My Treatment

Artists name: The Script

Album: The Script

Song Title: Breakeven

Duration: 4 minutes 21 seconds

Directors name: Chloe Robinson

Record Label: Sony Music

OVERVIEW
I have a variety of ideas that I wish to include in my music video. I am thinking about using Goodwin’s method of illustration for my music video where I will match the lyrics to the narrative, and using aspects of performance such as lip syncing in some areas of the video and using black and white editing effects in some sections to demonstrate the mood. I am also going to use special effects, with lots of different shots, and both fast and slow cuts to go in time to the music.

STYLE

As the genre of the band is ‘Pop Rock’ the clothing style of the actors would be quite casual, perhaps with the girl wearing fashionable clothes and make-up, to fit into the criteria of Pop, as this is what my audience would expect. I may use black and white editing where the boy is remising in his bedroom to show his mood and colourful when he is thinking about the girl, with a slight edited glow, to show that these are his memories.

I’m thinking about having fast, choppy cuts of the camera shots when the audience sees the boy looking at the photographs and the memories. I am also thinking about having smooth and flowing camera work where he is having flashbacks about the girl, connoting that this was a happy period of time for him, compared to now. I think that this will make the video more interesting and may help the viewer to relate to the situation.

I would also have different camera shots such as close ups, long shots, mid shots to ensure that I use as many as possible, to make the video look as good as I can with a variety of different angles and shots.

CONCEPT

Following Goodwin’s classifications, my music video would fall under the heading of Illustration. There will be an ordered narrative throughout the video, also with room for performance, where my actor will lip sync to the lyrics. There will be a number of different shots, such as bird's eye and long shots, as well as close- ups. As the introduction music to the song plays, I plan to have a boy sitting in his bedroom looking at photographs from a previous relationship. There will be close up shots of the photographs to establish to the audience that the photographs are of him and a girlfriend, and connote that they have split up, before the lyrics begin, as will close ups and mid shots of his posture to establish that the boy is upset.

There will be a shot of the boy lip syncing, followed by a head shot of the girl walking, looking behind and laughing to go with the lyrics, ‘cause I got time while she got freedom;. This will establish that the boy is ‘locked in his head’, metaphorically representing that he got time, while the girl looks happy and carefree in comparison.

For the next two lines, there will be a mid shot of the girl walking in the park with another boy, while he looks on, representing that he feels jealous and unable to move on. In this scene I plan to edit it to make it look like it’s glowing to show it as a memory that he’s having, and will contrast with the black and white editing when he is alone in his room. I will then have a shot of him lying in bed tossing and turning.

For the chorus, I will have shots of the boy and girl together, perhaps walking through the park in the same place where he sees her with somebody else. I will also have a shot of them taking some of the pictures that he is looking at on his bed. I then plan to have a side on shot of him looking out of a window, and then a mid shot behind him, putting his head in his hands.

For the next part, I plan to have a shot of the girl and the boy in the bedroom, while she is packing a suitcase ready to leave. This will include scenes of them arguing, and her storming downstairs and out of the front door, where another boy is waiting for her. This helps to establish to the audience that she is leaving him for someone else, and that she was torn between the two.

The scene will then change back to the boy in his bedroom, where is lip syncing to the lyrics, and may perhaps be tearing the photographs. I would then have a point of view shot of the photographs falling to the floor, and I would edit it to slow motion, perhaps to represent the finality of their relationship. The video would then end with him looking out the window again while sitting on his bed, lip syncing to the words, ‘oh it don’t break even no’.

SUMMARY

I believe, from the ideas that I have already generated, that I will be able to make a successful music video. I believe that my narrative well matches the lyrics and will keep my audience interested, as will the contrast of the black and white editing that contrasts with the colourful memories. I think that the video fits in well to the band of The Script as they talk about love and everyday situations in their music.