Task 3- Music Video Director Research

W.I.Z

W.I.Z is a famous music video director who started out in a band who never got their big break so he moved into music videos where he has made many famous music videos and a few short films.
W.I.Z. has earned a reputation as one of the best music video directors working in the UK and Breaking onto the music video scene in 1992 with the music film to accompany Flowered Up's extended version of Weekender. Capturing the whole clubbing and ecstasy culture that had become prevalent in England following the acid house movement; the film follows the hedonistic weekend of a London window cleaner. The weekender is A hybrid between a music promo and a short film which perfectly encapsulates the times in which it was produced and still remains a classic today. W.I.Z then continued to make music videos with many famous and successful artists such as Marilyn Manson - Man That You Fear ,Dizzee Rascal - "Dirtee Cash", Oasis - "Falling Down" ,Kasabian - "Fire" , Kaiser Chiefs - "The Angry Mob" ,Arctic Monkeys - "The View from the Afternoon" ,Will Young - "All Time Love" ,Jamelia - "See It in a Boy's Eyes" , Shakira - "Te Dejo Madrid", Smashing Pumpkins - "Stand Inside Your Love" , The Chemical Brothers - "Out of Control" and many more.
W.I.Z. es music videos capture their audience by being very fast passed and they are always in some way attached to a narrative or meaning although the bands W.I.Z has worked with are a wide Varity of different types of music with completely different fans W.I.Z still manages to capture the audiences that the artist he is working with is aiming at by using many varied techniques, the combination of sound and visuals and his close attention to detail. W.I.Z es videos always have a big impact on their audiences because of the way he captures the club scene in many of his videos many reviews have referred to him as “one of the only true music video directors who puts across a political and social message in all of his work”.
W.I.Z is currently planning to extend his famous short film the "Weekender" concept into a horror film, The Real Life, which he says will blow "all the prejudices and ignorance that surrounds drug-taking wide open”.



W.I.Zes Audience responses

Wiz’s videos are widely known to be mainly based on drink and drug culture and tend to catch people’s attention by shocking them he says his aim is to “destroy the prejudice surrounding drink and drugs“there is generally a split response towards his work with some people saying it’s a true mirror of some of the problems in society while over’s say it’s just a mindless advertisement for partying and reckless behaviour without thinking about the consequences. Lots of people think that his videos and small films use shock tactics to try and capture the audience rather than a good story line and it has been said that his short films are “a run of mindless anti social behaviour and should not be considered creative but destructive and are bad role model for young people”- YouTube commenter, people say this because his videos can make this way of life seem somehow glamorous. His ideas and creative points of view are loved by the music industry for example many people share the view that “WIZ is the last true apostle of music video” -Noel Gallagher.
He is talented in being able to interpret the messages that many bands want to put across in their music lyrics. Whatever your view on wiz’s work you can’t deny his success in the music video world and also the success of his short film the weekender. Many companies that specialise in making short films, adverts and music videos appreciate W.I.Zes work such as factory films who said- ” WIZ is an icon maker. A film maker, an artist. He’s one of a kind. His music films have an epic quality unmatched by his contemporaries, his attention to detail is second to none. WIZ has worked with David Bowie, Kasabian, Arctic Monkeys, Oasis, Dizzee Rascal, BRMC, Will Young, Jamelia, Chemical Brothers, Marilyn Manson, Smashing Pumpkins… firmly establishing their unique identities within the visual canon. A perfectionist for all the right reasons”- factory films


Bibliography

I used four sources for this report-
http://www.belfastfilmfestival.org/2005/programme/film.php?f=83 –
http://www.oilfactory.com/director/17-W-I-Z-
http://www.factoryfilms.net/music-director/wiz?page=1 and Wikipedia