Research into a music video director

Ethan Lader

Ethan Lader is one of the most sought after music video directors in the industry at the moment. He is internationally recognized for his unique visual style and imaginiation

He has directed back-to-back Billboard #1 singles:B.o.B “Nothin On You” Bruno Mars “Just The Way You Are”

These videos have been nominated for various awards, including MTV Video Music Awards Best Pop Video, BET Awards Video of the Year, and BET Hip-Hop Awards Video of the Year. “Just The Way You Are” has been nominated for MuchMusic’s International Video of the Year and Most Watched video of the year with currently over 270 million views on YouTube alone. His videos are constantly on rotation on MTV, BET and VH1.

He has lensed videos for everyone from Mariah Carey, Bruno Mars, Enrique Iglesias, Usher, B.o.B, OneRepublic, Leona Lewis and even more.His work has been acknowledged by Entertainment Tonight, Billboard Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, LA Weekly and many more.Lader has also done several short films which have received awards from HBO, National Foundation for the Advancement in Arts (NFAA) and acknowledged by the Governor of Connecticut. His short film ‘Positive’ screened at the Beverly Hills Film Festival and Malibu International Film Fesvial.

Disneyland Parks based their 2012 Commercial Campaign on the music video Lader created for OneRepublic’s “Good Life”. He was commissioned by Disney to direct the National Commercials. Which led to working alongside Disney and Dick Clark Enterprise to create 3 spots for Dick Clark’s “Rockin’ New Years Eve Show”. The music video he created became the Visual Campaign for the Multi-Billion Dollar Company.

His Work

Interviews• Originally you started as a film maker – what made you chose the direction of music videos?

I began directing music videos around five years ago, and it was still the beginning of Music Video Directors doing features. I’m fortunate to say I’ve never had a 9 to 5. I just couldn’t see myself in an office; I’m a creative. I felt the best way to get into features was through music videos. It was a way to build my body of work and get paid in the process. I started directing with shorts/narratives, and music videos just came naturally. I love the process of shooting videos, collaborating with creative artists/musicians, bringing ideas inspired by music to life. Features are still in the future, but right now my heart is in music videos. I would see myself going from music videos, to commercials, to features; which I think is a good process to make yourself a solid filmmaker.

• What is a good music video for you – and in your opinion what does it mean to be a good director? First off I think it’s important to have a background in film. Whether you went to film school or not, you’ve gotta have some experience on set. Anyone can “be” a Director, but doesn’t mean you’re good at it. It’s about being able to articulate your ideas, to communicate with a lot of different types of people while making them all feel included with the project. It’s about having a game plan and being able to be creative when things don’t go as planned. A good music video keeps the attention of the viewers while showcasing the music and/or musician. From animation, live action, story or performance driven, those two elements are key.

• What’s your usual approach when you start a new project – how do you put the lyrics from a song into the visual story of a music video? When it comes to music videos it’s essential that you love music. I see music. I feel music. Music drives my life. It’s important for me as a Director to be able to put myself aside, and step into the shoes of the musician and create a piece that showcases them. That’s why when everyone asks me “What’s my style? What makes an Ethan Lader video?” If I do my job right, you won’t know. Instead you’ll see my name in the credits and be like “Damn, he’s like a chameleon.” I adapt to each song, each artist I work with, because everyone is so different.

Why I chose to investigate this director

• I chose the music video director Ethan Lader, because looking at his work and all the music videos he has directed, I really like the inventive vision he has. I particularly like the way he presents lyrics in his music videos, especially in the Bruno Mars music video “Just The Way You Are”. He presents the lyrics in very interesting and imaginative ways, and I want to achieve the same in my music video. The lyrics of my song in my music video are very important, and significant in my video as they help to enhance the story-telling aspect of my video.

• Similarly, I love ‘Good Life’ which he directed for OneRepublic, whom I have researched extensively. Again he presents the song in a creative and original way, and uses pictures as an extra tool to make the music video even more engaging and intriguing.

• I feel that I could learn a lot from Ethan Lader’s work, and hopefully taking inspiration from his work will make my music video the best it can possibly be.