Director

James Slater

James Slater reunites with Leeds post-punk combo Yard Act for the first release from the much anticipated second album - and taking the distinctive world created in the band's videos from the first album - all directed by Slater - to the next level.In short, we're in the future. And we're in The Trench Coat Museum.&nbsp;&nbsp;"The video serves as a continuation and expansion of the Yard act universe we explored on the first album," says James Slater.&nbsp;"It's set some 30 years in the future in this strange, dystopian trench coat museum in which an enigmatic character - the visitor - takes an audio guided tour."The song's an eight-minute banger so I wanted the exhibits to come to life so that we could transition from an exhibition tour to a warehouse rave. It feels like a mini-film which is no accident, we see this as the first part of a Yard Act movie that coincides with their next album. Fingers crossed."

Sophie Barrott

Jack Hartley

Daisy Smith

Tim Ellis

Zomdic Films

Sam Flynn

Chris Sarginson

Paul Mortlock

Rosie Ford

Eddie Leader

Gary Kent

Sean Lomax

Sam James

Liam Lyall

Bethani Gowland

Emma Tierney

Andi Chu

Natalie Meziani

Island Records

Yard Act 'The Trench Coat Museum' by James Slater

Yard-Act-'The-Trench-Coat-Museum'-by-James-Slater

Jack Hartley directs a poignant promo for Jamie Webster, featuring UFC flyweight champion Molly McCann in the lead roleThe video for Webster's Voice Of The Voiceless sees McCann running through city streets, reflecting upon the different characters she meets along the way.&nbsp;There is a central theme of introspection and vulnerability, and the blend of narrative and performance creates a well-balanced, absorbing concept.&nbsp;"This video is about how mental health effects us all, even those deemed the strongest amongst us have their vulnerabilities," says Hartley.&nbsp;"I want to encourage anyone suffering to speak up and to understand that they are not alone no matter how bad it seems."[imgtoken data:1]

United Kingdom

Ruta Staseviciute

Chloe Saunders

Tiz Smith

Kyle Heslop

Dom Child

George Haydock

Danny Usman

Martin Welsby

Helena Smythe

Jax Harney

X-ldn

Molly McCann

Jamie Webster 'Voice Of The Voiceless' by Jack Hartley

Jamie Webster - Voice Of The Voiceless (Official Video)

"Inspired by the photography of Melvin Sokolsky, we placed Tom Grennan in a sphere and hung him over the River Mersey," says James Slater of his video for Grennan's All These Nights.Which works an absolute treat.

Chelsea O’Connor

Lola Cookman

Charlie Dalton

Alexa Haywood at Free Agent UK

Kat Cattaneo

Ali Copland

Chris Macdonagh

Dan Mccaffrey

Matthew Prickett

Work Editorial

Black Kite Studios

Sony Music

Tom Grennan 'All These Nights' by James Slater

Tom-Grennan-'All-These-Nights'-by-James-Slater

James Slater directs a high-energy promo for Irish rock band Inhaler.&nbsp;In the video for These Are The Days, we see the boys hanging out in several laidback vignettes; on a tour bus, in a bedroom and backstage.&nbsp;The environments are completely artificial - evidenced by the breaking of the fourth wall, and wider shots of the studio and set elements - and this blurs the line between reality and fiction, reflecting the dreamlike atmosphere in the track.&nbsp;The use of rear projection and in-camera effects also lends a nostalgic, vintage feel to the visual, along with the black and white aesthetic.&nbsp;

Nicola Bell

Jade Denne

Semera Khan

Phil Hurst

Ben Eve

Rob Beck

Dan Mccaffery

Martin Perrin

Georgina Wadsworth

Lucy Matthews

Polydor

Emily Jeffery

Rock

Inhaler 'These Are The Days' by James Slater

Inhaler-'These-Are-The-Days'-by-James-Slater

James Slater completes his excellent series of videos for Leeds band Yard Act's first album The Overload with a superb valedictory&nbsp;effort for the album's final&nbsp;track&nbsp;100% Endurance - starring iconic actor David Thewlis.Thewlis wakes up on a street bench, finding himself on a suburban housing estate, surrounded by its residents. They are familiar faces to anyone who has watched the previous Yard Act videos,&nbsp;as most have appeared in one or more, playing the characters that populate the 'Yard Act universe' - created by the band's frontman,&nbsp;James Smith.&nbsp;Smith has played some characters himself in the preceding videos - a dodgy magician (in <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2021/11/25/yard-act-land-blind-james-slater/73960" target="_blank">Land Of The Blind</a>), a slippery estate agent (in <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2021/12/15/yard-act-payday-james-slater/74305" target="_blank">Payday</a>), and obnoxious club owner Graham (in <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2021/09/14/yard-act-overload-james-slater/72771" target="_blank">The Overload</a>). But in 100% Endurance, Thewlis plays Smith, more or less. Appropriately he takes over lipsync duties for the album's least abrasive, most philosophical song, as a world-weary but wise figure wondering among his fellow housing estate inhabitants.[imgtoken data:1]James Slater then delivers an additional delicious curveball. Suddenly, a giant hand drops down into the scene&nbsp;- David&nbsp;Thewlis's. It picks up what turns out to be a tiny figurine of himself (or is it Smith?), from a miniature model version of the housing estate. It's a sudden, comic twist that resonates with the overriding theme&nbsp;of the song: 'what's&nbsp;it all about, anyway?...'<blockquote>[Thewlis] really bought into it all and delivered a brilliant performance, tying the whole thing together.</blockquote>"Prior to shooting 100% Endurance, I'd already been lucky enough to shoot four&nbsp;videos from&nbsp;The Overload," confirms Slater.&nbsp;"It's given us the opportunity to create our own Yard Act cinematic universe, with characters and themes recurring across all the films. With this video we wanted to wrap everything up.&nbsp;"I thought we should have a go at answering (that question)&nbsp;by revealing that&nbsp;the universe (well, the Yard Act universe at least) is in fact a miniature model set, kept atop Thewlis'&nbsp;spare room.[imgtoken data:2]&nbsp;"James and David had been chatting for a while, as it turned out he was a big fan of the band. He let us know he'd be up for doing a video and thankfully liked the idea. We shot it in his native Blackpool. He really bought into it all and delivered a brilliant performance, tying the whole thing together. I think he'll go far!"<blockquote>It's testament to James Slater and his vision for bringing our songs to life every time.</blockquote>James Smith adds that&nbsp;his experience of making this video was a combination of enjoyment and disbelief. “It was great shooting this video," he says. "I barely had to do anything, and I didn’t have fake facial hair glued to [my] head for once."I still can’t believe David got involved. I was such a fan of his work from Naked through to Fargo, and when I told James Slater he was interested in working with us, he was so buzzing. A brilliant actor, and an absolute joy to watch work. Equally so, he is a thoroughly decent, down-to-earth person who is funny as fuck, and that goes a fair way I reckon."[imgtoken data:3]Smith&nbsp;also pays tribute to Slater's work across five videos for The Overload. “This video also stands as testament, once more, to James Slater and his vision for bringing our songs to life every time," he says. "I always knew we would revisit the world one last time to bring the whole concept of the album full circle, and I knew the final video would be for 100% Endurance. But once the album came out and touring kicked in, I never knew when we would find the time. Finally we did, and getting all the cast of characters back together felt lovely too."We’ve met so many ace people making these videos and the more you meet them, the easier it is. Bless everyone who was on board throughout. If no one figures it out in the next five years, I’ll do a thorough breakdown of all the videos with every reference, easter egg and narrative hint we&nbsp;stuck in there.”

Joanne Johnson

Chris Sargent

Aaron Dunleavy

Mihai Virlan

Brody Salmon

Lucy Gregory

Leanne Bartlett

Louise Hood

David Thewlis

Post-Punk

Alternative

Yard Act '100% Endurance' by James Slater

Yard-Act-'100%-Endurance'-by-James-Slater

The Amazons return to action with the anthemic Bloodrush, and a&nbsp;fun, carnival sideshow-themed video by James Slater that gets the blood, and adrenalin&nbsp;pumping.&nbsp;The band wander into this atmospheric setting, absorbed by the performers, including trapeze artists, a BMX rider, fire-juggler -&nbsp;and a knife-throwing act. It's the latter that provides the real thrills as the Zons' lead singer Matt Thomson finds himself in the firing line of the blindfolded knife thrower.[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;&nbsp;Slater and his production team found authentic talent&nbsp;for their carnival characters - including knife thrower Simon Ratzka, and his assistant&nbsp;Tor Callis - for the video shot at an abandoned amusement park in Lancashire.All appropriate precautions were taken, of course, when it came to&nbsp;the knives being thrown.&nbsp;No lead singers were harmed in the making of this video...

Josh Lenaghan

Laurie Nutall

Lee Symington

David Knight

Fiction Records

The Amazons 'Bloodrush' by James Slater

The Amazons - Bloodrush

James Slater applies rules of the Old Masters&nbsp;to his video for Liverpool band Blondes, contemplating their post-party blues in Low On The Comedown.Slater's classically-inspired portraits of the band become increasingy complicated&nbsp;and&nbsp;crowded, as the party itself starts to encroach into proceedings."The video is inspired by the compositions in classical paintings," says Slater.&nbsp;"I asked the band to invite their mates along to this empty house in Liverpool and got them to form a big pile. It’s the morning after the night before composed like a Caravaggio painting."

Tom McGoldrick

Indie

Indie-pop

Blondes 'Low On The Comedown' by James Slater

Blondes-'Low-On-The-Comedown'-by-James-Slater

Yard Act's James Smith assumes the role of roving TV reporter J Konopinski, to discover what it's like to be rich, in James Slater's latest dive into the Leeds band's comic universe.For Rich, Slater again recalls members of&nbsp;the ensemble&nbsp;cast from <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2021/09/14/yard-act-overload-james-slater/72771" target="_blank">The Overload</a> and <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2021/11/25/yard-act-land-blind-james-slater/73960" target="_blank">Land Of The Blind</a> videos, playing the characters from Smith's songs on the band's forthcoming debut album. This time they are Konopinksi's interviewees,&nbsp;each branding the evidence of their wealth - a 50p piece, of various sizes. All apart from the character&nbsp;known as The Trapper,&nbsp;who is watching this fascinating news report on&nbsp;his increasingly unreliable telly.[imgtoken data:1]"It's a hypothetical song about me accidentally becoming rich, and contemplating what I might do with all the power it brings," Smith has explained. "It's basically saying - c'mon, let's have some sympathy for all the millionaires out there, it's tough for them too."Obviously it ain't really saying that, but as we all know, money doesn't really bring you happiness, and even the rich have feelings to process and therapists to feed. Don't get stuck on simple ideas... Also, I should make it completely clear here that I am in no way defending the rich. They deserve all the stick they get, the rich bastards."[imgtoken data:2]Slater looked to the distant past, to an apocryphal story&nbsp;about someone who really did suddenly become rich, for his inspiration for the video.&nbsp;"I’d seen an old Pathe News report on legendary pools winner Viv Nicholson (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viv_Nicholson" target="_blank">'Spend spend spend!'</a>) and thought it’d be fun to take the lyrics of Rich and turn them into a dialogue between a news reporter played by James,&nbsp;and a various different winners of a 50p piece."We wanted to the video to be a continuation of the Yard Act universe, so once again we have an overlap of characters from previous videos, playing lucky winners. And we also have James playing J. Konoponski, a character with a useless media studies degree from the song Fixer Upper. Despite the title the song was a pretty low budget affair but I think it turned out pretty cool!"

Paul Taylor

Lydia Shenton

Yard Act 'Rich' by James Slater

Yard Act - Rich

James Slater's latest video for Leeds post-punk outfit Yard Act puts a modern twist on the&nbsp;'white syc' pop video trope - and on the wacky world of colourful Northern characters that populate the band's songs.While performing in that classic performance video set-up from the late '70s and early 80s, Yard Act's frontman James Smith delivers acerbic&nbsp;lyrics&nbsp;to the accompaniment of lettuce-selling orphan girl dancers. Slater updates the white syc theme with VFX, including wipes to transition between shots and radically alter perspective - and this disembodied space&nbsp;allows the whole band to also&nbsp;create new characters in the Yard Act world.&nbsp;As in Slater's&nbsp;previous videos for Yard Act, Smith again&nbsp;undergoes an eerily convincing transformation, this time as a grinning&nbsp;salesman, staring manically into the camera lens and exhorting us to 'take the money', as he throws around fake cash.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"The song reminded me of Crosseyed and Painless by Talking Heads, which happens to be one of my favourite vids," says Slater. "So&nbsp;it's kind of a homage to those bold and simple white syc videos, but with dancing orphan lettuce farmers instead of the Electric Boogaloos."The lead dancer&nbsp;Kayleigh actually appears in the first video I did for Yard Act&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2021/09/14/yard-act-overload-james-slater/72771" target="_blank">The Overload</a>&nbsp;- we actually spotted her dancing behind a stall of a carboot whilst on a recce -&nbsp;and the Golden Rover makes a reappearance too. It's been nice expanding the Yard Act&nbsp;universe in this way."

Yard Act 'Payday' by James Slater

Yard-Act--'Payday'-by-James-Slater

James Slater's second video for Leeds band Yard Act follows on from the first for The Overload, with frontman James Smith playing a shady alter ego, amid a colourful cast of extras.Having been an obnoxious&nbsp;gig promoter&nbsp;in part of The Overload, Smith now&nbsp;assumes a near-disguise as an incompetent magician, trying out his dreadful&nbsp;tricks on unsuspecting customers in a cafe - including several of The Overload's car boot sale supporting cast, reprising their roles.The video&nbsp;reflects the fully-formed comic universe of an alternative (near-future)&nbsp;North of England that Smith has created in Yard Act's forthcoming debut album, out in January.&nbsp;Slater makes it work brilliantly well on screen, with an ensemble of non-actors supporting Smith, and finished in high contrast black and white.&nbsp;The video that was shot in an old&nbsp;cafe in the town of Clitheroe in Lancashire. "I wanted the vid to have a sinister tone," says Slater. "James plays a greasy magician who performs bad tricks and crimes in front of a hoodwinked audience. There's a metaphor in there somewhere! "This is our second vid for Yard Act and its a further expansion of the Yard Act universe - there are plenty of easter eggs referring to other songs scattered throughout and you'll see some of the characters from Overload make a reappearance too."&nbsp;

Julia Terzi

Yard Act 'Land Of The Blind' by James Slater

Yard-Act-'Land-Of-The-Blind'-by-James-Slater

James Slater brings the cast of characters bursting from the fertile mind of Yard Act lead singer James Smith to life in the video for The Overload - set in a car boot sale near Leeds.Smith has developed numerous of these oddball characters and voices in the band's releases thus far. Now with the title track of Yard Act's forthcoming debut album, he performs an energetic and&nbsp;splenetic stream of consciousness while persuing the goods of a quirky bunch of stall holders - including&nbsp;pink judges, morris dancing punks, fortune tellers, and dancing orphans.[imgtoken data:1]Then he transforms into his most powerful creation - a surly, gold Rover-driving promoter called Graham. It transpires he's not fan of Yard Act's mouthy lead singer, and his catchphrase is -&nbsp;"If you don't challenge me on anything, I'm actually very f*ckin nice."But ironically it is Graham who comes to James's aid, when the car boot community turn nasty, in Slater's rollicking, full throttle video.

Si Howells

Amii Priestly

Ash Fenners

Aaron Dunleavy Films

Yard Act 'The Overload' by James Slater

Yard-Act--'The-Overload'-by-James-Slater

James Slater pulls off a visual feat&nbsp;in his hand-animated promo for Inhaler's It Won't Always Be Like This.&nbsp;Creating a 3D collage from thousands of photocopied frames of footage - from both video and stills - Slater injects a DIY spirit into the production of the concept, and creates something that feels anachronistic in its presentation, timeless and contemporary at the same time."The video was made by making a 3D collage out out of frames from a live shoot, stills and a stock," says James Slater.&nbsp;"To achieve the look each frame had to be photocopied before being used within the animation."&nbsp;A splash of colour within the monochromatic style adds a pop of fun and charm, in line with the Irish rock band's personality and brand.[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;

Ireland

Lou Gallagher

My Accomplice

Richard Grewe

Craig Porter

Semera Kahn

Inhaler 'It Won't Always Be Like This' by James Slater 

Inhaler-'It-Won't-Always-Be-Like-This-'-by-James-Slater-

Oscar Lang embodies the cyclical frustration of lockdown in James Slater's promo for Stuck.&nbsp;Filmed whilst most of us were still stuck in our homes pulling our hair out, the video is a no-frills affair, showing the artist in a range of familiar situations trying his best not to break.&nbsp;Shot in a series of zooms and reveals, Lang switches from static cycling&nbsp;to repeatedly typing STUCK&nbsp;to screaming into the void. It's just another&nbsp;typical lockdown day, grappling with new routines and a sense of despair which just won't budge...&nbsp;Another hit from Slater, with top-notch cinematography from&nbsp;Simon Plunket.&nbsp;

Julien Cornwall

Simon Plunket

Ruchil Choudary

Chris Orr

Salvador Gomez-Lopez

Giulia Mazzocchi

Caroline Morin

Wash

Tom Connick

Oscar Lang 'Stuck' by James Slater 

Oscar-Lang--'Stuck-'-by-James-Slater-

James Slater directs a vibrant day dream in a Mancunian chippy, for the Lathums' Oh My Love.&nbsp;We open on an everyday conversation&nbsp;between&nbsp;fresh-faced frontman Alex Moore and a friendly face behind the counter, who is taking his order.From there, a mysterious young girl appears, and entices him into watching - and playing a small part in - a contemporary dance scene, where she jumps, spins and backtracks through the retro seating area.&nbsp;A charmer of a&nbsp;video that looks great, following nicely in the footsteps of <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2020/10/22/lathums-i-see-your-ghost-james-slater/67326" target="_blank">Slater's previous Lathums' video last year for </a><a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2020/10/22/lathums-i-see-your-ghost-james-slater/67326" target="_blank">I See Your Ghost</a> - and encompasses the feel-good vibes of the Wigan locals.&nbsp;

Issy Ormandy

Joshua Hunt

Will Gale

Kate Holroyd

Louise Mccaan

George Neave

Coffee & TV

Tilly Woodward

The Lathums 'Oh My Love' by James Slater

The-Lathums--'Oh-My-Love-'-by-James-Slater

James Slater directs a dreamy promo for Baby Queen's new track Dover Beach.&nbsp;Fittingly shot across picturesque seaside landscapes - in Dover, of course -&nbsp;the video takes viewers on trip through Bella Latham's psyche, where she is desperately trying to escape that certain someone, to no avail.&nbsp;"It's about being infatuated with somebody and seeing them everywhere you look," comments Baby Queen.&nbsp;Packed full of soft pastel colours and striking locations, the concept takes on a cinematic, romantic aesthetic with top-notch performances and memorable vignettes. It's certainly&nbsp;a departure from the spikier&nbsp;tone of BQ's previous videos.[imgtoken data:1]

Ben Szoradi

Luke C Harper

Bradley Stearn

Aston Born

In Her Glory

Amy Stephenson

Reiss Alexander Harris

Francesca Brazzo

Richard Fearon

Vini Curtis

Nicole Bell

Saorla Houston

Baby Queen 'Dover Beach' by James Slater

Baby Queen - Dover Beach

James Slater directs a gothic fantasy for indie-rock outfit Pale Waves.&nbsp;Taking place in a nondescript church, the performance video is simple in concept, but executed to perfection, with vocalist Heather Baron-Gracie as the constant focus as a radiant goth bride.&nbsp;DoP&nbsp;Jon Muschamp's lighting adds an ethereal feel to the aesthetic, with effervescent bursts of colour inspired by stained glass windows and blue-tinged key lights to create a cold, almost haunting atmosphere.&nbsp;The production design is also a highlight, utilising scattered practical lights and candles to elevate the enigmatic concept.

Molly Bolton

Imogen Harrison

Jon Muschamp

Chris Steel

Asia Rose Kilgallon

Stefan Mitchell

Anthony Neale

Patricia Villirillo, Nelima Odhiambo, Amelia Holden Brown

Shun Meguro, Aya

Marie Bruce

Loop Talent

Indie Rock

Pale Waves 'Easy' by James Slater    

Pale Waves - Easy

James Slater directs a breezy, spooky, tongue-in-cheek promo for Wigan band The Lathums.&nbsp;Centring around a performance in a&nbsp;living room somewhere in Northern England (probably Wigan), the video for I See Your Ghost takes a ghoulish turn early on, where various props and disembodied heads take flight and float around the space. And memorably,&nbsp;lead singer Alex Moore's head&nbsp;becomes the centrepiece of a salad. Ooh er.The spooky inspiration doesn't stop there, with the lads&nbsp;dressing up as ghosts and tearing around the town on skateboards. With Halloween just around the corner - and not being able to do the usual stuff this year -&nbsp;it's a timely release, and refreshingly British take on ghosts and ghouls.&nbsp;

Joe Vickers

Robbie Canale

Juliette Wileman

Absolute

Alexa Haywood @ Free Agent Uk

Universal

The Lathums 'I See Your Ghost' by James Slater 

The-Lathums--'I-See-Your-Ghost-'-by-James-Slater-

The&nbsp;promise of respite cannot come soon enough in James Slater's video for Sam Fender&nbsp;-&nbsp;starring Matt King,&nbsp;who played&nbsp;Super Hans in&nbsp;Peep Show.Hanging in the shadows of a low-key Fender gig at a social club, King is the&nbsp;washed up artist&nbsp;who has been unceremoniously cancelled in place of the young new talent. Overcome by the emotion of the band's music, he dives into&nbsp;intoxicating choreography that starts on the dancefloor but spills out well into the streets of London.Fender also pops up as various characters as King frolics around town, including a chip shop owner and busker, giving Saturday a rather more light-hearted and humourous vibe in comparison&nbsp;to his previous videography.&nbsp;Blending the naturalistic and sincere elements Fender brings to the table with Slater's passion for the avant garde, DP Alexandre Jamin builds a hazy and colourful world for Fender and King&nbsp;to inhabit. It’s&nbsp;quirky and contemporary&nbsp;yet realistic enough to represent the madness a Saturday night in the city can bring.&nbsp;

James Slater

Director

38 videos featuring James Slater

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