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Mirrors and Digital Textures

An Exploration of the Digital Intermediate and Taylor Swift’s Pop Music Video Style

By Andrew Pruim

Mainstream and independent music videos have taken on different approaches

when it comes to the use of the digital intermediate (DI). Taylor Swift’s Style pushes on

the boundaries of this paradigm by building an image catalogue that follows the rules of

mainstream music videos but looks more like the work of experimental and independent

artists. An examination of how the digital intermediate has been used to enhance the

presentation of performance and color helps visualize the inner worlds of the video’s

character’s in interesting ways.

An Introduction to the Digital Intermediate

In the 21st Century the cinematic production process has become progressively

more digital. Digital technology is now used from the filming of a production all the way

through to its presentation on digital screens. Lev Manovich in his essay on the digital

cinema notes that the increased use of digital cameras has turned filming from a “final

point” into the first step of post-production and that the arrangement of physical reality

has been replaced by the extensive manipulation of images of reality (5, 6). The term

Digital Intermediate (DI) has been coined to discuss this digitization process and the

manipulation of digital files.

The use of DI and the realization that the computer does not differentiate

between an “authentic” image and one that has been completely computer generated

(Manovich, “Digital” 4-6) have granted producers, directors, and editors the ability to

control with precision every pixel, regardless of its source (Manovich, “Digital 4, Vernallis

5). DI’s wide spread use and influence in changing music videos is noted in almost every

element analyzed by Carol Vernallis in her work “Music Video’s Second Aesthetic”.

  

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However despite DI’s widespread use, the extent of its use has been limited within

the mainstream media. The typical model for the mainstream usage of DI is laid out in

Vernallis’ article “Music Video’s Second Aesthetic?”. Of primary concern to the

mainstream production is generating a video that will hold viewers attention and 1

declare itself the center of the internet (10-11). To do this, various effects are deployed

but always with an eye to the song’s lyrics (9) and justification through narrative (14).

Style as a Mainstream Text

As a mainstream text Taylor Swift’s music video Style certainly exhibits many of 2

the common traits. Lyrics such as “red lip”, “look in your eye”, “white t-shirt”, “long drive”,

and “head lights” all have direct visual counterparts throughout the film and “fade into

view” signals Taylor’s appearance on screen (0:50). Narratively the video’s visual effects

are justified by the cliché of a male performer hallucinating as he drives his car at night

(Vernallis, “Music” 14). This is seen most prominently in the male character (Dominic

Sherwood) driving (1:56) and looking at Taylor in the rearview mirror (2:00) (fig. 7). Later

the use of hallucinogenic colors (3:07) before introducing a video trail effect (3:11)

reinforces the narrative justification for the presence of all the visual effects seen in the

video.

A basic analysis of Style could stop here : This music video is just another example 3

of corporate mainstream production values copying and remixing the effects of videos

seen across Youtube and other video sharing platforms with a cliché narrative for the

sheer purpose of maintaining the viewer’s attention. But as Nicholas Rombes notes when

writing about the relationship of new cinematic movements to the mainstream, we risk

1 The role of music video host sites such as Youtube, itunes, and AOL in generating attention and value for musicians, brands and products is also noted by Fabian Holt (59). 2Taylor Swift’s latest album 1989 has solidified her place in the mainstream with a number of hit singles and official music videos. The singles Shake it off and Blank Space have performed extremely well on Youtube and have each earned a place in the top 15 most viewed ever on Youtube with over 700,000,000 (14th place) and 800,000,000 views (12th place) respectively. 3 One comment on Youtube following Vox’s analysis of Style argues this point, and many more like it can be read here and in other places across the internet. See Fig. 19 and 20. 

  

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missing important changes if we view them as merely permutations of oppressive

ideologies (15).

Style as More than a Mainstream Text

An examination of Style’s image catalog can easily help viewers look beyond the

mainstream conventions. If a spectrum were made between the the appearance of most

mainstream music videos and those that would be considered more artistic, independent

and/or experimental, one would quickly see that the image catalog of Style shares more

visual similarities with the alternative than the mainstream (See Appendix 1).

One place where this alignment can be seen is in the video’s representation of

personhood. Blank Space (fig. 11) and Shake It Off (fig. 12), two other singles on the 1989

album with Style, are much more representative of typical mainstream music videos. In

both, Taylor Swift (and indeed everyone else) remain visible and defined. We are never

called to question what we are looking at or that this could be reality. Even in pieces such

as Flying Lotus’s Never Catch Me (fig. 13) where characters come back to life or Azealia

Bank’s Ice Princess (fig. 14) which heavily uses visual effects to build its screen world, the

characters remain defined. On the alternative end of the spectrum, Holly Herndon’s

experimental piece Interference (fig. 15) provides a good visual example. There is no

question that this is not reality, or at least not reality as we typically perceive it; DI’s

“elastic reality” has been completely embraced. While Style doesn’t go as far as 4

Interference, it does push the use of DI in order to bring new meanings to the song --

particularly in the areas of performance and color.

Fractured Performance

In “Music Video’s Second Aesthetic?”, Vernallis emphasizes that one of the

greatest changes in the digital era has been the shift in performance from body centered

4 “Elastic reality” is a term coined by Lev Malkovich to express the compositing, animating, and morphing that happens to digital footage after it is recorded (“Digital” 5). 

  

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wooden movements in the 80s (8) to fractured images hyper focused on the face 5

complemented by musical arrangement, lyrics, and production (9). Style follows the

trend of a fractured performance hyper focused on the face complemented by the lyrics

(“red lips” and “look in your eyes”) but differentiates itself from other mainstream music

videos through its use of digitally layered elements.

When Vernallis talks about the fracturing of performance it is with an eye to

framing and editing. In Vernallis’ view, digital technology has allowed for tighter editing

and framing (7) designed for the cell phone screen (4, 7, 10). While these elements are

important, it is her statement that “in the digital era the face often bifurcates: eyes versus

mouth, each heading off in different directions” (7) which begins to get at the true

potential for performance in the digital era. As an example, Vernallis offers Nicole

Scherzinger’s performance in her 2010 music video Poison. In this video shots closely

following each other break up the performance by jumping between frontal and Profile

images of Nicole Scherzinger . 6

What makes Style unique in terms of its performance is that on more than one

occasion viewers can simultaneously experience the actors eyes and mouth going in

different directions in the same shot. This is primarily done through the use of mirror

fragments which offer an inserted shot of one performance while the actor on screen

provides another. This effect is most pronounced when Taylor turns her body away from

the camera while the eyes continue to face forward (1:42-3) (fig. 5), but also occurs in

several other places: Taylor’s lips talk while Dominic Sherwood stares blankly (1:10-1:13),

Taylor’s eyes are replaced by Sherwoods’ (1:18), and Taylor appears on top of Sherwood

completely out of sync (1:33). You can also see the mouth branching off from itself in

5 The use of fractured in this text instead of fragmented which tends to be used more broadly in discussions of performance is intentional. First of all it is the language that Vernallis uses in her writing (9) and secondly it has an interesting metaphorical parallel in the fracturing of mirrors in Style. 6 Some examples of this occurring in Poison happen around the cuts at 0:45, 1:07, 1:16, 1:34, 1:46, and 2:08. See figures 16 and 17. 

  

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Style’s mirror adaptation of the kaleidoscope effect, providing a new form of digital

multiplicity (1:21, 1:47) (fig. 2). 7

With the wide variety of options available through the digital intermediate, the

choice to use mirrors as a medium is significant because of the cultural contexts in which

we see mirrors as reflections. Mirrors are meant to reflect who we are. When we look in

the mirror we expect to see a version of ourselves looking back. On a basic level Style

speaks to the broken nature of the characters identity and relationship through cracks in

normal reflective mirrors. The traditional mirror is, however, limited to showing us a

reproduction of our exterior appearance. It cannot reflect what goes on inside a person

and most often we don’t want it to. But the digital intermediate offers us the unique

opportunity to see mirrors that open up windows to the interior nature of characters,

(much like the witch in The Little Mermaid [fig. 18]) and suggests the truth that we have

all known all along: the exterior presentation is only a facade covering the emotions

inside.

While the mirror effect is indeed interesting and can provide opportunities to

explore metaphorical meanings, it is still in essence another shot. Where Style really

embraces DI is in allowing more than one performer to occupy the same space by

turning one performer into a screen on which another performance is projected. This is

seen throughout the film on clothing (1:17, 1:20, 1:24, 1:28, 1:43, 2:43, 2:47, 3:14, 3:20)

(fig. 10) but most strikingly in the sequences where Taylor’s face and hands have

Sherwood’s face projected on top of them (1:03,1:29, 1:35, 3:26, 3:29 ) (fig. 4). While the

mirror fragments could hypothetically be removed, this option is no longer possible

when the actors occupy the sames space and become a single merged performer.

Together these digitally enhanced elements of performance suggest that the definition of

which performer is actively performing at any given moment in blurred and shows the

7 Multiplicity in music videos is another area of analysis covered by Vernallis in “Music Video’s Second Aesthetic?”. It will not be discussed further in this essay but can be found on page 10 of that text. 

  

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blurring of the video’s characters’ individual identities in the turmoils of their relationship

in a way that would not be possible without the use of DI.

Micro-rhythmic Color

When discussing the element of color within music videos Vernallis draws

attention to the ways in which DI has given finer control to the use of color in music

videos (“Music” 5). DI has allowed objects to become more defined one from another

(“Music” 10), opened up possibilities for “touching” sonic waves, and through the

changing of elements in what she calls “beauty work”, turned the performer into “pure

color” (“Music” 6).

According to Vernallis DI’s finer control also allows for new exploration of

micro-rhythmic textures on screen. She claims that improved digital cameras have

allowed “tangible things of the world” such as dust, water, smoke, clouds, and tree

branches to be more insistently depicted (“Music” 6). That we may even almost

experience these elements as if through a magnifying glass (“Music” 6).

These two areas of analysis merge in Style to form what I will call “micro-rhythmic

color”. What I mean by this is that DI has allowed micro-rhythmic textures to fill defined

spaces in the same way that color rotoscoping and color replacement have been done in

the past (Vernallis, “Music” 3, 5, 14). In micro-rhythmic color, micro-rhythms act like

colors digitally painted onto performers and objects in ways not possible (or at least 8

much more challenging) before the rise of the digital intermediate and pixel by pixel

adjustments (Vernallis, “Music” 5, Manovich, “Digital Cinema” 4). Thus in this same way

performers can be pure color I believe then that the performer is capable of becoming

pure micro-rhythmic color.

Micro-rhythmic color is a place where the use of digital technology has been

pushed in Style. It embraces both the possibility of strengthening the role of the body

8 Manovich claims in his “What Is Digital Cinema?” essay that the use of digital has pushed cinema out of its role as a defined recording medium and into a sub­genre of painting (2). 

  

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through color (Vernallis 13) and smoke and clouds literally becoming performers on the 9

screen (Vernallis 6). Prominent examples of micro-rhythmic interaction with performers

include Taylor being filled with smoke (1:25) (fig. 3), Taylor patterned with nature (0:29)

(fig. 1), and Sherwood filled with the road (1:54) (fig. 6) though many others can be seen

through the video. Many of the places where micro-rhythmic color is used play with

space and temporality of the performer and the textures which fill them. The performer

will be in one location while filled by another, allowing the memories of a past

relationship to be active in the characters’ present. This idea was alluded to by Taylor in

an interview with Ryan Seacrest in which she said the song’s intent was to capture two

people both trying to forget each other (Taylor Swift Breaks Down 3:15-3:20). Taylor Swift

put this another way when she described the song before a live performance for

IHeartRadio: She wanted to express with Style that people can wear emotions like one

wears cloths, that there can be feelings which never go out of style in the same way

staples in the clothing industry (a white t-shirt or perfect dress) will never go out of style

(Style [live] 0:00-0:50). Whether it is memory, emotion, or feelings that are meant to be

conferred, what is clear is that DI has allowed the performer in Style to become pure

expression.

Micro-rhythmic color may also be the tint of our time. In the 80s and 90s telecine

was used to apply color across the image (Vernallis 5). The use of DI and micro-rhythmic

color to alter the look of the entire frame simultaneously may similarly alter the mood of

music videos today. As a tint we predominantly see the presence of rain drops (2:36,

2:50) (fig. 9) and lightning (2:31, 2:38, 2:41, 3:13, 3:16) (fig. 8) over the frame. Perhaps

meant to imply a feeling of sadness and also a mix of danger and anger as an additional

layer to the story unfolding on screen.

9 Vernallis proposes that micro­rhythmic and material elements might become distinct digital performers in the future of the music video. I believe that in Style the micro­rhythms and performers have merged into one thing. 

  

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Conclusion

This is by no means the extent of how DI has been used to enhance elements in

Style. Even within Vernallis’ historical analytic framework one could look further at

horizontal spaces, multiples, and remediation. It brings to mind the question “What more

might be said if one looks at pop music videos as a purely digital medium?” 10

In the end what can be said based on the limited analysis of performance and

color in Style is that, while Style may not have been as popular as Swift's other music

videos released for her 1989 album, it should not be written off as a failure. Instead it

should be viewed in light of the new ground director Kyle Newman and Taylor Swift

traversed in exploring how DI can enhance elements of music video production. Viewed

alongside the rise of alternative works such as Holly Herndon’s Interference it may be the

first glimpse at a multifaceted new digital model for the music video in the 21st century.

Word Count Without Titles: 2325

Footnotes: 340

Final Word Count: 2665

Select Bibliography of Works

The Anatomy of Taylor Swift's New "Style" By Kelsey McKinney. Perf. Kelsey McKinney.

YouTube. Vox, 19 Feb. 2015. Web. 08 May 2015. <https://youtu.be/l_b86duruvs>.

Azealia Banks - Ice Princess. Prod. AraabMuzik. Perf. Azealia Banks. YouTube. Vevo, 31

Mar. 2015. Web. 06 May 2015.

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGox2wVCLuw>.

Carlsson, Sven E. "What Is Music Video? Audiovisual Poetry or Commercial Salad of

Images?" Muskiikin Sunta 2 (1999). What Is Music Video? Audiovisual Poetry or

10 Take a look at Manovich’s work on “What is Digital Cinema?” and “What is New Media?”. 

  

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Commercial Salad of Images? FilmSound.org, The Finnish Society for

Ethnomusicology, and University of Helsinki,. Web. 08 May 2015.

<http://filmsound.org/what_is_music_video/>.

Claymore, Gabriela T. "Holly Herndon – “Interference” Video." Stereogum. Stereogum, 10

Mar. 2015. Web. 06 May 2015.

<http://www.stereogum.com/1786496/holly-herndon-interference-video/mp3s/>.

Ducker, Eric, and Christine Yuan. "Behind the Scenes of Flying Lotus' "Never Catch Me"

Video with Director Hiro Murai." The FADER. FADER, 9 Oct. 2014. Web. 06 May 2015.

<http://www.thefader.com/2014/10/09/flying-lotus-never-catch-me-behind-the-sce

nes-hiro-murai>.

Flying Lotus - Never Catch Me Ft. Kendrick Lamar. Prod. Flying Lotus. Dir. Hiro Murai.

Perf. Flying Lotus and Kendrick Lamar. YouTube. Vevo, 1 Oct. 2014. Web. 06 May

2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXD0vv-ds8>.

Holly Herndon - Interference [Official Video]. By Holly Herndon. Perf. Holly Herndon.

YouTube. 4AD, 10 Mar. 2015. Web. 06 May 2015.

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybzSWlpgJOA>.

Holt, Fabian. "Is Music Becoming More Visual? Online Video Content in the Music

Industry." Visual Studies 26.1 (2011): 50-61. Print.

Manovich, Lev. "What Is Digital Cinema?" Lev Manovich Essays (1999): 1-16. Nyu.edu.

Nyu. Web. 6 May 2015.

<http://wp.nyu.edu/novak-mm13/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2013/09/Lev-Manov

ich-_-Essays-_-What-is-Digital-Cinema_.pdf>.

Manovich, Lev. "What Is New Media?" The Language of New Media. Cambridge: MIT,

2001. 43-98. Print.

  

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"Most Viewed Videos of All Time (Over 100 Million Views)." YouTube. MyTop100Videos.

Web. 06 May 2015.

<https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLirAqAtl_h2r5g8xGajEwdXd3x1sZh8hC>.

Nicole Scherzinger - Poison. Dir. Joseph Kahn. Perf. Nicole Scherzinger. YouTube. Vevo, 1

Nov. 2010. Web. 06 May 2015. <https://youtu.be/9joqPp3peLg>.

Rombes, Nicholas. "Introduction." New Punk Cinema. Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP, 2005.

1-18. Print.

Strecker, Erin. "6 Stunning Images From Taylor Swift's 'Style' Music Video." Billboard.

Billboard, 13 Feb. 2015. Web. 06 May 2015.

<http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/6472772/taylor-swift-style-

music-video-stunning-shots>.

Taylor Swift - Blank Space. Dir. Joseph Kahn. By Taylor Swift. Perf. Taylor Swift and Sean

O'Pry. YouTube. Vevo, 10 Nov. 2014. Web. 06 May 2015.

<https://youtu.be/e-ORhEE9VVg>.

Taylor Swift - Shake It Off. Perf. Taylor Swift. YouTube. Vevo, 18 Aug. 2014. Web. 06 May

2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfWlot6h_JM>.

Taylor Swift - Style. Dir. Kyle Newman. Perf. Taylor Swift and Dominic Sherwood.

YouTube. Vevo, 13 Feb. 2015. Web. 06 May 2015.

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CmadmM5cOk>.

Taylor Swift - Style (live). Perf. Taylor Swift. Vimeo. Iheartradio, 7 Nov. 2014. Web. 08 May

2015. <https://vimeo.com/111379019>.

Taylor Swift Breaks Down "Style" | On Air with Ryan Seacrest. Perf. Taylor Swift and Ryan

Seacrest. Youtube. Ryan Seacrest Presents, 31 Oct. 2014. Web. 9 May 2015.

<https://youtu.be/7A3VAM7vZIs>.

  

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Vernallis, Carol. "Music Video’s Second Aesthetic?" The Oxford Handbook of New

Audiovisual Aesthetics. Ed. John Richardson and Claudia Gorbman. 2013. 1-21.

Print.

Vernallis, Carol. "Strange People Weird Objects: The Nature of Narrativity, Character, and

Editing in Music Videos." Medium Cool: Music Videos from Soundies to Cellphones.

Ed. Roger Beebe and Jason Middleton. Durham, NC: Duke UP, 2007. 111-51. Print.

  

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Appendix 1: Taylor Swifts Style Image Catalogue (A Selection)

Figure 1: Taylor Swift’s Style (0:29)

Figure 2: Taylor Swift’s Style (1:21)

  

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Figure 3: Taylor Swift’s Style (1:25)

Figure 4: Taylor Swift’s Style (1:30)

  

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Figure 5: Taylor Swift’s Style (1:43)

Figure 6: Taylor Swift’s Style (1:54)

  

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Figure 7: Taylor Swift’s Style (2:00)

Figure 8: Taylor Swift’s Style (2:31)

  

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Figure 9: Taylor Swift’s Style (2:36)

Figure 10: Taylor Swift’s Style (3:14) Appendix 2: Referenced Images From Various Media Texts

  

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Figure 11: Taylor Swift’s Blank Space (0:58)

Figure 12: Taylor Swift’s Shake It Off (0:42)

  

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Figure 13: Flying Lotus Never Catch Me (1:56)

Figure 14: Azealia Banks Ice Princess (1:00)

  

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Figure 15: Holly Herndon’s Interference (3:28)

Figure 16: Nicole Scherzinger’s Poison (1:06)

  

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Figure 17: Nicole Scherzinger’s Poison (1:07)

Figure 18: Ursula the Seawitch looks in the mirror -- The Little Mermaid (1989) Image Sourced from: http://i.ytimg.com/vi/otHoAS9rfxA/hqdefault.jpg Appendix 3: Various Additional Images

  

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Figure 19: Taken from comments on The Anatomy of Taylor Swift's New "Style" By Kelsey McKinney on May 9, 2015.

Figure 20: Taken from comments on The Anatomy of Taylor Swift's New "Style" By Kelsey McKinney on May 9, 2015.