ERT- Deconstruction of Paolma Faith "Upside down"

INSTITUTION AND AUDIENCE

How might this video be consumed?

I think this video will be mainly be viewed ambiently as the video does not particularly have a storyline, and it is the type of music to be played in situations such as clubs or casually on the music channels. However, the video is visually interesting to watch and fans of Paloma Faith may chose to watch the video as it is very much about her. Also the video includes a lot of dance and is a jazz sort of style therefore people interested in that music and dance style may see the video for focused viewing.

Institutional context of the video

The record label would have an important role in the creation of this video. They would have decided the storyline and way in which the artist, Paloma Faith, was presented. In this video they have made her seem like a glamorous celebrity, although she is presented in this way you ca see from the way they have used the set in the video that behind all the make-up and fancy backdrops shes just an ordinary girl. Throughout the video there is no illusion to the fact that although the back drop makes it look glamorous it is only set up an old factory type building. This I think is a clever and positive impression given off to the potential audience, because it shows how Paloma is a normal girl behind it all and that she is lucky enough to be living the celebrity lifestyle, but she is still the same everyday girl behind it all.

GENRE AND NARRATIVE

What are the forms and conventions evident in this video?

This video is more performance based, however it is not set in a recording studio or theatre it is set quite clearly in a big ordinary factory styled room for filming. Although there are male dancers in the video I see her as the only character in it as she is in every shot and it is very much all about her, through the use of meat shots and XCU. This making it clear to the viewer it is the arist performing lyrics that she wrote herself about something she believes in, not a typical love story with a boy and girl for example. The video also has a really fast cutting rate in certain parts. For example towards the end of the song the beat quickens, and the cutting rate follows this.



Is this an example of illustration, amplification or disjuncture?

I think its an example of amplification. When studying the lyrics of this song it is all about being busy and confused which i think is displayed in the video through the use of colour, costume and movement/dance. Also certain lines are displayed through movement word for word, such as 2 minutes 10 seconds into the video the lyrics "You gotta pick it up" and the males dancers pick her up, although the majority of the video is filled with random dance moves and cuts which are cleverly done through shape and colour. However, the reason i think it is not an example of illustration is because i think if it was it wouldnt have been filmed in a studio but it would have shots in busy streets with crowds etc.

Could this be considerd art?

I think yes as some of the cuts used are very clever. For example at 2 minutes 20 seconds there is an image of pink and white verticle stripes with the oppostie colour dots in the middle. This shot cuts to Paloma Faith and the 4 male dancers holding umbrellas with resemble the dots whilst standing on the same stripes. I really like these cuts and hope to iclude something similar in our own video. Also the whole video is so memorable through the use of colour. Some of the stills look very similar to a picture that would be sold or shown as art.



MEDIA LANGUAGE

What is the message or purpose of this video? What visual technniques show this?

I think the hidden message behind this video is all about Paloma Faith. I don't think there is anything politcal or emotional tied into it but more so personal to her.As stated in the pervious question, the mise-en-scene of the pink and white set with the unglamorous factory style room it is shot in still on show is a conotation for herself. A glamorous celebrity on first glance, but still has her roots in the background.

REPRESENTATION

How is the artist represented?

The artist is represnted as a strong female that is very glamarous. Her being the only female in the video as well as many of the shots being of only her, displays her as a very strong and determined artist. As well as again showing how uderneath all the glamour she still has her roots.
How are different social groups represented?

The only social groups represnted in the music video are young white females and black males. As the video doesn't have a narrative it is hard to say how they are represented, neither had a good or bad character to play. Therefore, I think it is positive to have not represented any social groups in a bad light thus making no enemies with any viewers.

What is the ideological discourse?

An ideology that is challenged in the video would be that females are the recessive gender and are in need of males to take the control. It is done through the amount of power shown through Paloma Faith in the video as well as the way she is somehow controlling the male dancers around her. The video is ultimately all about her, the dancers in the videos purpose is to make her look good. This clearly challenging the common gender stereotype.

Dyers theory

Dyers theory presents the idea that a "star" is constructed through a range of materials, for example the music video, advertisments and digipak. Refering to "Upside Down" by Paloma Faith the use of close ups creates an intimate realtionship with the audience member through the use of extra-diegetic gaze making her seem approachable, the mise-en-scene in the video shows a classy smart studio at first gaze but later reveals it is a screen put up in a large empty normal looking type factory, this gives her the star image at first but reveals that she is still an everyday person behind it all. However, her costume and make-up still gives off the celebrity star image created through her other posters, album covers and other videos. This therefore applies to the first paradox of "the star must be simultaneously ordinary and extra ordinary for the consumer". She is ordinary in the sense that she uses extra-digetic gaze to make herself relatable to the audience and shows how although it seems as if she is filming in a big expensive studio it actually is not as glamorous as first though. However, extra ordinary in the sense of her costume and make-up, she comes across as very glamorous.