Music Video Director Research - Tim Mattia

The Music video Director that has stood out for me, would be Tim Mattia, Who specialises with artists such as; The 1975, You Me At Six, Young Guns, Marilyn Manson, Cage The Elephant and Coasts. As well as more mainstream pop artists such as, Connor Maynard and Nicole Sherzinger. This particular director varies his style of music videos, depending on the people he is working with. As it is clear from watching a a collection of the music videos that he has directed that, that is a strong focal point to him that he gets it right. Not only this, but is clear that Tim Mattia varies with who he chooses to work with, as he goes from working with mainstream pop artists such a Connor Maynard and Nicole Sherzinger, to artists who are not on the same spectrum and are maybe less known, as their music is not necessarily in the charts, with artists such as Young Guns and Cage The Elephant. Who are both more alternative rather than being popular chart music.  However, by doing this he is able to create a different feel for each of the artists, with a music video which suits them all individually and what each of the meanings are behind their songs. 

Tim Mattia does both mainstream music videos for acts such as The 1975, who have grown in popularity over the past two years. However, he also works with artists such as You Me At Six, who are not as popular as The 1975, but still would be considered to be borderline mainstream. While, working with mainstream acts is good. Tim also works with smaller bands like Cage The Elephants, who I mentioned earlier. Where there music video was based in a small pub and didn't seem to have as much elaborate edits unlike the other artists that he works with. Which may put into perspective the difference between the mainstream acts that he works with compared to the underground work, which is not as widely seen. 


Moving on from this, it's very apparent that Tim Mattia focuses on the influences of the band or artist themselves when he produces the music videos for them. Because, for example when he works with bands such as You Me At Six and Young Guns, he uses similar lighting for both of the videos, that being a washed out purple/blue colour, with suggests that it's a representation of the bands themselves, with the idea that neither of the songs are extremely happy, so the use of the washed out colours may help to give that impression or solitude. Furthermore, Tim Mattia does not use live performances as much when creating the music videos as it is clear that the sets have been staged up for a one on one between the acts and the camera. However, for example when he worked with Cage the Elephant he took a different route, by filming it in a pub with fans of the band watching which then gave this particular music video a different feel, compared to the other ones which had more of a setup, planned feel to them. Below is a screen grab of Cage the Elephants performing to a group of fans in a small pub. To emphasise that this is less planned than other works that Tim Mattia has done. 

However, Tim Mattia also works with artists who prefer to take the narrative route throughout their music videos. A couple of examples of this would be Robbers by The 1975 and Oceans by Coasts. Both of these music videos have a story going on throughout. But, they also have an underlying story that may not be as clear to see. For example, in Robbers, both the boy and girl take drugs throughout, however the seriousness of that is covered up by the romanticising of their relationship, so Tim  Mattia has made the idea of the drugs look beautiful as its wrapped in with the relationship between the two people. The screen grab helps to validate this as, in this particular scene they are in the cinema, which is a common place to go to with a partner, but in this situation they are both taking drugs in such an innocent place. I think that by doing this, Tim Mattia has managed to portray the usage of drugs in such a subtle, yet effective way. 

During the course of all of the music videos that Tim Mattia has directed and edited It is clear that each music video has a similarity, which is that they all use quick edits and each section is cut smoothly, so it goes straight into the next one without breaking the tension that's being created. Also, he uses a lot of medium close ups, as well as close ups in order to see the facial expressions of the band members and the actors that are involved in each individual music video. He also uses continuity editing in each music video that he creates, in order to keep the pace up and make the videos more interesting for the audience. Its clear that Tim Mattia focuses on quick edits in order to stand out as a director, as well as the use of sub-genre throughout the narrative music videos. 


I particularly like Tim Mattia as a director, because the music videos that he has directed are interesting to watch and I like the quick pace of them all. As well as the idea, that he uses a narrative idea throughout some of the videos. But also, the grittiness of the less mainstream bands. With the use of slow motion which impacts certain aspects of the videos and make them more dramatic. Which is something that I would want incorporate into my own music video. Not only is it the videos themselves that I like, but I enjoy the music from the bands themselves, which then make the videos more interesting to watch for me, personally. Also, I like the rawness that Tim incorporates into the music videos that he creates as its based on real events, such as the drugs that are shown in 'Robbers' and the relationship aspect that is shown throughout 'Oceans' as well. But then the grit of the music video for 'bones'. All of these things, are what drew me to this particular director as I find them all to have interesting qualities and effects on their designated audiences. 




Below are a selection of screen grabs, from music videos that Tim Mattia had directed. And each of them show a different aspect that stood out for me the most, in terms of lighting and editing skills.