Music Video Analysis One: One Direction - "What Makes You Beautiful"

The mise en scene used in the music video is aimed at a target demographic of student teenagers. The location used in the video is of a relaxed beach implying the artists are on a “lads holiday” which is typically related to the teenage psychographic who want to get away from student life. The props used also have conotations to the modern youth; transport includes a campervan, this implies that the band are on an escape from realty. Other props used by the band in the video are footballs and guitars; both props have male connotations and are representative of typical teenage boys actions whilst on holiday. The band’s costume is also typical and trendy to teenagers of the 21^st century wearing high street fashion including chinos and checked shirts/ tops. This use of costume style is aimed at the teenage target demographic who are identified in similar ways.  

The sound used in the video includes an immediate ambient sound of waves crashing and birds singing – this creates a representation of a tropical getaway. The digetic sound used includes the actual band singing the song; which is a typical convention of pop music videos. Lyrically the song is aimed at a demographic of teenage females; "that's what makes you beautiful" and "you're insecure, don't know what for" are both examples of conventional lyrics sung by a teenage boyband in order to appeal to the target audience of female teenagers who are fans of the band.  

Various types of camerawork are used in the music video to relate to typical pop video conventions and successfully target an audience of teenagers. The video opens with a pan/ establishing/ point of view shot of the beach location with waves crashing on the rocks. The effect of this camera shot creates a sense of student paradise for the teenage audience to get carried away into and aspire to experience the same. Next, there’s a close up of the band’s lead singer Harry emphasising his importance and popularity which is relatable to mainly teenage girls as the target audience. Over the shoulder shots are used in the video so the viewer perceives what the singer sees. A further pan is used to show all of the members of the band’s faces to highlight the band’s unity. There is a close up on the only female in the video; she appears physically attractive and fun; this beautiful/ perfect female image gives teenage girls a look to aspire to and gives boys a teenage crush. There is also use of a handheld camera which creates an effective shaky, unsteady shot; the use this camera shot can be related to the target audience of teenagers who use handheld camera's whilst on holiday or at parties.

The editing techniques used in the pop video include fade in transitions from the opening of a summer beach giving the appeal of a teenage holiday which is relatable to teenagers who want to go on holiday. Subtitle credits “directed by” are also used as a pop video convention and to give credit to the producers. Slow motion shots are also used to emphasise the band’s relaxed/ unstressed manner; the effect of slow motion shots are to break up the video and to look professional and also fit in with the slow paced parts of the song.