Congratulations
A weekend to prepare.
Eight hours to shoot.
One clear visual idea.
Moving portraits. Champagne. Confetti.
A studio film built around the feeling of the song.
01 / The brief
Friday’s call.
Monday’s shoot.
The brief came in on Friday. We were shooting Monday. The budget was limited, and we had eight hours in the studio at Camera Control in Santa Monica.
There wasn’t time to overcomplicate it. The idea was moving portraits: simple lighting, gradient backgrounds, champagne, confetti and performance. One visual language we could carry through the whole day.
02 / The approach
Keep the setup simple.
Make the movement count.
We paired a Phantom Flex 4K with a Bolt robotic arm. The slow motion and camera movement gave those portraits their energy, while the lighting and backgrounds stayed simple.
Chris Velona co-produced with me. I directed, shot and co-produced, with friends and collaborators helping us make the day happen.
03 / One chance
One free TV.
One take.
On Sunday night, I picked up a free TV from Craigslist. We only had one, so when it came time to smash it, we had one chance to get the shot.
That was the spirit of the shoot: make clear choices, use what we had, and be ready when the moment came.
04 / The edit
The studio, and the story
behind the song.
I edited the film in my apartment, intercutting the studio performance with documentary footage I’d filmed at Electric Feel during the actual creation of the song.
Those moments brought the video back to where it started: Post making music with the people around him, including Louis Bell, his longtime producer, engineer and writer.
05 / The finished film
Congratulations.
YouTube loads when you press play. If playback is unavailable here, watch on YouTube.
Watch on YouTube ↗06 / Behind the scenes
Inside the shoot.
A look behind the camera, from my Instagram archive.
On set / Congratulations
Instagram · @definate · 25 January 2023
BTS caption credits @juliusdamenz_dp and @darrenmillerdp.
Roles & collaborators
- James DeFina
- Director · Cinematographer · Co-producer · Editor
- Chris Velona
- Co-producer
- Studio
- Camera Control, Santa Monica
- Production
- Made with friends and collaborators
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