Ben Morgan

Cinematography within Pop Punk

Pop punk is a hybrid music genre that combines elements of punk rock with
foundations of pop music. This genre typically includes fast punk rock tempos,
power chord changes and loud, distorted electric guitars with pop-influenced
melodies and lyrical themes.
Bands in the genre of Pop Punk:
Biffy Clyro
Blink 182
Fall Out Boy
Green Day
You Me At Six
Cinematography typically seen in Pop Punk music videos:
Establishing Shot An establishing shot is the first shot we are shown in
any music video which is designed to show the audience where the
location is in the narrative of the video. This allows the audience to make a
judgement as to whether it is an isolated location perhaps indicating that
they are lonely and depressed for example.
Long Shot In Pop Punk music videos, this shot type is used to capture a
full body shot of the artist whether it is in when the narrative is being told
or when the band is performing. A long shot provides an extended view of
the scene and the band members. This allows the audience to
acknowledge whereabouts they are in the location of the music video and
it also makes the audience have the ability to see what the characters
body language is like, enabling the audience to get an impression as to
whether theyre in fear or feeling powerful depending on the scene this
used in.
Mid Shot This shot shows the band from their waist upwards, focusing
mainly on the subject whilst still providing the audience with an
impression of the location.
Close Up In sections of music videos in this genre a montage of camera
shots are used which include the usage of close ups. This shot is
predominantly of the artists or band members face to show and bring
attention to their emotions through their facial expressions in the close up.
Due to the genre of music, these close ups also tend to be of objects that
are featuring in the narrative of the video signifying its importance within
the story.
Point-of-view Shot A point-of-view shot is when the audience sees the
scene as though they were looking through the eyes of the subject
showing a sense of realism as it enables them to put themselves into the
characters position making them interact in the music video and develop
thoughts as to what they might do for example.
Extreme-Close Up - An extreme close up focuses on a particular detail of
the subject alone without any external action in the background of the
shot. In Pop Punk music videos, this shot is normally used to capture a
band members or the artists facial expression enabling the audience to
focus their attention fully on the artists emotion through the narrative.

Ben Morgan

High Angle High Angle shots are used in Pop Punk music videos which
is where the camera shows the subject from above with the camera
angling down towards the main image. This has the effect of making the
object or band appear inferior, less significant and a sense of fear due to
the angle of the camera. Not only that but in the narrative, a high angle
shot could be used to give the audience an idea of their vulnerability in
the situation that is shown.
Low Angle From looking at an array of Pop Punk music videos from
different bands, most of their music videos included the low camera angle
which is carried out by positioning the lens under the subject giving the
impression of the subject being more powerful with authority.
Tilt In serval Pop Punk music videos, the camera movement technique
tilt is used creating an imbalance and a distorted perspective.
Tracking This is where the camera is mounted on a cart in order to have
the ability to follow and replicate the movement of the main focus in the
picture smoothly. This camera movement is effective due to the fact that it
enables the audience to track where the subject is moving which provides
them with a sense of power as they are able to see where they are
heading. In the music video Biblical by Biffy Clyro, a tracking shot was
used when the protagonist was heading towards a dead end with a gang
with baseball bats tracking him from behind. This is where the audience
gain power because we are able to see where and what is surrounding him
and in this situation we can see he is in danger and under threat.
Pan - Panning is the sweeping movement of a camera across a scene. The
genre Pop Punk incorporate this camera movement into their music videos
and it is effective because it is usually used when the song has come to a
standstill with slow interlude and pans round at this stage making the
audience think as to what is going to happen in the narrative causing
suspense.
Hand-held The usage of hand-held cameras gives a sense of realism,
making it less formal, and also more relatable to the audience due to the
fact that they aren't shown straight and simply by the camera. Depending
on the footage it creates an eerie effect due to the erratic movements of
the camera.
Conventions used in Pop Punk Music Videos
Costume are mainly bland colours with aspects being quite bright making
a contrast
Live clips of the band performing
Montage of the narrative footage then clips of band performing
Performing whilst the narrative is being shown
Close ups of the singer on the slow parts to enhance their emotions
Editing is mostly cuts
Bands tend to be lively and enjoying themselves when its upbeat
Lip syncing whilst telling a story in narrative

Ben Morgan