Production Company

Biscuit Filmworks

James Murray creates an evocative visual for Wunderhorse - the solo project of Jacob Slater, former frontman of indie outfit The Dead Pretties - for the alluring&nbsp;Butterflies.It's comprised of simple yet strong&nbsp;set-ups that make the most of the interiors lit with natural light, and&nbsp;the urban/rural mix of East London locations, with Slater - who has been cast in the much-anticipated Sex Pistols bio-drama&nbsp;Pistol&nbsp;as the band's drummer Paul Cook - front and centre.Murray&nbsp;exploits&nbsp;his cool, on-screen charisma here, creating a sensibility that's more early Nineties than Seventies - in keeping with the unmistakeable&nbsp;influence of grunge on the track.&nbsp;&nbsp;

United Kingdom

James Murray

Isabella Culver

Rupert Reynolds-MacLean

Andrew Law

Samantha Chitty

Dylan Bruce

Jak Waughman

Joe Nkadi

Charlotte Brason

Bella Duppee

Bianca Mitchell

Connor Coolbear

Oliver Whitworth

Electric Theatre Collective

Carrie Sutton

Rock

Grunge

Wunderhorse 'Butterflies' by James Murray

Wunderhorse - Butterflies

A young woman pours the ashes of&nbsp;her beloved late mother into her running shoes and leaves her suburban home - wielding a pole vaulter's pole - in a race against time...Hard Drive Gold, the latest release ahead of alt-J's fourth album The Dream (out on Feb 11th)&nbsp;has a video that follows in the tradition of the band's consistently excellent track record in visuals - particularly those that put a different spin on dramatic suspense. In this case, it comes from a new directing duo, consisting of&nbsp;an alt-J bandmember and his partner: Newman-Wallace are the band's singer and guitarist&nbsp;Joe Newman, and&nbsp;choreographer Darcy Wallace.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;We follow the young woman - played by Ellie McCartney - as she drags the pole from her garage, and then pounds through nearly empty suburban streets with it, as if she is on the longest-ever pole vaulter's run-up. This striking image is made even more mysterious by the&nbsp;context - the imminence of a nuclear attack and, as a result, the mostly panic-stricken behaviour of her neighbours.[imgtoken data:1]Finally she reaches her destination - but can she complete her leap before the missiles strike?Newman-Wallace's highly cinematic directing debut was shot by Krzysztof Trojnar, and executive produced by Andrew Law, longtime commissioner of alt-J's videos, now head of music and special projects at&nbsp;Biscuit Filmworks."It was a great privilege to work with Joe and Darcy on their debut piece of filmmaking,which I think is a brilliant music video that stands tall next to the rest of the band's enviable canon of work," says Law. "Biscuit and alt-J have worked very successfully together in the past, and we were thrilled to build on that relationship with Hard Drive Gold. Newman-Wallace has a very bright filmmaking future, and we’re all very excited about what happens next.”

Newman-Wallace

Adam Farley

Roma Nesi Pio

Titus Penate

George Nelson

Sam Barnham

Krzysztof Trojnar

Ian Coffey

William Crafts

Alex Hudson

Lee Parfait

Shaun Fenn

Natalie Roar

Maya Man

Lucy Berry

Final Cut

Rascal Post

Alternative

alt-J 'Hard Drive Gold' by Newman-Wallace

alt-J - Hard Drive Gold (Official Video)

Promonews talks to Biscuit Filmworks' director Ben Strebel about the combination of passion, ingenuity and trust that went into making his remarkable video for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2021/06/29/skrillex-starrah-four-tet-butterflies-ben-strebel/71628" target="_blank">Skrillex, Four Tet and Starrah's Butterflies</a>.&nbsp;In Strebel's video for the track from Skrillex's long-awaited new album, as a group of teenagers burst out of their high-rise lockdown confinement,&nbsp;the pent-up frustrations of&nbsp;the past 18 months are expressed through dance, and dressing up as ghosts. But then things take step towards the transcendent - the ghosts fly, and their dance takes to the air.We spoke to Ben Strebel about the making of his tour de force,&nbsp;and the working partnerships that were crucial to its success, from choreographer Holly Blakey, to the VFX team at Electric Theatre Collective, to the artist himself,&nbsp;Sonny John Moore - aka Skrillex. He reveals that this ground-breaking project really was a step into the unknown, which eventually became a joyful experience in itself.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;[vidtoken data:0]Promonews: How did the process begin for making the Butterflies video?Ben Strebel: Sonny texted me few a years ago buzzing about his forthcoming album, which ended up being multiple years in the making. We were about to shoot a video for a different track when Covid hit and our shoot - which was supposed to shoot in Thailand - couldn’t go ahead.Another few months passed, during which we talked regularly on Facetime. In this time he sent me four more tracks to choose from, of which I decided to go for Butterflies. I mean, Skrillex and Fourtet = Banger.[imgtoken data:1]<blockquote>I felt&nbsp;for that generation of kids who had been robbed of a year.</blockquote>Is the subject matter at the core of the video – the stress of young people cooped up during the lockdown – something that’s close to your heart?The track is all about love and closeness between people, which resonated with me in the pandemic. I couldn’t help but feel for that generation of kids who had been robbed of a year with very little support.So&nbsp;I wanted to spin in a positive way and celebrate what it would feel like when those restrictions were lifted and people could be together again. It’s about freedom and expression.[imgtoken data:2]<blockquote>Sonny [Skrillex] stressed the importance of it being positive.</blockquote>What discussions did you have with Skrillex about the idea and how to approach the subject?When I presented the idea to Sonny, he connected with it and stressed the importance of it needing to be positive. It’s a point of view we both shared.He was excited at the prospect of reinterpreting the metaphor of the Ghost - from something about loss and disconnection, to hopefulness and liberty that thrives in the imagination. In this instance the ghosts represent the feeling of being released from Earthly restraints.[imgtoken data:3]<blockquote>We realised that the ghosts had to go up...</blockquote>When did you know you wanted it to be a dance piece - and that it would cross over from featuring the real dancers to virtual ones?&nbsp;&nbsp;The track begs for movement, which to me was apparent from the outset. I’m interested in how physicality can convey the repression we feel and build to that sense of freedom. I realised there was a limit to how far we could push that feeling of euphoria and release with grounded dance.This is where the supernatural comes into play. The ghosts are CG - but the dancing is real. We recorded their every movement using Mocap, and then manipulated the Y-axis to further effect. We realised they had&nbsp;to go up.It’s about escape and release and there’s no better way to convey that than through an upward trajectory. Reaching the skies.[imgtoken data:4]<blockquote>[The dancers] have had next to no opportunity to&nbsp;express themselves for so long.</blockquote>How did the main members of the cast bring their own experiences to the video?I started the process of casting by doing a series of interviews with the dancers. In order to make the film as genuine as possible I wanted to gauge their experiences of the past year, and draw on this in the narrative. It was important to me that these kids’ stories and feelings were captured in this film.As I got to know them and understood their struggles and desires, it became apparent that not only was this as much their film, but an actual vehicle for them to express themselves. They’ve had next to no opportunity to do so for so long.[imgtoken data:5]<blockquote>Holly Blakey's choreography became instrumental in bridging from the real to the virtual.</blockquote>When did choreographer Holly Blakey become involved and what did she bring to the project?Holly’s amazing. I love her style, which is pared-back at times - less is more, in my opinion. I’ve always wanted to work with her and love working with choreographers from the start. She totally understood the emotion of the piece and became instrumental in helping us bridge from the real to the virtual.&nbsp;How did you develop the ghost VFX with ETC? The realism of the sheets is amazing – something they had in their armoury already or needed to develop for the project?ETC smashed it. Having worked with them on most&nbsp;if not all of my films, we’ve developed a shorthand and level of trust with each other. I couldn’t have made this film without that.&nbsp;They were so instrumental and pushed themselves so hard to create a piece of CG magic.[imgtoken data:6]<blockquote>Seeing the final sequence&nbsp;evolve was incredible.&nbsp;</blockquote>The passion and energy that they brought to this one is both humbling and amazing. I feel like they carried me through this with their creativity and expertise.They’re never shy of doing impossible. The development of the ghosts and cloth was an evolving conversation, which took place over months. In the end they decided the best approach would be to do it all in CG rather than painting feet and hands.This way we could instil character and personality into the movement of the cloth, which I believe in a shot such as the falling cloth at the start gives it an energy and personality, which is what this film is all about.Any time you see cloth moving in the film - when it’s not attached to a real cast member -&nbsp;has been created from scratch by ETC. Masters of cloth and lighting and everything else.[imgtoken data:7]<blockquote>Any time you see cloth moving... it's been created from scratch by ETC.</blockquote>What were the main challenges of the shoot itself?&nbsp;And the biggest challenges - and surprises -&nbsp;that came out of the post production process?Visualising the end sequence without ghosts was definitely the hardest part of the shoot. It’s never inspiring shooting a load of empty plates. And then assembling a load of empty plates in the edit was definitely the trickiest part – especially when you have to lock the edit so that the plates can be tracked.We cut the entire final sequence without knowing how the ghosts would react to the Y-axis movement of the ghosts. Seeing it evolve was incredible.It was brilliant to see how what once was choreographed according to gravity could suddenly be taken into another realm where physics is defied.[imgtoken data:8]<blockquote>Sonny's trust and belief in the process were humbling - a joyful collaboration.</blockquote>How close is the final work to your vision for the video? And what was the artists’ response to seeing it?&nbsp;Sonny cried. Literally tears of joy. His trust and belief in the process were humbling. Such a joyful collaboration when working directly with such a intelligent individual.I always wanted this piece to feel raw and honest. It’s a sensitive subject that had to be addressed in a sensitive way by all of us. I think we achieved it. &nbsp;• Ben Strebel is represented by <a href="https://biscuitfilmworks.com/uk/music-projects" target="_blank">Biscuit Filmworks</a> in the UK and US. Contact&nbsp;Andrew Law, Biscuit UK's Head of Music + Projects, about new projects.&nbsp;

Ben Strebel

Behind The Video: Ben Strebel on Skrillex's Butterflies - "The ghosts are CG, the dancing is real."

Skrillex, Starrah & Four Tet - Butterflies (Official Music Video)

James Murray directs a hypnotic&nbsp;promo&nbsp;for Stubborn Heart's track&nbsp;Everything Matters.Shot on location in West London, the film experiments with multiple perspectives through a hallucinatory car journey.&nbsp;Using a mix of 360 cameras and Go-Pros, the cinematography is compelling and refreshing, and the quickfire edit ramps up the energy to intoxicating heights.[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;

Adam Oyejobi

Andi Chu

Black Kite Studios

Jade Denne

One Little Independent Records

Dance

Electronic

Stubborn Heart 'Everything Matters' by James Murray

Stubborn-Heart-'"everything-Matters"'-by-James-Murray

Ben Strebel makes a stunning return to music videos with his wonderful&nbsp;video for Skrillex, Starrah and Four Tet’s new track Butterflies - an impressionistic portrait on the impact of a year of Covid crisis upon a generation, which builds to a simply transcendent&nbsp;climax.With some hugely talented&nbsp;collaborators, including choreographer Holly Blakey, DoP Ben Todd, and the&nbsp;VFX team at Electric Theatre Collective, Strebel channels the frustrations of a generation of youth, whose relationships and&nbsp;opportunies have all been curtailed by the successive lockdowns, into a very contemporary work of visual art.On a London estate, an edgy teenager is a ball of energy as they sit in their room, and when a group of youths gather, the group immediately combine to&nbsp;performing Blakey's intricate, physically demanding choreography. Sheets float in the air, at the Chinese takeaway&nbsp;the youths&nbsp;also play ghosts, covered in sheets - and then the path from gritty reality to heightened sensibility spins into outright&nbsp;fantasy, all within the same concrete world.[imgtoken data:1]The climax of the video is wonderful - and that is partly because you do not see it coming. The kids have now become real ghosts, soaring into the air above the concrete,&nbsp;freed&nbsp;to cavort to the strains of this epic electronic collaboration between Sonny John Moore (aka Skrillex), Keiran Hebden (Four Tet), and Brittany Talia Hazzard (Starrah). This is a brilliantly conceived ballet - created with an ingenious execution of VFX work and camera movement.&nbsp;&nbsp;Strebel has created a wonderful visual for Butterflies, the result of not only his own skill and vision, but the ambition and support of Skrillex. The artist and director&nbsp;had been talking for a long time about working together, and Skrillex took&nbsp;a hands-on approach throughout the process, sanctioning the lengthy&nbsp;period in post production required to make it happen.It was well worth the wait.&nbsp;&nbsp;

United States

Ed Bellamy

Christopher Mears

Ben Todd

Sean Lomax

Dan Jenner

Simon Wood

Wolf Wasserman

Ben Manwaring

Oliver Hogan

Kate Forbes

Anna Wild

Holly Blakey

Kharmel Cochrane

Matt Nee

Metal House Edit

James Sindle

Luke Morrison

Antonia Vlasto

Hannah Clark @ Metal Edit

Electronica

Skrillex, Starrah, Four Tet 'Butterflies' by Ben Strebel

British-Nigerian artist Tony Njoku takes us on a psychedelic journey, in James Murray’s&nbsp;promo for Death by Dimitri.Experimenting with a flurry of different visual mediums, the abstract video was shot on-location in East London, and features an intense,&nbsp;in-your-face performance with a mesmerising twist.&nbsp;Completely eclectic and refreshing, Murray's eye for frenetic imagery is on full display here, perfectly executed by DoP&nbsp;Sebastian Beyrer.&nbsp;

Sebastian Beyrer

Rain Keene

Work Editorial

Ollie Whitworth

Tony Njoku 'Death By Dimitri' by James Murray

Tony-Njoku-'Death-By-Dimitri'-by-James-Murray

Singer-songwriter Chelou only makes animated videos, and now he has collaborated with one of the most exciting new talents currently working in animation - Cheng-Hsu Chung.The Berlin-based Taiwanese animator has worked with illustrator Ricardo Cavolo to create this blazingly psychedelic affair&nbsp;for Chelou's song Wayward - in fact, a vibrant visual interpretation of the song's lyrics.Chung and Cavolo imagine a world of possibilities for a cartoon version of Chelou: a&nbsp;landscape of random objects exist beneath his double pair of eyes; he leaves the lake where he lives on his legs of fire, transforming into a bird (and a cigarette) before flying off to pastures new, continue his journey of self-discovery, and ending up on a mountainside with the sands of time.It's a trippier experience than his iconoclastic celebration of sexual roleplay&nbsp;in his video for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSzCG2xeUMw" target="_blank">Chk Chk Chk's Couldn't Have Known</a> last year, but just as imaginative.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;

Cheng-Hsu Chung

Josef Byrne

Ricardo Cavolo

Dal Park

Dimitris Armenakis

Singer-songwriter

Chelou 'Wayward' by Cheng-Hsu Chung

Chelou-'Wayward'-by-Cheng-hsu-Chung

Two rogue cyborg cops do their thing around the mean city streets - driving, shooting, bodypopping - for the first audio-visual release of&nbsp;1i41i, a collaboration between Sydney-based director&nbsp;Matt Devine and producer Born Dirty.&nbsp;"We teamed up to create tracks and videos simultaneously so they work together as one rather than the video being an afterthought," says Devine. "The track idea inspires the video and the video idea inspires the track."

Australia

Matt Devine

Revolver Sydney

Michael Ritchie

Ed Whitfield

Dan Lee

Arc Edit

Scott Stirling

The Glue Society Studios

Heckler

Bonnie Law

Milked Studio

Way Way Records

Will O'Rourke

1i41i 'Public Order' by Matt Devine

1i41i-'Public-Order'-by-Matt-Devine

Andreas Nilsson comes out of music video retirement for his old pal 2 Chainz...And a&nbsp;very Nilsson-esque tableau&nbsp;of fruity characters, and surreal visual gags it is too, as 2 Chainz demonstrates that he&#39;s &quot;rare, as a 2 Dolla Bill&quot;, delivered throughout, with a silk scarf on his head.&nbsp;And he gets sterling support from Lil Wayne (undergoing surreal surgery), and E40. you know you would have some good fun with those guys.VMA-winning VFX company Timber applied their visual effects and postproduction magic to the piece, while artists at&nbsp; collaborating company Kevin provided 2D viz effects for the video.

Andreas Nilsson

Arlene McGann

Holly Vega

Geoff Hounsell

Arcade

Daniel de Vue

Timber

Sabrina Elizondo

Hip Hop

2 Chainz ft Lil Wayne, E40 '2 Dolla Bill' by Andreas Nilsson

2 Chainz - 2 Dollar Bill ft. Lil Wayne, E-40

A lady in a fur coat and a Cadillac is about to give you the greatest pep talk of your life in Matt Devine&#39;s video for Born Dirty&#39;s highly motivational summer vibes track Get Up and Get Out.Armed with a cassette machine and a pair of speakers strapped to the roof of the Caddy, this fine madam drives about LA blasting out an infectious message of positivity.All you need to do is put your mind to it, and your grind to it...

Nathan Waters

Saskia Whinney

Martim Vian

Carolina Salom

The Butchery

Constantaras

Jamie Watson

Mika Abadie

Mad Decent

Born Dirty ft. jstlbby 'Get Up And Get Out' by Matt Devine

Born-Dirty-(ft.jstlbby)-'Get-Up-And-Get-Out-'-by-Matt-Devine-(repped-By-Biscuit-Filmworks)

From alt-J&#39;s striking original idea, Isaiah Seret has crafted an experimental epic for their song Pleader that draws on different artforms&nbsp;and ultimately has nearly spawned a new one. This is a music video that could also described as a short dramatic musical.&nbsp;It&#39;s set in a coal mining community in a South Welsh valley in the early 20th century, and at the heart of it is a young miner and his wife. But their fate is bound up with the decisions made by the whole community, who decide that the woman has to produce a child. In that way, they sew the seeds of their own destruction - but this is just as much about the boy with special powers who is left behind.&nbsp;In the midst there are real scenes of birth and destruction, powerful performances from Sophie Cookson and Morgan Watkins as the couple, and Ewan Hipperson as Llewelyn, their son, and a huge supporting cast.&nbsp;There&#39;s enough surprise and mystery here to keep you coming back looking for answers. And at its core, a breathtaking sequence: the terrible power of a volcanic cloud, destroying everything and everyone in its path.[imgtoken data:1] &nbsp;

Isaiah Seret

Sonya Sier

John Lynch

Rupert Hornstein

Marie Lanna

Mr Gammon

Rebecca Mason

Louis Barron

Stewart Reeves

Time Based Arts

Simone Grattarola

Sheldon Gardner

Lock It In

alt-J 'Pleader' by Isaiah Seret

alt-J - Pleader (Official Video)

Take That reunite with director Gregg Masuak in this homage to some horror movie&nbsp;favourites.It looks as though Take That have gone and found themselves slap bang in the middle of every single horror film at the same time. What a spot of bad luck. Really though, take a second to pick all the best horror baddies out of the line-up here! This great tongue-in-cheek bit of over-acting from everyone involved is hilariously contrasted by the upbeat song, too. Oh, and just when you think all hope is lost, the band save the day the only way they can; with the power of dance.A fun, knowing collaboration from a band and director that have both learned a lot since the days of&nbsp;Pray.&nbsp;

Gregg Masuak

Kwok Yau

Lisa Turnbull

Marcus Domleo

Semera Khan

Polydor

Take That 'New Day' by Gregg Masuak

Take That - New Day (Official Video)

David Magnier has directed these dramatic visuals about&nbsp;a love gone awry for four-piece indie pop band&nbsp;Causes&#39; Sinking Ship.Following a&nbsp;couple through their ups and downs, the relatable tale chronicles moments in a&nbsp;marriage crumbling to beyond the point of repair. Cutting back and forth between blissful summer picnics,&nbsp;their wedding in the woods, and the fighting&nbsp;that ultimately finishes the relationship, the poignant video places the good along with the bad.And after&nbsp;heightening the stakes,&nbsp;the video ends&nbsp;on a foreshadowing&nbsp;image of the husband letting his wife, still in a wedding dress,&nbsp;fall off a bridge near where they were married.&nbsp;

David Magnier

Eoin McLoughlin

Jake Whitelocke

Charlie Moreton

Hanna Bayatti

Alexa Haywood at Free Agent UK

Sony Music

Causes 'Sinking Ship' by David Magnier

Brighton rapper&nbsp;Ocean Wisdom plays a real version of Snakes and Ladders as he&nbsp;navigates the dark&nbsp;streets of London in this music video for his track&nbsp;Snakes &amp; Blaggers, directed&nbsp;by Lucie Beecham.Teaming up with animator Craig Dolan, the video has&nbsp;superimposed&nbsp;2D animations hand drawn&nbsp;onto live action footage. Beecham explains,&nbsp;&quot;I felt using the hand drawn elements alongside the gritty black and white live action was the best way to blend Ocean&rsquo;s grime style with a game that provokes childhood nostalgia.&quot;

Lucie Beecham

Billy Bowring

Cem Aytacli

Andreas Neo

Matt Choules

Jay Maude

Ben Ransley

Julia Jomaa

Ben Corfield

Andrew Cloke

Splice

Craig Dolan

Ocean Wisdom, Lauren Codner, Flo Prevezer, Yasu Pola-samuels

High Focus

Ocean Wisdom 'Snakes & Blaggers' by Lucie Beecham

Ocean-Wisdom-'Snakes-&-Blaggers-'-by-Lucie-Beecham

Ish Sahotay&#39;s video for FineArt&nbsp;brings the club to spin class for their 2-step banger&nbsp;Don&rsquo;t Wanna Rush. It&#39;s essentially&nbsp;a modern reworking of the famous/infamous Eric Prydz video for Call On Me, with an all-girl class of professional dancers.Very sadly, Ish Sahotay&#39;s life was cut short soon&nbsp;after shooting this video. The 26 year old had directed several low budget&nbsp;videos,&nbsp;and was just starting to make a serious impact as a director, particularly with his <a href="http://www.promonews.tv/videos/2014/11/18/little-boots-taste-it-ish-sahotay" target="_blank">Little Boots video for Taste It</a> &ndash;&nbsp;now shortlisted for Best Dance Video - Budget category at the UK Music Video Awards next month &ndash; when he passed away in June.To celebrate his life, his friend Jake Bulstrode-White created a <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/Ishwer" target="_blank">Go Fund Me</a> campaign to&nbsp;put on an Exhibition of all his work, which took place on&nbsp;the&nbsp;17th July at the Apiary Studios.&nbsp;On the page, Bulstrode-White said this of his friend:&nbsp;&quot;Ish Sahotay was a 26 year old&nbsp;up and coming Director/Photographer. &nbsp;After 4&nbsp;years of working his way up through the industry his career had finally started to flourish, there seemed to be&nbsp;no end to his success.&quot;Tragically on the 16th June 2015 Ish went to bed and didn&#39;t wake up. He was full of so much talent and ideas, anyone that had the honour of meeting him will know how much of a loss to the world his passing was.&quot;&nbsp;