Analysis of Pop Video 1

Analysis of 'Baby One More Time' - Britney Spears.

Locations:

This music video contains 4 different main locations, each found inside or around a typical American high school. This type of setting fits in with the pop genre due to the 'playful' nature of the surroundings fitting in with the cheery and upbeat tempo of the music.Viewers may presume that Spears is of a younger age, automatically linking her with her surroundings.

School Gym

As Spears is seen to be sitting in the school's gym, this suggests that she is very active and sporty. This is reinforced by her clothing throughout the video, which includes tracksuit bottoms and sports tops. The love interest is also shown here specifically, as the artist is looking at him. This character may make you feel sorry for the artist, as he is paying no particular interest in her at that point, which is a situation that may allow Spears to connect with her teenage audience through.

Classroom

The use of a school may show that the artist wishes to hang onto her past, or that she is nostalgic of those times. This video portrays Spears to be innocent and vulnerable due to her high-school status, however as the video proceeds she is also shown to have an edgy side through her dance movements and lyrics.

High School Corridor

Clothing:

The clothing included in this video largely revolves around the scenes location. As they are inside the main part of the school, Britney Spears can be seen to be wearing a typical 'school girl' outfit, yet again with an edge. The costume has been adapted to create a 'sexy' edge, bringing in her personality which is also reflected in the music. This outfit suggests that Spears wants to be seen as innocent, perhaps as her music aspires to a young generation of girls, however she can connect with her adult audiences too.

School Car Park

 Other costumes include sports wear, with a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a pink crop top being the choice of outfit in the car park. This is again a playful outfit which takes advantage of her body, appealing to both the younger and older audiences. This may show that Britney doesn't take herself too seriously, that she wants to show her fans she is still young and fun, connecting with the pop music genre. .

Gym Outfit

A basketball style outfit is taken on within the gym, matching the scene and emphasising her innocence and young age, showing the range of people that this genre of music is mainly aiming for - young, teenage girls. Spears' hair is also shown to be in pigtails throughout the video, although they are also in plaits when she is in the school classroom situation. The general hairstyle influences how 'innocent' she appears, making her seem younger. By taking the plaits out as she has entered the gym, this may suggest that her school was holding her back, and now she is taking control of the situation and letting go a bit more.

'Sexy' School Girl Outfit

Props:

The props within this music video include sports/school equipment and various background items such as cars, however the main focus is not on the props, but the dancing shown. This represents what pop music is created for - as something to dance to. By seeing people dancing within the video, this makes the audience want to join in, thus matching the purpose of the song. 

Basketball

The two props which were notably featured were some school books in the first scene and basketballs in the last. The basketball here can be representative of a fun activity, whereas the school books are the opposite. This can again suggest that her real passion lies outside of her school work. 

Books

Cinematography:

The cinematography in this music video included mostly long and mid-shots throughout such as when dancing in the gym, enabling the audience to see everything involved. As there is dancing on screen, those who are viewing the video may feel more compelled to dance along and have fun, adjourning to the music video's purpose.

Extreme Long Shot

The close ups featured are mainly of the artist's face, as it is important to see the 'star' of the video and let people recognise that this song belongs to her. This video is filmed as a montage of shots, which allows the audience to see an insight into Spear's life/daydream within the video, making the video more interesting than if there were continuity editing throughout her narrative.

Close Up

Concept/Narrative:

There seems to be little narrative to this music video, as Britney appears to prefer dancing in her video than to tell a story. The concept of the song/video by Spears included breaking up with a boyfriend, and longing to have him back. The underlying narrative of the video is that Britney is daydreaming about dancing around school.