Get the Promonews daily round up
Get the Promonews daily round up
Sarah Dattani Tucker directs a cinematic visualiser for Jade's Acoustic version of FUFN.Focusing on JADE's expressive performance and movements, the video plays with texture and light to create a lo-fi daydream. In the spirit of JADE's previous visualisers, it's a stripped back, lowkey affair, anchored by brilliant direction and an impassioned performance at its core.
Rob Ulitski - 23 days ago
Douglas Reddan directs a reflective promo for up-and-coming Irish singer-songwriter Nell Mescal. The video for Thin was shot live at soundcheck before Nell's recent sold-out Dublin show, and focusses on the artist's musicality in a stripped-back, absorbing way. “Thin is about body image and equating what you look like to what your worth is when it comes to love," Nell explains. "It was a really difficult song to write and to confront, and comes from all my darkest and most untrue thoughts about myself."The ultimate message of the song... is that these thoughts aren’t true. But that doesn’t make the emotions any less real and that you are enough as you are.”
Rob Ulitski - 1 month ago
Completing a trio of performance videos for Afrobeats artist Ayra Starr by Annie Bercy comes the laidback promo for Control. The video, following the visuals for Goodbye and Birds Sing Of Money, features Starr's performance in a stripped-back industrial space, experimenting with reflection and gentle transitions to move through the piece. In the background, vines and plant life spur off in different directions, adding a touch of VFX magic to the alluring visual.
Rob Ulitski - 7 months ago
Jamar Harding directs an intimate live promo for singer and actress Mandeep. The acoustic live video for Bunny Boiler features a stripped-back performance from Mandeep and guitarist Pat McManus, and in a full circle moment, was shot in Los Angeles on the set of CSI: Vegas, the show in which she stars. Drawing inspiration from the show's sinister finale, in which the CSI: Vegas team realizes that they've been chasing the wrong villain all season, Bunny Boiler is a creepy yet darkly humorous tale of an obsessed girlfriend stalking her ex.If you enjoy watching the acoustic session, be sure to check out the official video here.
Rob Ulitski - 9 months ago
Jay Russell directs a cinematic promo for Tendai, framing the love song My World in the gritty monochromatic aesthetic the artist has made his signature look.Focusing primarily on atmosphere as opposed to narrative concept, playing out across a handful of stripped-back performance vignettes, the video has a decidely Noughties feel about it, which is elevated by DoP Jed Darlington-Roberts' cinematography and Vlad Barin's grade. Tied together with gentle direction and a great central performance, it's another hit for Tendai and Russell alike.
Rob Ulitski - 11 months ago
The second instalment of Libby Burke Wilde's cinematic project to accompany Cat Burns's debut album rollout places the artist in a busy club.The promo for End Game continues the stripped-back, minimalist approach established in Burke Wilde's video for Alone. As with the previous video it's captured in a single take, Cat performing End Game direct to camera, as other clubgoers swirl around her. The video works in establishing the separateness of Cat Burns, lost in her own thoughts about a struggling relationship, amid an oblivious crowd of revellers - who include India Amarteifio and Sam Reuben.
Rob Ulitski - 15th May 2024
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David Carrizales directs an old-school band performance promo for Colombian punk rock outfit Independiente 81.Boisterous and lively, showcasing the group's performance style in a confident and inspired fashion, and focussing purely on the music, Carrizales creates a high-energy experience that still feels cinematic and accomplished."Staying true to the song and i81 style, the approach couldn’t be more simple: back to basics," the director explains."A stripped-down, B&W music video free of narrative, actors, or any single prop. Just a classic lighting setup in an empty studio with the band playing the song at full blast."
Rob Ulitski - 14th Mar 2024
Jack Lightfoot directs a poignant live promo for Sam Tompkins, filmed at the Devon pub The Champ. The video for Phones In Heaven features an intimate performance in the pub, stripped-back and beautifully shot by DoP Michael O'Connor. "At the end of last year, after the tragic loss of his dad, Sam Tompkins inherited The Champ - a small local full of character situated in the beautiful town of Appledore in Devon," Jack Lightfoot explains."Earlier this month, we took a trip down to The Champ to capture Sam performing in a place that meant so much to his Dad - and the same spot where Sam played his first-ever gigs from age 13."Evoking a strong sense of wistful nostalgia, the video is simple in its concept yet packed full of emotion, allowing viewers to focus on the flawless performance. There are more videos to come from this session, so keep an eye out for those in due course...
Rob Ulitski - 29th Feb 2024
Anton Califano directs a breezy promo for teenage rising star Olivia McBeth.Set against a city backdrop - it was shot at the Barbican in London the video features McBeth and a cast of friends in a stripped-back performance concept, with plenty of fun setups and hints of a narrative. A great fit to the bubbly track, and fitting introduction to the young artist.
Rob Ulitski - 24th Oct 2023
Tom Ringsby directs a striking monochromatic promo for pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason.With sweeping camera movement, a stripped-back colour palette and a focus on pure performance, the video for Children's Corner is a stunning two and a half minutes, made under extreme time pressures - as explained by Tom Ringsby below:"[The video was] put together in five days following an email chain with the subject line 'urgent music video request'," he explains. "[We] only had 90 minutes with classical pianist superstar Isata, so focused everything into capturing a few key angles, subtly bringing the themes of time and memory to life by setting her Steinway Grand between the camera and key light as they revolve around her."Job done. It's a beautiful piece of work that doesn't hint at the time constraints in any way, and showcases Kanneh-Mason's immense gift with style and grace.
Rob Ulitski - 11th May 2023
Alexander Brown directs an evocative promo for British-French artist Maïlé Doremus-Cook (aka Memory of Jane). "The video is about the artist's anxieties, which manifest in a swarm of butterflies which he has learned to coexist with," director Alexander Brown mentions.Delivering a striking performance whilst covered in several real-life butterflies, it's an angsty, reflective visual with the artist at the centre, whose calm yet vulnerable demeanour offers a shortcut to his inner world.
Rob Ulitski - 5th May 2023
Ben Cole follows the transcendent promo for We Hug We Sway with another affecting visual for Aidan. The video for By Myself is another melancholic, stripped back affair, largely formed of a singular tracking shot and pensive performance shots. Utilising the same abyss-like studio environment, the abstract video is a both a natural progression and aesthetic complement to the previous project. Singularly haunting and emotionally complex, it's a video you won't want to miss.
Rob Ulitski - 18th Apr 2023
Maïlis' latest video for singer-songwriter Laroie explores the idea of a woman finding the energy to continue going through life, even after losing everything. Interweaving atmospheric shots of the artist inside a stripped-back building and glitchy digital cutaways, the aesthetic feels incredibly contemporary yet nostalgic, which matches the wistful soundscapes in the track. It's another evocative video from Laroie and Maïlis, following in the footsteps of other breathtaking collaborations like Stuck Here and I Keep Hiding.
Rob Ulitski - 17th Mar 2023
Etta Marcus inhabits a dark and dreamy world where potent feminine power unfurls, in Jesse May Fisher's promo for Crown. In a blank studio space, the video starts traditionally enough, with plenty of posing and performance, until Marcus' hair starts to grow, wrap and envelop her body. Darkly tender and intimate, the cinematic visual is a powerful introduction to the artist, and suits the poignant soundscapes of the enigmatic track.
Rob Ulitski - 15th Sept 2022
