Analysis of “Sam Beeton [Official EPK]”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gIO7aBihqc

The clip opens with the studio version of track ‘Under The

Fence’ playing in the background, synced with footage of Sam performing the track. The

second of these shots uses a sideways track to show Sam

playing guitar. Straight away you know that the clip is about Sam and you also get a taste of what his music sounds like. The clip from the start is really well lit

which gives it a welcoming, quite cheerful feel.

This is followed (after around 18 seconds of the track) by a shot of Sam talking but not looking directly at

the camera. The track continues to play in the background for a few seconds until it is replaced by the audio of Sam playing ‘Rain Down On You’. The

topic of discussion for this first section is when Sam set up the label Sweet Luigi with some friends, which seems a good starting point for viewers who might

not know much about Sam.

Whilst Sam is still speaking, there are a couple of other shots included which help to break it up slightly as the same shot for a long

time might get boring. The first of these is an over the shoulder shot whilst he is talking which has been

made black and white in the editing process,

creating a quite aesthetically pleasing

image. Then there is a shot of Sam playing guitar

seemingly in the studio. After these there is again

the shot of Sam discussing releasing music.

The topic seems to come to a close and there is a break between it and the next thing Sam discusses which is his Record Club. This break is through a short clip of him playing guitar in the song which has been playing in the background. The shot is only very short and the camera zooms into a close-up of the guitar.

This is then followed by the interview shot again, where Sam begins to talk about the Record Club. The room itself in which this ‘interview’ scene is

taking place seems fairly welcoming and comfy,

and pleasing to the eye, it’s also nicely lit.

He explains the Record Club and that it means he is able to release ‘a song a month’

to subscribers, and quite fittingly a shot of him recording in the studio is shown. The track

from before, ‘Rain Down On You’, continues to play fairly quietly in the background.

As Sam finishes a sentence the volume of the track grows and Sam is shown performing it

(in the same place that the interview is happening - continuation.) The room itself

gives the song a really nice sound as it echoes a bit. The performance is a sort of taster of what subscribers to the Record Club get.

Whilst still speaking about the Record Club there are shots of Sam packaging the CDs and decorating one sleeve with a stamp, showing that it’s a very

personalised thing to be a part of. After these shots the clip returns to the same shot of Sam speaking whilst sitting on the sofa, where he continues to

explain a few of the benefits of the Record Club, both for fans and for himself. Throughout this the audio of Sam playing ‘Rain Down On You’ continues, and

there is then another shot of him performing the track, and after this the track fades making way for another.

There is a close-up of Sam tuning his guitar, such close-ups of musical equipment seem to be used

often in this type of music documentary.

As Sam starts to speak again there is a shot of him walking down a quiet road which is probably near to the studio. The cameraman follows Sam creating a

tracking shot. This shot is followed by the same again of Sam speaking, and he is starting to discuss

particular songs of his.

When Sam mentions his song ‘My Doll’, audio of him

performing the track starts, and is followed by footage of him doing so. Firstly using a

mid-shot from behind, tracking sideways. Then by a close-up of his guitar, which

zooms out to a mid-shot.

After this, the song fades slightly but continues to play in the

background as Sam describes how Burberry saw a video of him playing the track and asked him

to record it for their Burberry Acoustic Sessions. The same

black and white edit as before is used for a couple of the shots in this sequence, as well as another

close-up of the guitar.

After speaking about it, footage of Sam’s Burberry session is

played for just over 20 seconds, towards the

end of which Sam starts to speak again

about filming the session in a graveyard ‘up the road from the

studio’.

Sam is again shown speaking, and mentions that the video received a ‘ridiculous’ amount of views. Another black and white shot from the side is used, followed by another short clip from the session. Sam goes on to explain that the song is, after that video, perhaps his most known/requested song, showing that being a part of the Burberry project benefitted him. As Burberry are a really high profile fashion brand, it gives the impression to the audience that to have been recognised by

them, Sam must be good!

There is next a short section about another of Sam’s tracks; ‘Good Natured Child’. In the

interview mid shot Sam is shown talking about the track for a few seconds, explaining a little about it though also remaining quite elusive.

After he introduces the idea of the song, there is a 20 second section of the song’s video.

The song fades and another (‘Never Know Love’) begins shortly after. There is a video of Sam performing this track, synced with the studio recording of it, though

before this (perhaps to break up the live performance video and to make the transition of the sound easier as its more prolonged) there is a short black and white mid shot of Sam walking around the town in which the studio

is. The recording of Sam performing the track is all in one shot, keeping it simple and the focus on the music instead! The angle of the shot means that the audience can only really see Sam from the shoulders upwards, so although he is playing guitar it isn’t shown - even more

focus on the singing. The clip of Sam performing the track is interjected by a short section of interview where

Sam talks about the process of writing the track, something which fans aren’t likely to already know and

would find interesting - during this section the music fades slightly but continues playing in the background.

The footage of Sam singing tracks across slightly, when an out of focus plant begins to fill the screen, signalling the end of this shot. There is then another section of Sam

talking about the process of writing and recording music, first using the straight on mid shot, but then repeating the black and white shot from previously in the video. The

song still continues to play in the background but is again faded.

After Sam finishes speaking, there is a particular moment in the song where the acoustic guitar is

prominent, and there is a close-up of Sam playing the guitar in sync with the studio recording.

The song continues and there is a montage of a few clips of Sam, in all three of the shots, a black and white effect has been added. As with before this gives an interesting feel to

the shots, and slightly emphasises that they’re separate from the audio in that

section of the clip, which is what the audience’s focus should be on. First is the

interview shot which is repeatedly used, in a moment between talking, as he is shown to be joking around - a good sign as he isn’t a musician who takes himself too seriously!

There is then a shot from the studio of Sam hitting a drum - possibly the one which can

be heard throughout the song.

‘Never Know Love’ still plays and the shot of Sam playing the song is used again, as with

before the shot tracks sideways slowly - perhaps not very noticeable but creatively it helps as the transition between this and the next shot may have seemed slightly jumpy if

the camera had just been in the same position for the whole shot.

As with before there are some more shots of Sam walking around Godalming with the music still playing in the background. The black and white edit is used

again. The song fades slightly towards the end of the second shot, as Sam starts talking about the future of his music... He says “You never know what’s around the corner” (as he looks over his shoulder - subtle humour) After these shots there’s another one from the interview when Sam is speaking. Using this shot brings a close to the scene as it breaks the two scenes up. The song also completely fades in this shot, making way for ‘Under The Fence’ which plays

once again.

As ‘Under The Fence’ starts playing there is yet another black and white shot, a fairly close-up shot of Sam,

panning upwards as he puts a hat on.

The song continues as there are a couple of shots of Sam

performing the track - again synced with the studio recording. The second shot is a close-up of the guitar, such shots are typical of music documentaries. The fact the recording is outdoors means

the scene is lit well.

The track fades slightly as there is a final section of interview with Sam continuing on the previous topic of

the future of his music. The straight-on shot is used, as well as the black and white shot. This shot could be noted to have a sense of ‘hovering’ as it is much less stable than other shots - perhaps the camera isn’t on

a tripod.

The song picks up again in the finishing moments of the video

and a single shot of Sam is used from the outdoor performance of

the track. The lack of an edit keeps it simple and once more the focus is kept on the music

itself. Towards the end of the shot a black out fade is used, followed by Sam’s logo. If this were a TV documentary the credits would have been shown at this point.