In What Ways Does Your Media Product Use Develop or Challenge Forms and Conventions of Real Media Products?

Codes and conventions are the elements that the audience expect to see when they watch music video’s. They are the elements that make a music video. Different Genres of music will have different conventions for their videos. Different conventions include:
- Music
– The Artist
– Different Settings
– Cut to the beat 
– Lip synching
Conventions that depend on the genre of the music are:
- Story or narrative
– Animation
– Artist storyline (XFactor winning video)
– Choreography (Cheryl Cole – fight for this love)

While producing my video I had to continually think about these in order to make the video authentic.

The music video I have created is about a relationship which has fallen apart because the artist of the song as found out her partner has been cheating her. The way I have produced my video represents both the male and the female in the relationship differently. The representation of the female feel she is in the right and is standing by strong in what she believes in. She has decided the best option is to kick her partner out of their shared home, which represents the male negatively at the same time, as it highlights the fact that he has done wrong. However, at the same time, although the females actions makes the male appear negatively and as though he is the villain, he comes across as apologetic and he is fighting to get his relationship make,  which shows that he is passionate about what he believes in, which is a good thing. By her making this decision, she is represented to be a strong independent woman who doesn’t rely on anyone, and this could potential send out a message to other women watching the video, that they don’t need to rely on anyone in their life. The audience is expected to use their common sense to interpret this representation, but at the same time it is also meant to appear natural, and they shouldn’t need to use much thought process in order to understand what is going on. The video is most likely to appeal to a female target audience because they will be able to relate to the situation more, especially as the song is written from the point of view of the female. The female audience might be in a similar situation and therefore use the video as advice from a best friend. This is how a person would interpret the text using the hypodermic needle theory. I was creating the video I always had in mind I wanted to target it at young females who are in a similar situation and may not know what to do or how to deal with it, therefore by watching the video they gain advice and help them realise that being a strong independent women isn’t a bad thing, just means you’re standing by what you believe in. an alternate representation that  could have been made, for example, if the story was the other way round and it was the female who had cheated and subsequently was being kicked out of the house. This way the video would more likely appeal to the male audience, as they would gain advice.
Similarly, for the digipack I have created the representation is of two different, opposite emotions, to communicate how she puts on a brave front and smiles, but on the inside she is actually sad and hurt by what’s happened. To do this, I have combined two different pictures to make one face in total, one side is happy with perfect hair, make up and smiling, and the other half is sad with make up running down her face and her hair is all messy. This has been continued on to the back with one half with messy hair and the other half with perfect hair. On the inside of the digipack I have created Polaroid picture to demonstrate memories. Like with the music video the female target audience might be able to relate to the representation and might take something from it. Roland Barthes would suggest the representation is made through ‘The Hermeneutic Code’ (Suspense Code), which refers to questions are asked throughout the narrative. A narrative may asks questions which are not automatically answered. The audience may make assumptions. This is the case with the digipak because the audience may not automatically understand the meaning or sense being addressed.
Like the digipack, I have created a poster which can communicate emotions to the audience. the poster shows the artist hiding behind her hand whish is a visual representation connoting that she is hiding her true feelings and emotions, as though to look at you would assume she is happy, she is in fact emotional on the inside an not showing this to anyone. I have made the background plain to draw the audience attention to the only image on the page, so all concentration is put on the artist. I have not included any reviews, which is a key convention of advert; however I consciously made this decision as I believe it will encourage the audience to find out more for them selves.

Although many of the theories I use are dated, they can still be applied to modern day texts. As mentioned before, using the hypodermic needle theory, the female target audience would watch the video and react in the same by, for example if they were in this situation they would use their authority to stand by what they believe in and simply kick the male out without listening to explanation. Again if the audience were to relate to the situation, as the video is about a person relationship, they can substitute the relationship they are in for the one they are watching, and although they might think they are in a bad relationship, they may realise its not as bad as they think. It gives them the chance to escape from the worries in their lives. This would be analyzing it using a Uses & gratifications theory approach.
When speaking about the digipack I have created, the two step flow theory can be applied as if one person tells another person about the digipack they saw, for example ‘Its got two faces on it!’, word will get around and more and more people will know about the new CD. From a Marxist point of view this would be known as sales promotion and a good thing, as more sales & money can be made.
This is like with the advert. The lack of text implies that the audience have become an active audience, apposed to a passive audience, because they are forced to look at the picture of the artist, and the only details they are made aware of is the name of the album and release date. If they want to know more they will have to go and look it up themselves, and this is will entice them to want to buy it once they have spent time looking it up. This is known as the reception theory.
The genre of the video fits into two categories, both narrative and conceptual.  The video tells a story of a break up and that, however it’s not just a simply story being told, the video also has meaning. Schwichtenberg (1192) said 'action in the story is dominated by males who do things and females who passively react or wait for something to do’. In this case, it is the male who has cheated and the female is reaction to this action. Andrew Goodwins theory can also be applied, as he identifies 6 key features within music videos, once of which being ‘There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals’ anther being ‘there is a relationship between music and visuals’ The lyrics tell a story and explains what is happening, while the editing of the video and the pace at which it has been cut demonstrates the mood of the video. Also, there is a melody in the music made from a piano and there are a number of shots in the video I have incorporated this.
The digipack is also conceptual because there is deliberate meaning behind the image, which is that although she appears to be strong, she is in fact falling apart in side and has been affected by what is going on. Goodwins theory can also be applied to my music video as ‘There is a relationship between music and visuals’.
Good win can also be applied to the advert, as another key element he identifies is ‘the demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artists’ and the image is a close up.
The video has a linear narrative as the events which take place are revealed in chronological order, from beginning to end. This is also known as ‘Cause and Effect’ narrative because the consequences of one ever have a knock on effect on something else, and this helps the story to move on. The male in the video has cheated and as a result the female has made the decision to kick him out the house and the video shows these events as they happen. I used a standard use of camera and continuity editing to ensure the audience entered the diegesis world of the music video, and are consumed by the narrative. The audience have a restricted narrative view point because they only get to know as much as the characters do, this way they feel apart of the narrative. The female obviously knows what she is doing and what is going to happen, by like the male who goes to the house to try to resolve the situation, the audience are unaware of what the female has in mind, and therefore find out he same way the male does. Todorov’s theory about narrative can also be applied to the video, as he identifies an equilibrium, disruption, Recognition, Attempt to Repair the Disruption, New Equilibrium in every narrative. Although not in the video the equilibrium would be when the couple where happy together, the disruption is when she finds out her partner has been cheating on her, the recognition is what happens throughout the video – the male gets kicked out of  the house they share for what he has done, the attempt to repair, is him going to the house to try to find some solution, however this fails, and therefore the new equilibrium is them both going there separate ways and moving on from the relationship. Levi-Straus theory about narratives states that that all narratives are based on conflicts and they work through binary opposites.  In my music video the opposites which can be applied include ‘Good & Evil’ and ‘Past & Present’. The female is seen to be doing the right thing by kicking him out and sticking which this decision despite his plea’s, the opposite being him being evil for what he has done to her. The relationship is now part of their past and present they are arguing. In the past they were happy and now they’re not.
During the video I used semiotics to get communicate messages with the audience. For example, at the end of the video there is a shot of the female looking through pictures, representing memories and then wiping her eyes, representing crying. Overall, the audience will interpret this as her being upset about what’s happened. This can be described as an iconic sign. Also, there are binary opposites, such as the fact there that there are males and females in the video. They are also fighting in the video, as they have opposite view points. She believes in what is right and staying faithful in a relationship, where although he is now trying to make things right, he has already done wrong.
On the Digipack, half of her face is crying, which would signify someone who is upset. The audience is only able to see half of her face, but will still be able to understand the massage being communicated. This is another iconic signifier. The mascara running down her face is an indexical signifier; because the only way to get mascara running down your face is if you cry, and the audience are expect to pick up on this. Synecdone signifiers are uses because although there is only half of her face representing each emotion, the audience is still able to understand what is meant. And the key signifier used is Binary opposites, as half her face is happy and half is sad, which is the main message being communicated, as it links to the idea of her hiding her true emotions.
Lastly, on the magazine advert, polysemic signifiers could be identified as the body language of the artist suggests playfulness, but in this case is intended to represent her hiding her emotions.