Bryan M. Ferguson (born 25 February 1987) is a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

and

music video director A music video director is the head of music video production. The director conceives of videos' artistic and dramatic aspects while instructing the musical act, technical crew, actors, models, and dancers. They may or may not be in collaboration ...

, best known for his music videos for artists such as

Garbage Garbage, trash, rubbish, or refuse is waste material that is discarded by humans, usually due to a perceived lack of utility. The term generally does not encompass bodily waste products, purely liquid or gaseous wastes, or toxic waste produc ...

Alice Glass Margaret Osborn (born 25 August 1988), known professionally as Alice Glass, is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She is the co-founder and former frontwoman of the electronic band Crystal Castles. In 2014, she embarked on a solo career. She rel ...

Ladytron Ladytron are a largely British electronic band formed in Liverpool in 1999. The group consists of Helen Marnie (lead vocals, synthesizers), Mira Aroyo (vocals, synthesizers), Daniel Hunt (synthesizers, guitar, vocals), and Reuben Wu (synthesize ...

Arab Strap Arab Strap are a Scottish indie rock band whose core members are Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton. The band were signed to independent record label Chemikal Underground, split in 2006 and reformed in 2016. The band signed to Rock Action Reco ...

and

Boy Harsher Boy Harsher is an American electronic music group, formed in 2013 in Savannah, Georgia. Currently based in Northampton, Massachusetts, the band consists of vocalist Jae Matthews and producer Augustus Muller. The band has amassed a cult following ...

Music videos

After being recommended Ferguson's early short films,

Helen Marnie Helen Marnie (born 21 February 1978) is a Scottish musician, known as the lead vocalist and one of the keyboardists and songwriters of the electronic band Ladytron. In 2012, she started a solo career as Marnie and released her debut solo album ' ...

head-hunted Ferguson to write and direct a short film to accompany the band's single " ''The Island''". The short film was controversial for fans for its disturbing ending but supported by the band for its social commentary on humanity. The film would later be invited to screen at the

Raindance Film Festival Raindance is an independent film festival and film school that operates in major cities including London, Los Angeles, New York, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Budapest, Berlin, and Brussels. The festival was established in 1992 by Elliot Grove to ...

and

Leeds International Film Festival The Leeds International Film Festival (LIFF) is the largest film festival in England outside London. Founded in 1987, it is held in November at various venues throughout Leeds, West Yorkshire. In 2015, the festival welcomed over 40,000 visitor ...

in 2019. Ferguson would subsequently work with the band again for their song, "''Deadzone''". The video is notable for being inspired by

J.G. Ballard James Graham Ballard (15 November 193019 April 2009) was an English novelist, short story writer, satirist, and essayist known for provocative works of fiction which explored the relations between human psychology, technology, sex, and mass medi ...

's " ''Crash''". Following the release of Ladytron's "''The Island''", Ferguson would work with frequent collaborator

Sega Bodega Salvador Navarrete (born 16 February 1992), better known by his stage name Sega Bodega, is an Irish-Scottish music producer, singer, songwriter, DJ and co-head/founder of record label and collective Nuxxe. Sega Bodega is known for his futuristic ...

for the first time on his multidisciplinary EP project titled "''self*care''". Ferguson was one of the six filmmakers invited to create their own interpretations of 'self care' for the track "''Hopeless!!!''". Other notable artists invited to create films for the project were

Brooke Candy Brooke Dyan Candy (born July 20, 1989) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and tattoo artist. Raised in the suburbs of Los Angeles, daughter of Tom Candy, former CFO of ''Hustler Magazine'', Brooke rose to prominence after starring in Gr ...

and BEA1991. Ferguson would later direct music videos for

's singles, "''U Suck''" and "''Make U Stay''" featuring

Låpsley Holly Lapsley Fletcher (born 7 August 1996), known by the stage name Låpsley, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer. Her debut album '' Long Way Home'' was released on 4 March 2016. Early life Låpsley was born in York. Her m ...

. On 11 December 2018 Ferguson's

vampiric A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

music video for

's "''Fate''" was released and was named one of ''The 20 best videos of 2018'' by

Filter Magazine ''Filter'' (stylized as ''FILTER'') was a seasonal, off-beat entertainment magazine on American music which was founded in the summer of 2002. It featured commentary and photos of up-and-coming musicians and filmmakers ranging from actors to wri ...

. After seeing his video for

Lil Peep Gustav Elijah Åhr (November 1, 1996 – November 15, 2017), known professionally as Lil Peep, was an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He was a member of the emo rap collective GothBoiClique. Helping pioneer an emo revival-style of Rapp ...

's producer, Fish Narc approached Ferguson in 2020 to direct the videos for both his singles, "''So Long!''", featuring

Cold Hart GothBoiClique (also abbreviated as GBC) is an American emo rap collective based in Los Angeles, California. It was formed in 2012 by Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Cold Hart, and Horse Head. The group's name comes from a beat that Cold Hart sent to ...

and "''New Medication''" from the

GothBoiClique GothBoiClique (also abbreviated as GBC) is an American emo rap collective based in Los Angeles, California. It was formed in 2012 by Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Cold Hart, and Horse Head. The group's name comes from a beat that Cold Hart sent to ...

released album, "Wildfire". On 17 February 2021 Ferguson's controversial video for

's single "''Here Comes Comus!''" was released. The video was deemed too explicit for

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

by the band's label, Rock Action. The band's frontman,

Aidan Moffat Aidan John Moffat (born 10 April 1973) is a Scottish vocalist and musician, and member of the band Arab Strap. Early life Moffat was born and raised in Falkirk, Scotland. The first album he bought was ''Elvis Sings for Kids'' by Elvis Presley. ...

, revealed scenes of full frontal male nudity and excessive drug taking were omitted during an interview on

Reddit Reddit (; stylized in all lowercase as reddit) is an American social news aggregation, content rating, and discussion website. Registered users (commonly referred to as "Redditors") submit content to the site such as links, text posts, images ...

. On 2 December 2021 a video directed by Ferguson was released for

Ross From Friends Felix Clary Weatherall (born June 1993), better known by his stage name Ross from Friends, is a British electronic music producer and DJ. He is signed to Flying Lotus' Brainfeeder label, and released his debut album ''Family Portrait'' in July ...

' single "''Love Divide''". The music video was released by

Flying Lotus Steven Ellison (born October 7, 1983), known by his stage name Flying Lotus or sometimes FlyLo, is an American record producer, Disc jockey, DJ, filmmaker and rapper from Los Angeles. He is also the founder of the record label Brainfeeder. Flyi ...

' label

Brainfeeder Brainfeeder is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, California, founded by Flying Lotus in 2008, focusing on electronic music and instrumental hip hop. It has signed artists such as Ras G, Samiyam, The Gaslamp Killer, Thundercat, The ...

and depicts a business man looking for his face inside an office building where everyone's head is on backwards. On 8 December 2021 Ferguson's dramatic video for

' "''Fair Game''" was premiered via

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

. The video depicts a young woman in a leather straitjacket breaking free of chains while being tormented by a ghostly

. The track is written from the perspective of Glass' abuser based on her experiences while in the band

Crystal Castles Crystal Castles was a Canadian electronic music group formed in 2006 in Toronto, Ontario, formed by songwriter-producer Ethan Kath and singer-songwriter Alice Glass, who later left and was replaced by Edith Frances. Crystal Castles were known ...

. He would collaborate again with

on the gory music video for "''Love Is Violence''". The early 2000's inspired video depicts two teenagers who sensually pull out each other's entrails. On 1 September 2022

The Soft Moon Luis Vasquez is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and producer credited for creating The Soft Moon in Oakland, California, The Soft Moon has been described as post-punk, darkwave, minimal wave and industrial rock. History The band was fo ...

released the single "''Monster''" accompanied with a provocative music video directed by Ferguson. The body-horror infused video depicts a man slowly transforming into a monstrous form. On October 21, 2022, a "

" music video for

single, "

Witness to Your Love ''Anthology'' is a greatest hits album by Scottish/American rock band Garbage, released on October 28, 2022 through Stunvolume and BMG. It is the band's third overall and second international greatest hits album. The album includes remastered ve ...

" directed by Ferguson was teased. The video premiered on October 28, the day of ''

Anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

'' release. On 10 November, 2022,

released her single "''Hotel Corridors''" with a video directed by Ferguson. The video was shot in the

Grand Central Hotel The Grand Central Hotel, later renamed the Broadway Central Hotel, was a hotel at 673 Broadway, New York City, that was famous as the site of the murder of financier James Fisk in 1872 by Edward S. Stokes. The hotel collapsed on August 3, 19 ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

while it was vacant during the UK lockdown during the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. On 11 June, 2024, Ferguson's

monochromatic A monochrome or monochromatic image, object or color scheme, palette is composed of one color (or lightness, values of one color). Images using only Tint, shade and tone, shades of grey are called grayscale (typically digital) or Black and wh ...

music video for

Molchat Doma Molchat Doma (russian: Молчат Дома, , Houses Are Silent, ) is a Russian-singing Belarus, Belarusian post-punk band from Minsk, formed in 2017. Their current lineup consists of Egor Shkutko (vocals), Roman Komogortsev (guitar, synthesizer ...

's single "''Son''" was premiered by

Sacred Bones Records Sacred Bones Records is an American independent record label founded in 2007 and based in Brooklyn, New York. The label has released recordings from artists including Zola Jesus, David Lynch, John Carpenter, Blanck Mass, Crystal Stilts, Marissa ...

Short films

In 2015 Ferguson won The Skinny Short Film Award for his no-budget

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

set film “''Caustic Gulp''”. He would gain notoriety within the Scottish short film circuit in 2016 with his follow up film, “''Flamingo''”. The mid-length film depicts two strangers and their fetish for self-amputation. The film caused multiple viewers to faint at the

Centre for Contemporary Arts The Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA) is an arts centre in Glasgow, Scotland. The year-round programme includes exhibitions, film, music, literature, festivals, spoken word, Gaelic and performances. The Centre commissions new work from artists ...

during its premiere at the Glasgow Short Film Festival. In 2019, Ferguson released the short film, ''Satanic Panic '87''. An 1980s set

horror-comedy Comedy horror, also known as horror comedy, is a literary, television, and film genre that combines elements of comedy and horror fiction. Comedy horror has been described as able to be categorized under three types: "black comedy, parody and spo ...

infusing

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...

with a satanic aerobics tape. The film was made as part of

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

's ''Random Acts'' and subsequently broadcast during

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observanc ...

Film4 Film4 is a British free-to-air television network owned by Channel Four Television Corporation launched on 1 November 1998, devoted to broadcasting films. While its standard-definition channel is available on Freeview and Freesat platforms, it ...

as part of their FilmFear season. The Skinny called it "the kind of imaginative, outsider art that Channel 4 has been championing since its inception."

Dazed ''Dazed'' (''Dazed & Confused'' until February 2014) is a bi-monthly British style magazine founded in 1991. It covers music, fashion, film, art, and literature. Dazed is published by Dazed Media, an independent media group known for producing ...

called it "absolute carnage". In 2020 the film became one of four films invited to represent Scottish short film for Short Circuit's ''Screening In Scotland Film Tour'.'' The film screened at notable festivals such as

Show Me Shorts Show Me Shorts is an international short film festival held in Auckland and other venues across New Zealand. It screens a selection of short films from New Zealand and around the world in cinemas nationwide each spring. Each year approximately 6 ...

Cork International Film Festival The Cork International Film Festival, also known as the Cork Film Festival (), is a film festival held annually in Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the i ...

and

Galway Film Fleadh The Galway Film Fleadh (; Irish for "festival") is an international film festival founded in 1989 as part of the Galway Arts Festival. Describing itself as Ireland’s leading film festival, the event is held every July in Galway city in Ireland ...

. The film can be streamed on Gunpowder and Sky's horror channel Alter and Arrow Film's streaming platform, Arrow Player. Ferguson released the short film, "''Insecticide''". A film he made during the first

lockdown A lockdown is a restriction policy for people, community or a country to stay where they are, usually due to specific risks (such as COVID-19) that could possibly harm the people if they move and interact freely. The term is used for a prison ...

of 2020 as a response to the

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the com ...

pandemic A pandemic () is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread across a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of individuals. A widespread endemic (epidemiology), endemic disease wi ...

. Ferguson made the film entirely within 72 hours with his wife, using only what they had in their apartment then soundtracked by Alex Mackay of

Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogw ...

. The film would later be available on Arrow Film's streaming platform, Arrow Player. On 6 July 2021 it was announced Ferguson had made a short film entitled "''Red Room''" based upon Helen McClory's

gothic novel Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror in the 20th century, is a loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name is a reference to Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages, which was characteristic of the settings of ea ...

"''Bitterhall''". The film was commissioned by the

Edinburgh International Book Festival The Edinburgh International Book Festival (EIBF) is a book festival that takes place in the last three weeks of August every year in Charlotte Square in the centre of Scotland’s capital city, Edinburgh. Billed as ''The largest festival of its ...

and premiered in

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

Theatre at

Edinburgh College of Art Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) is one of eleven schools in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. Tracing its history back to 1760, it provides higher education in art and design, architecture, histor ...

. On 6 December 2021 the

London Short Film Festival The London Short Film Festival, founded in 2004, is a film festival held annually at various locations in London, in January. The festival celebrates short film production. Each year the festival appoints an international jury who award prizes wor ...

announced a retrospective of Ferguson's short film and music video work, entitled "''Irregular Atrocities - The Films of Bryan M. Ferguson''", as part of their 2022 festival programme.

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as

dult swim Dult is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representati ...

and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...

commissioned Ferguson's short film, "''Earworm''", which was featured in the episode "''BUGS''" on the channel's long running show, "''

Off The Air In the broadcasting industry, a dark television station or silent radio station is one that has gone off the air for an indefinite period of time. Usually unlike dead air (broadcasting only silence), a station that is dark or silent does not eve ...

''" in September 2022. The film was subsequently selected as

Vimeo Vimeo, Inc. () is an American video hosting, sharing, and services platform provider headquartered in New York City. Vimeo focuses on the delivery of high-definition video across a range of devices. Vimeo's business model is through software as ...

Staff Pick by the curation team. On 19 October 2022 it was announced that Ferguson's film "''Red Room''" would be released theatrically across cinemas nationwide in

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

via the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

as part of their ''In Dreams Are Monsters'' season. The film was classified " 15" for ''strong threat and language'' by the

British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of f ...

. On 17 October 2023, Ferguson released a

themed trailer for his forthcoming short film, "''Pumpkin Guts''", the film was scored by Ferguson's friend and collaborator, Luis Vasquez, known professionally as

. Vasquez died on January 18, 2024 while the film was in post-production. The film is currently on hiatus. Ferguson mentioned in an interview with The Herald that he intends to finish the film and dedicate it to Vasquez.

Feature films

On 25 March 2021 it was announced that Ferguson was in early development on his feature film debut, ''Funeral Home''. Ferguson announced in The Herald that his feature film debut would in fact be, ''Dysphonia''. The article states the film will move into production late 2024.

Retrospectives

Filmography

Film

Short films

Music videos

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Bryan British music video directors Scottish film directors 1987 births Living people