Director

Amber Grace Johnson

Amber Grace Johnson reunites with Jorja Smith to direct a stunning&nbsp;promo for Try Me.&nbsp;Shot in the south of France, the video is a powerful portrait of the artist, who rises from the darkness to fight for her life and what is hers.&nbsp;Boasting a series of stunning locations - including the deserted amphitheatre in Arles in Provence - the video explores themes of strength, reclaiming independence and owning one's power, visualised through a handful of abstract vignettes, where a conflict takes place between Jorja and a male adversary in a choreographed series of moves akin to a bullfight.&nbsp;&nbsp;Jorja Smith is beautifully complex throughout;&nbsp;starting from a somewhat defeated, crawling motion&nbsp;to facing off her&nbsp; adversary - played by Andrea Bouothmane - in an increasingly disdainful, effortless manner. Her journey is visualised masterfully&nbsp;by Johnson, returning to collaborate with the singer following the videos for Be Honest and Come Over.&nbsp;With a completely unique spin on a classic theme, it's a video that&nbsp;demands your complete attention from start to finish - and&nbsp;will no doubt create a buzz around awards season.[imgtoken data:1]“The idea started from the human need we all have to defend ourselves from the pressures of the world," Amber Grace Johnson has explained. "In the most basic terms, the life of an artist can, at times, feel like a fight for your life. Your art consumes you, consoles you, and acts as a lifeline, and when you release it to the world it can feel dire, when exposing yourself so vulnerably."Originally, I was thinking back to a text exchange with my twin sister who shared some words during a time I needed most. Comparing our lives to being bullfighters, she reminded me that life is a fight and we cannot and will not fall off the bull… we must stay on the bull.”

United Kingdom

Alex Chamberlain

Object & Animal

Erin Corrian-Alexis

Gaul Porat

Morgan Clement

Diego Vega

Andrea Bouothmane

Jorja Smith 'Try Me' by Amber Grace Johnson

Jorja Smith - Try Me

Hold on to your hats - Amber Grace Johnson has directed a spectacular promo for FKA twigs's collaboration with The Weekend.Pulsating with a riotous energy from the get-go, we see twigs dissolve from a 3D avatar and launch&nbsp;into&nbsp;impassioned choreography with a group of dancers, in a visceral interpretation&nbsp;of the songtitle, Tears In The Club.[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;As the lights scintillate, the vignettes morph to&nbsp;sizzling&nbsp;setups on a dentist chair, and pole dancing in an underwater chamber, as Abel Tesfaye aka The Weeknd watches with an emotional smile. But by the end, it's twigs who has chasing down a miniature Abel, like a cat toying with a mouse.[imgtoken data:2]&nbsp;&nbsp;Shot in a breathless&nbsp;hyperreal style, this is twigs in full-on pop video mode, but retaining that sense of raw emotion that is a central hallmark&nbsp;of her body of work.&nbsp;At the same time, it could also be the sexiest&nbsp;twigs video ever - which is saying something.This is twigs's&nbsp;first music video collaboration with&nbsp;Amber Grace Johnson,&nbsp;and evidently they are a heaven-made match. It certainly confirms that this is a director making some of the most exciting and coolest&nbsp;work in pop videos right now.&nbsp;

Jeff Kopchia

Emi Stewart

Stuart Winecoff

Spencer Graves

Matthew Josephs

Malcolm Marquez

Kabuki

Shea Hardy

Chiao Chen

Forager

Mikey Rossiter

Max Colt

Matthew Henson

Daronn Carr

Christine Nelli

Dave Davis

Trim Editing

FKA twigs ft The Weeknd 'Tears In The Club' by Amber Grace Johnson

Fka-Twigs-Ft.-The-Weeknd-'Tears-In-The-Club'-by-Amber-Grace-Johnson

Lolo Zouaï brings her energy&nbsp;to a range of everyday and extraordinary activities, in Amber Grace Johnson's brilliantly vivacious promo for Galipette. Underwater boxing, anyone?Combining mattress-hopping across an empty store, synchronised gymnastics and the aforementioned underwater boxing,&nbsp;this is a video that is as abstract as it is brilliant -&nbsp;and the nonsensical nature of the vignettes only adds to it's appeal.&nbsp;Refreshingly weird yet technically top-notch, the French-born American R&amp;B and pop musician is a true force to be reckoned with, and Johnson presents a perfect vision to introduce new fans to her world.[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;[imgtoken data:2][imgtoken data:3]

United States

Justin Benoliel

Kyle Frawley

Nazanin Shahnavaz

Nathaniel Dezaan

Gilbert Soliz

Vetrin Franti

Joseph Bicknell

Company 3

Reblaked Vfx

Experimental

Lolo Zouaï 'Galipette' by Amber Grace Johnson

Lolo-Zouaï-'Galipette'-by-Amber-Grace-Johnson

Jorja Smith's wonderful collab with Popcaan gets a superb visual accompaniment, thanks to another inspired collaboration.Amber Grace Johnson made a big impact with her debut video, made for Jorja last year - the steamy and stylish <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2019/08/19/jorja-smith-ft-burna-boy-be-honest-amber-grace-johnson/60355" target="_blank">Be Honest</a>. Now she has moved into the previously unfamiliar territory of animation for Come Over, and recruited the help of animation collective Future Power Station to create a thrilling vehicle to dramatise Jorja's love-life complications in the song.[imgtoken data:1]The approach was&nbsp;necessitated by the shutdown on live action production at the start of the coronavirus crisis.&nbsp;But it has conversely allowed Johnson to indulge her love of Japanese anime, and given FPS (that's Yibi Hu, Geoff Parsons, Naima Vogt) to make a rare excursion&nbsp;into music video and demonstrate their design and animation skills.The video is set in a near-future world familiar in anime, but the storyline is a timeless reflection of the song&nbsp;- Jorja is waiting on a call from a new boyfriend, while he's wondering why she has not called. Each one is hot for the other, each one fears the other has no interest. But with an apposite 'F*ck It', Jorja springs into action, leaping on her hover-motorbike (as opposed to the real bike in Be Honest). She undergoes a mystical transformation, and she also enters a club, and begins to reveal her superpowers to deal&nbsp;with the attention of toxic males, before breaking through the real and metaphorical wall to reach her lover.[imgtoken data:2]“When all production froze due to COVID,&nbsp;Jorja&nbsp;reached out to me," explains Johnson, in a statement accompanying the video's release.&nbsp;"Little did she know it’s a lifelong dream of mine to create an anime-inspired piece, being a fan of Ghibli, Satoshi Kon, Aeon Flux, Wicked City and other classics."Best part was that production limits in animation are somewhat non-existent (except of course for how much time you have and resources). But in terms of actions, it felt infinite. I wanted an airborne scene, a hover motorbike, and a fight scene of an undefeated&nbsp;Jorja&nbsp;to kill off a fleet of slimy, artificial club fuckboys on a dystopian sun planet using her hair as her weapon."Naturally my script evolved into ideas only my imagination could dream up. We were lucky to have the opportunity to work with Future Power Station, who brought the vision to life and exceeded expectations.” &nbsp;

Future Power Station

Xavier Questel

Friends Electric

Barney Richard

Raphaël Ajuelos

Jason Wallis

Oliver Whitworth

Electric Theatre Collective

Jorja Smith ft Popcaan 'Come Over' by Amber Grace Johnson

Jorja Smith - Come Over (feat. Popcaan)

Kali Uchis embraces the darkness in UKMVA-nominated director Amber Grace Johnson's video for Solita.&nbsp;Dripping with sci-fi references and imagery, our first glance of Uchis is entombed in a concrete and glass coffin in the middle of the desert. Singing for the first time in both English and Spanish, the artist exudes sultry confidence, and across a series of vignettes we are introduced to various facets of her&nbsp;character.From performing&nbsp;in the white sand with a snake, to hypnotising a guy who is watching her poledance - and consequently kicking him in the face - the narrative is by no means straightforward, but one thing is clear: Kali does not mess around. The artist thrives in these conceptual setups, and whilst the project could have been a little too mismatched under a different director, Johnson executes it perfectly with her style, formed from having worked with some of the top talent in the world.&nbsp;"This song is about healing, freedom and embracing the mixed emotions that come with that," says Kali Uchis of Solita.&nbsp;"I hope my fans feel sexy when they listen to it. I’m so excited to share more.&nbsp;The vibe was sad, yet horny. There’s a little bit of sexiness in it, but it’s also nostalgic."The hook basically translates to, ‘I’d rather dance alone than with the devil.’ I think that just goes back to wanting to feel empowered about independence, rather than feel like, ‘Oh, poor me, I’m alone.’ It’s not really like that.”

Marcell Rév

Tyler Evans

Julio Cesar Delgato

Evanie Frausto

Lily Keys

Mandy Brown

Alternative Pop

Kali Uchis 'Solita' by Amber Grace Johnson

Kali-Uchis--'Solita-'-by-Amber-Grace-Johnson

It's a sweltering day in London, and Jorja Smith is kicking back in a swimsuit, surrounded by table fans.Opening in an apartment straight from the pages of a fashion editorial, we follow Jorja from this interior straight to the streets, where she performs in an underground tunnel, making even the most everyday location look exciting.Transitioning from day to night, Jorja takes a surreal journey on a motorbike, the vehicles and buildings around her blending into a hazy background. The red hues of the first scenes switch to deep blue as she arrives at an indoor&nbsp;pool, stripping down and cooling off with the public.&nbsp;The video is loaded with fashion references, the art direction and styling are front and centre, and Johnson's extensive experience with brands such as Nike and Fenty is apparent here. The cinematography by&nbsp;Alexandre Jamin is top-notch, and perfectly complements the concept.&nbsp;

Amber Grace Johnson

Director

Videos featuring Amber Grace Johnson

2023 (1)

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