Auteur Theory: HYPE WILLIAMS

The Auteur theory is widely known throughout media production, it is the way in which an audience views and compliments media productions through the imprint of an auteur - usually considered as the director. The founder of Auteur Theory was Andre Bazin in 1951, he is often considered as the father of auteurism due to his appreciation of well known, famous and successful auteurs such as Charlie Chaplin, Jean Renoir... Francois Truffout furthermore added that the theory stated creativity, style and ideas from the director emitted throughout their work. Many common examples used in reference to supporting the auteur theory are Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick and Jean-Luc Godard. 


    

Normally those who abide by the Auteur Theory, will have a common theme or persistent feature which is repeated throughout their pieces in order to somewhat 'mark their territory.' For instance, this could be a certain angle which is used throughout or the use of focus pull. 

Whilst researching this particular theory, one of the most notable Directors which stood out to me as modern and popular was Hype Williams. He has directed across the board following popular stars such as Nicki Minaj, Aaliyah, Will Smith...


Below are some examples of Hype Williams' videos clearly displaying the similarities and patterns throughout. 

Within Nicki Minaj's Va Va Voom video, Hype Williams' typical, renowned use of clear snippets of jarring/freezing like shots where the camera looks as if it faults between recording, yet this effect is seen over many of his famous videos, adding to the list of his significant patterns. This effect is also clearly illustrated within Kanye Wests Gold Digger yet in this case it corresponds to the way in which the music breaks at the start of the song.

Likewise within Kanye West's Gold Digger video, women are clearly portrayed as provocative and more as an item rather than a 'female.' They walk around in lingerie and are admired sexually where camera focus is often extreme close ups of the mouth and chest area.

Both within Kanye West's Gold Digger and Lil Wayne's 6 foot 7 foot, women are a target of sexual acts and are looked upon as an object in the music video. Likewise within these two videos, Hype Williams' use of a studio setting is conveyed as often there is a plain block coloured background behind either the female or artist. 

Lil Wayne's video also features Hype Williams' typical use of literal text where the video previews what the lyrics are - for instance the lyric "huh-nee knut" is illustrated like the well known cereal brand - Honey Nut.

Hype cleverly uses close ups of the artists often alone with the opposite sex to solely highlight that the track is sung by them rather than having a conceptually based music video where often the artist does not feature. 

In several of Hype's videos, there features a somewhat vintage film style preview where a banner crosses the top and bottom of the screen. It can be seen throughout Kanye West's Gold Digger and Beyonce's Check On It. This effect creates a possible 'performance' type effect where the artist is increasingly involving an audience whilst looking into the camera. Moreover, this feature perhaps engages an audience further as the video is seen more as a performance type movie where eye contact is made rather than just a simple 'music video.'

Lastly throughout most of and nearly all of Hype's video, the conventional use of colour intensifies the artists focus also reflecting the pattern of the backing track helping to increase the aesthetics of the video. It is clearly portrayed throughout Rihanna and Kayne West's - All Of The Lights, where lights in the title is replicated throughout with the flashing and colour changing scenes from start to finish.