Director's Representation

Hurry Sundown

Thomas James directs a blistering&nbsp;promo for the return of Irish rappers Kneecap.&nbsp;The video for A Liar's Tale is a confrontational, surreal trip through blazing red vignettes, breathless performance and a gritty, textural aesthetic.&nbsp;It's standout work dripping with James' eye for horror-tinged visuals with some stunning imagery - including an eery Zombie Thatcher, decapitations and a intense evocation of Hell.&nbsp;A match made in heaven (or Hell) for director and artist - and an auspicious debut music video from&nbsp;new London-based production company ArtClass.&nbsp;"For me, this needed to be punk, absurd, abrasive and wild," explains James.&nbsp;"An ugly reflection of the world we find ourselves in; utter fucking chaos."We talked around the idea of a ‘carnival of distraction’ - and for me&nbsp;this meant as many ideas as would squeeze into the three minutes, that embody the 2+2=5 hellscape we seem to be surrounded by; a&nbsp;whirlwind of Irish mythology, of satire, of anger; a vehicle for what everyone is witnessing."It’s not often you get to work with a band who have a genuine fire, and a selfless interest in trying to help people. And that for all of us involved, was important."The video became a nightmarish 'fuck you' to the powers that be, with a wry smile and a lubed-up prop selection."[imgtoken data:1][imgtoken data:2][imgtoken data:3]

Ireland

Finn Sullivan

Florence Webb

George Blomiley

Lucy James

Thomas James

Alex Shin

ArtClass

Finley Grover

Jake Newell

Franklin Dow

Giuseppe Favale

Emma Horgan

Sam Holmes

Chris Malin

Juan Minotta

Cameron Sealby

James Tilyard

Robyn Lynch

Dasha Taivas

Becca Lymbourides

Karina Jemelyjanova

Aleix Thyia

Tom Gilfillan

Luke Spencer

Aum Patel

The Shop

Connor Coolbear

Electric Theatre Collective

Henry Oliver

Archie Bowers

Harry Sheehan

Faris Hallaq

Justin Du Pre

Punk

Alternative

Kneecap 'A Liar's Tale' by Thomas James

Kneecap-'A-Liar's-Tale'-by-Thomas-James

Eaves Wilder enters a South London pub on a mission to&nbsp;create havoc&nbsp;in Douglas Reddan's action-packed promo for the rising indie artist.Bursting through the doors of the boozer, Eaves is quickly causing mischief, stealing drinks and starting fights - the epitome of a Hurricane Girl.&nbsp;Combining classic cinematography with&nbsp;frantic, mini-DV footage, the pace never&nbsp;flags. And Eaves' antics provoke the peaceful patrons of the pub to also get feisty - while she gleefully looks on.It's a promo with plenty of attitude - and a great Britpop-flavoured track to boot - to burnish Douglas Reddan's growing reputation.[imgtoken data:1][imgtoken data:2]

Flo Webb

Lola Cookman

Leila Moraes

Douglas Reddan

Olivia McLaughlin

FRIEND

Kelly Kerrigan

Jeffrey Celis

Naoise Kettle

Gina Crighton

Jack Chambers

Bradley Stearn

Alice Howlett

Hannah Isobel Busst

Rebecca Parker Quinn

Cam Sander

Secretly Canadian

Eaves Wilder 'Hurricane Girl' by Douglas Reddan

Eaves-Wilder-'Hurricane-Girl'-by-Douglas-Reddan

Noel Paul turns the longing and introspection at the heart of the first release from Mitski's new album into a remarkable video, both breathlessly zany and undeniably chilling.In the video for Where's My Phone? Paul plays against the relatable aspect&nbsp;of the songtitle by making Mitsky the lead character&nbsp;in a gripping anachronistic&nbsp;ghost story. The setting is very Edgar Allan Poe, a house in rural, autumnal New England, with Mitski as the guardian of her younger sister, paranoid about her connecting with any of the stream of strange visitors who descend upon the house.It's the manner that Paul delivers&nbsp;this story - based upon&nbsp;Shirley Jackson’s novel&nbsp;We Have Always Lived in the Castle - which makes it so special. Following the style of his videos for Black Midi and most recently for Geese, events occur at a relentless, disconcerting speed, as if in a dream.The actions of the performers are heightened to appear virtually cartoonish - or resembling the acting in early cinema - and the camera is feverish, moving like a&nbsp;character in the scenario.&nbsp;Mitski herself gives a ferociously strong and committed performance, as the woman driven to mania (and violence)&nbsp;to protect the younger girl. But as it turns out, with very good reason. As in any ghost story, the proof of its quality is in the ending - and this has a very good one.&nbsp;Noel Paul has been directing videos for well over a decade, originally in the duo That Go and then as solo director. It's tempting to say that this is one of the best he has ever made.[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;[imgtoken data:2]

United States

Charlie Robinson

Monica Mirabile

Noel Paul

Lucy Rennick

Gummy Films

Adam Reichardt

Ramzi Hibri

Luke Jacobs

Mel Giles

Eliana Roseen

Rome Pettersen

Hom Cameron

Oona Mazelle

Tiffany Stoker

Emily Costantino

Lauren Citera

Belal Hibri

Miled Boulos

Mitski

Dead Oceans

Rock

Mitski 'Where's My Phone?' by Noel Paul

Mitski-'Where's-My-Phone?'-by-Noel-Paul

Thomas James returns to music videos for a very special project for the Ukranian modern folk quartet DakhaBrakha - filmed under wartime conditions in Ukrainian capital Kyiv.The video for&nbsp;Kozak is a metaphorical interpretation of Ukraine's battle for survival, with a mythical setting that starts with the brave young hero being tutored by a wise elder before facing his adversary - the personification of the enemy that calls itself 'Mother'.&nbsp;The video was shot on a recent visit to Kyiv and James creates a richly cinematic and atmospheric vision - as darkly imaginative as many of his previous videos, for the likes of Bring Me The Horizon, Nothing But Thieves and Ghostpoet. And with the War going on, this was achieved in extraordinarily testing conditions, made possible by the commitment of members of Kyiv's hugely experienced filmmaking community, as he explains.&nbsp;[imgtoken data:1]<blockquote>This was about celebrating Ukraine... to embody the pride and resilience that is clearly so abundant there.</blockquote>"DakhaBrahka come from a stylised folkloric tradition - celebrating their home nation across the globe with their incredible music - and&nbsp;we wanted the promo to do the same," says James."With a trip planned to Kyiv to see family, the project was born from a want to draw attention to the incredible talent still working in Ukraine, from production through to crew. To show that insanely talented people were still making phenomenal work, despite everything.[imgtoken data:2]"The film came from an idea of Ukrainian cultural pride. So it made sense to us all, to take the mythologies of traditional Ukrainian folklore, and treat it with a cinematic spin. We built upon myths from old Kozak tales, that perhaps feel metaphorically relevant, and used that as a vehicle to investigate the beautiful narrative and tone of the track... And to perhaps go a little way in trying to celebrate the awe-inspiring energy that is so present in Ukraine - with folklore from the country that inspired it."This was about celebrating Ukraine, attempting in what little way we could, to embody the pride and resilience that is clearly so abundant there. It was a honour to be back in Kyiv, and to work with everyone. It was an experience I'll hold very dear for a long time. It certainly put things into a very clear perspective."

Ukraine

Ksenia Nebolsina

Karina Melnychenko

Sandra Chernobrovina

Dina Golubeva

Ivan Krutous

Daria Volgina

No Stars

Leonid Sydorenko

Borya Borysov

Taras Holova

Nana Garsevanishvili

Andrii Karpets

Volodymyr Tonkonohov

Maksym Shcherbonos

Kateryna Kharchova

Oksana Belichenko

Yana Tysaruk

Yulia Stets

Kostiantyn Semerei

Tilt Vfx

Ï Production

Fiber Graphics

Polina Kobzieva

Oleksandr Martynenko

Folk

World

DakhaBrakha 'Kozak' by Thomas James 

Dakhabrakha-'Kozak'-by-Thomas-James-

Maxim Kelly delivers the next instalment of his creative collaboration with Archive.The AI-generated video for Wake Up Strange is an Americana-infused trip through the surreality of life and excess, presenting a cinematic narrative tinged with a haunting undercurrent. It's&nbsp;Playing into the&nbsp;uncanny valley&nbsp;nature of it all - both highly convincing visually yet also dreamlike and ludicrous -&nbsp;this follows Kelly's video for the eclectic London-based band's Look At Us (also from forthcoming album Glass Minds) and it's another collaboration raising questions about AI and its place in the music video production process.&nbsp;

United Kingdom

Maxim Kelly

John Moule

Vid Price

Archive 'Wake Up Strange' by Maxim Kelly

Archive-'Wake-Up-Strange'-by-Maxim-Kelly

Georgie Cowan-Turner directs a quietly reflective promo for singer-songwriter Nadia Kadek.&nbsp;The video for Green Car - Cowan-Turner's second for the British-Indonesian artist, following Lemonade - plays out as a lo-fi montage, captured in intimate, lingering detail as Kadek traverses the city.&nbsp;With a muted colour palette and a raw, DIY aesthetic, the visual is a perfect match to the lilting track.&nbsp;"Green Car is such a devastatingly beautiful song, we wanted the video to have an understated DIY quality that does not overwhelm the emotion and storytelling of the track," explains Cowan-Turner.&nbsp;"We shot on a Bolex across London to create a sense of Nadia constantly on the move, looking for a past and people she can’t return to."The understated quality of films like Before Sunrise, Lost in Translation or Varda’s Vagabond were influences. But mainly we just experimented with what we could capture in the city and the magic of shooting on film."

Georgie Cowan-Turner

Blindeye Films

Mike Harounoff

Ollie Dahmen

Ellen Yu

Transgressive Records

Nadia Kadek 'Green Car' by Georgie Cowan-Turner

Nadia-Kadek-'Green-Car'-by-Georgie-Cowan-turner

Grajper directs a moonlit, surrealist fantasy for The Last Dinner Party.&nbsp;The video for Count The Ways finds the group in the middle of a model village, performing as a montage of illusory vignettes play out on screen.&nbsp;Imbued with unearthly, liminal vibes, it's a striking concept and one that fits perfectly within the offbeat videography the group has built over the last couple of years.&nbsp;[imgtoken data:1]<blockquote>Everything is familiar, but [the world] is&nbsp;too small, too artificial, too perfect.</blockquote>"The heart of the song is about love, heartbreak, and the refusal to accept that something beautiful has ended," Grajper explains.&nbsp;"It’s about being trapped in grief, circling around loss, and being unable to move forward."For TLDP, that emotional space feels like being locked in a prison that is invisible yet everywhere, a cage built out of memories and feelings. That’s why the miniature park is such a powerful starting point. It’s a world that is at once charming and eerie. Everything is familiar, but it’s too small, too artificial, too perfect."When we place our heroine in this world she instantly becomes estranged from it: she is either too large for the space, breaking out of it, or she’s wandering through its streets like a ghost who doesn’t belong."

Joe Harrison

Rubina Marchiori

Grajper

Wojciech Czarkowski

Connor Adam

Jake Hunter

Smera Kumar

Rowan Hutchings

Steve Morgan

Mitch Collins

Sam Rawlings

Jem Bradley

Ruby Yu

Kuba Tomaszewicz

Thomas Kumeling

DOMA

Andrzej Lewkowicz

Żenia Bochulia

Indie

The Last Dinner Party 'Count The Ways' by Grajper

Grajper-'Count-The-Ways'-by-Grajper

Georgie Cowan-Turner translates the powerful feminist message in singer-songwriter Paris Paloma's Good Boy into a mesmerizing video, featuring actor Tom Blyth&nbsp;and a startling metamorphosis by Paris herself."The story of Good Boy is about the Faustian pact some men sign with capitalist patriarchy," explains&nbsp;Cowan-Turner.&nbsp;"Good Boy, played by the fantastic Tom Blyth, realises in the process that what he has signed up to actually goes against his own interest."We wanted the video to depict the violence incited amongst men against women and also to show how men have so much more in common with women than the misogynistic billionaires they follow.[imgtoken data:1]"For me the question was also: ‘how do you translate gendered violence on screen?'. As a female director, I don’t need to replicate the violence that so many women fear. We show the frenzy of this violence through our men becoming dogs, evoking the feral quality of male violence."Visually I was inspired by&nbsp;Mad Men&nbsp;to depict the sexist world of the ‘real world’ that our ‘Everywoman’ character, also played by Paris exists in. This world descends into a more gothic world with nods to Cries And Whispers, 60’s and 70’s folk horror and, of course,&nbsp;The Seventh Seal&nbsp;for the character of Patriarchy.&nbsp;Paris is such an instinctive and exciting artist to work with and I think it really shows in the video."

Emily Clifford

Hollie Mapp

Ciaran O'brien

Peter Bromfield

Alex Kryszkiewicz

Chelsea Bernard

Zana Piber

Jadah Dale

Emma Regan

Louis Catlett

Sharon Chung

Wash

Nettwerk Music Group

Singer-songwriter

Paris Paloma 'Good Boy' by Georgie Cowan-Turner

Paris-Paloma-'Good-Boy'-by-Georgie-Cowan-turner

Maxim Kelly directs an ominously deceptive AI-generated music video for prog rock outfit Archive.The video for Look At Us suggests, appropriately, that we are seeing archive footage. But it becomes increasingly clear there is a blurring of the line&nbsp;between documentary and fiction.&nbsp;The black and white photojournalism style&nbsp;presenting images from 20th century America&nbsp;becomes increasingly offbeat and chilling. Its true origin becoming more obvious, and eventually incorporating elements of Cronenberg-inspired body horror.This has been brilliantly achieved by Maxim Kelly - who has a track record&nbsp;of both using and manipulating stock footage in his videos - and creates a building intensity and dread through a series of extraordinary images.The uncanny and disturbing aspect of this is how&nbsp;the AI-ness of the piece is rarely revealed. There is some similarity with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnDm9w2F3KE&amp;t=12s" target="_blank">Andrew Dominick's recent video for the classic Nick Cave track&nbsp;Tupelo</a>, which manipulates early photos of Elvis Presley. If anything the fake reality seems more 'real' here than in the Cave film.&nbsp; "The song is about lies and deception, so I made the video itself a form of deception," explains Kelly. "Everything looks like trusted documentary photography, but it's entirely artificial. The medium becomes the message."[imgtoken data:1]

Natalia Maus

Nudnik

Prog Rock

Archive 'Look At Us' by Maxim Kelly

Archive-'Look-At-Us'-by-Maxim-Kelly

Norwegian singer songwriter Anna of The North returns with catchy new single Give Me Back Your Love.Directed by Douglas Reddan, the promo&nbsp;expands upon the track's themes of finding true love, as Anna traverses London with a giant teddy bear, and a sign to catch the eye of potential suitors - intercut with fun choreography and tender performance vignettes.&nbsp;A video with plenty of heart, and a feelgood message, and further evidence of Douglas Reddan as an emerging video directing talent.&nbsp;[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;

Norway

Brett Sewell

Jaron Lammens

Gustav Juvenal Die

Vasillis

Melo

Zoe Gunn

Shotgunn Productions

Stephen Ellis

Joey Knox

Lilli Rio Macmonagle

Zhane Samuels

Roo Garling

Anna Downie

Henry Howard

Pias Recordings

ELMNTL

Singer songwriter

Anna Of The North 'Give Me Your Love Back' by Douglas Reddan

Anna-Of-The-North-'Give-Me-Your-Love-Back'-by-Douglas-Reddan

Directing duo DON Prod get lost in the jungle with Fredo, in the atmospheric promo for No Comment.&nbsp;The video boasts a dazzling series of vignettes, experimenting with composition and unusual perspectives to keep things fresh.&nbsp;Contrasting&nbsp;Fredo's relaxed performance with quick-cut editing and dynamic camerawork, it's a rousing promo that feels cinematic and accomplished - no doubt one of his and DON Prod's best yet.&nbsp;[imgtoken data:1]

DON Prod

Rogue Films

Fredo 'No Comment' by DON Prod

Hurry Sundown

Director's Representation

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