On The Cusp, Longlist - Music Video

Eli Brown ft Talk Show, Trouble

Brock Neal Roberts

Agile Films

An ominous presence tracks a number of individuals on the streets and fields of East London. Paying homage to gritty British cinema - in particular Alan Clarke's influential masterpiece Elephant - the video for Trouble is focussed on the individuals who walk briskly through an deserted urban landscape, aware that they are being followed by an unknown, unseen force, with tension and fear building throughout. Brock: "When I was sent the track the first thing that came into my mind was this kinetic energy and how this could transcend the visuals. The core of the idea was that this roaming trouble or darkness could find you at any point, no matter who you are, and then combined it with the stylised Steadicam work of Alan Clarke; particularly his film Elephant. "Initially I just wanted to feature people walking without much context as to why they were doing it in order to just get this intense energy of the track across. But after talking to Louis and the team at Polydor we decided it needed a narrative backdrop in order to create a video that would keep people engaged for the whole video. "We didn't want this to feel too horror though, so decided to leave the darkness/trouble that follows the characters as they walk as an unseen entity, allowing the track, edit, cinematography and character actions to ramp up the intensity of the video instead."

Brock is a young director, hailing from North London. His work portrays textured and dream like takes on reality, crafting videos with flair and imagination that are insatiably watchable. Taking notes from classical innovators such as Alan Clarke but combining these influences with modern day casting, cinematography and editing to fuse style and substance within his storytelling. Brock has collaborated with a wide range of artists, including Sam Fender, Arlo Parks, Berwyn, Jeshi and Eli Brown. Recent accolades include a Kinsale Shark Award for Best New Director, and UKMVA nominations for Best RnB Video and Best New Director.