Pick of the Week 32

Pick of the Week 32

SEPALCURE // PENCIL PIMP MUSIC VIDEO

From the album “Sepalcure” on Hotflush Recordings. Music video directed by Thor Brenne.

Sepalcure the duo formed by Machinedrum and Braille, showed an amazing live set last week in London. We have been caught with the music video for Pencil Pimp, one of the most interesting songs of the just launched debut album: Sepalcure.

The video has been directed by Norwegian filmmaker Thor Brenne and creates an immersive experience with a stunning style. We caught Thor and asked him some questions about the video.

What was the idea behind the video? 
Just before I started working on the video I suffered a serious concussion. Out of that came the idea of various trails of thought and feelings about how it would be to have to stop doing what you love. It was a clear picture throughout the process, considering the concussion lasting over three months, throughout preparation, shooting and post-production. The video consists of several elements, each of which could easily be a video on their own. It all ended up almost as a “best of” of unpleasantness. The narrative became less important, feelings and conditions became the focal point.

Photo by Christian Albriktsen

How was your work with the artistic director, Sougwen?

Working with Sougwen was a great experience. She was very generous in terms of giving me freedom to work on the treatment. She followed the whole project very closely and pitched in lots of creative input along the way.
There are a lot of symbolic references such as fire, masks,.. can you tell us about this?
I believe in the viewer creating their own thoughts of what they’re experiencing. Making their own conclusions.Maybe the masks and the watch is telling us that time is standing still. That something dramatic is about to happen. The fact that the male character is walking barefoot could also be a symbol of his destiny.
Where was the video filmed?
The video was filmed in the suburbs of Oslo, Norway. I had to find a location that had woods, a lake and a tennis court within short distance of each other. With two days to shoot and with a tight schedule and limited budget we needed to be efficient with as little transportation as possible between locations.
How do you feel that music videos could evolve thanks to digital technologies (eg. mobile apps)

From what I see the music video format has come a long way since MTVE Networks almost stopped showing videos. The internet and new media has forced the format in new and interesting directions. Being able to interact with music videos is something that we probably will be seeing more of in the future. Chris Milks interactive video for Arcade Fire is a great example of that. VEVO is another successful project for the commercial market with people being able to view whatever video they want and when they want to. Unlike on TV where the broadcast executives choose them for you.

Now enjoy the video and don’t forget the full screen mode.

CREDITS
Director: Thor Erling Brenne
Producer: Tim & Joe
DOP: Martin Edelsteen
Production Design: Ulrika Westergren
Offline: Erik Aster
Online: Mathias Theisen/Hocus Focus
Art Director: Sougwen Chung
VFX: Sougwen Chung & Cato Lauvli
Styling: Brynjar Bredesen

Executive producer: Tamsin Glasson

With: Emir Mulaosmanovic, Guro Bøe Linnet & Kari Skotnes Vikjord

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