Focus Puller

Sam James

Carly Cussen directs a glossy performance promo for Eyelar.&nbsp;In the video for Till You Hate Me, we see two opposing worlds collide, reflecting&nbsp;the dichotomy of emotions in the track.&nbsp;DoP Rick Joaquim creates a distinctive look for each of the worlds - the first is&nbsp;an ethereal, realistic environment, with soft lighting and a sense of calm. The other world is full of shadows, hard lighting and a gloomy, otherworldly colour palette.&nbsp;The opposing aesthetics perfectly encapsulate the themes of the concept, and pay homage to videos of the late 90's and early Noughties.&nbsp;Great work with a standout style and plenty of engaging imagery.&nbsp;

United Kingdom

Felix Coles

Dom Strachan

Thea Dagnaud

Jaime Jarvis

Independent Talent Group

Carly Cussen

Kem Ekundayo

Alexa Haywood at Free Agent UK

Playmaker Films

Adam Trz

Rick Joaquim

Lisa Foo

Michael Rock Perring

Joanna Cuper

Lauren Bell

Aimee Twist

Samuel Marr

Homespun

Tom Matthews

CHEAT

Sony Music

Eyelar 'Till You Hate Me' by Carly Cussen

Eyelar - till you hate me (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

James Slater

Jack Hartley

Rosie Ford

Zomdic Films

Kat Cattaneo

Chris Sarginson

Paul Mortlock

Ali Copland

Chris Macdonagh

Dan Mccaffrey

Matthew Prickett

Work Editorial

Andi Chu

Black Kite Studios

Tom Grennan 'All These Nights' by James Slater

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

Sports Team prepare the ground for the release of their second album Gulp! with the anthemic The Drop - and arguably their most ambitious video so far.A.T. Mann's video involves the band cavorting stylishly through the halls of Carlton House in North Yorkshire&nbsp;- and then frontman Alex Rice attempts a spot of tightrope-walking across the gilded towers...

A. T. Mann

Etienne Newton

Rik Burnell

Adam Cook

Nicola Bell

Louise Hood

Ailsa Chaplin

David Knight

Island Records

Ornit Levy

Tal Baltuch

Sports Team 'The Drop' by A.T. Mann

Sports Team - The Drop

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;

Jade Denne

Semera Khan

Phil Hurst

Ben Eve

Rob Beck

Dan Mccaffery

Martin Perrin

Georgina Wadsworth

Lucy Matthews

Polydor

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.”

Ruta Staseviciute

Joanne Johnson

Sam Flynn

Chris Sargent

Aaron Dunleavy

Mihai Virlan

Brody Salmon

Lucy Gregory

Bethani Gowland

Emma Tierney

Leanne Bartlett

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...

George Haydock

Josh Lenaghan

Laurie Nutall

Lee Symington

Fiction Records

The Amazons 'Bloodrush' by James Slater

The Amazons - Bloodrush

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."

Tom McGoldrick

Yard Act 'Payday' by James Slater

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

Luke Logan-Malik directs an upbeat&nbsp;promo, battling the elements all the while, for London band Kawala.Under rolling grey clouds on Blackpool's golden sands, the group battle the autumn chill and some fearsome winds with a smile, giving everything in a zesty band performance of Searching.&nbsp;Transitioning from a moody daytime setting to intoxicating night setups, the cinematic visuals match the pace of the track - and a last-minute flurry of lighting effects&nbsp;adds an enigmatic strand to the concept.[imgtoken data:1]&nbsp;

Luke Logan-Malik

Joe Vickers

Lewis Kyneston

Ste Webster

Alex Bay

Neill Jones

Richard Van De Steenoven

Carrie Sutton

Ailsa Robertson

EMI Records

Rankin Creative

Kawala 'Searching' by Luke Logan-Malik

Kawala-'Searching'-by-Luke-Logan-malik---@lukeloganmalik

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;

Lou Gallagher

My Accomplice

Richard Grewe

Issy Ormandy

Joshua Hunt

Will Gale

Kate Holroyd

Louise Mccaan

George Neave

Coffee & TV

Tilly Woodward

Emily Jeffery

Indie

The Lathums 'Oh My Love' by James Slater

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

Following the splendid video for <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2020/10/28/maelstrom-x-louisahhh-ascender-dorny-sunday/67439" target="_blank">Ascender</a>, British-Persian&nbsp;director Dorny Sunday has delivered the second part of his trilogy of videos for&nbsp;Parisian electro legend Maelstrom, which expands upon the story&nbsp;of a once-brilliant dancer, now confined to a wheelchair.&nbsp;For Dual Phase, lead single from Maelstrom’s latest album Rhizome, the dancer-turned-choreographer confronts a tragic shift of identity, as the dancer's world of motion is transformed into one of stillness.The performer (choreographer Caterina Grosoli) compulsively replays her swan song in her old dance studio. Which as a rather ominous voiceover informs us, is a venue that was once a heaven, which has become some form of hell.&nbsp;We experience the agonies and ecstasies of muscle memory in this ode to movement.Once again, Sunday's creates an absorbing experience, melding the dance performance&nbsp;with Maelstrom's kinetic&nbsp;track, in a well-crafted fusion of movement, location, use of space and colour, evoking drama and emotion - the feeling of heavy-heartedness and a longing&nbsp;for more - from the experience.&nbsp;And this lays the ground&nbsp;for their third and final film of the trilogy, to be released&nbsp;in the summer.

France

Dorny Sunday

Anna Alstromm

Tomos Pierce

Martin Vesselinov

Harry Cohn

Carling Pillay

Helena Smythe

Julia Rossetti

Maël Péneau

Raar

Robert Beck

Dance

Electro

Maelstrom 'Dual Phase' by Dorny Sunday

Maelstrom-'Dual-Phase-'-by-Dorny-Sunday

Luke Logan's video for legendary Manchester band A Certain Ratio's new&nbsp;single Keep It Together features a girl and a car and a transcendental experience - set at the time when the original incarnation of the band got started.It starts in a swooping shot outside the impressively neon-drenched&nbsp;Stockport Plaza at the end of a great evening, where a young woman (Zada Turkaly),&nbsp;a little under the influence,&nbsp;is irresistably drawn towards the big American 70s car that draws up outside the venue, without a driver.Cue her spectacular journey into a dimension of light and colour - created by LED lights shot in a studio -&nbsp;which results in the girl's&nbsp;vibrant resurgence, in an explosion of&nbsp;dance.&nbsp;The track comes from ACR:EPA, the band's forthcoming four-track EP which centres around a jam session recorded last year with <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/denise-johnson-dead-soul-dance-singer-primal-scream-madchester-a9668946.html" target="_blank">Denise Johnson</a>, the legendary Manchester singer who had joined ACR, before she passed away in August. The video is a tribute to the greatness of an English soul singer who made an indelible impact on the Manchester music scene.ACR have commented on the Luke Logan-directed video:&nbsp;“We wanted it to be set in the ‘70s so we invited ACR fans to dress up and become part of the video, among the extras that turned up were Calder Valley’s finest The Lounge Society and Lee from Manchester’s Heavy Salad. They arrived as&nbsp;funkateers, punks, soul boys and girls, hippies, post punks and prog rockers – and everyone looked amazing.&nbsp;The video is about overdoing it on a night out and trying to keep it together.”[imgtoken data:1]Above: Luke Logan (left)&nbsp;and DoP Paul Mortlock&nbsp;at the Stockport Plaza on the Keep It Together shoot&nbsp;

Leon Henriques

Chris Bird

Alex Gattward

Meme Gold

The Rabble

Zada Turkaly

A Certain Ratio 'Keep It Together' by Luke Logan

A-Certain-Ratio-'Keep-It-Together'-by-Luke-Logan

It's last woman standing in this dark portrait of two dancers testing their limits, in Dorny Sunday's riveting video for Maelstrom x Louisahhh.&nbsp;Paying homage to Dario Argento's Suspiria, this isn't for the faint of heart. Louisahhh's bone-rattling Ascender is the perfect soundtrack to a dance-off gone terribly wrong, and the visuals are strikingly unique.&nbsp;Shot during lockdown with choreographers Caterina Danzico and Kayleigh Price, the engrossing promo is both transcendent and eerie, echoing Gaspar Noe's film Climax in both content and aesthetic, whilst carving out a unique style of its own.&nbsp;DoP&nbsp;Paul Mortlock leans into the haunting, in-your-face vibe, with strobing, hypnotic lights and erratic camera movement, creating a world that falls somewhere between a nightmare and an out of body hallucination. Brilliant work.&nbsp;

Andrew Perch

Sophie Barrott

Robert Rhodes

Margaret Carr

Elena Alienata

Discos Atónicos

Electronic

Maelstrom X Louisahhh 'Ascender' by Dorny Sunday

Maelstrom-X-Louisahhh-'Ascender'-by-Dorny-Sunday

Luke Logan has directed a cinematic yet intimate video for Sam Johnson, which incorporates elements of the singer's personal history into the body of his heartfelt&nbsp;performance of his song Changes.Filmed&nbsp;in the Lancashire countryside&nbsp;- in testing weather conditions -&nbsp;Johnson discovers home video of his early life beamed onto old TVs mysteriously situated in a dark wood, and then showered with photos and Polaroids from the family's photo albums in a field.&nbsp;It is impressively captured by Paul Mortlock's cinematography, and makes for an appealing showcase for the&nbsp;Shropshire-born singer-songwriter.And making the video clearly made a big impression on Sam Johnson himself, as he explains here.

Andy Perch

Josh Hunt

Katie Dymmock

Universal Germany

James France

Singer-songwriter

Sam Johnson 'Changes' by Luke Logan

Sam Johnson - Changes (Official Music Video)

Zuzu pays homage&nbsp;to vintage arcade games and 80s teen movies&nbsp;in What You Want, directed by Luke Bather.&nbsp;Under a wash of blue and pink neon lights, Zuzu and her girls are playing machines at the arcade, before they are rudely interrupted by a trio of tough guys. Styled in 80s prints and garish denim ensembles, the two groups face off, taking the action-packed video games straight into real life.&nbsp;Fighting, pranks and general tomfoolery ensues, interspersed with graphics and effects reminiscent of Mortal Kombat and other early era video games. Beautifully executed and shot, the video is elevated by Zuzu's performance, effortlessly portraying a tough, no-nonsense character in one scene, and a lovestruck, innocent version of herself the next. Great work from the whole team.&nbsp;

Luke Bather

Matthew Rowlands

We Are Invite

Lee Thomas

Darren Ravenscroft

Mike Hogan

Max Meronti

Jade Kewley

Ruchi Ratna

Tom Majerski

Tetragrade

Virgin EMI

Zuzu 'What You Want' by Luke Bather

Zuzu-'What-You-Want'-by-Luke-Bather

Directing duo Grandmas have just signed to Black Dog FIlms, and also directed their second&nbsp;video for Pearl City,&nbsp;as two haplessly wimpy teens become our window into the world of female bodybuilding.This follow-up to their excellent video for <a href="https://www.promonews.tv/videos/2019/04/03/pearl-city-down-tree-grandmas/58063" target="_blank">Down By The Tree</a>, featuring the charismatic Tom Heyes, features two&nbsp;more&nbsp;memorable characters, played by Calum Scott and Joe Ross. They&nbsp;visit a seaside resort and find themselves at a Ms Universe-style show, and suitably amazed and agog.It's another fine example of Grandmas' brand of genre-bending filmmaking,&nbsp;documentary and comedy slammed together to great effect. Their short film&nbsp;Norteños&nbsp;– a black comedy set in the Northwest of England - is currently on the BAFTA/Oscar film festival circuit.

Sam James

Focus Puller

Videos featuring Sam James

2022 (6)

2021 (5)

2020 (2)

2019 (4)

2016 (1)

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