Conventions of Lana del Rey videos

Lana del rey comes from an indie genre. In this genre it is typical for them to do live performances. This is presenting the performers doing what they love and it keeps the attention on the music itself. It takes a lot of personality for someone to play an instrument and still perform so the live performance option highlights singer’s talents in a good way and can consequently attract an audience. However now music has a narrative included in-between to break up the music video and make it more interesting for the reader. As well it supports them when competing with other artists from all genres who also do narrative videos that are based around a story to make it more unforgettable. A narrative uses a order of images and videos that narrate the song. This is made to makes sense to the audience so they can follow and link with the lyrics they are listening to. It is very popular with all genres as it leaves room for the imagination in their videos.  With a video an artist can make it as creative as they want and is a unique way of making a music video stand out from the rest and attracting more viewers due the many variations so you can make it as different as they want. Also with the development of new technology storylines can be created using special effects and after affects in post productions to make the video realistic but exciting. Narrative videos also keep the audience constantly entertained and can also relate more with the artist. Narrative videos are used throughout most lana del rey videos.

Mise en scene also helps with the creation of music videos in the indie genre. Indie artists like lana del rey have a retro look which is created through the sets, props and the way the singer is presented. This can be shown in Lana Del Rey’s – National Anthem where throughout we can see her posing around her glamorous and expensive house. Presenting the singer as a wealthy and well respected lady, it also shows us how she wants to be perceived from her music. Costumes give people their individuality which varies from other genres and artists. Even though Lady Gaga is not part of the indie genre elaborate choice in clothing creates herself her own personal identity. Makeup can also give us an indication as to which era the video is meant to be set in. A lot of lana del rey videos are meant to be set back a few years.  For example she uses very subtle make up in her videos with a pale face and red lipstick showing a similar look to the 50’s.

Sound is evidently important as the video is done to make us appreciate the talent. Many effects can be extra to the sound by creating effects like distorting it, fading it or even added more to it to present different emotions in the video. Diegetic sounds are also used throughout a lot of lana del rey videos by helping to set the scene at either the end or the beginning. An example of this is in Lana Del Rey’s national anthem as she ends the song with a small speech and it begins with the screeching of fans.

For cinematography close ups are generally used to introduce us to the characters or the. Some videos may also use Close ups to focus us on the artist singing or to make it clear to the audience what type of emotion they are trying to portray. In a lot of Lana del rey videos this happens because they are usually quite emotionally and always set an atmosphere for its audience. Full length shots are mainly used because it shows the setting of the video and shows us the artist’s outfits. This is important in lana del reys videos because she is a style icon and her music is very unique. Crane shots are used mainly in live performances as it allows you to get the artist from many different angles and also helps to keep the focus on them throughout. Tilts or pans make the setting clear and can move from left to right so we can see the full set and fully understand the story.

Post production helps the music video successful especially in the indie genre like lana del rey videos as she often has an old fashioned effect. Fast and slow cuts between each shot often show the pace of the music and make the video link well. This helps to put across the disposition in the video and also how they want the audience to feel. This interweaves with the editing used in the actual video, for example in some lana del rey videos a green screen is used like in Born to die to create a set behind and make the video look believable. Effects are often added over the top of videos to make them look old and worn like they are being played from old tapes, again this is a very big convention of lana del rey videos because her persona is meant to come from the 60’s. In blue jeans a black and white effect was used to convey this because it makes it seem more rural and raw.