FKA twigs and Stormzy Clean Up at the 2019 UK Music Video Awards
The 2019 UK Music Video Awards were announced last night at a jubilant ceremony at London’s Roundhouse, Camden. The stars shining brightest were multiple award-winners FKA twigs and Stormzy, with the UKMVAs’ biggest honour, The Icon Award, going to legendary director Michel Gondry.
FKA twigs’ stunning video for Cellophane, directed by Andrew Thomas Huang, was the most honoured video at the 2019 UKMVAs, winning four awards: Best UK Alternative Video, and three prizes for its technical excellence in the categories of Cinematography, Editing and Visual Effects. Twigs followed that by winning the UKMVAs’ Best Artist award – for the second time in 6 years.
Stormzy’s Vossi Bop, claimed the title for the Video of the Year, and Best UK Urban Video, while Henry Scholfield, who directed the video and its follow-up for Sounds Of The Skeng, won the prestigious Best Director award at the annual celebration of creativity and craft in the medium of music videos.
Other British artists honoured for the creativity of their music videos included breakout star Sam Fender, whose video for his single Dead Boys, directed by American director Vincent Haycock, won Best UK Rock Video; beatbox artist/producer Beardyman, won Best UK Dance Video for his video for 6am (Ready To Write) featuring Joe Rogan, directed by British director Ian Pons Jewell; and singer-songwriter Barns Courtney won Best UK Pop Video for You And I, directed by Spanish director Pablo Maestres.
British grime veteran Kano, won the inaugural MVA award for Best Special Video Project, directed by Aniel Karia – continuing their working relationship on the Netflix hit series Top Boy – for the extended video Trouble, and Loyle Carner’s video for Ottolenghi, directed by Oscar Hudson, won Best Production Design in a Video, while Thom Yorke’s mini-feature for his album Anima, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, won Best Choreography in a Video.
The international nature of the UK Music Video Awards 2019 was shown in wins for Spanish pop-flamenco sensation Rosalía, for the De Aqui No Sales video, by directing duo Diana Kunst and Mau Morgó (Best International Pop Video), US hiphop star A$AP Rocky’s video for Sundress by British director Frank Lebon (Best Intrernational Urban Video) Dutch rock band De Staat’s Kitty Kitty, directed by compatriot Wouter Stoter (Best International Rock Video); and my personal favourite discovery of the night, Italian DJ Salvatore Ganacci’s hilarious video for Horse, by Bosnian director Vedran Rupic (Best International Dance Video award).
Among the individuals honoured, Javier Alejandro, was named Best Producer, for his work with Henry Scholfield on his Stormzy videos and Wiley’s Boasty. Semera Khan of Polydor won the Best Commissioner award for the second time, and this year’s Best New Director was Duncan Loudon for his work with Obongjayar, Flohio and Skepta.
The Best Production Company award was won by relative newcomers Object & Animal at the end of a big night for the company which saw their video for Rosalía’s De Aqui No Sales directed by Diana Kunst and Mau Morgó collect the hotly-contended International Pop Video award, as well as the multiple wins for FKA twigs’ Cellophane. The London-based production company, led by producers Dom Thomas and Morgan Clement, was honoured for an outstanding output of music videos over the past year, for artists including Justice, Madonna, A$AP Rocky and James Blake.
In the live sector, director Elie Girard, continued French production company La Blogothèque’s dominance of the Best Live Video category with his shortform piece for Maggie Rogers’ Light On. Meanwhile, Blink Inc and directors Blue Leach and Rob Sinclair claimed the Live Concert award for their longform film covering Kylie Minogue’s Golden tour.
As new successes were celebrated, there was also recognition for a living legend and enduring inspiration of the music video craft: Michel Gondry. The French born director was honoured with this year’s UKMVA Icon Award, which he received via video link from Los Angeles. Artists including Björk, The Chemical Brothers, and Paul McCartney, actor and longtime collaborator Jim Carrey, and fellow directors including Spike Jonze, Dougal Wilson and Garth Jennings, all paid tribute to Gondry’s contribution to the medium on the night with video messages.
The 12th annual UK Music Video Awards ceremony was hosted by BUG frontman, and UKMVA regular host, Adam Buxton. Backstage interviews with the winners, produced by the team at WhatsUp TV from the Mama Youth Project, will be available to watch on the UKMVA Youtube channel at the start of November.
Best Pop Video – UK in association with Cinelab London
Barns Courtney – You And I
Director: Pablo Maestres
Producer: Inés Massa
Prod co: Primo / Friend
Commissioner: Paul McKee
Best Rock Video – UK
Sam Fender – Dead Boys
Director: Vincent Haycock
Producer: Fred Bonham-Carter
Prod co: Park Pictures
Commissioner: Semera Khan for Polydor
See the original piece and the rest of the winners here.