The Pitch Lauryn Cedrola

Established in New York in the early 1970s, popular in underground clubs and house parties Mid 70’s and early 80’s increased airplay on the radio. Music videos were only just beginning to become part of the promotion for a particular song. Because of this, many songs from the disco period do not have music videos. The 70’s were a time of personal liberation in the USA. People felt overwhelmed by the social problems of the 50’s and 60’s, craved carefree lives Disco provided people with a way to express themselves freely. Protests for gender and race equality grew strong in this decade, disco dance clubs attracted people of mixed racial and sexual orientations. DJs mixed the records on two or three turntables in order to extend the length of most songs. Record companies cottoned on to the growing popularity of disco clubs and began to record disco artists, even releasing long-playing records especially for DJ’s. Genre – 70’s Disco

‘I Feel Love’ by Donna Summer (1977) My Song Choice ‘I Feel Love’ by Donna Summer (1977)

Music Video Conventions (textual analysis) Camera Editing Mise en Scene Repeated close ups and mid shots of the face Neon Light Patterns layered on top of the scene Sophisticated and synchronised, choreographed dance routines 360 degree rotation of the camera around the dancers Mirrored imagery Lip-synching of the song Focus pull adjusted to create soft focus and blur people in the background Transitions – jumpy computer glitch, soft pull in and out of focus, fades Bright colours and neon lights – usually a colour theme Singer in centre frame or at the front – boost star image Regular pace, synchronous with music Blacked out background Panning/scrolling across a group while they are dancing – camera rarely stagnant Green screen to edit performers surrounded by animated lights and other objects Props – light up floor, disco ball, musical instruments Closeups of dancing feet Motion blur and trail effects Costume – glitter makeup, leopard print shirt/jumpsuit, matching outfits for a band, afro hair High angle shots and eyeline shots Duplication of people and repetition of scenes Location – disco club, crowded dance floor, stage and band performance Representing lyrics visually with editing, e.g. Including a girl when the lyrics mention a girl

Music Video Conventions (audience focus group) Young, thin girls roller skating Brightly coloured clothes Big, 70’s style hair Lots of flashing disco lights Theatrical smoke Locations = Club, field on a summer day, town setting, beach Lasers Choreographed dancers Singer performing on a podium with a surrounding band DJ spinning decks 70’s style car with roof down Drum set Long, white flowing dress Scenes from peace protests Girl walking past couples in town Hippie style Bright vibrant colour scheme Hot sunny day

Potential Locations

Editing Workshop

Album Art Conventions (record cover analysis) Features the artist to boost ‘star image’ Colours such as gold and red show power, lust, luxury, passion and wealth Matching outfits/band pictured closely together shows unity Smiling faces show joy and passion for music Bold, large print for artists name (star image), smaller text for single/album title Artist centre frame and low angle shot to show a power imbalance (star image) Disco costume conventions apply here (big hair, bright colours etc) Black background with one or two bright light sources behind artist Voyeurism, over sexualisation of female Dynamic, diagonal text