Walter Adrian Stern (born 16 November 1965 in
Marylebone
Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary.
An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it me ...
,
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
) is an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
film director.
Biography
Walter Stern was born in 1965 to an Austrian-Jewish father and an English mother.
Music videos
Stern began his career directing music videos at Control, a small production company based in London.
In 1993, he moved to production company Stigma Films where he first directed a promo for the band
The Prodigy. Their collaboration continued throughout the mid to late 1990s, including two critically acclaimed and award-winning promos in 1996: "
Firestarter", which won Best Video in the ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' People's Choice Award 1996, and "
Breathe", which won Best Video at the
MTV Europe Music Awards 1997.
Stern joined Academy Films in 1997, introducing himself with the video for
The Verve
The Verve were an English rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Simon Tong later became a member in ...
's "
Bitter Sweet Symphony". That same year, he began another successful collaboration, this time with the band
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol by Robert "3D" Del Naja, Adrian "Tricky" Thaws, Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall.
The debut Massive Attack album '' Blue Lines'' was releas ...
. This relationship produced promos for "
Risingson
"Risingson" is a song by the English trip hop group Massive Attack, released as a single on 7 July 1997. It is the first single from their third album, ''Mezzanine'' (1998), and the eighth single overall.
Background and composition
The single con ...
" (1997), "
Teardrop" and "
Angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles inclu ...
" (both 1998). "Teardrop" won the award for Best Video at the
MTV Europe Music Awards 1998 and was nominated for
Brit and
D&AD
Design and Art Direction (D&AD), formerly known as British Design and Art Direction, is a British educational organisation that was created in 1962 to promote excellence in design and advertising. Its main offices are in Spitalfields in London. I ...
awards. He has also worked with artists as diverse as
Madonna,
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
,
Nine Inch Nails and
Stereo MCs.
In 2006, he directed a music video for
Bloc Party
Bloc Party are an English rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, sampler), Russell Lissack (lead guitar, keyboards), Justin Harris (bass guitar, keyboards, saxophones, backing vocals) and Louise Bartle ( ...
's "
The Prayer" and in 2009, he returned to the collaboration with The Prodigy directing a new promo "
Take Me to the Hospital
"Take Me to the Hospital" is the twenty-first single released by the British electronic band the Prodigy. released on 31 August 2009, the CD single includes the Sub Focus remix and the 12" single also includes a Rusko remix. Liam also collaborate ...
".
Awards
At the 2003 Creative & Design Awards, Stern pick up the award for Best Video of the Year and Best Dance Video for
Audio Bullys
Audio Bullys are an English electronic music project, originally consisting of Simon Franks and Tom Dinsdale. The group were once managed by the DJ and presenter George Lamb.
Franks and Dinsdale released their debut album ''Ego War'' in 2003, ...
' "We Don't Care".
In 2007, he won the CADS Outstanding Achievement award.
Advertisements
Stern entered the advertising arena in 1997 with an ad for
Volkswagen Golf
The Volkswagen Golf () is a compact car/small family car (C-segment) produced by the German automotive manufacturer Volkswagen since 1974, marketed worldwide across eight generations, in various body configurations and under various nameplates ...
. His commercial career has been as successful as his music video career, collecting a
Golden Lion for Volkswagen "Heaven" at
Cannes
Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...
2000. He has completed two advertisements for
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlant ...
, and other clients include
Caffreys,
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
Craft for Best Video Post Production.
His other advertising work includes "Bubbles" for
.