Textual Analysis Video 1

 

Charice Pempengco - Louder
This song was written by Daniel Jamas, Leah Haywood, Shelly Peiken and produced by Dreamlab.
Genre: Mainstream, Teen pop, dance-pop.

Charice's song Louder evolved on the net for download in May 2011. The youtube sensation appeared on Little Big Star Big Division, Season 1, 2005 Philippines which struck attention to her as an artist, after each year passed she developed more as an individual become known for all sorts of Industry work and appearing on Glee in 2010 as Sunshine. Oprah Winfrey claimed Charice to be "the most talented girl in the world" as she was recognised for having a mature voice from the age as young as ten. Louder is the second international single she brought out from her album Infinity which was produced through the major label and conglomerate Warner Bros. Records.

The video by Tim Cruz starts non diegticly with the words 'Louder' therefore straight away you see the point of the title and her voice. After the intro slide is over a slow montage of clips is shown of Charice before the lip syncing is shown, once begun you see a full connection to the narrative of the lyrics; 'I'm staring out of my window and the rain is pouring down.' The camera is panning slowly to the left on Charice stood near the window. Charice is shown as a attractive, well dressed girl stood looking at the rain which instantly connects to the audience of a stereotypical way to solutionise a problem in the female gender. The song is connoting a break up between a couple yet focusing on how strong Charice is as a woman afterwards. This is connoted not only by the lyrics but how she is smiling, clenching her fists to the air and how the setting changes through the video.

We see a change of location from the window to a studio like space, darkly lit with a dark grey/blue backdrop. This is a quick cut in the editing and is connected through an action. Charice is using her fingers to motion a trickle of rain, bringing he hand high to low moving her fingers. As the camera cuts she does this in the new location therefore it doesn't look that out of place. For each of the studio section that we see Charice is shown in a variety of shots, She is wearing a light grey to brown dress which is flowing but still figure shaping with a bulky necklace and burgondy criss cross high heels. This is connoting how much of a woman she is feeling without her partner. Videos such as Stay by Rihanna is an example of similar storylines; the tone of the music, the costume she wears and the darkly lit setting the audience is instantly connected with the idea she is upset because of the breakup she has had in a relationship. The frame cuts several times through different locations showing medium close up shots and close up shots.  Apart from the darkly lit locations at the start of Charice's video the other elements are completely the opposite, initiating that people shouldn't always be sad from a break up. Break ups in relationships can make people stronger and happier in life and to move on happy from that. Charice also implies this in her lyrics 'I'm gonna run right through the pain.. feel that rythm feel that drum' as if she is getting through the pain but she finding her feet afterwards by being brave. Throughout this section there are several parts that are edited to slow down in time so that it has more of an effect in the scene; for example at 27 seconds when her hair is flicked.

As the chorus comes in at 0.38 seconds there is a quick cut from the dark background studio to a white background, the same time as when the bass comes in on the song. This connoting that she is in a better light than before and she has seen the good rather than the bad as we instantly recognise the opposites of black and white. Using the binary opposite backgrounds as locations it can show the audience there will be both good and bad sides to losing somebody in a relationship. Her song title 'Louder' reflects the fact she is not 'need[ing] no shoulder' and being 'a soldier' is so much louder and speaks volumes compared to being weak instead of brave. The cinematography is still in the first few scenes after 38 seconds and then as the chorus gets quicker the editing gets faster too. Long shot zooms are shown as well as quick pans from behind her body to the left hand side of her at the window as well. These are used to make the video more exciting and give the audience more to look at. At 46 seconds Charice makes a stomping action with both her hands on 'feel that rhythm', at the same time the lights are used as a main prop in the miss en scene. Although the lights aren't in view there is a streaked glimmer from each bulb at either side of her to create a bass like effect on a stereo. As well as this there is a fan on her from the directors side of the camera which emphasises her power, almost as if the authority has took her through. To further emphasise this the camera zooms forward at the same time. The fans and zoom in and outs are used several times after this shot to show the audience that the authority she gained has not been lost and she feels the same now, nothing is going to change her mind. Quick cuts are also often in this section to connote the music genre of being pop/dance. It's portrayed as a song that people will get up and dance to therefore this will help the atmosphere if played at an appropriate place. The video is very energetic in the chorus therefore it will help lift the audiences mood but apply this editing style.

Just after a minute we see Charice surrounded by strings of crystals, again in a darkly lit place however with a light slightly below her to make the gems shine. The crystals could be connoting the fact she has alot of good things around her such as family and friends therefore she 'aint going back'. This could also be connoting that it's too much within her space, she is surrounded so doesn't need anybody else and likes being alone. There is a close up shot featured within this section that has been slowed down in time to create the effect that the gems were smashing in front of her. Due to the video being such an up beat song with dancing and quick edits this is a very powerful shot in the sequence. I liked this shot because the song is going but there is no lipsyncing involved yet it is so impacting to the audience. This is also because of the clear eye contact that she has with the audience.

A series of shots are featured within the crystal location such as panning shots, tracking shots, close up zooms, and quick straight cuts. They are all put together very quickly due to the quick pace of the song. This adds to the dance element of the genre Charice chose to create a song for. The window shots of Charice looking at the rain are also slotted into this section to reinforce that the break up isn't always strong afterwards, she has her time to think about it. This is shown in her lyrics 'I am.. over.. overthinking of how to get you back' then after she has 'check[ed] out for the weekend' she doesn't want him back. This showing that after having time away doing things she enjoys she realised she doesn't need her old partner to keep her happy.

To break away from them locations and enter another you see a puddle on the floor of what looks to be a pavement outside and someone stamp in the middle of it. This could be connoting to the audience that a break up feels like that at first, a stamp on yourself, however as the camera shot is cut to Charice dancing with two backing dancers you can only enjoy yourself after you can got over that first stamp. The cinematography and editing work along side each other in this section as the camera captures particular actions from the other scenes and the editing style is that they're all cut together one after another to continue making you feel happy. For example there is a clap and a drum fist action used by Charice put in this section at 44 and 45 seconds. The outdoor scene is a very striking section, similar seen in other videos performed by Jason Derulo, Nicole Scherzinger and Christina Aguilera. The dance routine featured within this location has the same moves shown previously in the video providing continuity with both vocals and dancing throughout the video. This promotes Charice as an artist and a dancer and shows she has more than one skill to offer if she were to get signed to a different record label. The is a montage of slow and fast clips from all locations once the chorus hits in this section.

Once that chorus is over from 2.00 minutes to 2.32 minutes there is a slower verse however Charice still performs it with strength and ability the same as the previous section. The editing style is continuous throughout this section but there is more cinematography involved such as a tilt shot at 2:23, this is a slow shot before the video quickens again and when the camera reaches her face it prolongs on the eye contact that is with Charice to keep that connection to the audience. As the music builds up to the chorus again at 2.25 minutes the footage starts to get slightly faster before becoming lots of short, quick cuts of clips filmed on all four locations again. There is still the continuity of editing with the slow  The dances become more challenging here, this gives the audience that feeling of satisfaction. The video ends on a quick stop after the last chorus is sung to make you feel as if you have had a great time listening to it, even if it is about a subject more down and upsetting. This technique cutting the video straight at the end allows thought to build from the audience and conclude the video in their own way.

In conclusion the dance genre turns both good and bad stories into a positive thought to the target audience. By using a break up as a subject you would expect stereotypically to have a very dark, upsetting video but by changing the genre to dance it is able to break conventions of theories such as The Structure of the classic Narrative Structure by Tzvetan Todarov. Todarov argued that there is a narrative formed within a piece such as a protagonist and antagonist, they have conflict between them, there is a disruption, quest and resolution however using a dance video breaks that. The lyrics of the artists song may convey what Todarov implied and argued however the video is simply promoting the artist as a soloist and not producing a narrative like people created in the olden days; e.g. Cliff Richard - Summer Holiday.