At this point it’s obviously ironic and frustrating for Ian music fans that MTV continues to honor music videos with an awards show even though it no longer airs videos. It gets worse when you consider that there are a slew of great music videos that are much, much more deserving of a timeslot than, well, any of the other crap MTV plays these days.

Things are a tad slow around journalism today, so I thought I’d post some of my favorite videos here. They’re creative and engaging, and some deserve to be seen as short films or works of art. This post features nos. 11-7; nos. 6-1 were posted a few minutes earlier.

I’ll credit the video’s director if I can find his or her name.

After putting the list together I realized I had a few artists and directors listed multiple times. I don’t think it stems from a lack of creativity in the field; instead, it’s a testimony to the continuing greatness of those cited.

11. “Cry Me a River” Musician: Justin Timberlake. Director: Francis Lawrence. I’ve been a Timberlake proponent for awhile now; he continues to produce slyly inventive pop music only to get unfairly slighted for his boy band days. But I doubt you would’ve seen anything this sleek, stylized, creative and risky (taking a shot at then pop princess and Timberlake ex Britney Spears) coming from N’Sync. (Also recommended: the clip of Timberlake lip syncing The Killers’ “All These Things I’ve Done” from “Southland Tales.”)

Justin Timberlake – Cry Me A River (Official Music Video) – The best bloopers are here

10. “Brass Monkey” Musician: The Beastie Boys. You don’t always need a fancy cinematographer to create a great video. For “Brass Monkey,” The Beastie Boys gave the cameras to fans and had them shoot footage of a Madison Square Garden show. The result is an excellent depiction of what it’s like to be a music fan.

9. “Fell in Love With a Girl” Musician: The White Stripes. Director: Michel Gondry. Gondry has a ridiculously creative and inventive mind, as proven by this video. Click here for more on how it was made.

8. “Weapon of Choice” Musician: Fatboy Slim. Director: Spike Jonze. Spike Jonze is arguably the most visionary director of my generation, and he makes two appearances on this list. His genius lies in the ability to make the ordinary appear extraordinary. In this case, it’s a traveling salesman, played by Christopher Walken, who dances and flies around a hotel.

While Jonze’ best known music videos are The Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage” and Fatboy Slim’s “Praise You,” his work on The Pharcyde’s “Drop” also is worth watching.

7. “Galvanize” Musician: The Chemical Brothers. An interesting story told in an interesting way.

And now for nos. 6-1…

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