2. Chris Cunningham
Chris Cunningham is known for his unconventional, bizarre style of directing music videos. He is
best known for Aphex Twin videos ‘Windowlicker’ and ‘Come to Daddy’, this ties in with the
genre of music he tends to specialise in, which is electronic. He has worked with Aphex Twin on
numerous times which shows that the artist’s appreciate the pure skill and effort he puts into his
work, along with the fact that Chris Cunningham’s visuals seem to fit perfectly with the Aphex
Twin’s music.
His music videos would be described as ‘Art Music Videos’ by Diane Railton and Paul Watson, in
their book ‘Music Videos and the Politics of Representation’, as his videos operate as a site of
expression which variously works as an aesthetic complement to the song or vies with it for
artistic consideration. His music videos are often set in dystopian urban landscapes, which give a
downtrodden, nightmarish feel to the videos. To do this he often uses a reduced colour palette of
blues and greys which connote a cold, harsh, hostile environment. He has worked with a range of
different artists, including ones which are mainstream, these include Portishead, Bjork and
Madonna bringing his own style into their videos with huge success. Bjork’s ‘All is Full of Love’
won multiple awards, including an MTV music video award for Breakthrough Video and was
nominated for a Grammy for Best Short Form Music Video. It was also the first ever music video
to win a Gold Pencil at the D&AD Awards. It can still be seen at the Museum of Modern Art in
New York. Madonna’s video for ‘Frozen’, which he directed, became an international hit and won
the award for "Best Special Effects" at the 1998 MTV Music Video Awards. Working with these
artists such as these, has shown Cunningham’s ability to vary in genre and style, this shows that
he is open minded and can bring different ideas to completely varying situations.
3. Madonna - Frozen
The critically acclaimed video for Madonna’s song ‘Frozen’ won the
award for ‘Best Special Effects’ at the 1998 MTV Music Video
Awards. It is shot with a monochromatic bluish appearance
throughout, the video shows Madonna playing an ethereal Gothic
witchy, melancholy persona, with long black hair, black gowns. It is
shot in the middle of a desert with a cold backdrop, I believe the
setting symbolises the relationship which is being sung about in
the lyrics being in limbo, with the cold harshness of the video
symbolising the name of the track and supporting the idea of the
relationship being ‘frozen’.
Mise-en-scene Camera Work
• Desert setting • Wide range of camera shots used
• Transformation of Madonna including establishing shot and
turning into a dog high angle shot
• Gothic theme • Pull Focus shot used
Sound Lighting and Editing
• Madonna dancing to the rhythm • Visual effects are used throughout
the video, from Madonna floating
to being turned in to a flock of
birds
4. Aphex Twin - Windowlicker
The music video for ‘Windowlicker’ is a ten and a half minute long parody of
American hip hop music videos. The video depicts two men window
shopping for prostitutes. The French term for window shopping is faire du
lèche-vitrine, which literally translates to licking the windows.
A ridiculously long limousine (which takes 20 seconds to fully display) is used
which crashes into the back of the two men’s car, a rich and powerful Richard
James is presented, his features being exaggerated and he is shown with a
constant grin, which makes him look satanic. The two women, among
others, that then enter the limousine face’s morph into James’s likeness, they
are later joined by a woman with horrifically ugly, buck-toothed, deformed
face, which is a likeness of a sketch by Swiss artist H.R. Giger titled "The
Windowlickers”
Mise-en-scene Camera Work
• Scenes of dancing • Wide range of camera
• Richard James is centre of shots used including
attention establishing shot and close
• LA backdrop adds to up.
American hip hop theme • Over the shoulder shot
used
Sound
• Cutting to the beat Lighting and Editing
• Dancing used throughout • Richard James’ face
morphed onto women
• Extending limousine
length.
5. Bjork – All is Full of Love
The video depicts a robotic Bjork laying on a table in the
centre of a white room being assembled or repaired by
mechanical arms, which appear to be from a robot. Whilst
work is still being done on the Bjork robot, another Bjork
robot enters and joins in singing. They start kissing
passionately as the machines behind them are still working on
the electronics within them. The song being called ‘All is Full
of Love’ shows how anything can love including robots. There
is a link between the visuals and the lyrics, showing that
anything is capable of love, this fits in with Andrew Goodwin’s
forms and conventions for a music video in his book ‘Dancing
in the Distraction Factory’.
Mise-en-Scene Camera Work
• White and black the only • Overhead shots used
colours which are used • Stedicam used throughout
throughout.
• Futuristic theme Lighting and Editing
• 3D elements and 2D
Sound compositing
• Link between the lyrics • White light throughout
and the visuals
6. Themes and Motifs
Chris Cunningham’s work is
very Abstract, in all of his
video’s.
Time lapse is an effect used
by Chris Cunningham in
some of his videos.
Most artists will choose
to work with Chris
Cunningham because of
his uniqueness, and the
fact that all his videos are
different.
