Sound//Mind

For our final episode of season 1, we sit down with Tajana Tokyo. A visionary director who first toured the world as a dancer for iconic performers including Beyoncé and Janelle Monáe before turning her hand to directing. Her work is characterised by enthralling rhythm and movement, working with brands such as Apple, Amazon, Magners and Coppafeel! to create engaging, movement-led films.We spoke with Tajana about how music is the very first ingredient she considers, about landing the perfect cast that can move in the way she envisions, and communicating the visceral language of music and movement through her films. We are truly inspired by her personality and approach.

Juanita Richards is a photographer and director who creates connection with her subjects and within her stories placing intuition, energy, movement and rhythm at the heart of all that she does.This deep understanding of the people in her work means that even their movement can tell their stories, which is why music plays a pivotal role in her scene setting, on set, and in the final result, driving the authenticity of the subcultures she heroes in her work.We had a real laugh with Juanita - she is one to watch for sure! And her work with Chanel, Nike and Nowness is just the start of her story.Thanks Juanita for joining us!

Rooted in music and shaped by a bold directing style, Sam Taylor's work reflects a powerful relationship between sound and visual storytelling - evident in his commercial campaigns for Birkenstock, Asics x JD, and Oppo, as well as his music videos for Fontaines D.C. and Grian Chatten. In this week's Sound//Mind podcast, Hannah Crawford and James Goatman had a brilliant chat with Sam about how he builds creative synergy with his team and draws inspiration from the ground up. Thanks to Sam, Rich and the Spiritland Productions team for bringing this all together, and to Agile Films and KO Collective for the support.

Rosie May Bird Smith is an award-winning adverting agency creative-turned award-winning director, who injects her over-flowing fun and masterful irreverence to her storytelling. That coupled with her infectious personality makes her impossible not to love. We spoke with Rosie about finding inspiration in yodel music, the detailed approach she takes when writing her treatments and defining her films’ character, and successfully bringing comedy to stories that might often take a more serious tone.Thanks to Rosie, Biscuit, Rich, and the Qube team for bringing this all together.

"Come for the music, stay for the story," that’s how Ollie Murray approaches every project.Our guest this week on the Sound//Mind podcast, director Ollie Murray, takes this approach to his narratives when tasked with crafting distinct points of view to musicians including The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Quincy Jones. The films and series he creates are about people, emotion and conflict - ultimately showcasing the humanity behind these legendary artists. In this episode, Hannah Crawford and James Goatman spoke with Ollie about this challenge, why these iconic artists' stories are still relevant today, the challenges of modern music culture, how it forms our identities, and music's shifting cultural role.

In the third episode of the Sound//Mind podcast, Hannah Crawford and James Goatman dive deep with director Chris Chuky, whose approach to filmmaking takes on a uniquely cinematic and theatrical perspective across music videos for the likes of Kelvyn Colt, in commercials for Jack Daniels and Channel 4 x Domino's, and in his competition-winning short film BLADES (BFI x BMW). Thanks to Chris, Eleanor Films, Rich and the Spiritland team for making it all happen.

In our second episode of the Sound//Mind podcast, we sit down with the brilliant Libby Burke Wilde—director at new-land—whose work blurs the line between powerful narrative commercials and emotionally rich documentaries.From the profound personal storytelling that comes through all of her work to her interest in human rights and subcultures, Libby shares how she uses storytelling as a force for social change. Tune in for a conversation that explores the sound, soul, and substance behind her compelling body of work.Thanks to Libby, Izzie, and Steph at new-land, and to Rich and the Qube team for making it all happen.

We are honoured to kick off Sound//Mind with a conversation with one of the UK’s most prolific and iconic directors, Vaughan Arnell. Vaughan's directed music videos that informed the nineties and noughties zeitgeist for artists including Robbie Williams, Spice Girls, George Michael, All Saints and Jamiroquai, alongside timeless ads that are still referenced to this day.Vaughan took us on a journey from his early days in Claygate, as a key figure in the music scene, and how music has played a pivotal role in his creative work - plus gems of stories about working with the Spice Girls, and how they landed on the Babylon Zoo track for the legendary Levi’s Planet commercial, and how 808 State played a part in the story.Thanks again to Vaughan, to Ellen and Ziver at Merman for making this happen, to Rich Power, and Spiritland.Sound//Mind is a MassiveMusic production, hosted by James Goatman and Hannah Crawford.