Singer-songwriter Myles Smith steps behind the camera, writing and directing the video for his single Hold Me In The Dark - a short, cinematic narrative starring Stephen Graham. And the real power of the film is how it addresses a harrowing subject to create something emotional and moving.The film follows a father, played by Graham, through the final hours he spends with his dying daughter. He spends his days with her in hospital. Then each evening he returns to his flat and works obsessively on a construction of mirrors and coloured fragments... building toward something only he fully understands.The ritual looks like a man unravelling. But as the song rises, he carries the finished piece to a rooftop and, as the sun aligns, sends light spilling across the city - a final act of love, and the song’s title turned outward into image.A Partizan production, Myles Smith's first outing as a director sees him carrying the emotional directness of his songwriting into a new medium. In that respect he is greatly aided by the presence of a great actor in Stephen Graham, and Smith stays close to this central character throughout.Shot by cinematographer Joel Honeywell, it moves between the muted remove of the hospital, the claustrophobic loop of the flat and the open expanse of the rooftop, using natural light and a slow accumulation of colour to track the father’s emotional state. Production design by Syd Harmony grounds the mirror-and-light build as both a practical and an emotional object, while a restrained central performance from Graham keeps the focus on grief, ritual, and the fear of disappearing.Graham is joined on screen by Abbie Kay Ashworth and Chizzy Akudolu as well as real working nurses from Luton Hospital, with casting by Kharmel Cochrane. The film was produced by Partizan, with executive producers Danny Herman, Kirsty Richardson and Hannah Walters, and produced by Chris Murdoch.“What I loved about this concept was the misdirection," says Myles Smith. "At first, you think you’re watching someone unravel, but slowly you realise every strange object and every seemingly irrational decision is actually an act of love. He’s not losing his grip on reality; he’s trying to do something impossible for the person he loves most.”Executive producer Danny Herman says that Smith arrived with a really clear, personal vision for his own song. "The feeling was already there and our job was to build the right team around him and protect that vision all the way to the screen," he says."Myself and producer Chris Murdoch assembled a gang of our favourite HoDs, people we knew would bring the right experience, creativity and care to the project, while helping make it feel as special as it deserved to be," adds Herman. "When you get that kind of synergy on set, where everyone’s serving the same idea, a debut can feel as assured as anything we make.”With all of his considerable experience, Stephen Graham was also aware that this was a special project that had to be approached in the right way."When you're involved in a production like this, especially for a first-time director, it's important to come with an open-mindedness and a willingness to partake completely, a million per cent," he says. "For me, it's imperative that I'm one piece of a beautiful jigsaw every time I embark on any project. It was an absolute team game, and a joy to be part of that collective."

Douglas Reddan directs a dazzling comeback promo for pop star and producer MNEK. The video for Reverse!! - his first new music in seven years - finds the artist walking alone in a multi-storey parking garage, when a couple of 'thugs' decide to start a fight. Before we know it, the toxic masculinity dissolves into flamboyant choregraphy, impassioned performance and strobe-lit slow-mo. It's a powerful, unabashed visual that celebrates not only MNEK and his new music era, but the LGBT+ community as a whole. It's a spectacular comeback from one of the UK's brightest stars - and more standout work from Douglas Reddan and his team.

The first release from Ezra Collective's new album Here Because Of Hope comes with the first music video from Ebeneza Blanche in ages. It's a series of beautifully-realised vignettes filmed in Nigerian capital Lagos that establishes the visual identity for the album, conceived by Blanche in his role as creative director, through inspired composition, performance and narrative. The video for Only Love features rapper Pa Salieu and follows a young pure water seller navigating the rhythms of everyday life in Lagos. Themes of ancestry, culture and community are reflected in the vignettes that Blanche has carefully devised around the narrative, using symbolic details and dynamic movement, also drawing from photography, documentary observation and fine art composition, to create an uplifting vision that's both timeless and contemporary.It is the style that we have seen in his acclaimed work for Little Simz's Point And Kill and Jae5's Dimension with Skepta - both shot in West Africa. And it establishes the framework and tone for the ensuing album campaign that will include more music videos, an accompanying short film and photography, all under Blanche's creative direction.It is designed as a visual extension of the album, translating Ezra Collective's sound into a cinematic world, and reflect the driving force of the album Here Because Of Hope, celebrating optimism, cultural pride and the enduring human capacity to move forward. This opening chapter does exactly that.

Much-loved singer-songwriter Paul Heaton heads to the countryside with some friends - including a hapless character played by Spencer Jones - in Andy Hylton's warm-hearted promo for My Favourite Kind Of Idiot. The five friends are off for a cycle in the country, while Rianne Downey, Heaton's co-singer on the track, is involved in a line-dancing party at the local manor - and looking for the right partner.The video was filmed at the picturesque Arley Hall & Gardens in Cheshire, one of the North West’s most recognisable historic estates. The location has become familiar to television audiences as a filming location for Peaky Blinders. But here the estate provides a very different atmosphere in this context - one of laughter, dancing and friendship."When it comes to creating music videos for Paul Heaton, there’s always a delicate balance to strike," Hylton explains. "His songs are packed with humour, warmth, and an unmistakably British sense of character. My Favourite Kind of Idiot was no exception. The challenge was to create a video that felt authentic to the song while capturing the playful spirit that has become a hallmark of Heaton’s visual storytelling."At the heart of the production was the magnificent Cruck Barn, a beautifully preserved 500-year-old timber structure that proved to be the perfect setting for the video’s line-dancing sequences. The barn’s rustic character and timeless charm immediately resonated with Heaton, who was keen to preserve the song’s country-inspired feel.To ensure the dancing felt authentic rather than staged, the production brought in a local line-dancing teacher who choreographed the sequences and recruited dancers from her own classes. Their enthusiasm and experience brought genuine energy to the scenes, transforming the historic barn into a lively celebration of music and movement.“Paul was very clear that he wanted the line-dancing element to feel real,” says Andy. “Bringing in local dancers gave us exactly that. The atmosphere in the barn was fantastic from the moment the music started.”The production also continued a tradition that has become something of a signature in Heaton’s videos: casting beloved comedy performers and character actors. Previous collaborations have featured the likes of Trevor and Simon, Phil Daniels and Pearce Quigley, all bringing their own distinctive personalities to Heaton’s visual world. For My Favourite Kind of Idiot, the team turned to Spencer Jones, a cult favourite of British comedy known for his surreal, physical style of performance, including his critically acclaimed BBC comedy The Mind of Herbert Clunkerdunk. Rather than playing a traditional character, Jones became an honorary member of the gang, a mischievous companion whose antics constantly threatened to derail an otherwise peaceful countryside outing.“Working with Spencer was an absolute joy,” says Andy Hylton. “He’s one of those rare performers who can make you laugh without saying a word. There were moments during the shoot where he genuinely reminded me of Charlie Chaplin, the way he uses physical comedy, timing and movement to tell a story is incredibly sophisticated, but it looks completely effortless. He’d find little bits of business between takes that would elevate a scene from amusing to unforgettable.”Hylton was particularly impressed by Jones’s willingness to throw himself into the cycling sequences - while riding a tandem. “Spencer seemed to treat the tandem like a BMX," he says. "He was trying bunny hops, lifting the front wheel into little wheelies and generally pushing the bike far beyond what it was designed for. The tandem became an extension of his character. The rest of the lads were doing their best to stay upright, while Spencer was making an entire comedy routine out of it.”According to Hylton, Spencer’s performance helped tie together the video’s themes of friendship, mischief and mid-life adventure. “The song is about embracing people for all their flaws and quirks, and Spencer embodies that perfectly. He’s the lovable idiot at the centre of the chaos. Every time he wandered into frame, something unexpected happened. That’s a gift for any director because it keeps the energy alive and makes everything around him feel spontaneous.”