TIMVF Presents: Music Video Director Panel — Anatomy of a Music Video

Yoko Gold — Obsolete

Written by Alexander Taurozzi

Hosted by Alon Isocianu, and attended by directors Eva Michon, Scott Cudmore, LeSean Harris, Ivey Stamatov, and Jonah Haber, this panel was sold out. We got a chance to attend and gain perspective on what goes into a music video. Read on to get the best tips, for directors and musicians alike.

What attracts you, as a director, to working with musicians?

• Eva Michon: There are a lot of songs I want to make music videos for. Either I have a connection to the artist, or they come to me. This personal connection adds another dimension to the video, for both the viewer and the director.
• Scott Cudmore: I like to see where the stream of consciousness will take me. The big budget, the creative freedom, those are nice -but that doesn’t affect what I’ll write or how I write it. If I want to do it, I will — I don’t even really write a treatment.
• LeSean Harris: I have to like the song or the artist. I work a lot with artists who are grassroots, who grew up together, and big or small, I like to work with artists who actively push the envelope.
• Ivey Stamatov: Something about big artists have brought them to that level of success and appeal. Its the ideas that they are conveying. Connecting to those ideas are what’s important when working with them.
• Jonah Haber: I like to listen while I walk. If I can see it when I’m walking, if I have visions, its a win for me. Then I can get started.

How do you ideate your music videos?

• E.M: Ideation as walking and driving while thinking / listening to the song. Post walking and looking at visuals, is when I can start to create. Sometimes I take one thing I’ve heard in the song, and simplify and simplify until the concept becomes clear. Its a meditative state.
• S.C.: I write a treatment in a very normal way — but it depends on the process. I like to drive and listen and try not to think (laughs) because then the images come easier to what I’m hearing. I don’t even understand how the images fit in with the lyrics of the song until I’m writing it out. I try to let it flow, if I can see it someone else will relate to it.
• L.H.: The Usher video was meant for another artist, but the label said its way too big of an artist. I had done a treatment for it — and Usher was all in on it. People were already doubting me on set when we started though.

How to start a music video?

• L.H.: I like to start with a sexy setup, something visually stunning. THe second they see a first take, they’ll belief in the project. Everyone asks if you start with good for a first setup. On the Usher video, we started with the Snoop shot. Snoop came in late, 45 minutes late, and had to head out by the end of this two hour shoot. A hard out. We started with the kitchen scene — it was a lot of moving parts shot in half the time — and post that, everyone was chill and excited to go.
• I.S: Artists know how to perform! Giving them a chance to dance, to play guitar or piano, it gets them comfortable. This is what they do, this is what they love. Their image and performing tha for others is their thing. Whether it’s getting a makeover, or wearing that clothing they feel confident in. If you find out what is important, they will give a great performance.

How do you overcome a creative plateau?

• L.H: I started doing more commercials and more commercial work, a different space and spin to it. I played in a different sandbox for a second. The industry ebbs and flows, you can’t rely on it. As long as you want to do it, something will be hot.
• A.I: Decouple self worth from the things that you’re making. No one can tell you when you are not a creative person. When you stop caring, that helps you create your best work — I tend to focus on the craft.
• J.H: Sometimes, I’ll pass on a project. I’ll write the idea I want to pitch, and I’m happy to put the idea to paper. It never disappears, you save it and ferment it for later. Ideas are recycled all the time. It becomes easier to draw upon them and work with them when its on paper.