'Bertolt Brecht'

One of my/the ideas of leaving the studio lighting in the background whilst the performance continued, gives connotations that the performance is not reality itself. Instead it is almost an insight into the artists mind and more like a visual representation of reality. Also this is helped by the constant performance to the audience in the performance shots.

• After looking at some of these shots, it arose that infact such performance shots are an example of BERTOLT BRECHT's 'Verfremdungseffekt' theory. -(translated as distancing effect, estrangement effect, or alienation effect).

'Brecht thought the audience required an emotional distance to reflect on what is being presented in critical and objective ways, rather than being taken out of themselves as conventional entertainment attempts to do'.

A summary of this theory:

• a play (mv in our case) should not cause the spectator to emotionally identify with the action before him or her, but should instead provoke rational self-reflection and a critical view of the actions on the stage. - i.e. in our MV we are trying to make the audience look at the issue which arises from the lyrics not just have an emotional attachment to the artist. to clarify we do not want to the audience to think the artist is homosexual or has kissed a boy literally, instead they should be listening to the lyrics and the issue within the song. -JUST AS KATY PERRY'S version does not imply that she is homosexual or has kissed a girl in real life.


• Brecht employed the use of techniques that remind the audience that the play is a representation of reality and not reality itself and hence provides a distance between the artist and the audience, including: the direct address by actors to the audience, transposition of text to third person or past tense, speaking the stage direction out loud, exaggerated, unnatural stage lighting, the use of song, and explanatory placards.
  

-in our MV we are using purposeful unnatural lighting and the fact the audience can see some of the lighting creates the impression that this is not narrative performance (i.e. not part of the narrative/'storyline'). Instead this intentionally draws the audience to become more active viewers and think of the process and issues more critically.
-past tense lyrics (execpt for initial lyrics) which are also like stage direction in the sense he is stating 'he kissed a boy'
-exaggerated action/ gesture codes - which adds to the artists personailty
-direct address

Bertolt Brecht:

Born: 10 February 1898(1898-02-10)Augsburg, Germany
Died: 14 August 1956 (aged 58) East Berlin, Germany

occupation: poet, playwright and theatre director

Notable theatre work: Life of Galileo, Mother Courage and Her Children, Caucasian Chalk Circle

key to my Music Video: The Verfremdungseffekt theory