LAWRENCE, Kansas – Despite correcting some errant judgment from the last couple of years, MTV’s recently-announced lineup for its upcoming Video Music Awards still leaves much to be desired. While the cable network has returned the VMAs to Thursday night instead of Sunday and back to it’s home in New York City, both of which are for the first time in two years, scheduling may have kept MTV from getting the director it deserves. With this year’s VMAs occurring within days of the Emmy Awards, the show’s last three directors – Beth McCarthy Miller, Louis J. Horvitz and Bruce Gowers – are all unavailable because of their nominations for Outstanding Directing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program. Horvitz is also directing the Emmy Awards telecast. MTV, therefore, had to hire UK director Hamish Hamilton for its longest-running award show. Hamilton, who has directed the MTV Europe Music Awards as well as countless music DVDs, has no doubt made a name for himself internationally, but his ability to cut a show on the fly is still debatable. His style of employing erratic camerawork and cutting often results in a jarring visual chaos that is, at the very least, unsettling. He was the director behind the Live 8 performances in London, of which I was very critical, and has directed the last few U2 concert DVDs. If his style remains unchanged, this year’s VMAs could be dizzying, but I will gladly eat my words if he proves me wrong.

Jack Black will host the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards airing live from New York’s Radio City Music Hall on Thursday, August 31st at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT. Salli Frattini and Dave Sirulnick are the Executive Producers. Ian Stewart and Summer Strauch are Producers. Hamish Hamilton is Producer/Director. Kathy Flynn is Event Producer.

Filed under: Music/Variety, Opinion/Editorial