London/Paris based music promo and short film programmers Francoise Lamy and Martin Comer screen innovative and cutting edge music videos from rising Stars, and up and coming talent in both filmmaking and electronic music. 1999 highlights included two shows at the Montreal Festival of New Cinema and New Media, the Leeds International Film Festival, Sonar (Barcelona), MIDEM exhibition (France), an after-awards show at the CAD Awards in London, a London tour for Bud Light, and a sold out event at the Empire Cinema in Leicester Square as part of the BBC British Short Film Festival. Matt Kopinski reviews a recent CineFeel programme and gains a director's insight into the art of the independent electronic music video.

Is this the cutting edge of filmmaking? Is the art of the electronic music video where the adventure is, where techniques are developed and boundaries stretched to new limits? CineFeel and sister event management organisation Valis feel that it is, and together entered into the fray of film nights with a film/video/music composition for the cross boundary delectation of the masses. Established in 1994, the CineFeel VideoMusic Lounge has single-handedly brought cutting edge electronic music video to the masses through regular screenings at venues and festivals. They boast a definitive catalogue of videos, director's cuts and industry contacts giving them rare access to unseen preview material. A typical programme reads like a who's who of electronica, featuring narrative, experimental and animated works for Alex Gopher, Cylob, Supercollider, Fila Brazillia, Spooky, Death In Vegas, Mouse On Mars and Mr Oizo, alongside more established artists such as Orbital, Aphex Twin and Underworld. Valis UK has roots in the Cross Over events in Paris, organised by Valis France since 1997. The newly launched Transmission UK events will be jointly organised by the team. These nights will focus not only on film and music promos, but also incorporate other club elements. Short film directors slide into view and cross over to music video production, which is a natural tangent to their art. These are the artists of the future, who need a forum in which to present their work that too often remains unseen. CineFeel and Valis provide this service to inform the public by previewing future electronic music acts and videos.

This is all well and good, but who are the people making the videos? Kate Bussmann, recently wrote in London's Metro newspaper about the CF promo programme at the BBC British Short Film Festival - 'Not so long ago, you would have been ridiculed for saying that music video directors were among the most innovative film makers in the world. But this selection of ground-breaking promos proves just that point'. When we talk music videos we are not referring to the likes of 'Hey Micky', but the cutting edge of electronic music where the beats go on and the future is held. Artists such as Aphex Twin, Orbital and Laurent Garnier push the aural limits of acceptance of sound, and concurrently the videos which accompany them force the viewer into newer and stranger realms of the mind. There is no limit to the creative process except time - and finance of course, which can therefore leave the video director with a carte blanche for his vision. So why are these music promos at the forefront of image production, and why do we not see more of them in everyday media? The latter is answered by the powers that be, as usually not suitable for general consumption due to their content and imagery. Chris Cunningham's award winning Come to Daddy fell foul of ITC guidelines and received only restricted showings on UK television. The imagery he used in Windowlicker, the follow up single by Aphex Twin was accused by the mainstream of having racist and misogynistic tendencies due no doubt to Cunningham's tongue in cheek use of black stereotypes and Californian bikini-clad beach dancers, yet there is no doubting the reverence in which Cunningham is held by the promo and film industry. It is with similar power and undoubted skill that many more directors are pushing new boundaries within the genre. Regular collaborators Luke Losey, Jonathan Charles and Jes Benstock have made numerous promos for Orbital including the hugely popular The Box promo back in '96. Their Latest Style is a prime example of the story-telling capability of the music promo, following the journey of an animated bug through our crazy world. Co-directed by Losey (creative) and Charles (animation), and employing elements of traditional stop-frame with live action, pixellated human actors, puppeteering and special effects, Style was a 21 day shoot with just 12 seconds of film shot each day. Losey says, perhaps unsurprisingly, that the promo was a one-off because it was so exhausting to make.

We interviewed a few of the leading directors to find out their opinions on the importance of the promo industry and the influence that cutting edge electronic music has on it. The director is a coy and private breed, but we have managed to eke out some answers from the up and coming stars of this industry.

Vito Rocco, VR, has directed videos for Laurent Garnier and the stunning promo for Headrillaz, that features a boxing match of words. Hexstatic's Stuart Warren-Hill, SWH, started by making a free promo for Coldcut's Atomic Moog 2000 and the collective promoted themselves using video samples to stunning effect with Timber and Deadly Media and cool retro game graphics in Vector. Animators Susi Wilkinson, Hotessa Laurence and Filipe Alcada set up their own company after an early trial of working together proved fruitful. Belzebu Films Ltd., BFL, was born, and has racked up videos for Add n to (x) with the hilarious and frankly uncensorable Metal Fingers In My Body and a recent work for Moby. An inextricable link has been forged between electronic music and video.

Many of the music makers are retiring and self-effacing, hence they need a platform of images to express their sound. Not many are as prepared to put on a show in the same vein as Orbital. This necessity being in place, has electronic music actually changed the music video or pushed it in new directions?...

It can safely be said that there is a wide scope of possibilities in the style and content of these videos. Many people, however would suppose there is a finite creative freedom in a musical world they see comprising of a series of repetitive beats. Does this limit the ideas for the directors, so that they find it necessary to pitch the same idea more than once, or conversely, is each piece of music the beginning of a unique creative process?...

So, do they allow any improvisation in their work, or is everything tightly scripted? How close is the finished promo to their original vision?...

Since house/electronic music has lots of beats and rhythms, do you think that the editing of the video is becoming more important?...

Directors are starting to use the DV format. Although it is not being used by many, all agree that it should not restrict the chances of any budding director that use it from scooping directing work. They are also unanimous that a low-budget independent promo provides the opportunity for new talent to get behind the camera to create new visions for the medium. ...

Cinefeel screen new and innovative electronic music promos on a regular basis. Do you think the programming is useful in spreading your work to new audiences, and which videos would you show before and after yours in a CF programme?...

For further information, visit www.valis-live.org or email CineFeel at: cinefeelhq@hotmail.com

Valis UK presents: Transmission, Friday 25 February 2000, 8pm-2pm (£4)
At: diy_plc, Commercial House, 43a Commercial Street
Info: 020 7277 2731