Analysis of Katy Perry ft Kanye West – E.T.

This video was released on 16^th February 2011; this was off Katy Perry’s 3^rd studio album called “Teenage Dream”. Katy is signed to Capitol Records who are the subsidiary of EMI, which has recently been bought out by Universal, this video as directed by Floria Sigismondi. This song generates from the genre of Electronic Hip Hop and uses a Hybrid of concept based and a narrative based story line, creating the idea of falling in love with a foreigner and taking wide curiosity in something completely different.

In the beginning of this video a voice over is being played saying “where in the world is there someone for me?” whilst happening we see a pulling focus on a robot, subliminally indicating to the audience that this will be the person Katy’s falls in love with. Going into a long shot of a big spaceship within mid air, indicates that the concept is based around the idea of it being in space, showing the correlation with the title of the song. We then see a medium shot of Kanye doing his solo within the spaceship controlling the panels; this could be an invitation for the audience to join the experience he may want to take them on, this is through the dark mysterious background along with the flashing blue lights which could come across as being enticing. What an audience could suggest is that, he’s abducted her and is allowing her to have an outer body experience for her to seek for something she may like within that new world. 

We then see a medium shot of an alien, which could represent Katy within a different body, which symbolises a different persona she’s taken on board whilst being in a new world. A long shot is used of her floating in space and the background is much more colourful showing the connection between her and the other world, then an establishing shot is used to display a deserted area with her descending down to be kindled with her lover. The robot is then showed again, as she steps closer to it the centre of its chest lights up, which is symbolic for the love it has for her; a bird’s-eye-view is then used to show her touching its heart, this can be inferred that she’s giving it a little piece of her and that’s what brings the robot to life.  

Towards the end a close up is used to show their kiss, whilst this happens a beam of light engulfs their faces, finalising the point of which they’re now together and we finish of with an establishing shot of them holding hands, looking beyond the horizon at the new life they’ll share together. Around them the surroundings are much brighter than earlier in the video which signifies to the audience that they’re now content with one another. 

Overall I think this video portrays an abnormal love story, and the use of a different concept enables this video to be more creative and it helps to tie in with the genre. This video would appeal to an audience of teenagers, and people in their twenties because it’s something different but it’s able to get its message across without the video being too over powering for the consumer to understand.