Key Concepts – Media Language

Editing

Kanye West creates multi-viewing videos which has made him one of the worlds best known and one of the most respectable artists. Cinematography, Mise en Scene and Editing are a big part of his production. The other parts of media language such as colour, lighting and sound are also very important when considering the media language of a music video.

This is an very effective style of editing. It is different to the typical hip-hop videos of today. Kanye West pushes the conventions in every video he does and he is known for his unusual videos and music. Even though he pushes the typical conventions, he has a very successful selling brand which he is associated with.

This is another successful editing part of Kanye West and it gives conventions of the film industry when it subtitles which artists are in the film. Kanye West has many videos which are more than the average 4 minutes long music video. This is very successful as it guarantees multi-viewings.

EditingThe pace of editing in any music video is important as it needs to match the style and pace of the song and the movement of the camera.

The pace of this video matches the pace of the song. In certain parts, the tempo is faster than others, so the editing meets the up-beat tempo. Where as, at the beginning, the tempo is slower so the editing when we first see Kanye West to slower. To match this, slow motion has been used when the clouds are going over him.

At the beginning of the video, when multi-screens are used, this part of the song is up-tempo so the snap shots meet the tempo as they jump in and out of the shot.

CinematographyIn this video by Kanye West, he used the male gaze on his co-star which is Pamela Anderson. The male gaze is used to entice wider audiences into the product and it shows Pamela Anderson as a sex object and that she is just there to be on the arm of Kanye West.

This close up on Kanye West’s face shows that he is using the typical conventions of any music video. This close up also shows his expression and how he is coordinating the lyrics to the visuals for the audience to understand what is happening and how his character is feeling.

The opening of this video is a canted angle panning shot. This is very effective as it highlights the start of the video and it highlights the importance of the car. It is also an extreme long shot to establish the location the video.

Cinematography

This low angle has been used very successfully as it shows Kanye West as powerful, in control and the main protagonist. This type of angle has been used throughout this video to show Kanye West as strong, important and above everyone else.

Throughout the video, zoom has been used to emphasise what Kanye West to looking at in certain parts of the video. It has also been used to show the audience, along with the extreme long shot, where this video is taking place.

There is use of Point of View shots as well in this video. The most noticable one is when Kanye West is watching Pamela Anderson get out of the car. Point of View shots are important in videos as they make the audience feel part of the video as they feel they are watching the same part.

Colour

The most noticeable colour that has been used in this video is orange. It is has been used very lightly as it is the tint they have put on the camera they are filming with.

The blue colour gradient has also been used. The use of these colours as the main part of this music video gives the audience the impression that the video is shot in the 1970’s

LightingThe use of lighting in this very important. In this video, there is a mixture of high key, low key and side lighting. They are all very important and all hold different meanings when they are used in a media text.

There has also been use of black lighting around the characters when they are arguing in the video. This gives the representation that they are not happy and the blackness shows the dark feelings they have.

This is an example of high key lighting. This has been used in the studio, very effectively to give the audience the impression that it has been filmed outside.

Low key lighting has been used at the end of the song to meet the visuals in the video as Kanye West has just died and the lighting to dark around him to represent that.

Mise En SceneAs Kanye West is from the Hip-hop sub-genre, he follows the typical mise en scene conventions of that genre. He produces videos which are of the newest technology and shot in a high-tech studio. He knows what he wants his videos to represent and he goes all out on the props and costumes which are used.

Kanye West is the typical artist from the Hip-hop genre. He follows these conventions by wearing a lot of bling and by having a women by his side.

Kanye West is also very fashionable and keeps up to date with the fashion world when he does a new video. His clothes in this video makes him seem important and professional as he has a shirt and white trousers. He also fits the female gaze as he has his top undone at the top and this appeals to young adults.

Mise En SceneAs this video is meant to represent a mini-movie. The mise en scene of any film location has many trailers, camera crew and press. This is represented very well in this video and is shown very well in this shot from the music video. This shows how much money Kanye has to spend on this video and that he wants to be a success. This song was a success as it reached number 6 in the UK singles chart.

This shot from the video shows again how it is an 70’s style video through the band, the costumes and the singer.

This video is about Evil Kenyevel (played by Kanye West) and his attempt to fly across the Grand Canyon. At first this isn’t very obvious but it becomes known once the audience see’s the small rocket.

Sound and AnimationThe lyrics and visuals meet the sound of the video very well. The lyrics connect with the visuals and this is shown by the first couple of lines when Kanye West is singing about touching the sky until he dies.

Gotta testify, come up in the spot looking extra fly. For the day I die, I'mma touch the sky. Gotta testify, come up in the spot looking extra fly. For the day I die, I'mma touch the sky

This works with the sound of the video and the visuals. The beginning of the lyrics show how he takes care of his appearance and this is obvious by his mise en scene. The second part of his lyrics shows the audience what the song is about before they even hear the rest of the song and the video.

The sound of this video is very 70’s. This again works well with the visuals as the video is shot in the 1970’s. Kanye West has a very good brand image and is known for his attention to detail when it comes to his videos.

This video is not only a Hip-hop genre video but it also features some animated comedy. This is shown when the news reporters are talking about his attempt to fly over the Grand Canyon and there is also animation just after Kanye West was being shouted at by a women.