Immensely talented and with a self-described ‘curious soul’, JOE CONNOR has made a name for himself in film, music, theatre and photography. Experienced and single minded in his quest to direct Joe is a creative polymath; director, recording artist, photographer, mime artist, clown! Joe’s commercial work includes films for Land Rover, Volvo, Nike, Puma and most recently Summer of Music for BBC Creative. His films have been shortlisted at Cannes Lions, D&AD’s, British Arrows and 1.4. Joe has directed music videos for Harry Styles, Ellie Golding, Paul Weller, Coldplay, Sam Smith and Placebo and has picked up several best music video nominations at the UKMVA’s. Breathe, Joe’s latest short, is a beautifully elegant film and a visceral reminder to pause our hectic post-Covid lives and is a film is a reflection of Joe’s innate creativity and Joe is the co-founder and artistic director of the acclaimed visual theatre company Parrot in the Tank, has directed fashion films for Paul Smith and with Hollywood luminaries Tom Hiddleston, Lily James and Stanly Tucci and shot still portraits of Ed Sheeran, Anthony Joshua and Kylie Minogue. Joe’s drive and energy is led by his love of entertainment and all the ways to tell a story, whether through music, imagery, language or performance. Having trained as a theatre director at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, graduating with First Class Honours – in mime!, and spent nights working as a 35mm projectionist at The Everyman Cinema, he has a great and passionate understanding in the power of film and the endless potential for the creativity that it provides. Emile Rafael’s passion for filmmaking and art took root early on when he stumbled upon a few Hollywood sets during his childhood. Those encounters have now blossomed into a career as a celebrated director and artist flourishing in the creative hothouse of London. Originally studying to be a cinematographer, Emile quickly made the leap to directing by creating dynamic videos for the likes of Katy B, X Ambassadors, Jamie N Commons, and Stubborn Heart. His love of fine art, visually stunning VFX and documentary film heavily influences his voice as a director, pushing him to seek out visual boldness and human truth in equal measure on every project. Emile Rafael is a frequent collaborator with Nowness and works with I-D on an array of projects. His work has been featured in SHOTS, The Beak Street Bugle, The Reel, 1.4, and Little Black Book, among others. His video for MØ’s “Walk This Way” earned him the trophy for Danish Music Video of the Year at the Danish Music Awards. Emile was also shortlisted for the Next Director Awards at D&AD with his short film, His Heavy Heart, profiling legendary comic book creator Alan Moore. As a musician Emile transcends between ambient and more beat heavy melodic techno world. His goal is to make music as analogue as possible stepping away from involving a digital audio workstation. His paintings had a number of London art showcases adding to his audio-visual output.