Prologue: MTV Video Music Awards 2009

prologue
MTV has found a good thing, and they’re sticking to it. For the third year in a row, they’ve tapped LA-based Prologue to create the graphics package for their colossal Video Music Awards show.

Directed by Ilya Abulhanov, the condensed sans-serif type and annotated landscapes of the VMA 2009 package build upon the look Ilya established for the OFFF 2009 titles. In the VMA 2009 package, though, the landscape is alive, modifying itself in subtle but surreal ways.

Gigantic telescoping streetlights and strings of gondolas adorn the familiar skyline of New York City, creating a panoply of mechanical transformations that seem to be a literalization of Rem Koolhaus’ vision of a “delirious New York.” Ilya’s split-screen moments create dizzying multiplications of the city, piling density upon density.

I’m reminded a little of Rob Chiu and Chris Hewitt’s titles for Offf New York. Ben “HECQ” Lukas Boysen did a masterful job sound designing both projects, creating a wild mix of tension and wonder that is driven as much by pockets of poignant silence as it is by the tightly controlled cacophony of the city.

Check it out here.

About the author

Justin Cone

/ justincone.com
Together with Carlos El Asmar, Justin co-founded Motionographer, F5 and The Motion Awards. He currently lives in Austin, Texas with is wife, son and fluffball of a dog. Before taking on Motionographer full-time, Justin worked in various capacities at Psyop, NBC-Universal, Apple, Adobe and SCAD.

13 Comments

monovich

undeniably beautiful work, but it does leave me a little cold in some ways. Its such a subdued industrial aesthetic, yet the VMAs are a pop-culture orgy.
I think they connected well enough to NY, but where is the party at?
That said, kudos for the courage to try something that isn’t dead-on.

frq

I agree with monovich & at the same time think…maybe the lack of the “party” element is what makes this package stand out from the event… sort of done in contrast to pop culture…Great stuff, really enjoyed viewing it.-

Justin Cone

Yeah, that’s my take on it as well: It’s so subdued and quiet—not at all what I’d expect for the VMAs.

We also have to keep in mind that we’re seeing these out of context. The event itself had plenty of craziness (I’m not just thinking of Kanye’s antics), and although I can’t remember how it actually played out, I believe these titles were often spoken over and book-ended with musical interludes.

Sean

Hard for me to critique something this brilliant and besides that is what Mtv has always been about: letting the artist do his thing, no matter how random or unfitting to the subject matter. I think Ilya’s work is way ahead of its time and it is extremely rare in the motion design world because every single detail is carefully designed as oppose to just loading the screen with layers of graphics to make it look flashier.

rothermel

“that is what Mtv has always been about: letting the artist do his thing, no matter how random or unfitting to the subject matter.”

???

https://motionographer.com/2009/08/21/mtv-movie-award-leftovers/

henkdawson

This is very cool. I love the motion tracking and the sense of depth.

Sickness

[Comment edited: Please see comment guidelines at the top of the comment form.]

This MTV package is amazing! Well done!
Prologue guys rock!!

tricefalo

beautiful work!
very poetic edition!
love it!

zzyzxerxes

Is there a shot of la cabaña in it? thankyousomuch.

Do

It’s terrific ! love it.

Chinaski

[This comment was edited. Please see the commenting guidelines at the top of the posting form.]

I like the MTV piece. Ilya and the rest of the crew at Prologue did a great job with it.

ddd_dave

great technique, but evokes tension, fear and something aweful about to happen….. oh, OK. Spot on! The aweful part coming was Kanye!

Anders Lund H

Very nice, but also very similar to the titles for OFFF 09 :)

https://motionographer.com/theater/prologue-offf-2009-titles/

Comments are closed.

Prologue: MTV Video Music Awards 2009

MTV has found a good thing, and they’re sticking to it. For the third year in a row, they’ve tapped LA-based Prologue to create the entire graphics package for their colossal Video Music Awards show.

Directed by Ilya Abulhanov, the condensed sans-serif type and annotated landscapes of the VMA 2009 package build upon the look Ilya established for the OFFF 2009 titles. In the VMA 2009 package, though, the landscape is alive, modifying itself in subtle but surreal ways.

Gigantic telescoping streetlights and strings of gondolas adorn the familiar skyline of New York City, creating a panoply of mechanical transformations that seem to be a literalization of Rem Koolhaus’ vision of a “delirious New York.” Ilya’s split-screen moments create dizzying multiplications of the city, piling density upon density.

I’m reminded a little of Rob Chiu and Chris Hewitt’s titles for Offf New York. Ben “HECQ” Lukas Boysen did a masterful job sound designing both projects, creating a wild mix of tension and wonder that is driven as much by pockets of poignant silence as it is by the tightly controlled cacophony of the city.

Credits
LIVE ACTION:

Director:
Ilya Abulhanov

Producer:
Elizabeth Newman

Assistant Camera:
Lee Buckley

ANIMATION & DESIGN

Director:
Ilya Abulhanov

Producer:
Elizabeth Newman

Design & Animation:
Ilya Abulhanov
Clarisa Valdez
Georgia Tribuiani
Andrew Hildebrand
Jonny Sidlo
Takayuki Sato
Daniel Kloehn
Lilit Hayrapetyan
Gary Mau
Pietro Desopo

Editing:
Ilya Abulhanov
Gabriel J. Diaz
Brant Duncan

Sound Design & Music: Ben Lukas Boysen / HECQ

Client: MTV, Lee Lodge, Creative Producer

About the author

Justin Cone

/ justincone.com
Together with Carlos El Asmar, Justin co-founded Motionographer, F5 and The Motion Awards. He currently lives in Austin, Texas with is wife, son and fluffball of a dog. Before taking on Motionographer full-time, Justin worked in various capacities at Psyop, NBC-Universal, Apple, Adobe and SCAD.