Comic-book Inspired Video Wins at MTV VMA Awards

London-based creative agency Nice&Polite has received international recognition after winning a top prize for a comic-book inspired production at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA).

The agency’s video (above), for 5 Seconds of Summer’s song Don’t Stop, is loosely based on the style of classic graphic novels and peppered with pop-art style text. It sees the band graphically represented as comic book heroes.

The video bagged the prestigious title of Best Lyric Video 2014 at the recent awards after a whopping 77 million votes from members of the public.

Director Sophia Ray used motion graphics created in After Effects to bring the part-static part-animated content to life.

Of the win, she says: “The 5 Seconds of Summer guys are heroes to so many of their fans out there, the graphic style of comic book heroes really seemed to fit them well. The band is so well-loved, I’m delighted to have done their music justice, and the public enjoyed it so much.”

Ross Anderson, managing director of Nice&Polite, adds: “We work closely with the band and their management, across all their video content, which is great because they are so open to creative interpretations. We’re thrilled with the recognition from MTV and the voting public. Lyric videos are often seen as the poor relations to music videos, Sophia’s direction of Don’t Stop shows how they can be showstoppers in their own right.”

The MTV VMAs celebrate the music video medium in all its forms including visual effects and cinematography. The 2014 ceremony was the first to include a Lyric Video category illustrating the impact promotional lyric videos have had on the industry.