Music

Arcade Fire's "Afterlife" wins Prism Prize

by Mark Teo

In its two-year existence, the jury of the Prism Prize—the annual award given to Canada’s best video—has found plenty to like with director Emily Kai Bock’s work. Last year, her video for Grimes’s “Oblivion” made it to the prize’s shortlist, though 2013’s award was given to Rich Aucoin’s “Brian Wilson is A.L.I.V.E.” This year, she was back with two videos—Magical Cloudz’s “Childhood’s End” and Arcade Fire’s “Afterlife.”

And when the dust settled at the Prism Prize’s awards ceremony last night, Bock came away with a $5,000 prize for her work on “Afterlife,” from the Montreal band’s much-ballyhooed 2013 album, Reflektor.

Check the award-winning video below.

“Emily made some truly remarkable videos last year,” Prism Prize founder and director Louis Calabro said in a statement. “It says something that two of Emily’s pieces were on the top 10 shortlist. Ultimately, I think our jurors chose ‘Afterlife’ because it’s thoughtful and well-paced, and because—frankly—it looks beautiful.”

Not that it didn’t have any competition: the Lee Skinner-directed “Kathy Lee,” Jessy Lanza’s ode to Hamilton, made the shortlist. So, too, did Keys n Krates’ Mennonite dance party for “Dee Dee Dum,” directed by Amos LeBlanc. Heck, even heavy hitters like Drake’s “Started From the Bottom” and a second Arcade Fire video for “Reflektor” earned nominations.

But the prize’s jury—made up of 100 members of the Canadian film and music industry—deemed Bock’s video for “Afterlife” the year’s best.

Of course, hers wasn’t the only achievement recognized—Kheavan Lewandowski walked away with the audience’s choice award for directing the Belle Game’s “River,” too. Watch that video below.

Check the Prism Prize’s 10 shortlisted videos here.