Madonna - Vogue
Vogue
was released in March 20th 1990 by
Cire records, inspired by Jose and Luis who were vogue dancers and
choreographers at the time. The single was released on two albums, Celebration
and immaculate collection. After presenting the song to the warner brother
producers they decided the song was too good to be wasted, therefore they put it
on the upcoming album for the Disney film Dick Tracy which Madonna herself
starred in, however before the song could be placed on the album Madonna had to
alter some of the lyrics so that the song could be connected with the Disney
film.
The
Music video for ‘Vogue’ was created by David Fincher, who was an American film
and music video director, as well as working with Madonna he worked with Paula
Abdul, Aerosmith, Rolling stones and Michael Jackson. The video was shot at the
Burbank studios in California.
The
song ‘Vogue’ fits into the genre of dance/pop as it has a dance nature and has
catchy and simple lyrics, the beats within the song are emphasised and have
prominent hooks.
Right
from the beginning of the ‘Vogue’ video the visuals are going along with the
lyrics, for example the first line is “strike a pose” when this is sung everyone
on camera strikes a ‘pose’, When Madonna says “move to the music” the dances
move around. Throughout the video the dancers/singers/actors are dressed for the
lyrics, they are dressed as if they are ready to be a part of a ‘Vogue’ photo
shoot, there is a line within the song that says “better than you are today”
everyone in the video is beautifully made up from the makeup to the outfit they
are wearing, they are seen as very smug. The lyric “black and white, boy or
girl” fits in with the video as it is filmed in black and white this shows
equality. The lighting that they have used makes the video seem magical this
fits alongside the song as they are singing about being magical and making
things happen for everyone.
The
video cuts to the beat in the sense that after there is a different instrument
played the shot changes. For example when the 1 second beat of the keyboard
enters the shot changes to another character or movement. The video is adapted
to the beat of the song so that after each intense instrument is strung the
image or shot is changed.
It
is clear throughout the video who the star is and what their aim is in this
video it is obvious that Madonna is the star and is representing the ‘vogue’
image as she surrounded by dancers who seem to be fussing about her. The record
company are looking to sell this track as a fashionable and sexy track that will
change the way you live if you buy it, it makes woman believe that by listening
to this track they could be in vogue and all men will adore them, and makes men
believe that every woman is beautiful. In this video Madonna is portrayed as a
sex symbol who woman want to be and men want to be with, she wears throughout
the video skimpy outfits and has men running after her which is a connotation of
Madonna’s appearance. In the majority of Madonna’s videos she is seen as a
popular woman who men like to fall in love with. She is seen as a sex symbol for
both men and woman and this video also shows this, in both the vogue video and
other Madonna videos she is wearing skimpy outfits and there is a high amount of
dancing that could be seen as sexy.
The music video for ‘Vogue’ is interpretive and
surrealist this is because; it explains the theory behind the song, it shows
that the song is about the beauty in everyone and how it is everywhere; it is
presented in an artistic way in which the audience can interpret their own story
within the music video.
Gotye - Somebody that I Used to Know
Before Gotye (also known as Wouter De Backer) hit number one
with his single “Somebody That I Used to Know” he released three studio albums
independently and one album featuring remixes of his tracks from his first two
albums.
Gotye is a member of the indie-pop trio “The Basics” who
also have independently released three studio albums and numerous other titles
since 2002.
Gotye was the fifth Australian based artist that to hit the
number one on the Billboard Hot 100. He won five ARIA Awards and received a
nomination for an MTV EMA for the Best Asia and Pacific Act.
Natasha Pincus had been working as a writer since her teens, having written the acclaimed plays
I’m Your Mother, Remember Me and Risk. In 2004 however, Natasha moved into the
film industry and has since written a number of short and feature film scripts.
Emma and the Barista screened at a number of international film festivals -
winning the Platinum Remi (Short Drama) at the Worldfest International Film
Festival – and has been broadcasted on ABC (Australia), SKY, HBO, and HBO
Latin. Natasha wrote, directed and co-produced the Australian Film
Commission-funded short, LOVE’S LABOUR, which was honoured with a Dendy Award
nomination for Best Short Drama at the 2007 Sydney Film Festival, and screened
at more than fifty film festivals worldwide including Interfilm Berlin and the
Sao Paulo International Film Festival.
Natasha started
writing and directing music videos in 2007. She directed a controversial video
for Paul Kelly’s GOD TOLD ME TO which won the 2007 Inside Film award for Best
Music Video. She has since directed music clips for a number of Australia’s
favourite musicians, including Powderfinger, Gotye, Kasey Chambers, Pete
Murray, Lior and Sarah Blasko.
Gotye and Kimbra
naked throughout the clip, and as they sing, his skin is gradually painted into
the backdrop via stop motion animation. The painting symbolizes their combined
relationship. The Camera would have been on a tripod as the video is filmed in
one shot. The stop motion would have been done through editing. There are no
other music videos like this one.
Gotye is naked throughout this music video which shows his variability
and how losing his much loved girlfriend has taken everything away from him.
The music video is shot in one shot therefore the video it’s
self doesn’t change pace.
The whole video is shot with close-ups which may be to give
a connection between the artist, Gotye, and the viewer.
Gotye
reminisces about his ex-girlfriend from time to time, especially when she told
him she was "so happy she could die". But judging from the rest of
the song's lyrics, it looks like her sentiments for Gotye took a turn for the
worse. Love makes you do crazy things,
like forgetting who you are in the relationship or throwing rocks at someone's
window, or creeping Facebook photos... This has left a scar on Gotye; a pain
that doesn't go away. Even though Gotye's ex told him that she still wanted to
be friends, she went back on her word and pretends she doesn't know him, let
alone acknowledge their relationship. Talk about a cold shoulder! She really
went out of her way to make sure he couldn't contact her so we're wondering
what HER side of the story is... Is Gotye a major creeper? Or is she just
uber-paranoid? Gotye plays her at her own game. With his heart full of
resentment towards his ex, he deems her' somebody that he used to know': not a
friend, not a girlfriend, not anything of importance. This verse is sung by
female singer Kimbra, posing as Gotye's new girlfriend that is on the verge of
breaking up with him. She felt like it was her who was ruining their
relationship, but it was Gotye's obsession over his ex that screwed HIM over.
Oops! This adds a whole new meaning to the old saying, "check yourself
before you wreck yourself".More repetition and anger towards Gotye's
ex-girlfriend, although she seems more like a tornado at this point, destroying
everything in her path. Now Gotye and Kimbra are just mad at each other even
though it's Gotye's ex who's wreaked total havoc on their current relationship.
Somebody stop her!
The video is very unique and the style isn’t done much
therefore the video is trying to give the idea of uniqueness about Gotye as
well.
The background of this video is an original piece of art by Gotye’s
father re-painted by himself and Natasha
Pincus.
The majority of this video is done through editing as it’s
done by stop motion animation and this can only be done by editing. Other than
the stop motion animation there are no
other cuts.
