Evaluation Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

The schoolgirl image we have used as our narrative throughout supports the pop convention and adds voyeurism to the piece. We took inspiration from Britney Spears’ video for “Baby One More Time” and in order to enhance this image, we used two other girls to support the lead. The narrative overall supports and develops the conventions of the pop genre particularly it fulfils the expectations of females within the pop genre. Another part of the music video where we used voyeurism was in the bridge where the three girls are walking over a bridge in slow motion. By slowing down the footage we allow the video to conform to the pop genre and its voyeuristic features.

Our digipak mainly challenges conventions of the pop genre. The graffiti theme used throughout is not typical of the pop genre and fits more into the rap and R&B genres. The title of the album “Rebel Without Cause” got it’s title from the James Dean film “Rebel Without A Cause” we just felt that dropping the “A” has more of a ring to it and would make a better album title. This clear warping of a famous film title is not typical of the pop genre as many album titles in the pop genre come from lyrics in the songs on the album.

Our magazine advert both supports and challenges conventions of the pop genre. It uses the same graffiti background as the digipak in order to keep with the theme and for the audience to identify the advert and the CD cover. The artist is wearing clothes which show off her body in certain areas and is making direct eye contact with the audience conforming to the conventions and expectations of females within the pop genre. The “Oh Snap” t-shirt relates back to the music video and the debut track on the album, developing the conventions of the pop genre.

The shots of the artist in front of the graffiti backgrounds during the lipsyncs challenge the pop convention. The use of graphitti in the background is a continuous theme throughout the music video, digipak and the magazine advert. Also we used the leave colour effect on Premier Pro on every shot of Kate on the bridge and during the schoolgirl narrative in order to bring out the colour red. This tool is common in the pop industry and is used in videos such as ‘LDN’ by Lily Allen.

Another element of our music video which challenges stereotypes of the pop genre is the writing appearing on the black background. Any form of writing is unusual within the pop genre as it is more of a convention of rap and R&B and is used in videos such as ‘Blurred Lines’ by Robin Thicke and ‘I Know You Want Me’ by Pitbull.

The idea of the schoolgirls walking to school is very conventional of the pop genre as it is relatable to the fans of these artists who tend to be between 13 and 18 years old. Music videos such as ‘Hollaback Girl’ by Gwen Stefani and ‘You Belong With Me’ by Taylor Swift follow the same schoolgirl convention of the pop genre. At the end of our music video the girls reach the school gates before discovering a sign stating that school is closed as the teachers are on strike. This ‘teacher strike’ idea is something that school kids now can relate to thus the artist appeals strongly to her fanbase.