The making of "Wanderland"

Hermanos Ingleso are Belgium brothers, and an electronic music duo.  I recently stumbled upon this deadly tune "Wanderland", but I was even more impressed with the video, which was recently awarded "Best Belgian Music Video 2010" at the International Film Festival Leuven. 

In fact, I liked it so much that I dropped the directors, Kristof Luyckx & Michèle Vanparys, a line and asked them a few questions!

God bless Vimeo - it makes it so easy to connect with film makers whose work you like :D (Interview below the video)

- What was your creative inspiration for the video?

Kristof:  The album artwork of Hermanos Inglesos contained birds (from encyclopedia books), so I took this as a starting point.

The title 'Wanderland' and lyrics like 'take me to your dreams' inspired me to find an idea so we could show lots of "dream sequences". Or in this case a psychedelic trip. I had the idea of 'birds doing drugs', and then letting them hallucinate and have a bad trip and then an overdose. But because the song is rather positive and sweet, we decided to soften the idea and make it more suggestive. Hence the "magic berry".

Michèle:  Kristof was going mad with the delirious drugged bird :)

I knew Hermanos  would find this maybe a bit too much, so we softened it down.

And afterwards I think this was a better thing for the storyline.. 

How did you go about planning and making it?

Kristof:  Hermanos Inglesos approached Michèle. We had about 1,5 month to make the video. We had creative freedom, the only thing they asked was to include the two musicians. But we spoke with Hermanos Inglesos about the idea/style before executing the storyboard. And after getting the storyboard/animatic approved, we continued designing and animating.

It was very low-budget (like most music videos), but we did this for our portfolio and self-promotion (and do enough commercial work to compensate).

Michèle:  Hermanos contacted me, because they had seen a little test movie on my blog and they liked the `girly sweetness` in it ..  but they had no idea what they wanted to make... "something with birds" ..!

They had almost no budget either, so we had to come up with a style that was easy and quick, also because of the short deadline..

So I called kristof, who i`d knew as a great illustrator and graphic designer/motion graphics animator ..

and he was immediately enthusiastic, even do we didn`t really knew each other and i don`t think he really knew my work.

Because I had no time to work on it and we had the deadline ahead he started with the main idea and made the main style of the movie..

- What motivated you to work together, and what do you think the ingredients for a valuable partnership are?

Kristof:  Michèle asked me if I had time and wanted to direct the video. We knew each other, but haven't worked together before. But it went very well, we both concluded afterwards.

Michèle:  I liked his graphic style, very minimal.  And i had never directed a movie by myself (exept my graduation project) 

so, with the deadline and the opportunity that we could make  whatever we liked, 

I thought getting someone like Kristof on this project would make it .. better :)

And  once we went to a guitar movie together, so i knew, he had my kind of taste in music :) very important if you work together!

Michèle and Kristof are both based in Ghent, Belgium.  Anticipating great things from both of them in the future!  Check out more of their work here:

http://www.kristofluyckx.be

http://www.michelevanparys.com/

CREDITS:  Music video for Hermanos Inglesos feat. MeMe (Wanderland).

Directed by Kristof Luyckx & Michèle Vanparys.

Design: Kristof Luyckx & Michèle Vanparys

Art Direction: Kristof Luyckx

Editing: Stijn Deconinck & Kristof Luyckx

Animation: Michèle Vanparys, Michélé De Feudis, Dries Bastiaensen & Kristof Luyckx.

Smile for London!

In January 2011, the London Underground will be using their advertising screens for a more worthy cause.  On weekday mornings, for two weeks, there'll be creative intermissions of film, art and animation.  The hope is that exhibiting "the best of London’s emerging and established artistic talent" in the dreaded month of January will lift Londoner's spirits when they need it most.

No cynical comments from me about this - having something beautiful to look at whilst avoiding eye contact with fellow tubers is fine by me :)

The great thing is that the creative work will all have been submitted by artists, filmmakers, and animators through Vimeo - meaning that anyone who wants has the opportunity to exhibit.  (Provided you submit before the deadline... on Wednesday!)  Some of the submissions (which must be 20 seconds, and silent) look pretty nice.


Photograph of Jesus (Excerpt) from Short & Sweet on Vimeo.



Technicolor Leak from Tripp/Jenna Watt on Vimeo.


so what? (20 sec) from bestbefore on Vimeo.

To check out more (or to submit something), see their vimeo page or website.

Random Studios: Possibly the coolest web design ever.

After mistyping a web address, imagine my surprise when I ended up on possibly the coolest landing page I have ever seen. (isn't the animation on the umbrella just beautiful?)

After a little bit of navigation, I proceeded to be blown away by the company's previous projects: web design with an interactivity that crosses into video-game territory.

Check out:

This interactive music video for Placebo's "The Never Ending Why"
This interactive online Exhibition at Tate Modern

I discovered that RANDOM STUDIO (based in Amsterdam) create interactive productions - both online and offline.  So not only do they do cool websites, they also build interactive installations like this one for Diesel. (Okay, it's advertising, but a person's gotta eat!)  Daan at Random Studio said "I'm inspired by intelligent, subtle design and interaction. I do not like most advertising because it always tries to stuff messages down people's throat. I like sites and applications that surprise people and put a smile on their face. Give and immerse - don't force anything on people."

So is this where web design is going?

The first decade in the 2000's was a time when people in creative spheres felt they had to be jack-of-all-trades.  Many people created websites for themselves.  Daan believes that now web design "will get better and more specialized. The overall quality is already improving."  With a greater emphasis on interactive video and applications, "The web will not only be a website but a tool that will be incorporated into daily life, all over the house. Designers need to think about different ways of interacting."

Thanks Daan for answering my questions.  Looking forward to seeing more of your work!

http://www.random.nu/

Cover Junkie

For anyone who loves magazines more for their beautiful design than their content!

Cover Junkie

The Little Prince

My God Daughter's christening is tomorrow, and my mother instructed me to buy her something that "she will have forever".  Well, whatever I got for my Christening (a silver spoon?  a rattle?) is long gone.  So what kind of gift will you really have forever?  Answer:  A book.

This led me to a book shop where I bought a hard-backed copy of "The Little Prince", and promptly started spazzing-out with the shop assistant about what an incredibly, amazing work of literature it is.

I like it just a little bit!

It's ostensibly a children's book, and for a child it's a great read.  But when I picked it up again as a teenager, I realised what a rare gem it is.


It tells the story of a man who, stranded in the desert, meets a strange little boy.  This little Prince has left his home planet to explore the universe.  Through his adventures, and his innocence, the book makes touching observations about life and human nature.

For me, the most potent moments in the book are the relationship he develops with the little fox that begs to be tamed ("You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed"), and his departure from the planet, which leaves the narrator and reader in a state of ambiguity about life and the after-life.

Originally written in French by the writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery (who did many of the illustrations), it's less than 100 pages long, and it's just beautiful.  Read it here. 


A graphic novel has just been brought out.  For me it's sacrilegious, but out of interest... 


And if you're lazy, you can always watch the cartoon ;)

Alex Box

"Fashion statement" is one of those phrases used so often that it's meaning is forgotten.  "Statement" indicates there is something to say.

Branded as a pretentious and vaccuous industry, many fashion statements do seem to be purely aesthetic. But sometimes, there is a sense that it's saying something.  That's what I thought when I first came across the work of makeup artist Alex Box.

According to her blurb: "Alex Box gives full access to images which radically unsettle and deconstruct conventional images of beauty in fashion."  My background is film, not fashion, yet from my lay man perspective, I do feel the thick layering of the makeup hints at the exploitative aspect of the fashion industry.

Irrespectively, the result is beautiful.  When Box paints, the face becomes a canvas, the image is a work of art.  Originally an installation artist, she's brought the three dimensional quality of video to these paintings on the face.

One year ago today, the first exhibition of her work (captured by the infamous fashion photographer Rankin, and later published as a book of photography), was launched.  I thought this would be an apt day to share it with you.  Enjoy!

Box even has a place of pride on my bedroom wall :)


 

Late Bloomers

Prodigies are sexy.

Full of potential and talent, they rock the world for a few years, make a dramatic exit, and leave a legacy.

After being slightly sickened by my own post yesterday (where I was talking about the success of the xx, who are all 20 years old), I decided to look to the old-timers to see if there was hope for me (I'm 28).

Typing "late bloomers" into Google yielded some reassuring results:

• Verdi composed Ave Maria at age 85.
• Harlan Sanders started Kentucky Fried Chicken at 65.
• Ronald Reagan didn't get into politics until he was 55.
• Laura Ingalls Wilder (author of Little House on the Prairie) published her first book in her 60s.
• Rodney Dangerfield didn't start doing comedy until he was 45.
• Cezanne's most highly prized paintings were done in his 60s.
• Alfred Hitchcock's best films, including Vertigo and Psycho, were done in his late 50s and early 60s.
• And best of all - Leonard Cohen did not begin his music career until he was 32!

Time to embrace the Zimmer frame!

The XX - sold out?

If The Beatles were bigger than Jesus, are the xx about to rival Coca Cola?

London band, the xx, are no stranger to success. Their sound has that special quality that allows everyone to connect with it: it's fresh, unique, and yet familiar. Critics love it, and commercially it's been used for the 2010 Winter Olympics, and TV shows like "Grey's Anatomy", and "Beverly Hills 90210".

But global brand Apple have just released a new iPhone / iPod Touch application: beautifully-shot films of the band the xx, performing.

Just think about how often you idly play with your phone. Now imagine how many people have iPhones. In this age of digital interactivity, an iPhone app brings a level of infamy we can't even anticipate. the xx are going to the mass consumer audience.

Crossing a fame barrier is a sensitive moment in any artist's career. As time passes, and the growing fan base obsess over their subtle and lyrical sound, critics will wait with baited breath for "the (disappointing? mind-blowing?) second album". Like lambs to the slaughter, pressure like this can kill creativity.

I'm not going to make any stupid puns about these guys having the X factor (although I think I just did..?), but I feel these guys have the talent to produce a second album that parallels their incredible debut. However - a lot of success comes down to being supported creatively in difficult moments. I hope they have a good manager.

Anyway, here's my favourite part: sharing their music :) One of the great things about this band is that they don't have "a song". Each of these tracks stands alone. Enjoy.

"Crystalised" was used during the 3rd season of the TV show 'Gossip Girl'.



"VCR" was featured in an episode of 'Lie to Me'.



"Islands" was used in 'Grey's Anatomy'.

(This video was directed by Saam Farahmand. He later created "an audio-visual sculpture" of their album, which was the inspiration for the iPhone app.)



"Intro" was extensively used on television: in an AT&T commercial; during the series Cold Case; often during NBC's coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, for the BBC News Newsnight coverage of the 2010 general election; and also in Law & Order on the Dutch television network Net 5. (thanks Wiki)



"Heart Skipped a Beat" was featured in a 2009 episode of '90210'.



the xx are a trio from London, England, United Kingdom, formed in 2005. They studyied at Elliott School: a institution which also gave birth to Hot Chip, Burial and Four Tet. They have all just turned twenty.

"Prisms of Light" Production diary

In the throes of editing my own documentary, I recently took a retrospective look at one phase of the trip, and what I experienced. Hope you enjoy!

"Prisms of Light"

Creativity and the Education system

I think this amazing, impassioned TED talk will resonate deeply with anyone who feels the education system passed them by.

Sir Ken Robinson challenges the way we're being educated. He makes the point that there are multiple types of intelligence, but that only a few of these are nurtured by the school system. Standard education is based on outdated knowledge, and Robinson champions a radical rethink of our schooling systems, so that each individual's potential can be realised.





(If you haven't yet heard of TED - here's the blurb: "The annual TED conferences, in Long Beach/Palm Springs and Oxford, bring together the world's most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes).")

Follow your dreams

I remember my school journals from when I was a teenager. Between the pages reserved for 40 weeks of homework there were little snippets of wisdom. Every week was framed by a quote from someone like Goethe or Ralph Waldo Emerson, and at intervals a couple of pages were devoted to inspiring poems.

I still remember one of these poems:

"Follow your dreams wherever they lead,
don`t be distracted by less worthy needs...
Shelter them, nourish them, help them grow,
Let your heart hold them down deep where dreams go."

The irony of printing a poem like that in a school journal didn't register that with me as a teenager. Back then I didn't see the education system the way I see it now: a funnel that promotes one dream, and one mode of success.

When we were younger we all had dreams and visions of where our lives would go. We indulged in them, we fantasised, but we were not encouraged to take them seriously. (In fact, I distinctly remember scribbling out the word "dream" in a friend's journal, and replacing it with "dick". Evidently I haven't matured much since then, cos' that still makes me laugh ;) )

We grow older quickly. We become adults with paths and responsibilities, but our unfulfilled dreams don't die. We feel them at the back of our minds, nagging us. We plough ahead and don't entertain these ideas of what our lives might have been. But every now and again, in moments of stillness, they surface, and drive us mad.

I am so honoured to say that, difficult as it is, I'm following my passion. But sometimes I wonder how it happened. I wasn't an "artist" growing up, so it never even occurred to me that I might be creative (even though I wrote poems, stories, songs, played instruments and sang). No one in my family is in a creative field, and I wasn't encouraged to pursue one. I always knew I wanted to create stories that touched people, but what gave me the impetus to pursue this shadowy path?

I think it's because I never stopped dreaming.


"Follow your dreams pursue them with haste;
Life is too precious too fleeting to waste...
Be faithful, be loyal, then all your life through,
the dreams that you follow will keep coming true..."
~ Larry S. Chengges


Do it.

Edit Sweet - I stand corrected!

I had a mini-rant the other day about how the judges of the Oscars tend to overlook the skills of great editors, and just lump "Best Editing" in with "Best Picture". However, an editor friend of mine had a different perspective on it. He basically said that the reason "Best Editing" and "Best Picture" go hand-in-hand is BECAUSE the edit is so crucial to the overall quality of the film. This I totally agree with. He explains things really well here, so I'm giving him a little guest slot today ;) Thanks Catalin!

I actually don't fully agree with this. For me, it makes sense that the editing and the picture wins. I believe that (in fiction) pictures get their full potential through juxtaposition, ie what comes before, what come after, what is being referenced in the film later. This is very much about editing, so editing defines the nature of the pictures and vice versa. It is like a symbiosis. I am not talking about merely technical achievements (nowadays with the right kit and money anyone can produce stunning shots). I mean how pictures speak to the audience, how they tell a story intellectually (what we see) and emotionally (what we feel). And this, is determined by the way they are put together. Simple example: the cross-cutting scene in "Seven" when Pitt and Freeman investigate the case in different locations (library/home): the camera is more than just beautiful, it describes the character to us in a very empathetic way, plus creates a personal POV that the audience feels (we have learnt far earlier that the two characters a diametrically opposed). But these aspects of the cinematography come to light by being edited together. Through the excellent cross-cutting, those low/high angles, those blue/orange tones and those nice tracking shots (vs still shots) get a new level of meaning. So, when storyboarding the director thinks in terms of cinematography and editing in tandem, and if one turns out to deserve an Oscar, chances are the other skill will, too.

It is a whole different issue with documentaries, especially on-the-fly docos. Those might have crap cinematography, but the editing might be brilliant. I think they should actually introduce an Oscar category "Documentary editing", so that these poor people get some recognition. That's our fate: Edit brilliantly, and no one talks about you. Make one mistake, and every one jumps on you. Anyway, I like working in the background. Maybe that's my "feminine" side :-)

Catalin is an editor / film maker / lecturer, and you can see his work at http://www.catalinbrylla.com

Wise words from the founder of Apple

I first read Steve Jobs' words of wisdom five years ago, and they had a significant impact on me. I hope you find them as inspiring as I do.

Click here to watch:
The man behind the apple.