Music Video analysis - Castle on the hill

Castle on the hill music video – Ed Sheeran

1. Visual illustration of lyrics 

In the music video, Ed Sheeran is saying "I was running from my brother and his friends" which is evidently shown in the shot. The visual depiction of lyrics helps to create a nostalgic atmosphere as Ed Sheeran paints a memorable scene of his childhood adventures. 

 2. Varied and fast-paced Mis-en-scene

As exemplified in this shot, there are three different mis-en-scenes, however, they are formulating a linear sequence to the music video, as this music video is a mixture of both performance and narrative. This is a typical convention of music videos as it features jump cutting as highlighted in this shot. Furthermore, the low key lighting combined with the casual costumes illustrate a natural setting of the music video, whilst still creating excitement. 

3. Parallel editing 

                                                                             Parallel editing is a technique commonly used in narrative music videos. It is used to portray multiple lines of action, occurring in different places, simultaneously. In this shot, there is parallel editing to emphasise how all of his friends have grown up as he states what each one is doing currently; "One friend left to sell clothes, one works down by the coast, one had two kids but lives alone" This adds to the nostalgic ambiance as Ed Sheeran reminisces about when they were all friends. 

4. Variation of camera angles and shots 

As exemplified in this shot, there is a combination of a medium close up, extreme close up and an establishing shot. Music videos use a variation of these shots especially in narrative music videos to gain a connection with the protagonist and to magnify the emotions of the characters in the music video. Furthermore, the establishing shot gives the audience a sense of location, thus adding to the narrative. Also, later in the music video, there is tracking which is prominent in music videos as this includes the audience and makes them feel as if they are in the video. 



5.  Miming and lip sync  

                                                                     Miming is a well-established technique of the music video, the artists will often mime and lip sync in their videos to connect their image and performance to the sound of the song. As highlighted in the shot, Ed Sheeran is miming on the chorus of the song to emphasise the nostalgia that he inhabits.