Andrew Goodwin 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory'

Andrew Goodwin published a book called 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory' which consists of his research around the topic area of music videos, in this book he came up with a number of 'codes and conventions' which consist of a range of elements that many music videos all have in common.

Goodwin's theory identifies these key features:
- Genre characteristics e.g. stage performances in rock music videos, dance routines for girl/boy groups,women or throwing 'signs' in rap music videos

- Similarities between visuals and lyrics, this is used to often illustrate or could even amplify or contradict the lyrics giving us a visual representation to further feed our imagination and curiosity.
- There is a relationship between music and visuals which also contradict and expand on the lyrics that are being sung, once again providing us a visual representation of what is being said through the lyrics.

- The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close-ups of the artist in order to therefore show off who the artist is, and practically make them known by their face, people tend to forget the names of artist but rather remember their face.

- The artist may develop motifs or iconography that recur across their work i.e. a visual style that shows of what theme the artist is going for that all link together through their attire, props or scenarios/locations.