Express Yourself - Student Video Analysis

I really liked the action match at the start of the video where the paper was thrown out the window and into another setting essentially. The editor also shows off Goodwin's idea of music with visuals as the video begins with staggered shots getting closer to a window which all cut to the beat of the music. The beginning also has some writing introducing the video and saying who the record company is, etc. The lip sycning is okay. Better in some places than others but isn't bad.

I think that there was a strong theme and what seemed to be a narrative with the guy in the white suit being apparently magical and helping the other guy by exploring London? It was a bit random but the linear narrative wasn't too difficult to follow. However, the video lost meaning as time went on because more characters were added in and the dancing etc didn't seem to have a purpose. This would suggest the video wasn't very well planned out. The idea of the man being magical continued throughout though.

It is very clear they used a tripod for most if not all of their shots because the shots are very steady and not wobbly. Their framing is also good because it is clear what the audience needs to focus on in the shot and there isn't anything like a stray tripod case. There isn't a massive variety when it comes to shots though as they pretty much all at a normal, boring angle with few high or low ones. Also, there are few extreme close ups or long shots as it is mostly wide shots and two shots. There are also a few general editing mistakes that are minor but noticeable such as the phone box shot shifting very slightly when man in white suit appears in it.

The setting in the end scene is very good. It is brightly coloured and helps reinforce the general message of the song (expressing yourself). The use of costume for the white suit guy is really good because it makes him stick out and lets the audience know he isn't just any normal character. His prop (the walking/magic stick) also reiterates this. I also liked the shots with th silhouette of this character with the upbeat, colourful backgrounds.

There is a mix of shot transitions. A fade was used to show the man as looking in on the other guy's life. A common transition they used was to just have the silhouette shot in between other shots to break it up a little. It worked as it stopped the video just having boring transitions.