Performed and recorded live at Phoenix Central Park, Sydney, Australia, The Fall by Genesis Owusu, brings to life a deeply personal conversation which, in the process, acquires a universality in its reach and the experience it presents to the audience. In a world where conversation around race and identity gains increasing relevance every day, the stunning music video invokes a discussion on the ideas of oppressive spaces, both within and without. 

We are hurled headlong into a realm that is marked by a protagonist who is held captive by tightly wound ropes. However, amidst the struggle to break free, his voice remains loud and clear, a gleeful, near-delirious grin never leaving his face. It is indeed in this visual that the narrative lays bare its primary thematic concern. It is also in this manner that the personal becomes political, allowing the vocals and the visuals to work in tandem with each other, rather than one triumphing or overpowering the other. 

 The video is especially notable for how it exhibits the creative range of Versus, evident in their usage of the same physical space as seen in a previous video ('Refracted' by Gordi), transforming it to tell a story completely different in texture and the intentions it communicates to the viewer. Consequently, while microphones, architecture, the overwhelming nature of art - all of them find an echo in the claustrophobic cornices, again, both physical and mental, the words "Get your hands off my mind...I cant breathe now", stay with you long after you're done interacting with 'The Fall'.

The Fall | Short Film of the Day

The music video most beautifully addresses a storm within - one of familial conflicts and domestic upheavals, as well as a storm without - Hurricane Maria of 2017. Following the story of a woman who is a single mother to two daughters, the song invokes the forever forward moving motion of life that waits for none. Irrespective of the destruction the Hurricane left in its wake in Puerto Rico, the resilient human spirit refuses to give in. Once again houses are raised from the rubble and business goes on as usual. Along with everything else, the video is also a comment on survival and how life will continue to thrive in the face of all adversity. Be it a natural disaster that uprooted houses or be it our own choices of choosing partners that threatened and perhaps even proved to be extremely tumultuous for our lives, there is nothing that truly stops the protagonist from pushing through, if for nothing then for her daughters. Mela Murder delivers the most stellar performance as Milagros, the woman who takes on the world singlehandedly as a perseverant mother. She translates the vulnerability as well as the fierceness of her character gloriously to the screen. This, when coupled with soulful vocals by Alynda Mariposa Segarra, and intelligently chosen visuals that tell Milagros' story, along with a chapter from the life of Puerto Rico, offer a brilliantly achieved narrative and music video.

Pa'lante | Short Film of the Day

The music video triggers several ideas to pace through your mind while trying to truly comprehend the visuals on screen. The palette is cool, the colours minimal and the location stunning. It is seemingly the story of a protagonist and his relationship with a horse. There is a surreal, otherworldly, abstract emotion that can be associated with the whole video, only further supplemented by its mesmerising and closely controlled vocals. The writing and the visuals exhibit a sophisticated weaving together, with not even a single extra moment wasted on either. The narrative takes its time to build, and yet does not under-utilise any component or element to put forth its message. Both the video and the song are essentially about power, race and the colour of the skin perhaps. It is a reminder to not trivialise someone's well-directed anger and emotion and simply render their discontent a "lover's quarrel". The lyrics demand an equality which seems to be missing when a disagreement is defined in this manner, hinting that it is one of equals. However, how can it be a conversation of equals if even the mere presence of this discrimination is brushed aside? The video raises this question in a poignant manner and leaves the viewer grappling with its potential answers.

Quarrel | Short Film of the Day

A solitary figure stands in a vast empty space, as if painting a metaphor of entrapment within the confinements of her own mind. The visual soon gives way to the eponymous refrain of the song. She is no longer alone, but her companions simply serve as images of violence, force and aggression. As the vocals echoing “do it again” are united with contrasting negative ideas, both in words and imagery, the song's core underpinnings come into existence.The overlap of desire and want, with their rejection and the pursuit of seeking freedom from them, is further conjured for the viewer and the listener. The complementary elements of the audio as well as the visual progression ensure that the predominant motivations of the end result, performed most seamlessly by the powerhouse of talent A.Girl, are shared in a skilled, sophisticated manner. The song, and the emotions it harbours within, are capable of leaving a lasting, resounding effect on the audience, along with presenting a highly intimate, personal conflict of the protagonist.

Do It Again | Short Film of the Day

The music video brings to life a hard-hitting social commentary on the actions of the corrupt and the many ways in which they exploit all their means for their vested interests, often at the cost of innumerable people. However, nothing is more erroneous than assuming the powerlessness of the latter for the wheel continues to move, ensuring that the once mighty come crashing down before they become too comfortable in their plush, cushiony thrones. 

The video locates itself in the very real world, portraying the exploits of disgraced lawyer Tom Girardi, and his henchmen and women who enabled him in his fraudulent schemes. The seamless visuals weave an impactful story, as do the lyrics, penned with utmost care. 

There is never a single moment where the energy of the performances dips, ensuring that the events on screen achieve a fitting execution. Tying it all together is an uplifting idea of hope and justice, reminding the viewer that what goes up indeed always comes down.

The Rebellion | Short Film of the Day

Eschewing hackneyed visuals that might often accompany noise-rock, ‘Macca the Mutt’ presents to you a world of its own. Complete with a characteristic grittiness and unmissable texture, the music video stands firmly on its two feet. The uniqueness of tonality and approach are the main factors allowing the visuals to succeed in this manner. 

With Party Dozen's Kirsty Tickle on the saxophone and Jonathan Boulet on percussion, the video conjures distortions and vocal modifications to present its reality to you. While at first glance one might expect a steam-punk aesthetic, the expectation is soon foiled as the video progresses. This is further coupled with musician and singer Nick Cave’s repeated refrain at the end, also marking an exception to the famously reclusive pattern of the artist when it comes to collaboration with other artists and musicians. 

In a song that is devoid of all lyrics, save for the refrain, the thematic motivations and their interpretations are the responsibility more of the audience than the creators themselves. However, the video still presents a sense of mundane, futile cyclicality of life, an allusion to a working-class existence and that of manual labor, which is immediately tied with the disruptive sense of discomfort that the song weaves in. 

Since the video is very genre-specific, it is not for everyone. And yet, what you make of it is your prerogative entirely, as the vocals and the emotions behind them get reflected in the visual narrative before you.

Macca the Mutt | Short Film of the Day

The world of the music video is powerful and remarkable. It paints a space of fluidity, and creativity which is then tied together by a voice that refuses to be diminished. Employing silhouettes and ease of movement, brought to life most beautifully by the charge led by Bernie Van Tiel (BVT), the video endeavors to present a moment embedded in Filipinx roots and culture. 
‘Lalaki’ shares a glimpse into a realm that boldly identifies itself with dance, music and words that are left with the viewer long after they are done listening to them. The brevity inherent to a music video works beautifully in its favor, ensuring all ideas are delineated without making the narrative overbearing. 

Further, the storytelling operates predominantly within the space of symbolism, with each image presenting an important metaphor about identity and belonging. As a community’s ethos is presented to you by way of an impactful end result, the video is taken home as a cohesive whole.

Lalaki | BVT | Short Film of the Day

‘Alice’ presents to us a protagonist in ribboned pigtails and a whimsical realm of tea parties, complete with miniatures modeled after dreams. In this world of daydreams, however, where is reality truly located? The question becomes central to the narrative as it engages with the idea of maladaptive daydreaming, a world of escapism that relegates reality and its truths to a far lower rung. 
In an attempt to eschew the emptiness that follows when the illusion breaks, will the protagonist end up accentuating it even more? As this ironical reversal of events is explored, the music video presents a portrayal that is consistent and authentic in its approach and storytelling, supported by equally competent performances, vocals, and music. 
The two, visual and audio narratorial elements, intertwine seamlessly to introduce us to Alice, and her many interactions with a world that only exists in her imagination. While imagination and dreams may be mostly painted as integral parts of a life of creativity, as well as means to enrich existence, the narrative presents a crucial and skilled engagement with the pitfalls that can follow if they are left unchecked.

Alice | Short Film of the Day

The title of the music video suggests a sense of being present, of truly living in the current moment, and yet the visuals invoke a far different story. It is in this inherent contrast that the plot comes into being, introducing the viewer to the protagonist's struggle of overcoming the chaos within.

 The visual treatment of these intentions is further marked by the creative flow of bodily movements, of employing dance to communicate the sentiment that defines the narrative. When it is coupled with soft vocals of the song, the final result is an engrossing story of a woman's relentless efforts to conquer the several elements that threaten to pull her back. As she wages a battle against all her internal demons, those that keep her from being in the present, to eventually be able to move on, Nowness makes its intentions clear. 

 Employing all of it as a notable metaphor, the video communicates to the viewer the overwhelming power of inhibitions imposed on the self as a result of the wrongs, pain and perhaps even trauma of the past, and yet, the constant fight against them, especially in a world that is only beginning to come out of a pandemic, further serving as a reminder of an insurmountable sense of hope.

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