Playlist: Lily Rose Thomas

What’s the best music video you’ve seen recently and why?
 
I’ve just watched This is America by Childish Gambino, directed by Hiro Murai so it would be impossible not to say this - it’s the best video I’ve seen in a long time, shocking, thought provoking and amazingly shot.

What’s the first music video you remember being impressed by?
 
I remember seeing the video for Californication by Red Hot Chili Peppers on MTV when I was about eight years old and being completely fascinated by the computer game and these men jumping around in front of a blue sky with their tops off. I also remember sitting in front of The Box (#TBT) and my dad asking me to request Coffee and TV by Blur, I remember thinking the story was amazing then and I still do now. 

And what’s your all-time favourite music video?
 
Hard to say, there are so many, but I love the video for Man on the Moon by REM.

What other directors/artists do you look to for inspiration?
 
I don’t know if there are any particular directors or artists that inspire me, but I’ve always loved watching films and the experience of going to the cinema. I think there are too many directors to mention that I am influenced by - because there are different reasons as to why I like certain people; the way one may frame a shot, or another may phrase something. This year, like most other people, I really loved Ladybird - I really liked Greta Gerwig’s work with Noah Baumbach before so I’m super excited to see whatever she does next, and I also loved The Florida Project [below] - it was shot so beautifully and I thought the performances were incredible. I started out in photography, so I look a lot to photographers for inspiration too. Recently I saw Zoe Leonard at the Whitney and Stephen Shore at the MOMA, both of which I found really exciting.

What are you listening to at the moment?
 
I’ve been listening a lot to the band Whitney’s No Woman album, which I’ve just discovered, and Alex Cameron. I went to see him earlier this year and I think he’s great - and I love the video he did with Jemima Kirke for Stranger’s Kiss.

What’s your favourite bit of tech, whether for professional or personal use?
 
I love all of my cameras, especially my 35mm Canon which is very resilient and has survived through a lot. But I particularly love my Fuji Instax camera, which is like a remodel of the Polaroid. The film is really expensive but the way you have a photo in an instant never fails to impress me.

What artist(s) would you most like to work with and why?
 
Too many to mention, but one person I would really like to work with Angel Olsen, I love her music and her aesthetic… the video for Shut Up Kiss Me Hold Me Tight is amazing as is the simplicity of the video for her track Special.

How do you feel the music video industry has changed since you started in it?
 
I haven’t been around for long, but I think that expectations are higher and budgets are lower…

Music videos have had a resurgence of late; where do you see the industry being in five years’ time?
 
I’m a child of the 90s so I would like to say that we’d see music videos occupying the same space as they did then - celebrated and important. I hope we are still respecting the craft that goes into making a good music video, and that the budgets haven’t got too much smaller.

 
Tell us one thing about yourself that most people won’t know…
 
When I was in Year 6 my class was featured on a segment on Newsnight about what kids would ask for if we had a general election at school. I said I’d ask for more homework...