I've been experimenting the last several months with a more minimal process of filmmaking, partly out of necessity, and enjoying it: Less people, less camera equipment, and less complication. All the gear and tools I need to create, I can carry in one backpack with my own two feet- that is a liberating feeling! It allows me to shoot and move fast while adapting and improvising on the way. It can make filming much more fun. Although I do enjoy shooting projects with large crews of close friends and colleagues with fancy film equipment, this is a nice change for now. I don't have to create a production schedule around many actors, crew members, etc, which often causes delays, stress, etc... When I want to make something, I just do it. One-man crew style if I have to. Boom!
Above is the new music video I directed for IAMDYNAMITE "Where Will We Go." If you haven't seen them, you need to. They're on tour right now. They are incredible performers and awesome to see live.
I shot this video with the tiny GoPro Hero2 HD camera along with GoPro's headband mount. We shot guerrilla style moving all around the beautiful city of Ann Arbor without permits for two days. We were able to move fast and almost unnoticed as it was only a two-man band, myself, one assistant and a small camera. We could walk down the street and film almost unnoticed. Most people may have thought I was just being obnoxious walking down the street with a loud boom box. Moments after passing, they would realize and say something like, "Oh my god! They're making a video!"
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| Adjusting the camera mount on Chris Martin. |
It took some practice with the band (Chris and Chris) to get used to the camera setup on their head. For example, it was necessary to really exaggerate the facial expressions of the performance, mainly the lips, to make it look good or natural for the camera with its wide fisheye lens, even though it felt somewhat unnatural. After a while, the headband mount became uncomfortable so we improvised more padding with a gel foot insole we bought from a convenience store. After a rehearsal shoot the night before and a few hours on set, the Chris' had it down and the performances were able to shine.
Aside from concentrating on performing and moving while staring into a camera that is six inches from your face, which is difficult to do when you're walking through the woods over rocks and tree roots, the Chris' would also have to roll and stop the camera since I would often be hiding off screen with the boombox for playback. When we filmed this, GoPro had not yet released their WiFi BacPac accessory so there was no way for me to monitor the camera while filming. I would watch the performance from a hidden distance and review playback on the small LCD screen later. Without a monitor, we had several 'lost takes' in the beginning: "Yes! That looked great guys! ...Fuck! We weren't recording... let's do it again..."
I give a lot of credit to Chris and Chris. They each did about three full takes at each of the several locations. It was a lot of work and they kept the energy every time. By the end, everyone was pretty exhausted, the band rightfully so.
For me, it was more exhausting editing the video. If you think you are dizzy from watching it once, imagine watching it for eight hours a day for a couple of weeks. I hope you enjoy it! Otherwise, I just killed a lot of brain cells for nothing...
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