I have finally decided that the genre I wish to create a music video for is R&B. I know that this genre has a lot of competition as it is now very popular in this current age, and the sensation of music videos for it is crazy. However, I think R&B music videos are very passionate and explainable types of videos and all of what I have viewed so far of this genre has shocked and caught my attention. Therefore, I have decided to further my Music Director knowledge by specifically looking at some famous R&B directors. The two that I have chosen are Colin Tilley and Benny Boom, who's name appear to feature a lot in the recent time of R&B music videos, and I have looked at some examples of their work too.
Colin Tilley - Who is he?
Colin is a world-famous music video director who has won many awards for directing and writing music for popular R&B music artists. He claimed the title of Video of the Year in the 2011 BET awards for Chris Brown's video to "Beautiful People", and he also won Best Male video for Justin Bieber's "You Smile". In an interview about his own work and music videos in general (http://legendblog.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/interview-with-video-director-colin-tilley/) he states that in order for a music video to stand out against other it needs 'emotion, authenticity and creativity'. He is also featured on the http://rivetingentertainment.com/thecartel/directors/colin.html website which gives an endless list of all of the music videos he has created. Colin especially works with the R&B genre, which is obvious from his work with artists such as Chris Brown, Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Tulisa, Tyga, Rick Ross and 50 Cent.
Some examples of his work:
Back when this video was released, I remember watching it for the first time and being quite thrilled by the scenes of dancing and the camera use of making the song extremely upbeat and exciting. I think in this video its clear Colin Tilley has a talent for camera work as the way it tracks and tilts to the music builds the pace and keeps the audience's attention grasped.
The rhythm of this song is very different to the beat of the music video above, however, Colin captures the sense of the song through his great camera work again and use of cuts between scenes to keep it in the same time as the song (when rhythm faster, cuts faster, etc). I think one thing I can take from this music video though is that it shows you don't need colour to produce an amazing video, as this one is edited in black and white, with only scenes of the artist in colour to create a change in time.
Benny Boom - Who is he?
Another global sensation of a music director, who is currently the director of the company Gorilla Flix, Inc. Just like Colin Tilley, he has directed music videos for the likes of Nicki Minaj, Sean Paul, Amerie, Ciara, Lil Wayne and Nelly, proving to be an obvious big hit with the R&B genre. He was amongst the nominations of Best Video Director of the 2011 for the BET awards, and has also produced and been involved with the directing of some films.
Some examples of his work:
This has to be one of my favourite music videos that I have looked at so far, as the narrative and concept of the song is so well produced in the music video that it's difficult for me to think of any ways this could be improved. From beginning to end, this music video had me captured in what was going to appear next, and I admire some of the aspects Benny has used. Some parts I am definitely going to try and use in my own work is the use of slow motion to create a paused effect, and the unsteady camera use to make the mood more exciting and, for this video, more 'insane'.
What I admire about the works of this music video is the close use of slow motion which works really well to create the sad and emotion that the song is all about. Also, the use of the use of quick cuts at the end builds the pace just as the song is reaching its climax, and the sound effects put in that sounds like the beeping/sound of a heart machine reflects the title of the song.
Why have I done this?
It's clear why both of these R&B music video directors have been awarded and nominated for so many prizes over the years, and it was very exciting and useful for me to watch some pieces of their work. Even though they have their own unique ways of shooting a music video, there are some overlapping talents (such as the camera angles, cuts to the rhythm of the song and the motion) which I will definitely use in my own piece of work.
SOURCES
1. www.youtube.com
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