Pre-Production - Research Creative Role as Director - Ella McLeod

Which music video director do you admire and why?



I admire the music director Kojey Radical, not only is he an poet and music artist. He also directs his own music videos, which include many visual metaphors and interesting dynamics. As an director he delves deep into the context of his music in order to create an incredibly visually appealing and impacting piece. An example of this is his production BAMBU, a piece of work that heavily inspired my own.









"BAMBU : NEVER WORRIED centres around ideas of perception; using contemporary dance and performance art to gesture the struggles of inner city decay and how that is translated and celebrated within music and urban culture combining the aesthetic of a modern fashion film with the stylised movement and grittiness of drill music and trap videos."




In Bambu the way in which the subject character is used as a metaphor for inner city decay is highly intriguing. Kojey Radical did not take a simple, minimalistic approach to the genre of Underground Hip Hop/Grime like many underground artists, but infact used intelligent visuals for such intelligent lyricism.




I like the eerie appeal to the video, especially the first scene with the use of blur and abstract location/characterisation. It immediately sets the dark mood of the film. Also the use of tone and colour works brilliantly, with no filter used Kojey still managed to create a visual that almost looks monochrome. With incredibly dynamic pans, angles and tracks of grey London areas, he really managed to draw in the viewers attention.




2. I am also inspired by another Underground Hip Hop video for the rap collective House Of Pharaohs. 'Mean Muggin' directed by Alia Hassan, is shot entirely in black and white with use of candid walking shots. I like the simple handheld camera use, giving an incredibly home made feel as he follows the artists round the streets of London. A very minimalistic approach to film making unlike Bambu's complicated concepts and ideas. The fast paced shots keep up with the pace of the music.


A memorable part of the visuals is the break in the middle. The dynamics switch up immediately and the shots cut to a bright, bold imaging as another song cross-fades in, before returning back to the original song and monochrome imaging.





Both of these Directors and visuals heavily influenced my work. With the stern characterisation of Bambu and the shot use of Mean Muggin. I liked the idea of minimalism, and simple London culture based imaging and scenery.


By Ella McLeod