Statement of Intent

Statement of intent draft

Quokka Institution

In the Music video for my band ‘Quokka Institution’, I intend to use spy and thriller genre tropes mixed with a comedic style. I would like to use multiple intertextual references to famous spy and/or thriller films, for example the James Bond series, to create a sort of homage video that the audience will instantly recognise. I believe my chosen style will fit with my chosen song, ‘Psycho’, as the lyrics are focussed on the brainwashing of innocent minds through propaganda, turning civilians into soldiers. They have connotations of protesting against military organisations, as well as against espionage and government mistrust. To me, they represent that most conflicts throughout history have been fought by men who did not ask for war. I therefore plan to use cut ins of stock footage, showing the 1960’s anti-war protests, as I feel this will fit well. 

The narrative of my music video will be based on a deserter soldier who has been previously brainwashed into fighting for his country, but who is now trying to get back home to his family, with the overall narrative being focussed on presenting to the audience that individuals who fight in conflicts are often just ordinary people who want to get back home. In terms of Mise-en-scene, I would like to incorporate ‘selective colour’ into my video. This is a technique where a specific and distinct set of colours stand out from an otherwise monochrome background. This could change and develop alongside the narrative, perhaps adding more colour as the story unfolds. I would have my main character wear the colour of clothing that I want to stand out, and then use colour grading in the edit to make that colour brighter and more saturated than all the others. I believe this will give my music video a distinct look that will be interesting to the audience as a clear artistic choice. The specific colour I will use will be red to match the rest of the promotional material from the band, such as the website. I have chosen red deliberately, as it provides a sharp, bright contrast while also being a metaphor for the bloodshed in war. 

The Issue I will focus on is the issues with the use of misleading propaganda to brainwash people, and the mental strain placed on those in the armed forces, protesting their treatment and the consequences they may face for attempting to avoid conflict. The 2012 edition of the United States Manual for Courts-Martial states that “Any person found guilty of desertion or attempt to desert shall be punished, if the offense is committed in time of war, by death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct, but if the desertion or attempt to desert occurs at any other time, by such punishment, other than death, as a court-martial may direct.” This penalty is still in place today in many countries and fails to acknowledge the mental strains faced. It is also a commentary on the use of propaganda to indoctrinate people into fighting in wars that they don’t really understand. In the Vietnam war for example, many American soldiers were asked what they were fighting for, to which almost all had no idea. The lyrics of my song fit this protest, as they talk about turning someone into a ‘psycho’, removing their ability to make rational decisions and instead making them mindlessly fight for something they don’t really understand.

The website will have the same colours and artistic style used in the music video itself, with a single colour (again most likely red) standing out from the rest throughout the website design. I believe this simple but distinctive design choice will appeal to the target audience of 16–25-year-olds well. This design will also be centrally focussed on helping to promote the bands’ individual identity, with photographs and information about them. There will be links to important information, contact information, social media accounts and most importantly the bands YouTube account where new music videos can be viewed. 

However, I will also allow the audience to access this music video through an embedded link within the website itself, keeping the viewers on the bands website so they are more likely to explore their other music for example. To accomplish this, I will use the Wix site editor to create my website, as this will give me a lot of creative freedom in the layout of my website, with many features to help give me a professional and stylish look. I will also have multiple tabs of the website to make navigating it easier, including a start screen, a page dedicated to showcasing their music (Singles/recent releases), and an information page. This will make it easier for the audience to find out more about my artist in a format that is more visually appealing.