PURPOSE OF MUSIC VIDEOS

Music videos are a marketing device used to promote a band/artist and their song and album.
They are different to short films as they contain a higher use of cuts and camera shots.
There are many ways in which music videos can accomplish this for example, by the use of a:

• Performative Video (in which the artist / band are featured performing)
• Abstract Video (which doesn't focus on the artist / band or lyrics)
• Technique Video (which features a series of techniques, e.g. filming your video backwards)
• Narrative Video (follows the story-line of the lyrics)

Other aspects that are key to a successful music video are;

• Good lip-syncing (miming the lyrics to the song)
• On-beat editing (matching cuts with the tempo of the song)
• Variety of camera angles / movements / shots and positions
• Various, but relevant, costume and location changes

Here is a good example of music videos containing lots of cuts.
This song featured 129cuts in 4'mins and 8seconds



An example of on-beat-editing.
(cutting to the beat of the song)