Episode 24 – Kinga Burza

This Way Up

“I always I think it's inevitable that in certain music videos and certain artists they want to be sexy and that's just always been the way music has gone on…but I've also felt very much that I am responsible for not exploiting the artist and so I think I've just listened to my instinct, followed my taste and tried to keep it tasteful. I mean with Katy Perry “I kissed a girl” could have been really inappropriate and crass. I tried to keep it sexy but also feminine and sensual rather than sexual. I never actually wanted to see girls kissing, that would just be taking it too far. I think the idea of the fantasy element of it was so much more interesting.”

In this episode, I talk to Kinga Burza. Kinga is a Polish-Australian music video director who has directed over 35 music videos, combining over 750 million YouTube views for artists such as Katy Perry, Calvin Harris, Lana Del Rey and Dua Lipa, just to name a few. And she’s won a few awards along the way as well. In between, shooting music videos she’s also directed a few fashion films and commercials for brands such as L'Oreal, Special K, Vogue, and iD magazine. So a talented woman to say the least!

During our conversation, she talks openly about the importance of following your own internal voice. She recalls that when she first started out, she had a lot of people around her who were negative about her abilities – from her parents who would push for her to ‘settle down and get married’ to an ex-boyfriend who would belittle her abilities to make it as a film director.

So how did a young woman from Australia managed to create and direct some of the most iconic music videos of the last decade? We talk at length about all her different achievements and how she managed to make it in such a competitive industry. For her it was simple, she had to focus on the things she could control which was getting her head down, persevere and just work really hard. She also had another disadvantage, she was practically the only female music director at the time, something she said she had to ignore, with the result being some of the best music videos around.

I got to really uncover what the world of music video making is really like, all the different stakeholders and how it’s never as glamorous as it seems.
As usual, my guest was super honest, and I thank her for it! I hope you enjoy this insightful and entertaining conversation.