Music Video Analysis - 'Owl City'

Owl City – “Fireflies”
Genre: Electropop



Music videos tend to be dual narrative and are normally fast paced montages to ensure the video has the ‘repeatability’ factor. Fireflies is not dual narrative but is still composed of many different images and clips which ensures ‘repeatability’ factor to allow the audience to capture the mise-en-scene used throughout the video.
This music video links with Andrew Goodwin’s theory of ‘visuals either illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics and music.’ This is because throughout the video lyrics are linked with images of them and also contradicts the lyrics because there are occasions throughout where the lyrics being sung have no connection to the image being shown.
The video only has one setting – which is of a bedroom with many toys and the artist to one side playing his keyboard. Many different camera angles are used to show the toys and also the artist. Another of Andrew Goodwin’s theories is ‘Close Ups should always be included’ and this music video conforms to this as there are many close ups of the toys in the bedroom, the artist singing and also lyrics being displayed.
The video opens with a close up of the keyboard and a switch being turned on which attracts away from the artist and to the props and mise-en-scene of the room.
John Stewart’s Theory says ‘the video allows more access to the performer that a stage performance can. The mise-en-scene, in particular, can be used to emphasise an aspirational lifestyle.’ This is another theory that links with the video and the lyrics and shows that the artist must want to be young again as he talks about fireflies which is an interest for young children and the toys also link to this.
The artist himself is dressed casually in a dark coloured t-shirt but this is not what gives the audience a representation of the artist because the room he is performing in does this for him.
There is little light at the start of the video which creates a loneliness and innocent feeling and again this links to the lyrics that are about not wanting to say goodbye to fireflies. However, as the music becomes more upbeat there are more lights that turn on in the room, in time to the music, and create light for the artist to perform in.
To ensure that the audience sees all of the toys in the room, sometimes the same shot is used but the focus is changed from soft focus to deep focus.
One of the conventions of a music video is to show the lyrics on screen and this happens in the Fireflies video. When the chorus is played not all but parts of the lyrics are shown in different ways which adds interest to the video. Another convention is to use more special effects and throughout this video special effects are used to change the focus and also occasionally a blur effect is used to help change the shot.
This video has a target audience of a young age due to the toys used and the setting of a childs room, however those with the same aspirations of the artist of wanting to be a kid again could be another target audience.