience seem uninviting and improper. Therefore, in order for the advertisement to be even more enjoyable as well as impactful, I chose to layer the footage with royalty-free, public domain music in the form of Scott Buckley's Titan: a song that both matches and enhances the monumental experience of discovering past relatives and the periods of which they lived in.


For legal reasons, I printed copies of an official form detailing release of the video itself, to later ensure that all actors hired to star in the video would willingly sign.

Once basic planning for the advertisement had been completed, I contacted the client via email, sending a copy of my work, in order to receive feedback. Upon reviewing my ideas and way of executing them, the client approved, and granted me further permission to begin creating the promotion on camera.

Due to the advertisement's nature of being intended for television broadcast, it obviously needed to be filmed using highly professional camera and lighting equipment. In order to utilise such resources without spending ridiculous amounts of money on the purchasing of said equipment, I hired what was required from a company known as Cameraworks. The hardware consisted of a camera, lens, gimbal, and four LED lights. Although the equipment was only needed for three days, I decided to hire all for a week each, since doing so for the first three pieces equaled the same price as hiring them for three days at a time. For example, instead of hiring the camera for three days at the total price of £480 - due to usage for each day costing £160 - I chose the option that meant paying £480 for each week, as I would be spending the same amount whilst receiving a longer time of usage.

For the cinematography that I had in mind, I would need to make efficient use of a green screen studio. My search results informed me of Studio 1 at Camberwell Film Studios located in London. Not only did this establishment appear highly impressive to me due to being 7.5 metres wide - which I needed to take advantage of - it also seemed suitable because of what was included in the price. A production office, wardrobe and makeup room, drive-in for cars, on-site parking, Wi-Fi, shared use of the canteen, and basic catering, are all covered in addition to the studio. I decided to pay three lots of £725, equaling £2175 in total, as three days was the estimated amount of time that the filming for the advertisement would be finished by.

As is the case for all film and television productions, all crew members hired to operate in the rented studio within working hours, must be well fed and watered. While Camberwell Film Studios do not offer catering directly, they are local to a café situated very close the establishment that would serve as the work area for at least three days. Each of the seventeen crew members would be given £20, equaling £340 overall, to spend on food from the café, which could be ordered through telephone call, before being collected and eaten in the canteen provided by the studio. The café was also suitable due to its likeliness to please everyone, including vegetarians, through its wide variety of menu items such as breakfasts, ciabattas, paninis, wraps, sandwiches, burgers, jacket potatoes, salads, various main meals, various desserts, tea, coffee, soft drinks, milkshakes, and smoothies.

Four groups of people were required to effectively produce the advertisement. These were actors, hair and makeup artists, equipment technicians, and property masters. All ten actors were hired from Backstage, and agreed to be paid £300 for each of the three days spent filming. Two makeup artists were employed from Brushstroke, both accepting payment of £250 per day. In addition, a couple of equipment technicians working for Kennington Film Studios were recruited, with one being paid £350 each day for managing camera equipment, and the other being paid the same amount for management of lighting. Lastly, two property masters listed on Source Media TV were also commissioned, each for a price of £200 per day, with one being responsible for acquiring the props needed, and the other tasked with overseeing them.

After browsing Voices.com for a professional voice actor, I encountered one who I felt truly captured the wonder behind the phenomenon of tracing family bloodlines to discover the lives of past relatives. Thus, I decided to hire him by sending a copy of the script, before he agreed to be paid £40 to speak for a definitive eight seconds.

PeoplePerHour provided me with a range of qualified editors suitable for creating the advertisement's closing scene. Finding a freelancer who had produced similar work to what I had in mind, I hired him for a very reasonable price of £20 per hour. This meant that I only needed to pay him one amount due to knowing that what I was asking for would take little time to develop.

In order for the voice actor to record their lines efficaciously, I needed to hire a recording studio so that I would be granted access to audio equipment that enabled the voice-over to achieve a high level of authenticity and trustworthiness. Impressed by Studio 3 at Voiceover Soho in London, I paid £99 for its Wild Voice-Over Recording option. Since the overall price was £99 per hour, I thought it wise to only pay for one hour, since only eighteen words were required to be recorded.

Perhaps the most important feature of the advertisement was the clothing that the actors would be dressed in, as these would not only make such individuals appear very different and rather eccentric from the people of today, but would enable the audience to determine the periods from each character originated. After spending a large amount of time searching online, I finally managed to assemble full-body outfits for the actors to wear. Websites such as Medieval Shop, Guntrader, Etsy, Wish, eBay, and Amazon.com provided me with items that I required to craft the centrepiece of the advertisement. This resulted in spending an enormous total of £5346, which although extremely costly, was also highly fruitful.

Ultimately, the official cost of the production of the advertisement was £24370.

At the very end of development, I had a result that I was overly satisfied with, which I therefore sent to my client. After a few days, I was invited to another meeting to hear official feedback, as well as discuss how the advertisement would be presented to the public. Overall, my client was exceedingly pleased with how the promotion had developed. In terms of concerns, the client did inform me that they would have preferred the cost to significantly lower. Nevertheless, they were thrilled with the result, and believed that with the correct presentation, they would be able to earn back the same amount of all money spent, as well as receive plenty more in a reasonably short time.

Promotional and Corporate Video Production

Promotional videos are marketing and sales tools designed to introduce or educate consumers about particular products, causes, or organisations. Generally, a promotional video is structured to be precise, direct, and to last anywhere between fifteen seconds to multiple hours, depending on the form in which the video is being hosted. For example, television advertisements often last between fifteen seconds to one minute, whereas online advertisements and ones stored on physical media can last from a few seconds to multiple hours. All promotional videos are usually designed to capture and hold the attention of viewers in order to make the key points necessary to generate additional interest. As a marketing tool, promotional videos are often provided to prospective customers free of charge. While in the past, marketing videos were often provided in the form of VHS tapes or on television, videos promoting various goods and services are usually still provided on television or as DVDs.
It is important to note that promotional videos can also be utilised conferences or exhibitions with great effect. By setting up a wide screen at an exhibit booth, it is possible to use a computer with the ability to play the promotional video, and software to keep the device playing on a continuous loop. This creates a visual point of interest for people attending said conferences or exhibitions, and could possibly prompt them to visit the booths, so that they may ultimately learn more about the products offered to them.
Non-profit organisations sometimes make use of promotional videos. Since it is possible to produce these videos for very little money today, it is possible to distribute them among potential patrons who may become sources of consistent financial support. As in a business setting, the non-profit organisations can also present the promotional videos on continuous loops at types of public gatherings, with the aim to hopefully connect with people who would be interested in supporting the work of said organisations.
Many promotional videos can also be utilised to great effect with online networking sites today. Uploading the videos to particular websites, before supplying links to the videos to interested parties makes the process of sharing the tool with a wider audience. It is not unusual for websites to provide viewers with a simple way of sharing the links with other people that they believe would be interested in seeing the videos as well. Such an added benefit helps to increase the visibility of the videos, and thus further advance the messages contained within.

Corporate videos refer to any type of non-advertisement based video content created for and commissioned by businesses, companies, corporations, or organisations. Today, the vast majority of corporate video content is hosted online, and is published on the companies' website website pages, as well as distributed through social media or email marketing.
Generally, corporate video content is targeted towards the company’s core selling demographics or internal employees. Corporate video production is frequently the responsibility of a marketing director or corporate communications manager. Examples of corporate video include corporate overview videos, staff training and safety videos, promotional/brand films, investor relations and shareholder videos, market updates, product videos, executive proposal videos, and customer testimonial videos.
As video becomes a more integral part of companies' communication strategies, often companies will release corporate videos with press release announcements, newsletters and other forms of communication in order to bolster the message reach and effectiveness.
The time and scale of each corporate video production can vary greatly based on complexity and messaging. Some corporate videos may use only minimal crew and basic equipment, whilst others elect for higher quality content, and contract with corporate video production specialists whose core focus is on creating business-to-business corporate video content.
Video content has become a significant ranking factor for search engine optimisation from search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing. As a result, more companies are electing to create corporate video content for their websites.
On average, the corporate video production process will frequently involve five stages. The first stage is project initiation, budgeting, and creation of statement of work. What follows is the pre-production stage in which planning may include script writing, storyboard creating, casting, location scouting, and scheduling. Next, video production commences, usually including location filming with camera crews and directors, which may also involve other elements, such as actors and presenters. Once finished, post-production and video editing begins, which means that the filmed (live action) footage is edited together, possibly including recording audio voice-overs, adding graphics, composing music scores or soundtracks, and including 2D/3D animation sequences with the finished video. To finish, the last stage consists of the final delivery and website integration.





Production launch and marketing promotional videos inform audiences about new products and services that have since been launched into the market. Their aim is to highlight the products' or services' key features by explaining their purpose and how they benefit customers. Such videos may perform this by including footage showing people using the products or services in appealing ways, or through celebrity endorsement in which celebrities explain the advantage of the products or services. The videos are designed to show the audience how the products or services are innovative, as well as how they are superior to other choices on the market, explaining their key aspects in fascinating ways through use of live action video and animation.
A famous example of a production launch and marketing promotional video is the Gorilla advertisement, released on behalf of Cadbury, in 2007, to promote Cadbury Dairy Milk-brand chocolate. The advert consists of a simple, ninety-second tracking shot across a music studio, with Phil Collins' song In the Air Tonight playing in the background, whilst a large gorilla sitting at a drum kit plays along with the track's famous drum fill. By almost immediately presenting the text 'a GLASS and a HALF FULL PRODUCTION', the advert is already informing the viewers of what product or service is being promoted, since other Cadbury advertisements have featured the same text. Twenty seconds into the video, the chorus to Collins' song begins to play, as the whole of the gorilla's face is revealed, showing the creature breathing deeply. At this point, the viewers are aware of the frivolous attitude that the advert possess, as it clearly does not want to be taken seriously. In this case, the visuals appeal strongly to young children, whilst the music may relate to adults of many ages. It is important to remember that Cadbury chocolate is a universal product that does not cater specifically to any one particular group of people. Therefore, the advert is designed to be enjoyed by anyone, regardless of their age, gender, nationality, ethnicity, income, or any other background feature. Nevertheless, it can be stated although the advert most definitely appeals to all ages, it focuses somewhat more on children, due to the nature of the video. It appears to borrow a lot of techniques from viral Internet videos, usually watched by millennials, as it is almost anarchic in its disregard for rules aimed at common promotional videos of the same type. Its randomness and unpredictability makes it humorous, along with it having absolutely nothing to link itself to chocolate, which gives it a memorable quality. Despite this, the video still manages to convey its message, mainly through the fact that the background colour is the shade of purple that can famously be associated with Cadbury in circumstances of advertising. Therefore, although their Dairy Milk chocolate bar is presented at the very end of the video, one may argue that the main promotion is for the concept of the Cadbury brand, especially since the bar is their most simple as well as their most beloved.




Promotion of key messages and ideas promotional videos educate and inform the audience about particular causes, topics or subjects. They are usually designed to help viewers gain an understanding of issues that they or others may be facing. Often used by charities to persuade the audience to donate money for certain causes, they can also be based on drugs, alcohol, and crime awareness, as well as other topics, such as animals, education, and the environment. The videos are usually short in length, lasting between two and five minutes in total. In some ways, they are like short documentaries, whilst still often being very engaging and informative for the viewers.
A powerfully emotive example of a promotion of key messages and ideas promotional video is the Turtle Journey advertisement, created by Greenpeace and Aardman Animations, in 2020, to persuade people to sign a petition calling for a global network of ocean sanctuaries to protect the homes of sea turtles. Most of the video is based around the stop motion genre (more specifically, claymation), and features a family of clay turtles returning home from visiting other members. Once they reach their house, a giant wall of lights approaches rapidly, destroying the environment, and separating the children and father from their mother. As the children and father cry to viewers, text appears to explain the purpose of the advert, before showing an image of many turtles protesting against the destruction of the ocean. Before considering the technical conveyances, it is essential to contemplate the specific style of visuals used. As many people know, almost all pieces produced by Aardman Animations have a distinctive and immediately recognisable visual style to them, brought about by the manipulation of clay. In 1972, the studio was founded, and in 1977, one of their most beloved franchises - Morph - was launched, appearing on several UK television programmes, meaning that the older generation of viewers for the advert may easily recognise the talent behind the work. On the other hand, due to other Aardman Animation franchises (such as Wallace and Gromit, and Shaun the Sheep), younger people may also feel the need to act on the advert's message, as they are more likely to trust the creators of entertainment that they have enjoyed, and can be loved by all ages. In terms of narrative, from the very start, the animated world within the video, despite supposedly existing at the bottom of the ocean, is presented as society above the surface. Not only do seashells function as cars, and currents as busy roads, but the turtles are portrayed together as an average family, peacefully travelling home after a long day spent with other members. This character portrayal helps to resonate with the viewers, as they can much more easily imagine how devastating it would be for them if their homes were destroyed, and they were separated from their families. Additionally, near the end of the video, the viewers hear the line 'We can't change the past, but we can demand a better future', hoping to convince people to act as soon as possible, by stating that together, 'we' have the ability to protect the ocean life, thereby changing the world for the greater good.





Internal communications promotional videos, rather than being designed for the viewing experiences of clients, are generally created by businesses to show to their own staff. They are generally used to promote new ideas and concepts to employees, often regarding certain products and services that they are involved with. This information may be provided by business specialists, including suppliers who may have been called to provide vital information of certain products or services, or industry experts who could have been hired to share details on the latest trends in order to help the recipient companies outdistance competitors.
A comical example of an internal communications promotional video is one released in 2017 by EasyJet to entertain the company's flight attendants through the use of humour. The video in question is a spoof, designed merely to make innocent fun of the target audience's profession, but can still be classed as a video of internal communication. By making and presenting this piece, the viewers are not only amused, but shown that the company that they work for has a good sense of humour, possible improving relationships between each type of employee. In addition, although the video does not convey any kind of important information, its use of comedy keeps the audience engaged, which may help persuade them to listen all the way through future promotional videos of the internal communications nature. The video also seems to follow common standards of political correctness, as it contains an equal amount of actors in the form of a woman, a (supposedly) heterosexual man, and a (supposedly) homosexual man, which despite being a small detail, can help impress certain viewers by making them feel proud to work for EasyJet. In terms of the background music and overall tone of the video, it has the impression of being peaceful and accommodating as well as sedate. This not only makes the comical aspects somewhat more pronounced, but links to the customer service that the flight attendants are hired to provide. Since one of the workers' main roles is to assist and calm passengers, in addition to making them feel welcome, the video conveys this same attitude to better connect with the viewers and their profession. Regarding conveyance of brand, the video features great usage of multiple shades of bright orange seen in the form of triangular shapes on both the actors' uniforms, and the text backgrounds. In this case, this shade can be associated with EasyJet so that the viewers will have a greater chance of accurately knowing whether or not the videos that they watch are indeed created from within their company.





Internal/external training promotional videos, shown only by businesses to their employees, are created to teach said staff aspects related to their professions, such as particular skills or ways of working. Internal training videos are created and presented by people (usually from the human resources departments) within businesses to show to others who work within the same ones. The topics handled by such videos include health and safety, risk assessment, pre-planning of certain scenarios, equipment usage, communication with customers, and many others. On the other hand, external training videos are conducted by specialists outside of the companies receiving them, in order to provide outside views on such topics.
A humorous example of a internal/external training promotional video is one released in 2016 by Burger King to launch the company's Grilled Dogs product to staff, and depicting American rapper, Snoop Dogg presenting the new menu item. In the video, the concept of Grilled Dogs is shown, before the rapper roughly explains the ingredients used to create the product, as Burger King employees work around him. This evident instance of celebrity endorsement keeps the target audience, which is obviously Burger King kitchen employees, engaged as well as amused. Unlike many other promotional videos of this kind, the one in question is not at all tedious, long-winded, or overloaded with information. In addition, not only does the video cause the viewers to have slightly more admiration for their profession, but also for their company, as it will have taken a significant amount of effort that can be deemed unnecessary, in order to hire an extremely high profile celebrity to star in a simple training promotional video. Such a practice is often done for production launch and marketing promotional videos, in order to persuade greater numbers of ordinary viewers to purchase the product or service being advertised. However, by including a famous celebrity in a short training video only meant to shown to a limited number of employees, Burger King emits the impression that it cares for its workers' welfare much more strongly than other companies. Whomever responsible for creating a training video meant to launch the Grilled Dogs product, could have easily saved themselves a great amount of time and effort by designing a much simpler video that delivers the intended message, but does not engage the viewers at all. Nevertheless, they created a video that most likely made its viewers feel special, and would be remembered by them for a very long time. Still, it is important to know that in terms of information provided, the video is not at all technical, and can actually be considered rather vague. Although due to this, one could regard the video as being poorly grounded, it is most likely that employees were professionally shown in person how to make Grilled Dogs, either before or after being shown the video. Additionally, this imprecision can be justified due to Snoop Dogg's rather relaxed way of speaking in public. On the subject of the rapper's personal preferences, the video's music and editing is reminiscent of his style of music. An example of this is the soft background music in the form of a small rhythm that can be associated with hip hop songs written in the 1980s and 90s, complimenting Snoop Dogg's presence nicely.





Showreel promotional videos are used for a variety of reasons, mainly revolving around the idea of promoting businesses themselves. Each video often consists of an array of clips showcasing the skillfulness of the corresponding business, and what it is capable of. The clips used will almost always be of the businesses' most highly credited accolades, meaning that most showreels will include work that has been done for their products and services, as well as for other corporate companies and clients. Not only does this show the range of connections that each business has, but also how clear and effective their insight into the industry is.
A detailed example of a showreel promotional video is the one released in 2020 for the presentation of designs by Weta Workshop. Ever since its foundation in 1987, the company has produced props for many high-grossing, blockbuster films, including those within the franchises of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Other installments consist of Heavenly Creatures (1994), The Last Samurai (2003), Hellboy (2004), The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005), 30 Days of Night (2007), District 9 (2009), Avatar (2009), Daybreakers (2010), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Elysium (2013), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), Krampus (2015), Ghost in the Shell (2017), Thor: Ragnarok (2017), The Great Wall (2017), Blade Runner 2049 (2017), and many others. The video includes footage of props being designed and created, as well as showing how they were used in their respective films. Regarding target audience, the video mainly aims itself at people who have a passion for the planning and construction of physical props used within films. By showing short clips of professionals actually planning and producing the physical designs, the fascination of the viewers is amplified, as is their want to be participants in such a craft. However, the piece may also be highly appealing to both average and advanced film supporters, since the inclusion of film scenes depicting the use of such props, helps viewers to relate to the experience on a more personal level. Due to the fact that many of the films featured may have had impact on the lives of the viewers, the people are much more likely to strongly admire and respect the work of Weta Workshop. In terms of structure, to loosely separate the types of designs produced into categories, the video uses large, bold words that are simple yet powerful, placed before each new grouping of designs. Since there are no complex sentences featured anywhere but at the very end of the video, it strengthens the impact of the imagery, as the main source of engagement from the viewer is the forceful and eye-catching visuals of the films. Lastly, the video's incorporation of the initial designing of the featured props, performed through the use of computers, helps not only to promote the expertise and technology of Weta Studios, but the overall advancements made within technology - especially in categories such as 3D modelling and printing, along with other kinds.





Event coverage promotional videos consist of advertisements specifically designed for events, such as concerts, parades, festivals, galas, seminars, conferences, and workshops. The intention of such videos is to capture the feel and atmosphere of the events covered, perhaps by presenting segments of key features, interviewing those attending, and detailing upcoming events. In general, the filming and release of these videos can be carried out before the events occur, during, or even after, so as to inform audiences of any future events.
A futuristic example of an event coverage promotional video is a particular one released in 2018 by Epic Games for the presentation of innovative advancements made to the game engine known as Unreal Engine. Since the engine was originally developed in 1998, it has been used to power many popular video games, including the Unreal franchise, along with other titles such as Deus Ex (2000), Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell (2002), Gears of War (2006), BioShock (2007), Mass Effect (2007), Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009), Borderlands (2009), Dishonored (2012), Spec Ops: The Line (2012), DmC: Devil May Cry (2013), Outlast (2013), Thief (2014), Dead by Daylight (2016), Fortnite Battle Royale (2017), Vampyr (2018), We Happy Few (2018), and many more. The video is of a venue held in Stockholm, and roughly demonstrates the engine's Build event. Since the footage is related to the presentation of such a complex entity, it has a rather precise target audience in mind. One may state that the audience suitable for this video is 'gamers' in general, but it would seem that since the video gaming industry has become immensely favoured, many ordinary 'gamers' will not care to learn about the full extent of the technology behind the titles that they play. Therefore, it becomes apparent that the specific target audience for this video is those who either work in video game development, wish to in the future, or at least simply have a strong passion for learning about the subject at hand. Overall, a large portion of the video is of interview segments taken with multiple people who work in the development of video games, such as computer engineers and business directors. This technique enables the viewers to show great attention, as, based on the names and job descriptions of the interviewees, those watching will know to appreciate and believe the information being spoken by those who have prominent expertise in the subject at hand. Furthermore, the video also includes footage of the technology being used effectively, which gives the viewers a much greater impression of the features of Unreal Engine. Unfortunately, one problem that the video has is its rapid pace through use of editing. Due to the speed in which the content is presented, the viewers may find it difficult to focus on certain parts, and successfully process all of the details heard in time. Nevertheless, this video is merely an event coverage piece, meaning that any viewers who are interested to know more about the information provided at the venue, could most likely watch full videos of each separate interview or presentation.

Music Video

When considering my choice of song, at the time of listening once again to Man on the Silver Mountain by British rock band Rainbow, I released that most of the lyrics could be reflected by handcrafted visuals, particularly through stop motion. Although the majority of music videos in existence do not mirror the song lyrics, due to having very little knowledge on the design and production of such an art form, I saw Andrew Goodwin's theories on illustration and amplification to be the most suitable way of approaching my task. Furthermore, by using a form of animation to complete my work, I was able to avoid including any real people in the visuals, as most music videos have a tendency to do. Not only did this enable me to work freely, but kept my work unique and different from others.

Since the majority of the video is filmed and edited as stop motion, my main influence was a small collection of pre-existing music videos that implemented the same technique. Although I knew that I would never produce a piece as astoundingly impressive, the principle video that inspired me to use stop motion was that of Peter's Gabriel's Sledgehammer. Winning nine awards at the 1987 MTV Music Video Awards, it is in my mind, one of the most spectacular music videos of all time, not only due to the finished result, but the sheer amount of effort put in by the creators. Two other music videos that also inspired me to approach my task in the way that I did, were the ones for There, There by Radiohead, and Sober by TOOL, mainly due to the fact that they base their visuals around objects that are a combination of being hand-made and small materials taken from larger counterparts.

Unfortunately, due to not having a professional setup to film the video, certain aspects of production are rather deficient and unsatisfactory. For example, the lighting is not at all consistent throughout the video, as although the window blinds were closed constantly, the outside environment still managed to affect the saturation and colour scheme.
In terms of camera positioning, what with creating a stop motion video, the device had to be kept in the exact same position for the whole of production. This requirement revealed itself to be slightly more difficult than I initially imagined. The camera had to be removed multiple times from the tripod in order for it to be charged. Usually, charging would occur between each new segment of the video, meaning that whenever the visuals changed to present something completely different, the background and main set piece of the mountain would unintentionally move position slightly, breaking contingency and visual flow.
Each segment of the video is a general reflection of the song lyrics. Therefore, the segments have to begin and end as soon as the corresponding song verses do, which means that timing is key. Overall, my video has been edited to meet this requirement very well, due to careful resizing and placing of each frame.
The main set piece of the mountain was constructed by shaping a large piece of cardboard into a cone, before sticking on scrunched up pieces of newspaper covered in kitchen roll, and painting it all silver. The man was created by spreading orange plasticine over a small wooden doll in order to determine the structure, while still enabling the figure's limbs to move. Ultimately, I would say that the set design eventuated rather well, and emitted a whimsical, childlike impression similar to my main inspiration. Although others disagreed, I do, however, feel as though the video would appear better if the background room was not within frame by having a backdrop big enough to cover the surrounding area.

In order to improve upon my video, I would most certainly implement a professional lighting setup, and stick the tripod legs to floor, so that the general appearance stays consistent throughout, and a strong level of contingency is present. I would also hope to have a backdrop that is large enough to cover up the background room.

Music Video Questionnaire

After analysing and applying the theories of Andrew Goodwin and Carol Vernallis to various music videos, I produced a short questionnaire of eight multiple-choice questions, in order to gather primary data in the form of peoples' opinions on what qualities determine a music video to be successful. To increase the probability of my results being evenly diversified, I not only used questions that would give me insight into the personal preferences of individuals, but presented the questionnaire to a total of fifteen people from different backgrounds.
The questionnaire can be deemed by me as a success, since it provided a wide range of quantitive data relevant to my study. The variety of people and large sample size meant that my questionnaire was much less likely to be biased in any shape or form. In addition, by only consisting of multiple-choice questions, the survey results were easy to analyse and summarise into simple pie charts. A problem that has arisen from this, however, is the lack of qualitative data, since the inclusion of short-answer questions would have enabled the participants to express their opinions more freely, by not being limited to choose from a set amount of options. Furthermore, most of the participants had little to professional expertise in the subject matter, meaning that the results may not be fully relevant to my study.

In order to gain accurate results, I included thirteen music genres as options for the participants to choose from. 'Pop' revealed itself to be the most popular, with 'Rock' earning second place. 'Jazz' was chosen by two people, whereas 'Metal', 'Hip Hop', 'Soul' and 'Electronic' only gained one point each. Sadly, 'Rhythm and Blues', 'Classical', 'Reggae', 'Folk', 'Country', and 'Ska' did not receive any votes, as they seem to be rather obscure genres in the modern era. Although 'Pop' was chosen the most overall, I did not wish to work with the most mainstream genre, as I feel as though the majority of music videos for pop songs lack imagination and creativity. Thus, I decided to focus my attention on the 'Rock' option, as it reached second place overall in the questionnaire, and is a genre that I believe to be filled with unique and distinctive music videos that often make for interesting viewing experiences.

Perhaps the most important aspect of this study in relation to my music video production, is the genre that my work associated itself with. To help choose, I followed Andrew Goodwin's Dancing in the Distraction Factory theory on the types of music video genre that exist, to conclude the multiple-choice options that should be made available. My results informed me that most people prefer 'Conceptual/Experimental' music videos, while the other types - particularly 'Location' - are much less appreciated. This benefits me, as I was able to abide by the most popular result, since I wanted to create a piece that could be considered experimental and uncommon, as I would have less reason to follow any kind of typical music video structure.

So that I had an impression of the main reason as to why most people were encouraged to watch certain music videos, I made sure that the available options were reasons common enough for the participants to relate and choose whichever best suited them. Equal to my suspicions, the option that received the highest amount of votes was 'The Credited Artist/Band', which did not support me. The band that I had in mind, Rainbow, is not at all mainstream nowadays, since it is no longer performing, and is labelled as a rock band - rock being a genre that I sadly consider to be dying. In the end, I decided to ignore the results gathered from this question, as I suspected beforehand that they would not benefit me.

Hoping to gain insight into which typical music video feature is considered the most appealing by the most people asked, I provided five options that I saw as being common within the majority of music videos. To my concern, most of the participants voted for the 'Choreography' option. In my opinion, it would seem that most of those who chose 'Choreography', are also the same participants who voted for 'Pop' as the music genre that they listen to the most in the very first question. Therefore, since I decided to base my video around a different genre of music, I saw no reason to include the most popular featured voted for, especially since I did not wish for it to include people. Overall, I decided to take advantage of the options that achieved joint second place: 'Lighting' and 'Colour', as they were better suited to the unique style of music video that I had in mind.

Following the four main categories that Carol Vernallis' The kindest cut: functions and meanings of music video editing theory can be separated into, I immediately had four options for participants to choose from in their task to answer which aspect of music video production they consider to be the most important. Fortunately for me, 'Editing' received the most votes, and 'Narrative' followed close behind. These two aspects were the ones that I was hoping to focus on from the beginning, as they both greatly affect the creativity and inventiveness of music videos. Since I wished to produce a piece that could be considered unique, I was able to accept my results in this case, as they would help me achieve such a goal.

Despite when answering if they believed whether music videos increases the success of the songs that they are made for, most of the participants were split between 'Yes' and 'No', these results did not technically affect my work in any way, since the question itself was not relevant to the overall production of my music video. In addition, the final third of participants were either unsure or believed that their answer would change depending on other aspects, meaning that since the remaining two options can be grouped together, the whole group of individuals asked was split evenly three ways, thereby not providing me with an official answer.

Similar to the results of the previous question, the most popular result does not have any impact on my work. In this case, the fact that most people voted 'Yes' for believing that the credited artists/bands should be featured within their music videos, cannot affect my music video's final design, since I obviously have no logical way of filming any official band, let alone one that originally had a vocalist who is now dead. In addition, only one less participant voted for 'No' than 'Yes', and so it was easier for me to ignore the largest group of the same results.

To my advantage, when asked if they believe whether music videos should mirror the song lyrics, the majority of participants selected the 'Yes' option. This helped me, as I was wanting to match the visuals to match the lyrics of the song itself, since such a technique would be easier to plan beforehand, as well as film. Additionally, I can name very few music videos that follow this method, meaning that the idea seemed uncommon to me, which would help my work achieve a certain level of individuality.

Overall, I see the questionnaire as a success, but obviously not devoid of problems. The main improvement that I would make if I were to redo this survey, would be to include short-answer questions so that the participants are not restricted from sharing their personal opinions in more detail. I would also try to ensure that some of the participants had a reasonable amount of background knowledge in the area of music video production, so that the validity of the results could be greater, and perhaps more in favour of my choices.

Carol Vernallis' Music Video Theory

The kindest cut: functions and meanings of music video editing is a piece written by Carol Vernallis and published in 2001, described as an analysis of the difference between film and music video editing. In her theory, she considers a number of aspects, including, the role of editing, continuity and meaning, the ways in which sound and editing are synchronised through editing, the impact of star image through regular artist close-ups, and how editing reflects the music.
Vernallis' theory can be separated into four main categories which she believes to be the most significant concepts that all correlate to the ways in which music videos are produced. These categories are narrative, editing, camera movement and framing, and diegesis.

Narrative, in regards to music video production, is the visual response to the song itself, as Vernallis believes many videos to accurately reflect the song's meaning, or at least attempt to do so. Narrative themes may occur throughout the videos, but will often be shown in montages, as continuity is not required within music videos, unlike films. Differently, the narrative may be disjointed and generally confusing, as such a technique may cause the audience to focus greater on the story within the song itself, rather than the visuals. Music videos usually always need a subject to drive it forwards, but it may not always be the narrative, since it may cause the audience to generate questions, therefore wishing for more from the artist. In addition, Vernallis states that certain music videos may not have clear endings, therefore lacking in closure for the audience. She sees the main reason for this choice to be so that the narrative's conclusion is left open for the audience's interpretation, as each individual is engaged further into the story, based on their own personal opinions.
The music video for The One That Got Away by Katy Perry clearly shows the meaning of the lyrics and story through the visuals. The narrative can be seen as disjointed, since the setting frequently changes from the past to the present. The main theme throughout the video is a past relationship of Katy, and how she wishes that she could change what happened, which can through a duplication technique in which an older version of Katy appears to be speaking to her younger self at the time of the relationship. The video does reveal what happened to her past lover, thereby satisfying the audience by providing them with a definitive ending.

Editing is an extremely vital part of music video production, as it serves as the basis of the videos themselves, being placed even before the narrative in terms of priority. According to Vernallis, a main convention of music video editing is that it can break or disrupt the traditional style and 'rules' of continuity editing, making it a complete contrast to 'invisible' continuity editing featured within films. Other recognisable editing techniques of music videos include jump cuts, as well as cutting to the rhythm of the music.
In terms of the music video for Tik Tok by Kesha (stylised as Ke$ha at the time), the editing makes itself deliberately noticeable by consisting of jump cuts at the beginning of the video, presenting Kesha waking up in a bathtub while rapidly flashing monochrome shots of a party taking place, thereby informing the audience of what may have happened the previous night. Additionally, throughout the video, cuts occur in synchronisation with the beats of the song.

Camera movement and framing are suggested within Vernallis' theory to include establishing shots as a common element in music videos, alongside close-ups and extreme close-ups of the artist. Vernallis also argues that camera movement in music videos is often synchronised to the rhythm of the song in order to bring more attention to the artist. Furthermore, she states that framing in such videos is often very distinctive depending on the genre.
Within the Brazil version of the music video for Michael Jackson's They Don't Care About Us, establishing shots are used throughout, in order to focus on the poor living conditions for many citizens of the South American country. Michael is revealed through a dolly shot, as the camera smoothly travels forwards down a narrow alleyway, while presenting the cramped living area. The framing used within the video presents the artist as an important figure, due to him often being in the centre of the shot, or the closest person to the front of the camera.

Diegesis can be described as a style of fictional storytelling that presents an interior view of a world in which details about the world itself and the experiences of its characters are revealed explicitly through narrative. Therefore, in the case of music videos, 'diegesis' relates to the 'worlds' created within. In Vernallis' theory, she explains that the diegesis is revealed slowly over time, enabling the story to develop. She also states that repetition of certain shots and frames will be present in music videos, in order for such visuals to appear more important than others. Finally, Vernallis declares that some music videos may not always seem completed in terms of the stories that they tell, so as to come across as being disrupted in some way, causing deliberate gaps in the audience's understanding of the diegesis.
As the music video for Hozier's Take Me to Church plays, it unravels a story about a homosexual couple, as well as the religious troubles that their bond causes for them. The repetition of a mid-shot of the two men kissing, and a long shot of them digging a hole in the ground to hide a box, shows the significance of their relationship and how they attempt to keep it secret. The video can be seen as incomplete, since when Hozier's partner is beaten by men who obviously disapprove of his lifestyle choice, and the box is cast into a great fire - all while Hozier watches in shock from a distance - the video concludes without giving the audience any idea as to what happens next.

Andrew Goodwin's Music Video Theory

Dancing in the Distraction Factory is a book written by Andrew Goodwin and published in 1992, described as combining textual analysis of music videos with a comprehensive understanding of music television as a cultural industry. Since the release of Goodwin’s work, he has been considered one of the first individuals to analyse music videos as an art form.
Although Goodwin’s book has been summarised in many different ways, most consist of six particular points made about music videos, all of which are interpreted similarly within each version. These aspects are the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals, the relationship between the music and the visuals, genre, artist close-ups, star iconography, and intertextuality.

The relationship between the lyrics and the visuals is a convention in which aspects of the visuals - such as themes, mise-en-scène, and events - illustrate, amplify, or contradict the song lyrics.
Illustration is the concept of using visuals that mirror the lyrics, in order to help portray the message of the song. A music video that uses this technique extensively is the one for Price Tag by Jessie J, featuring B.o.B. In the video, a fake tree with paper money attached to its branches can be seen, while the nouns ‘money’ and ‘price tag’ are sang, along with Jessie J touching her jewellery when using the word ‘bling’, and even onomatopoeia in the form of ‘cha-ching’. Along with many other examples, when Jessie J is stood next to a wooden sign with an arrow facing left and the other facing right, saying the words ‘left’ and ‘right’ forces the camera to move the corresponding way. Even parts of B.o.B’s rap is illustrated through the visuals, since when he says the word ‘cars’, a toy car appears in the size of a real one.
Amplification is similar to illustration, but instead of the visuals matching the lyrics exactly, in this case, the visuals are somewhat exaggerated to portray the song’s message in a wider proportion. The music video for Cyndi Lauper’s song Girls Just Want to Have Fun is a sufficient example of amplification. Just like most music videos that present the artist, Cyndi is lip-synching to the lyrics, creating a visual representation of the song’s original recording. However, after Cyndi sings ‘my mother says’, the words that follow (‘when you gonna live your life right?’) are lip-synched by a figure that appears to be her mother. Similarly, after the lyrics ‘my father yells’, the following words (‘what you gonna do with your life?’) appear to be spoken by a man who is supposedly her father, further illustrating the song’s message and realism. In addition to lip-synching, Cyndi and many other individuals dance to the tune throughout the video, which also helps to reinforce the song lyrics of girls wanting to 'have fun'.
Contradiction is the complete opposite of illustration, as it uses visuals that either completely ignore the song lyrics, or deliberately stand against the lyrics by presenting an antithesis. For instance, in Billy Idol’s music video for Dancing With Myself, when he is riding a lift to the roof of a skyscraper, he sings ‘there’s no one else in sight’, despite the visuals showing a mass of what appears to be zombies attempting to climb up the walls of the building on the outside. Furthermore, during the final chorus, when Billy is stood atop the skyscraper, the zombies reach the top and begin to dance with him, all while he sings ‘dancing with myself’, as if he is all alone. Although one may interpret the lyrics as Billy seeing himself alone as the only live creature dancing, the words sung still contradict the visuals to a large degree.

In terms of sound, the relationship between the music and the visuals is a convention similar to that of the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals. However, in this case, aspects of the visuals illustrate, amplify, or contradict the actual tune itself rather than lyrics.
Illustration is the notion of instruments being visually reflected, as the audience sees exactly where the sound is being created. Millions of music videos utilise this technique, since it is much easier to make complete use of than others. In addition, many people may consider other techniques to be fake, due to including visuals that paint a manufactured picture. One example of many videos that links music and visuals together through illustration, is the one for The House of the Rising Sun by The Animals. Although the sound played is not actually created by the instruments viewed onscreen, the audience is nevertheless lead to believe that what they see is what they hear, due to the band pretending to play the correct notes at the exact same time as those within the song. Within the video, one can see that neither of the two electric guitars, nor the keyboard, is plugged into any sort of amplifier, despite the notes that play in the actual music clearly sounding as if they were recorded when amplified. In order to make music sound as best as possible, it is required to be recorded using professional equipment designed for sound quality. Since the aim of any music video is to visually advertise the song itself, the band must stay true to the original recording.
Amplification, being similar to illustration, is the concept of the visuals reflecting the tune of the music, but portraying it in a way that exaggerates and increases the mental impact of the audio, usually in order to make it appear more powerful. A rather popular example of a music video that utilises visual amplification of the sound itself, is that of Arctic Monkey's Do I Wanna Know?. The video is entirely animated, featuring an illustrated sound wave that morphs into a wide variety of other imagery. Throughout the video, the sound wave moves in response to most notes played by the drums and lead electric guitar, as well as the majority of syllables within the words of the vocals. Once a sound has been played, the sound wave begins to contract into the form of a horizontal line, before vibrating outwards in time with each new sound. Later on in the video, multiple waves occasionally appear, before the final chorus results in a fast plethora of shifting imagery, moving into transformation in perfect synchronisation with the tune. This visually appealing video helps to add effect to many of the sounds heard throughout the song, resulting in a more powerful listening experience.
Contradiction, seen as the opposite of illustration, poses the idea of the visuals either overlooking the style of the music, or even challenging the style by presenting itself as a contrary. A music video that strongly fits this criteria is the one for In Bloom by Nirvana. The colourless and blurred camera quality makes the video seem as though it was filmed in the early 1960s, despite actually having been filmed in 1992. The smart suits that the band members wear also matches this time period, as does the simple stage design. Of course, these aspects - along with the smiles on the members' faces - are not at all familiar to the band, as they do not match the 1990s time period or grunge rock genre of Nirvana. In terms of sound, the band plays a slow yet heavy tune that completely contradicts the older and more peaceful style of the visuals. Occasionally, the visuals change to show the band members wearing dresses while acting rebelliously by flailing their instruments around the room, and destroying the stage design. These scenes appear to show the band's true performance nature, breaking free from the contradiction of the music.

Most similar to music itself, it has become quite clear that there are also multiple genres of music videos. Goodwin believed there to be five specific categories overall: stadium performance, studio performance, location, narrative, and conceptual/experimental.
Stadium performance music videos are based only, or mostly, on the artist performing their song onstage, which may be in front of a fake audience also shown within the video. Overall, although the music played within these types of videos often have specific meanings, the videos themselves are not designed to visually reflect such meanings. Stadium performance music videos are mainly used to present the talent clearly, so that a strong, visual connection is built between the artist and the audience. By including a fake audience within the video, the real viewers can more easily image themselves watching the artist perform live, which may temp them to purchase concert tickets. A notable example of a stadium performance music video is that of Bon Jovi's You Give Love a Bad Name. In this case, the video consists of nothing but scenes of the band pretending to play the original recording of the song onstage, while a fake audience cheers for them. Many shots taken close to the members' faces as they look into the camera, are shown, in order to give the impression that they are aware of the viewers' presence, resulting in a stronger connection between the two groups of people.
Studio performance music videos capture the artist performing their song in a professional recording studio, or at least pretending to do so in synchronisation with the audio. Generally, these types of videos are created to promote songs by underappreciated artists who either do not have sufficient income to pay for other types, or wish to present themselves and their music as true as possible for their audience, in order to avoid being seen as artificial and fabricated. One particularly obvious example of a studio performance music video is the one for Joe Bonamassa's Dislocated Boy. Within the video, Joe is seen in a recording studio, singing and playing an electric guitar while a few backing performers play other instruments to the tune of the song. Although there is no proper way of determining whether or not the video captures the actual recording of the song, it is highly unlikely due to the fact that almost all song recordings are not one continuous take, as the song will often be recorded multiple times, before professional sound editing is used to piece together the best parts in order to produce one full-length song. Despite still technically being fake in terms of performance, the main appeal of this type of video is that is still manages to add a dramatic sense of realism to both the music and the artist: a benefit that many listeners may greatly prefer over those created by other types of music videos.
Location music videos revolve around the concept of presenting an outside area in the visuals, whether it be natural, such as a mountain, or man-made, like a city street. Of course, the locations featured are often named in the song lyrics, and usually resonate strongly with the artists, evoking certain memories and emotions. An iconic example of a location music video is the one for Strawberry Fields Forever by The Beatles. Throughout the video, the band members are depicted standing by a tree in a wide field, at times of both day and night. The silly, frolicsome skipping and running of the members expresses the concept of childhood and youth, since Strawberry Fields is in fact an orphanage that was prominent in band member John Lennon's childhood. The Salvation Army, which ran the orphanage, had a band that would play at the Calderstones Park garden party every summer, right next door to the orphanage. The young John, having played in the gardens of the area with his childhood friends, would beg his aunt to go to the party every year as soon as he heard the band playing.
Narrative music videos attempt to tell stories that are either featured in the lyrics of the song, or suggested by the lyrics and dramatised by the visuals. Certain music videos within this genre are sometimes labelled as short films, since they usually include actors, props, and set designs similar to ones featured in cinema. Due to the extensive amounts of technical equipment, video editing software, actors, filming locations, and other requirements, narrative music videos are often very expensive type for record labels to produce. One clear example of a music video that conveys its message through a visual story is that of Knights of Cydonia by Muse. Overall, the video combines the western, martial arts, and science fiction film genres to present its narrative, depicting a heroic cowboy attempting to obtain a piece of technology, before losing a fight against the antagonist who casts him out from civilisation, to which he eventually responds by remerging as a stronger figure to rescue a damsel in distress, and defeat his nemesis. In terms of the western genre, the video is set in a town during the time of the American Old West, whereas the martial arts genre is present in both the protagonist and antagonist's fighting moves, which seem to parody the moves of characters portrayed by Bruce Lee. Differently, the science fiction genre can be seen through the character of a robot, firing of lasers from guns, and presence of both modern and future technology. In my eyes, the song's meaning is about convincing individuals to make their own personal decisions in life, and 'fight for' their 'rights'. The inclusion of technology appears to illustrate how such medium can be used to spread messages of rebellion, resulting in true freedom from an unfair and oppressive system within society.
Conceptual/experimental music videos play on the idea of using visuals different from those seen within traditional videos. They are often created to be unique and memorable to the viewers, as they stand out by taking advantage of visual concepts that can be considered oddly unfamiliar, thereby making the video itself appear special and distinctive. These types of videos are usually labelled as being experimental, due to the fact that the artist/s behind the work may be preforming an experiment based on the viewers' tastes, as they are supposedly seeing rare and unconventional uses of visuals unlike any others. A perfect example of such a video is the one for Marilyn Manson's Dope Hat, which combines a childish, whimsical appearance with a dark and mysterious one. It uses intertextuality by parodying a disturbing scene from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971), in which the main characters are subjected to a wave of frightening imagery when riding through a tunnel when they are seated on a boat sailing on a river of chocolate. The song meaning, in my opinion, is about a performer who attempts to keep his inner pain hidden from the public eye, whilst continuing to entertain people who do not care for his mental wellbeing. The character is required to turn that which is 'tragic' into 'magic', all in order to continue making a living. However, his madness seems to begin seeping into his work, scaring children instead of entertaining them, which appears to also be the case in the film scene at hand, providing Manson with a perfectly well-known example to base his song around.

Artist close-ups are often present within music videos - especially those for songs that are part of world-renowned music genres, such as pop, rock, metal, and hip hop. In many cases, the demands of the record label will include the need for many close-ups of the performance artist, often resulting in them developing motifs that recur across their work. By visually presenting themselves in a clear manner, artists are able connect with and relate more to their (often young) supporters, as opposed to not doing so. For instance, Sam's Smith music video for his song Stay With Me is a popular example, due to containing many long shots of the artist's face and hair presented clearly in soft lighting. At the time, Sam Smith had his hair in the pompadour style, but with a quiff as the centrepiece, leaving his hairline quite exposed. This made his visual appearance rather iconic, enabling him to be recognised more easily, as well as distinctively relate to his supporters.
In some ways, artist close-ups are associated with voyeurism, since it can be argued that many artists of both sexes often use their visual appearance within music videos to appeal to the opposite sex. Through the exposure of skin and use of provocative camera angles, a wide range of music videos attempt to sexualise the artist so that their supporters will fantasise over them, becoming all the more addicted to their work. One example of many is the music video for Worth It by Fifth Harmony, featuring Kid Ink. The video consists of all five women of the girl group dressed in business-esque attire that is as professional as it is revealing. Taking place in an office building, they are seen as CEOs and managers, dancing in front of male employees in a sexual and attractive manner, whilst the camera is often positioned to be rather revealing for the women. Presenting many feminist attributes, it shows women working and succeeding in a supposedly 'male-dominated' world of business, while worded statements such as 'women in power', 'feminism is sexy', and 'glass ceiling' flash onscreen. From this, it becomes apparent that the song is written from the perspective of women telling men that they are better than they may be perceived by claiming that are 'worth it'. Kid Ink is also featured in the video, sat on a sofa alongside an attractive woman on either side of him. The close-ups of him show the women to be lusting over him, whilst the fast cuts between his face and those of the members of Fifth Harmony, present them all as enchantingly tempting. Conclusively, the close-ups of this music video serve the purpose of appealing to both sexes. Many men can be pleased by the sexual visuals, whereas many women can feel inspired by the group's supposed reputation of empowerment over men.

Star iconography is another technique that Goodwin recognised within music videos. He wrote that many artists have a trend of repeating certain actions and/or dressing in certain ways, in order to establish 'trademark' movements and appearances, thereby making their image recognisable, which leads to their work becoming more popular due to being associated with simpler concepts that can be presented visually to individuals. Hundreds of examples of star iconography exist, including the black and white face paint of KISS members, Queen's Brian May's 'Red Special' electric guitar, Amy Winehouse's beehive hairstyle, the fictional zombie-like character of Eddie used to promote Iron Maiden, Elvis Presley's 'gyrating hips' and 'leg shake' dance moves, 'guitar spasms' and school uniform costumes of AC/DC's Angus Young, Michael Jackson's multiple dance moves and singular glove, the 'Union Jack' dress worn by Geri Halliwell of the Spice Girls, Deadmau5's mask, and The Who's Pete Townshend's 'windmill strum' guitar-playing move.
Despite star iconography enabling most artists to be visually recognised, others may instead create multiple appearances for themselves, as they decide to evolve over time by continuously changing their visual personas in order to experiment with other concepts, as well as maintain the interest of their supporters. One of the most common examples of an artist who constantly reinvented themselves in terms of appearance and song meanings was David Bowie. Throughout his life, Bowie changed his persona multiple times, beginning with the simple Davy Jones, and finishing with The Blind Prophet. In between, Bowie became a number of different characters, including Ziggy Stardust, Major Tom, Aladdin Sane, The Thin White Duke, and Halloween Jack. He also starred as iconic characters in many films, such as The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), The Snowman (1982), The Hunger (1983), Labyrinth (1986), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), and The Prestige (2006). Heavily inspired by David Bowie, Marilyn Manson is another artist who has changed his visual appearance and song concepts over time, with his third studio album Mechanical Animals, released in 1998, serving as a tribute to Bowie. In addition, artists such as Elton John, Freddy Mercury of Queen, the members of The Beatles, Britney Spears, and Katy Perry are partly famous for significantly altering their appearances as time has progressed.
A rather interesting case of star iconography is that of Sia. In person, Sia wears a wig in the style of a faux bob that covers most of her face, including her eyes. However, as she does not appear herself in most of her music videos, they instead consist of different people donning similar wigs. This unique case of star iconography presents that of Sia as something that can be copied by any person on a universal scale, enabling her to connect with a larger audience.
Logos are also a form of star iconography, as they help promote artists through simple icons that may not even show the name of said artist. Examples include the 'tongue and lip' logo of The Rolling Stones, the 'TS' logo of Twisted Sister, the 'smiley face' logo of Nirvana, and the 'love symbol' of Prince, which even gave birth to a similarly shaped electric guitar that he would perform with.

Intertextuality, in terms of music videos, is a technique in which the video makes references to another media text. The link between the two pieces of work can be found through the music video's instrumental sound, lyrics, and visuals. This technique is generally used to engage the audience further, as they may be a supporter of what the music video is referencing, and might even feel gratification if they recognise the link. A simple example of intertextuality is the music video for Madonna's Material Girl, as it bears a striking resemblance in terms of setting, clothing, choreography, and song meaning, to Marilyn Monroe's Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend performance in the 1953 film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Likewise, Iggy Azalea's music video for Fancy, featuring Charli XCX, is a direct reference to the 1995 film Clueless, since the school setting is similar in each, and Iggy wears a yellow, chequered blazer and skirt almost identical to the iconic attire of the character of Cher Horowitz in the film.
The music video for Movies by Alien Ant Farm is a major example of intertextuality, as it makes multiple direct references to certain 'movies', hence the song name. The video presents a crowded cinema screen room, with the band members sitting on the front row of seats. Once an advertisement for hot dogs begins to play, the members jump through the screen before performing the song. Throughout the video, the clothing and background of the band changes to reference multiple famous films, including Ghostbusters (1984), Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971), The Karate Kid (1984), and Edward Scissorhands (1990), after which all of the audience members join the band by also jumping through the screen.
Blink-182's music video for All the Small Things is a rather well-known example of a set of visuals referencing other personas in music. In this case, the music video aims to ridicule American boy bands of the 90s, such as Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, 98 Degrees, and New Kids on the Block. Through their simple clothing, smiling faces, and expressive dance moves, the members of Blink-182 present such boy bands as all the same. In particular, the members attempt to show how they believe that such bands focus too much on appealing sexually to the opposite gender, and do not write songs efficiently, due to the constantly lazy repeat of 'na-na'.
It is important to remember that while parody artists exist, some of them are considered legitimate artists that aim amuse people, as well as add new perspectives to already-existing songs. Perhaps the most famous parody artist is 'Weird Al' Yankovic, who has produced many parody songs based off music by a wide variety of artists including Queen, Dire Straits, Nirvana, Backstreet Boys, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Lorde, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Coolio, and Michael Jackson. Due to being a parody artist, 'Weird Al' takes songs performed by other artists, but alters them by changing all the lyrics in order to completely shift the tone and message of the song, usually always for comedic effect. Depending on the new lyrics, the music video that is produced from the parody is either very similar to that of the original, or completely different. For instance, the music video for his song Eat It, which parodies Michael Jackson's song Beat It, features an alleyway, relatively empty bar, and apartment room almost identical to what it seen in the original, along with characters who look very similar in both versions. Contrarily, the music video for the parody song Like a Surgeon, which parodies Madonna's song Like a Virgin, is set in an operating theatre, whereas the original is set in a palatial building and on the canals of Venice. Over many years, most of 'Weird Al' Yankovic's parodies have been approved and thoroughly enjoyed by the original artists, portraying him as a genuine artist even to those who were not avid supporters to begin with.