Genre
The music video for ‘Beating heart’ is the genre of synthpop which is shown through the visuals used in the video. Synthpop is a type of pop music featuring heavy use of synthesizers and other electronic instruments. The video features the artist alone in the forest suggesting independence. To fit with this genre there are lots of shots of the artist and her alone as it is not until towards the end of the video where we see her interact with someone else. This illustrates the independent characteristic of this unusual style of music. This music video has clips from a film called ‘Divergent’ which acts as a narrative to the music video along with the shots of the artist. To demonstrate the pop genre the video includes attractive characters, both male and female, which is a common for a video of this genre of this music. There is direct focus on the artist in the video and there aren’t many shots without her in central frame. The only views that aren’t of the artist are of the film which is also popular that is likely to attract the same audience as this film follows the same pop characteristics. 
Another genre of pop characteristic is to focus on a love story; this is shown through both parts of this video. The parts of the film included in this music video show the relationship between the two main characters which tie in with this genre and keep the audience interested. The artist links to the characteristic of a love where she meets the man she is clearly in love with in the video and so conveys this pop characteristic. The outdoor environment and focus on nature show an indie style therefore could be seen as this genre of music as not only being pop but also indie. This is further emphasised by the artist’s clothing demonstrating a free attitude. The shots along the beach and of the trees surrounding the artist demonstrate this further.Relationship between song and visuals
Instead of usual pop videos where the artist is a part of the narrative, this video has split shots between the narrative which is clips from the film and the performance given by the artist. As most of the video with the artist starring in it is made up her singing, there is a clear relationship between lyrics and visuals, as the audience can see her singing along to the song therefore showing the emotion and meaning of the lyrics through her actions and behaviour. However, there are some links to the lyrics within the clips of the film and from the artist showing key lyrics as well.
Not only is there links with lyrics and visuals but also the music and the visuals. The beginning of this song is very calm and soothing which is represented when the artist is walking through a forest slowly, which creates a peaceful atmosphere. However, as the song starts build, the clips from the film start to appear. The main character in the film is running towards a fire and the editing of the video becomes a faster pace, much like the tone of the music. Further into the song more fast paced editing is used to put together continuous shots to quicken the pace. The pan camera shots of the artist as the camera goes around her represent the change of pace in the song. This music video although has a narrative part which is the clips from the movie, it is based more on the performance of the singer and doesn’t have a narrative including her. 
Her performance part of the music video is all focusing on her and nature. The setting with the surroundings of trees, sunlight and mountains again reinforce the peacefulness of the song. The clothing is also kept very basic so it is not a distraction from the voice of the artist as that is the main focus in this video, as all background noises such as background vocals are kept to a minimum. All characters are wearing black with very minimal colour, and there is not many other colours used in the entire video. The atmosphere created by the artist by wearing a black dress is that it is simple yet powerful which is reinforced by the simple video yet her powerful voice. However, the artist is accessorized with gold jewellery making her seem more luxurious and showing her wealth. Camera shot
Ellie Goulding in the music video is displayed in a natural setting with little special effects or other performers making all the emphasis on her and her voice. The setting for the video remains simple so the focus is directly on the singer and that there is nothing else for the audience to focus on. However, to ensure the video is not boring for the audience, they inserted parts of a film which help to make it more interesting to the audience and get the attention of both the film series fans and Ellie’s fans helping two incorporations at once. However all the shots of the film are very subtle and not obvious so the audience isn’t driven away from the music video and more interested in finding out the film and watching it. The artist’s performance appears relaxed which is supported by her environment and simplistic setting.
There are lots of close ups on the artist to show her powerful voice to the audience but there are also mid/long shots to show the artist in more depth and to admire not only her voice but her beauty. There are also close ups of the actors in the film which need to be included to try and sell the film which is a fundamental part of a collaboration, when working with the artist and the film company. Little colour is used in the music video; the artist and the actors from the film are wearing black and the environment both the artist and actors are very bland and dull in colours. The lack of colour allows the artist and the characters to remain the main focus with features such as the natural sunlight creating different effects on the artist’s looks.
Voyeurism
The use of the forest and the dull colours of the surroundings in this music videos allow the audience to focus purely on the artist and her singing which references the notion of looking. She is often referencing her tattoos by looking at them herself or by placing her hands over them which references the notion of looking for the audience. Also this links to this part in the film where the girl is studying the tattoos on the boy. Ellie Goulding is wearing a simple black dress in this music video which is short so it shows of her body; furthermore the audience can see she is not wearing a bra which gestures towards voyeuristic treatment of the female body. This is highlighted by the artist’s use of her hands on her bare skin. These characteristics reference the male gaze as she is known to be someone beautiful to look at which makes the video more attractive to a wide range of audience rather than just her female fan base. The male body is also displayed in a voyeuristic way as shots of the male characters topless are included in this video to reference to show the strong, tough stereotype of males.Intertextuality
There are some intertextual references seen within this music video. The first is of course with the film that is being represented in the music video, Divergent. The clips used in the music video are taken from the film and so there are similarities there. The second is with a similar film to Divergent, The Hunger Games. The Hunger Games and Divergent are very similar films with how there is fast paced action and the colours in parts of both films are very dull and plain, much like the music video. An intertextual reference to The Hunger Games appears where the birds appear in the music video from a clip in the movie that is intertwined with Ellie’s performance. This links to the whole notion of Katniss being the ‘mockingjay’ throughout the film series. There are also intertextual references to the first Twilight film where a lot of the film is set out in the woods where the layout if very similar to the one that this music video is shot in. 
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