Generic/Audience Research- Overall Codes and Conventions of kpop music videos

Codes and Conventions of Kpop music videos

After analysing Kpop music videos in great detail, I have identified the codes and conventions of this genre, and I have listed them below:

•        Kpop music videos are almost always ‘performance based commercial exhibitionists’ according to Sven E Carlson’s theory on types of music video as the performers are made into a selling item; fans will aspire to be like them and the music video will appear to have a high quality, and a ‘gloss’ to them.    
  
• ·       A ‘star image’ is always created via adhering to the target audience’s ideologies. In terms of the Kpop genre, this is achieved by the display of materialistic wealth (through fashionable high end branded clothing, elaborate and expensive looking sets, and overall pleasing aesthetics).
  
• ·       Kpop music videos almost always have the master shot of the group dancing. Not only does this provide the music video with structure (Carol Vernallis), it also contributes towards creating a ‘star image’, as the better the choreography and its execution, the more the artists are viewed as talented. However, like Richard Dyer theorises, this ‘talented’ image is constructed. And this is through years of pre-debut training, and choreographies being created by external, professional dancers.
  
• ·       Kpop music videos contain lots of close up shots of the artists in order to meet the demands of the record label to help sell the artist.
  
• ·       Kpop music videos are expected by its target audience to be aesthetically pleasing in all areas of the music video; editing, camerawork mis-en-scene etc.
• ·       Kpop music videos almost always consist of elements of performance, narrative and art/cutaway shots, adhering to Andrew Goodwin’s theory from ‘Dancing in the distraction factory’. The different types of content usually enable fans to display what Henry Jenkin's theories as 'participatory culture', where fans will create theories from the music video, and 'cover dances'. 

  

  Screenshot from kpop dance cover video from music NCT's music video (shown below)

  

• A recent trend that I have also noticed is the mixture HQ and LQ shots, with the low quality shots imitating a 'VHS' feel to the footage. (Shown below in NCT's 'limitless')

My research has also been confirmed by asking my focus group about what they expect to see from kpop music videos in particular :