Carol Vernallis

Carol Vernallis' music video theory comes from the book 'Experiencing Music Video: Aesthetics and Cultural Context, she suggests that there are 4 key elements which should be included in music videos and should be used when analysing a music video. The key elements are; 

1. Narrative 

In the book Vernallis states that a music video is created as a response to a song and the lyrics, not the other way around. The video should be able to visualise and create a response to the song, with the artist still remaining a key feature of the music video in order to keep audience appeal. She also states in the book that there no need for there to be a balance between the performance and narrative, meaning that often in music videos the performance is prioritised as it shows off the artist the most. It can occur with the narrative overtaking the performance but this is not frequent and often only happens with already established artists. 

2. Diegesis 

Diegesis is the world within the music video. This is normally brought in slowly throughout the video to allow the development of the story. In order for the audience to pick up on the alternative world, repetition is key as reinforces the similarities and differences that may not be obvious straight away.

3. Camera movements and Shots 

Vernallis suggested that extreme camera shots are common, especially in the establishing shots of the music video. She noticed that artist usually avoid the use of midshots within their music videos, possibly because they view them as simple or less artistic, whereas the use of common framing and movement are found throughout the music video industry. 

4. Editing  

During the editing process some artists occasionally match the beat of the song, which links back to one of Andrew Goodman's features 'linking the music and visuals'. This gives the audience a chance to relate to the music and visuals together, as well as other features to make them feel more connected with the artist. In terms of continuity editing, music videos tend to use a more abstract form of editing, moving between locations, times and even costumes.