Videos

In his latest outing for rapper YT, Lauzza create a fab retro arcade game-inspired promo for the track Prada & Celine. Building on the success of their recent collaborations, the video kicks off with YT stepping up to a Dance Machine in an arcade with a friend. In a seamless blend of reality and arcade fantasy, they find themselves in the game itself, becoming pixel-perfect backup dancers, before the game then exports out to 'real life'.With a nostalgic aesthetic, playful choreography and an infectious sense of fun we're in the territory in which Lauzza excels - and he does it again here. The video has a distinctive lo-fi video feel, harking back to PS1 dance games, infused with bouncy VFX and grungy textures, and witty nods to classic graphics. A thrilling visual with plenty of fun moments.

Rob Ulitski - 3 days ago

video Zino Vinci ft Tendai 'Stratford Job Centre' by Luke Annett

Luke Annett directs an intense promo for rapper Zino Vinci, featuring Tendai. The video for Stratford Job Centre follows a loose narrative, where Vinci discovers and develops telekinetic powers. Punctuated with stirring performance vignettes, the video opens in an abandoned house, moving through a series of gritty environments.Boasting cinematic VFX and experimental snapshots, the creative execution elevates the promo, and helps build an enigmatic atmosphere throughout.

Rob Ulitski - 10 days ago

New Director

video Headie One ft Stormzy 'Cry No More' by Rawtape

Rawtape directs the video for Headie One’s third collaboration with Stormzy, Cry No More.Shot on Romford High Street, where both artists come from, and based on a concept from Headie One himself, the promo features quintessential British urban grit as it follows ordinary people colliding in the streets of East London.

Promonews - 6 months ago

video Bashy 'Sweet Boys Turn Sour' by George Power

The first single from the return of Bashy arrives with an outstanding video directed by George Power, combining a range of techniques, including a palette of animation styles, to illustrate the rapper's reflections on growing up in North West London.Power's video for Sweet Boys Turn Sour combines live action - both Bashy (aka Ashley Thomas) performing, and also the dramatisation of his younger 'sweet boy' self - with 2D, scribble animation and claymation - to add a visual flourish to the grime star's autobiographical story, without distracting from the message.Since his debut album came out fifteen years ago, Ashley Thomas has gone to acting fame (including Top Boy, THEM and Great Expectations). This video for the first single from his second album, Being Poor Is Expensive, was shot around Combe House on the Brunel Estate, where he lived during his formative years. The various styles of animation employed by George Power are all deceptively innnocent and fun, before revealing their darker purpose: the main two dimensional cartoon character becomes a demon who personifies the bad stuff in the local area; claymation blobs morph into guns and knives. Power also adds montages of photos of the real Thomas as a child, and his transformation into a tough 'sour' youth in his teens.A powerful complement to Sweet Boys Turn Sour, also helping to focus upon the questions around the relative influence of surroundings and upbringing that are raised by the artist in the song.

David Knight - 7 months ago

video Jordy ft JME 'Wonderkid' by Charlie Sarsfield

Charlie Sarsfield directs an intense, mostly black & white promo for rapper Jordy's collab with JME.Split between the artists' performances, the powerful video for Wonderkid uses old CRT TV screens and backdrops to add visual intrigue, transcending the studio environment to create something artful and fresh - featuring a cameo from Jordy's younger brother.It's a well structured visual for two powerhouse artists, imbued with Sarfield's confident direction and visual style, and nicely shot by DoP Courtney Bennett. It benefits from restraint, in getting the most from a few strong set-ups. “The visual is all about perspective," Sarsfield explains. "I wanted to create a visually intriguing backdrop to stage the performance of Jordy and JME, causing the viewer to question what was and wasn’t really there."We tried out some experimental techniques on set to create the subtle illusions you see, and both artists were a joy to work with throughout. Very glad to be a part of this one.”

Rob Ulitski - 9 months ago

Director's notes

video Dizzee Rascal 'Switch and Explode' by Oliver Jennings

Oliver Jennings creates another surreal and entertaining world for Dizzee Rascal, continuing his collaboration with the legendary UK rapper.The video for Switch and Explode sees Dizzee as a literal punching bag for David Haye, at a fitness class, and back in his classic debut album artwork - the Boy has become the Old Man In Da Corner - amongst a series of other playful vignettes.A blend of old-school ideas and modern technology, the video ponders the rise of robots and drones whilst keeping things cheeky and relaxed - classic Dizzee. It's the third hugely impressive collaboration between Oliver Jennings and Dizzee, packed full of big visual moments, on tracks from the new album Don't Take It Personal.

Rob Ulitski - 9 months ago

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video J Hus ft CB 'Cream' by Nicholas Lam

Nicholas Lam returns to music videos with an R-rated cyberpunk anime western, where Samurai meets Cowboy, for J Hus featuring CB - and it's a stunning feat.The video for Cream stars the two rappers as anime swordsmen, fighting their way through a dystopian future full of shadowy organisations and super-villains. Lam worked with two talented animation teams - Tier S in Serbia and Point Five Creations in Taiwan - and the result is a riotous, ultraviolent actioner, with an impressive dramatic build and superb animation work. From dynamic fight scenes through to imaginative world-building, the video is an early highlight of the year.Perhaps one of the most ambitious music videos of recent times, in fact. A must-watch, which leaves a lasting impression.

Rob Ulitski - 10 months ago

video Manga Saint Hilare ft P Money And JME 'Alarm Bells' by Will Norman

Will Norman fuses German Expressionism with London Grime, in his mind-bending video for Manga Saint Hilare, P Money and JME.In the video for Alarm Bells, we see the trio perform in a labyrinth maze, encapsulated by enigmatic, abstract structures - influenced by Metropolis, M and other German classics of the Weimar era. With a focus on composition and lighting - particularly in recreating Expressionist-era shadows and a high contrast aesthetic - the video is an experimental, unexpected take on the track, which has plenty of standout moments. Fast-paced with creative transitions between each artist's setups, Norman's concept is inspired, and elevates the track to a new level.

Rob Ulitski - 10 months ago

video Dizzee Rascal ft JME & D Double E 'What You Know About That' by Oliver Jennings

Following their superb collab on How Did I Get So Calm, Oliver Jennings reunites with Dizzee Rascal to create a punchy video inspired by the early days of grime for his latest release What You Know About That.Featuring UK rap legends D Double E and JME, the video pays homage to the style, camera moves and nuance of iconic early grime videos - as Dizzee and guests reminisce about the old days - but reimagined for the future.Boasting multi-format visual setups (with plenty of grainy, early 2000's vibes), the video is a clash of past and present, presenting as an anachronistic visual mashup of the years Dizzy has been making music. Slickly executed with a perfect balance between slick studio footage and BTS-style setups, the video is a whirlwind of performance and technology - and impossible to tear your eyes away from.

Rob Ulitski - 10 months ago

video Dizzee Rascal 'How Did I Get So Calm' by Oliver Jennings

Oliver Jennings directs a superb comeback promo for Dizzee Rascal, depicting the artist's cool demeanour in the face of a variety of chaotic situations. From a giant ball crushing his sports car to a boardroom full of annoying kids, Dizzee is calm and collected, letting situations play out whilst he stays at peace in his own lane. Beautifully shot by DoP Miguel Carmenes, with dazzling VFX work by Ben Imber, Gino Fernandez and team, the video is classic Dizzee - offbeat, frantic and memorable in the best way possible.A slick reminder to keep our heads on and our minds at peace in an increasingly frustrating world.Having said all that... look what they did to Dizzee's car!

Rob Ulitski - 21st Nov 2023

video M Huncho 'Of Course' by Kelvin Jones

PRETTYBIRD’s Kelvin Jones has directed a cinematic music video for M Huncho’s latest single Of Course. Shot on location during wild weather in Hastings, which Jones has lensed with an aesthetic that evokes Midwest America, a humorous narrative runs through the promo, based around central character ‘The Plug’, played by the artist.Kelvin Jones explains: “It was a privilege to work with Huncho on this video, he was so easy to work with. He originally hit me up for the job and it was a no brainer, he trusted my creative vision to create something he was more than happy with. We had a weather warning on the first day and we couldn’t move the shoot, so we was hit with heavy rain and terrible wind, and we was in Hastings so the intensity of everything was worse."So pickup day here we come, and on the second we ended up leaving with the scenes we wanted but under a different scope. We used a vast array of lenses for different purposes because I was searching for a lens that had a lot of character. However, we only had our main lenses on the main shoot but we couldn’t get them on our pickup day, so we ended up shooting on Arri’s Signature Primes and the ANGÉNIEUX ZOOM LENS.”

Promonews - 1st Sept 2023

video Manga Saint Hilare ft Frisco 'Kill Sound' by Will Norman

Two giants of grime appear as 50ft monsters above a post-apocalyptic London backdrop in Will Norman's impressive video for Manga Saint Hilare featuring Frisco.In the video for Kill Sound a mammoth Manga performs over an abandoned Oxford Circus, while a very big Frisco stands before Buckingham Palace, which is littered with deserted military vehicles and graffitied barricades.The video’s high-octane opening quickly clues us into the cause of the city’s collapse. A montage of microscopes, hazmat suits and crowds fleeing the streets is superimposed under a flashing red light that comes to dominate the video’s colour palette.The video blends performance, cutaway and VFX to convey chaos as archive of a viral outbreak is cut together with dynamic studio performances and grainy black and white shots of the duo rapping back-to-back against thunderous skies.

Promonews - 29th Aug 2023

New Director

video Stormzy 'Angel In The Marble' by Troy Roscoe

Stormzy celebrates his 30th birthday in style with #TheMikeGala, and uses the occasion as a the perfect opportunity for a music video.Enlisting Troy Roscoe to capture the visuals, the video for Angel In The Marble is an elegant 'who's who' of the British entertainment industry, intercutting glossy portraiture with heightened performance moments. Shot by Rick Joaquim, the contrast of fly-on-the-wall footage and glossy posed snapshots creates a concept that is both ambitious and luxurious - very fitting for one of the biggest artists in the industry right now. "What an absolute pleasure to have the pressure of delivering the most important birthday present of all for Stormzy’s 30th," Roscoe says. "Stormzy and team wanted the visual to be nothing short of clean, glossy and to scream elegance. As hard as it was to not include one bit of VFX, I’m so happy with the turn out."The visual is so different to anything I’ve done before as my style revolves heavily around surrealism and visual effects - but in this instance it pushed me to focus on simplicity and beauty, both on the day and in the edit. The night was hectic but exciting, meetings all of those guests and getting to share such a special occasion with Mike himself. "The grade and slow motion footage really tied everything together and gave it a unique look. With greyscale footage all being shot at a slow frame rate to provide the beauty, and the graded footage in the booth providing the contrast and personality."

Rob Ulitski - 15th Aug 2023

Director's notes

video Stormzy ft Fredo 'Toxic Trait' by Femi Ladi

When Stormzy does videos, he does them big, and the video for Toxic Trait, directed by Femi Ladi, is no different, boasting a tour de force of set builds, visual effects and cameos - delivered with a mesmerizing motion controlled camera move.What's more, there's a dramatised therapy session featuring guest artist Fredo - with his therapist played by TV royalty Alison Hammond.The video fictionally contextualises a plethora of 'toxic' situations that Stormzy refers to in the track, honing in on gambling, violence and the glorification of luxury lifestyles. And as the camera shifts between multiple versions of the grime superstar, Ladi introduces significant, historical cultural moments from over the years, including the iconic 1968 Esquire Magazine cover of Muhammed Ali and Kehinde Wiley’s prominent painting, A Ship Of Fools.When the action breaks for the therapy scene with Fredo and Hammond, it's a welcome development of the theme that also adds a touch of humour. Then it concludes with a group-therapy session which features further cameos from a range of British figureheads including Ivorian Doll, Wretch 32 and Specs Gonzalez.Filmed in London earlier this year, the majority of the visual was shot on a high-speed, cinema robot camera, capable of horizontal and vertical movement speeds of up to 2 metres per second.“After listening to the lyrics, I wanted to have fun with this video," Femi Ladi has stated. "I liked the idea of bringing a Renaissance-style painting to life, whilst still feeling grounded in the world of Stormzy."We collaborated on all the scenarios together which was great - as well as being able to bring in thelikes of Fredo and Alison Hammond for their own toxic therapy sessions!"

Rob Ulitski - 5th July 2023

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