Michel Chion’s (cited in Vernallis,2013 p.9) puts forward the concept of value; where the image, in this case the music video, takes on the tone and characteristics of the music it’s accompanying. 

Kanye West’s “Power” (2010) is a good example of this as the song is all about power and, as the chorus goes “no one man should have all that power” which is accompanied by the visual (below) of West in the center of a moving visual which is made to reflect renaissance art used to depict divine or godly beings. Beings that, unlike ‘man’, would be omnipotent. 

While that is a traditional example on this insight. The more interesting example comes from the Netflix exclusive series “Arcane”(2021). The creators of the show (as seen in the video above) have said that they wanted every episode to have a “mini music video”, a moment where the music can take over and either tell the story or set the mood. For example, the clip below being from the pilot episode with the song “Playground” (2021) by Bea Miller and is used to introduce the underground city of Zaun, which for context is contrasted by upper city of Piltover which is more upper-class and pompous. 

What’s interesting about this is that, during its production period, the soundtrack was made in tandem with the show as opposed to the music being made/commissioned post-production. Not only does this adhere to Chion’s concept of value as, being made alongside the show has allowed for the soundtrack and the show to be synchronized in tone and attitude when it needs to be, but I believe this to also set a great precedent for the potential future of music videos and film-making. Yes, music videos by themselves can tell great narratives and invoke emotion, but I believe that integrating music and visuals in the way that Arcane has will open more ways for creators to tell stories and enhance the audience’s viewing experience. 

Daniel Woodburn-33560807 (16/11/2022)

References

Kanye West. (6 August 2010), Power. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L53gjP-TtGE (Accessed 16 November 2022)

League Of Legends (2021) ‘/dev diary: The Music of Arcane’.YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMzi3-2Nct0 (Accessed 16 November 2022)

Riot Games Music, (12 November 2021), Bea Miller-Playground. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jfI-z__GY0 (Accessed 16 November 2022)

Vernallis, C. (2013) Unruly media YouTube, music video, and the new digital cinema. New York: Oxford University Press. P.209

‘Welcome to the Playground’ (2021) Arcane, Season 1, episode 1 Directed by Charrue,P. & Delord, A. Written and created by Linke,C. & Yee,A. France & USA, Netflix.