CCR

CCR Essay – Ed Sheeran “Perfect” Music Video 

For my A Level Media Studies project, I chose to create a music video for Ed Sheeran’s song “Perfect.” This is a pop song, and it’s all about romance, which made it a really interesting but also slightly difficult song to work with as the song is based on Ed’s real-life relationship with his wife, Cherry Seaborn. This made it slightly easier to come up with a visual story for my music video, but also a challenge not to just copy the original music video, which I didn’t want to do, but I do think I may have done that slightly. 

In my music video and digipak, I tried to show a realistic relationship. One of the most important themes I focused on was love and romance, which I portrayed through a 17year old boy and girl who met at a party, went on some dates, and eventually fell in love. I wanted it to feel natural and relatable, not overly dramatic. This storyline can represent a lot of people who have gone through similar experiences, no matter their background. 

Something I tried to focus on was diversity, especially around ethnicity. The male lead in my music video is a different ethnicity as well as female lead, and I tried to show their relationship in a positive way as he is represented as a more caring, soft, and supportive guy. This goes against some typical stereotypes of men as they are often portrayed in a more non- emotional or non- empathetic light. The female lead is South African and a few side characters are also from different ethnic backgrounds, including Greek. I wanted to include different cultures and give the video a more realistic and diverse feel. 

           

 

 

However because I’m a different ethnicity to them I may not have portrayed every aspect of their relationship or culture as accurately as someone from those backgrounds would. I think in future getting more input from other people with different perspectives to make sure it feels authentic would be a good idea. 

I also tried to include representation of groups that don’t get as much attention lately, like young white girls with blonde hair as I personally feel they aren’t as commonly portrayed as main characters now due to the push for diversity. I added this type of dancer as a way of balancing representation a bit more. 

Overall, I wanted the video to represent relationships regardless of ethnicity, culture, or age 

I really tried to make sure my music video, digipak, and Instagram page all worked together as one project. The main vibe I wanted across everything was something romantic, calm, and warm which is why I chose to film during sunsets and sunrises with a small hint of fire. The golden-hour lighting created this soft, glowing mood that felt very peaceful and romantic. That same bright but soft orange also appears in my digipak and Instagram page too these factors all tie together visually and emotionally. 

For font choice, I used a handwritten-looking font that is very similar to the one Ed Sheeran uses on his own albums. It’s rough, simple and authentic and it fits with the kind of down-to-earth and heartfelt feeling that both Ed’s music and my video have. I also have used that same font on my Instagram posts, video title, and on the digipak just to keep it consistent. 

The colours across all the products are mostly warm tones, golds, oranges, light pinks, and sky blues, these colours help connect everything and give it a peaceful, dreamy look. The costumes were kept casual and relatable; jeans, hoodies, summer dresses/ skirts. Nothing too fancy just like regular people, which is what I wanted, that authentic but aesthetic look. 

 

 

 

 

Even though I think the branding works well overall, I do think there’s room to push it further. Some parts of the music video could be a bit more creative or more closely linked to Ed Sheeran’s personal style. Next time, I’d try to come up with some more unique visuals or ideas that still feel like they belong with his music but are more original and don’t follow the original music video and many other romantic music videos. 

 

When planning my music video, I thought a lot about who the audience would be. Ed Sheeran’s fans are mostly young people around the ages 16- 25 so I wanted the video to feel similar to many young relationships. The story of a young couple meeting, dating, and falling in love is something many people have gone through or hope to go through, so I felt that would make it emotionally engaging and possibly even nostalgic, however I do think that because the cast was so young it would be harder for some adults to relate to the music video as their relationships may have been very different or they may have never experienced relationships like these young kids as relationships are so different these days. 

The diverse cast also helps different audiences connect with the video. People of different ethnic backgrounds might see themselves represented on screen, and hopefully feel included. I also think that dancers might enjoy the video because of the dancing scenes and movement, which adds something different not just acting. The dancer in the video brings a certain grace and flow that matches the music beautifully. However it may not have had such a great effect as the dancing scenes were only shot still which doesn't make it as visually appealing and can even take away from the music video. Also, the fact that because of the weather the sky wasn’t as blue the whole time this can then distract the viewers again. 

I also added the white, blonde dancer partly because I felt that this group has recently become less visible in media due to the push for more diversity but, I also wanted to show that all groups deserve representation, especially in a fair and balanced way. 

Overall, I think different types of people can enjoy the video whether it’s for the romantic story, the representation or the dance scenes which made something that felt personal but still accessible to a wide range of viewers. 

 

Before starting the production, I did quite a bit of research into other music videos, especially romantic ones. I studied Ed Sheeran’s original “Perfect” video, as well as videos by other artists like Taylor Swift “Love story” and Lewis Capaldi “Someone You Loved”. I noticed that a lot of these videos use slow, emotional shots with lots of close-up shots, natural lighting, and often tell some kind of narrative story. 

I tried to use those conventions in my own work. E.g. I used a lot of close-ups and two-shots to show the connection between the couple. I filmed during sunset to get that warm lighting that creates a soft and emotional feeling. I also used camera angles like high shots, wide shots, and over-the-shoulder shots to add variety and show emotion from different perspectives. 

At the same time, I tried to challenge some conventions, especially when it came to representation. Most romantic music videos still focus on very stereotypical casting, so I wanted to show a more diverse couple in a more realistic and positive way. I think that challenges the usual media portrayals in a small way. 

I also thought to incorporate a lot of marketing on the Instagram page as that's what many pop singers do with their music. 

I’ve learned a lot through this project, especially critically. I’m happy with the way the narrative turned out, and I think the branding works well overall. The use of sunsets, the romantic storyline, the soft colours, and the warm tone all help tie the video and digipak together. 

At the same time, I know there are things I could improve. I’d like to make the Instagram page more polished. I also wanted to develop more original visual ideas, instead of relying on inspiration from other artists too much. And while I’ve tried to be inclusive, I know there’s more I could do to represent people and relationships authentically.