6 of the past 8 VMA Video of the Year Winners were cut at Bonch Post
Before the show, there’s the promo. This year, the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA) made a triumphant return to NYC with an event at Madison Square Garden. The ceremony has been held in numerous venues and cities since it debuted at Radio City Music Hall in 1984, but this homecoming was momentous. To properly herald the broadcast, MTV turned to filmmaker Anthony Mandler, whose high-profile music videos and ad campaigns comprise the “hot list” of music, fashion and beauty. Mandler sought out Jarrett Fijal of Bonch Post to handle editorial duties on the project. The filmmaker is a frequent presence at Bonch, which has cut campaigns and videos for Reebok, SKYY, Beyoncé, Jay Z, Lady Gaga, Rihanna and many, many more.
In keeping with MTV’s moon-landing logo, the highly stylized piece – titled, “The Canvas is Ready” – foreshadows the arrival of the VMA’s at MSG. It is a skillful coming together of mystery and technology, as a “Moonman” completes his mission, the bare stage described as an empty canvas waiting for artists to make their mark. “It’s a bold dramatic spot, and there’s definitely a huge emphasis on the Garden, as well as the MTV image,” noted Fijal, adding, “The way Anthony directed it, I was able to go back a little into the spinning camera shots MTV was known for early on. It’s subliminal and a fast ten frames, but it comes across.”
For Fijal, the moon landing is a familiar one: he is a three-time winner of the Moonman for Best Editor. Further, six of the past eight winners of the VMA for Video of the Year have been cut at Bonch Post. The latest is this year’s winner, Beyoncé “Formation”, preceded by Justin Timberlake “Mirrors” (2013), Rihanna (f. Calvin Harris) “We Found Love” (2012), Katy Perry “Firework” (2011), Lady Gaga “Bad Romance” (2010) and Beyoncé “Single Ladies” (2009). That means the boutique’s VMA Video of the Year honorees alone account for upwards of 3 billion views.
Add to the shelf this year’s Best Editing VMA, awarded to Jeff Selis for “Formation,” which has proved a magnet for accolades this year: in addition to the video’s six Moonmen at the August 28 ceremony – including Directing for Melina Matsoukas, Best Pop Video and Video of the Year – Selis won the 2016 AICE Award in the Music Video category for his work on that project, which was the recipient of the first Entertainment Lions for Music Grand Prix at the Cannes International Festival for Creativity.
The company might have racked up even more Moonmen had the team not widened their focus to include more commercial assignments. Among those are the Sans campaign with David Beckham via AR New York (directed by Mandler) and the acclaimed short film, “Time” (directed by Floria Sigismondi) for Saatchi Saatchi. Selis recently reunited with Matsoukas on a new film launching the global campaign for Stella McCartney’s “POP” fragrance, starring Grimes, Lourdes “Lola” Leon, Amandla Stenberg and Kenya Kinski-Jones.
“We love working on music videos and I speak for all of our editors and artists when I say there are reciprocal rewards for working in both the music and advertising mediums,” Fijal said. “In every case, we are telling stories, presenting brands, and addressing image. Most importantly, we create work that gets eyes on it. By no means are we the McDonald’s of music videos and commercials,” Fijal laughed. “But we do serve billions of customers.”
About Bonch Post
Founded by editor Jarrett Fijal in 2007, Bonch Post is a full-service boutique providing offline editorial, color correction and finishing. A roster of distinctive talent combined with a warm, collaborative environment have made Bonch the go-to post house for Beyoncé, Lady GaGa, Justin Bieber, Justin Timberlake, Lana Del Rey, Rihanna, and others. Over the past few years, Bonch’s repertoire extended to high-profile commercial projects, including Diesel, Sans with David Beckham, SKYY, Reebok, Joe’s Jeans with Bella Hadid, and the global campaign for Stella McCartney’s POP fragrance.
Multiple winners of the MTV VMA for Video of the Year have been cut at Bonch Post, which is also a four-time winner of the 'Moonman for Best Editor.'
In addition to Fijal, the Bonch roster is comprised of editors Marissa Charlwood, Chris Davis, Steve Forner, Jeff Selis, Adam “Zuk” Zuckerman, and colorists/finishers Kevin Kim and Bill Pollock. Jeff Weidemann is Executive Producer at Bonch Post.
Video Credits
Client: MTV / Video Music Awards
Title: VMA 2016 | The Canvas Is Ready | MTV :60
Agency: In-house
Production Company: Black Hand Cinema
Director: Anthony Mandler
Editorial Company: Bonch Post
Editor: Jarrett Fijal
Editorial EP: Jeff Weidemann
Jeff Weidemann
Executive Producer
Bonch Post
323.944.0286
Contact Jeff via email
Media Inquiries:
Hersh Rephun
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2024 AICP Awards Tour Concludes with Stops in Dallas and Chicago
The 2024 AICP Awards Tour concludes with stops in Dallas and Chicago this month as it wraps up its tour of cities across the U.S. The National Tour brought presentations, panels and screenings to marketers, advertising agencies, production and post production companies. The AICP Awards will be in Dallas on Thursday, November 14th, at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, followed by the Chicago event, set for Thursday, November 21st at The Old Post Office. Tickets are available now for both events at www.aicp.com. In Dallas, the program kicks off at 6:45 pm with a happy hour, followed by the screening and panel discussion at 7:30. The evening ends with a networking reception from 8:30 to 11:30. The Perot Museum of Nature and Science is located at 2201 N. Field Street in Dallas. Appearing in Dallas will be Abe Garcia, Chief Creative Officer, Dieste; Julia Melle, Director of Brand and Content, Southwest Airlines; and Isaac Pagán Muñoz, VP, Executive Creative Director of PepsiCo Foods. The panel will review selected winners from the suite of the AICP Awards programs, offering insights into what made them rise to the top of their respective categories and share their viewpoints on key trends in the industry. The Chicago stop starts at 6:00pm with a happy hour, followed by the presentation and screening at 7:00pm. A reception caps the event, starting at 8:00pm and concluding at 11:30pm. The Old Post Office is located at 433 W Van Buren Street in Chicago. The panel there will feature 2024 AICP Awards Curators and Winners from the marketer, agency, production and post production sectors who’ll highlight this year’s winners. The conversation will include a discussion about the winning work, including insights... Read More