Presenting a video I shot, produced and directed for independent UK rock pop singer songwriter Carol Hodge and her proper ace track Moan Of A Thousand Years
Please watch below in all its tasty 4K glory!
I’m really pleased with how the edit turned out with this video.
We shot everything in the final video in ONE day. And I think I edited and delivered it in approx 2 days.
A remarkably quick turnaround project indeed!
The visual transition moments in the video worked real nice too. They add a magical flow to the proceedings. Luckily the band were fantastic to shoot with. Not only being lovely humans but also they all looked comfortable and really cool on camera.
The track is taken from her freshly released album ’The Crippling Space Between’.
It’s a real big sounding album, with huge hooky melodies and honest lyrics that have a huge emotional punch.
Really great stuff.
If you’re interested you can read a little about the making of the video right here
I talked about the filming process (what camera/rig and lighting) as well as some of the ideas and style I wanted to go for etc.
It would be great to get some feedback on here about the final video from those who showed interest in the original BTS post 😀
@victorbz @steevc @edprivat @vincentnijman @rubido @tdctunes
Cheers all 🍻
First, let's talk about the song. I enjoyed the "No Doubt" on steroids style, maybe I am just saying that because it's a lead female singer, but she got a powerful voice, but even the power chords, the songs, really cool. I particularly thought the bass player was photogenic, and every shots he was in, he really popped out.
Good transitions with the 180 on the head, I would have personally increased the contrast to the max, to take advantage of those lights, but I am sure this is a choice of the DOP, or the artist, so you can't do much and at the same time, I've never directed a music video, so I am talking out of my ass.
One super important question, are all the props decided on script, or on the day?
e.g: Solving the rubixcube, the cutting on the board.
Good job mate, keep them coming please!
Love this comment mate 😀
The song is great isn’t it? It reminded me of a condensed musical with all its twists and turns, and unusual sections. I wanted to reflect that. She definitely does have a power voice.
Glad you like the 180 🤘🏻
Lighting and colour grade was all my choice. All subjective if it was to your taste or not!
Glad you spotted the props 👀 - they were all prepared in advance of the shoot.
The Rubics Cube was my suggestion, as well as the frame - she suggested the chopping board and the ‘hand’.
The flowers on the floor were set down on the day unexpectedly as they looked quite cool as it helps the perspective when the camera moves towards her.
Lots going on and it’s up there with one of my favourite shoots! Ace times. Thanks for the comment man!
Wow good job on doing everything yourself! Well I am eating my own words in this case hahaha 😁 the contrast looks great 😉. I am a sucker for filters and shit, I always overdo it so don't listen to me, and plus I ain't directed shit, you did all the heavy lifting.
Another question for you, I don't have the best PC and I see that you Edited in 4k (At least 2k), I use shotcut as an editor, and it tends to stutter during the previews. Do you also work "blindly", see the result when exported, or you can see most mistakes and what needs to be fixed on preview?
I am sure you using Finale? I think you already told me.
Another Another question! How many takes per shot?
Amazing job bro, you are in your own lane :)
No worries man, we like what we like 👌🏻
I edit in Adobe Premiere. I don’t ever work blindly, I like to know exactly what’s going on.
My machine handles 4K playback I just fine, except when applied with colour effects etc or if it’s a weird codec.
On premiere you can set ‘playback quality’ via the preview monitor to be full, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8 or 1/16. Which is great because it plays back the 4K size just at a lower fidelity. That helps playback massively and it stops the choppiness you might usually expect from 4K.
Takes - I shot approx 3 takes each for the intro/verse movements where she is sat alone. For the band performance I shot 2 takes each atleast for their parts. Occasionally re-shoot a specific drum fill or pause, if they had trouble hearing and getting on time first time around.
A bit of trial and error but we solve problems quickly on shoots like this
I still think it looks very cool nonetheless!
OK I see, I have an option on SHotcut to convert the 4k into edit friendly, but it's not really doing much of a difference.
I have no idea why I wrote Finale, I meant Premiere of course. I use to play around with it, I might take it once I upgrade machine, I have a quad core i7 with a decent graphic card, but it's been a while that I wanted to change to something more silent, to improve sound quality when recording with mic.
That's practical!
Thanks for having taken the time to answer all my question mate, I'll be there for the next post!
Hey! Nice work!
At first I thought it was pretty odd with the singer sitting in her dungarees and over enunciating every word - then the transition to the full band happened and it was really cool. That whole thing totally grabbed my attention - so that worked very nicely indeed!
Other than that - effects and editing all top notch - other than doing things that would require a bigger budget for more locations and maybe having a crowd in there this is an excellent video. Well done and thanks for posting about it!
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Thanks for the awesome comment! Pleased you had a proper watch. Yeah we got a lot done in a day. It was a very small budget - basically just enough for my time and gear to shoot and edit it. They really pulled together to help make it work with props and location.
I’m chuffed the transition had a real impact! 👊🏻
Yeah - the transition totally worked! And perfect timing into the track!
Great video for a small budget (I imagine that's a pretty common theme for musicians!)
wow, i love the lighting you build on the scene and the beautiful movement idea of her transformation.
but the best part of this video is starting at 2:10, with all the fast motions and video distortions.
beautiful work my friend
The distorted section was all in-camera using the lens-whacking effect. I love doing it. It transforms the image in unexpected ways.
I read now your explanations in the comments - not easy work but a wonderful result
I enjoyed this a lot, the angles you shot and the lighting made it captivating, as well as the scene switching effect. The song was really awesome too, this woman is a talented singer, as well as the musicians. Great job all of you! :)
Wow thanks for the awesome comment! Really pleased it translated, so good to see if being watched appreciated .
Great song isn’t it? It reminded me of a musical, with all the peaks and dips in styles throughout. That informed a lot of the decisions with the set and lighting etc
Cheers for watching 😀
so the go around transition was planned and you did get nice timing on it (or at least it was not noticeable and covered with fast cut)
in the "chaotic" fast pace part, how much was it in camera and how much post production?
looks great, especially considering the timeframe it was done.
Thanks man! Yeah the transition was fully planned before the shoot. Timing was critical. As I commended on @rubidos other reply, the timing was hard to nail as there wasn’t much time between lines in the song, so it needed to going around her head just after the line and reappearing with enough time to reveal the next time. Speed ramping helped in most cases. Only one didn’t line up so well, which was was annoying as it bumps a little bit because I didn’t pan around quick enough.
Also added a horizontal motion blur to add to the effect of it ‘whooshing’ around.
The chaotic end sections were entirely in-camera, doing the lens-whack technique. I wasn’t sure how it would work on the GH5. Turns out pretty well.
Different cameras react differently to how the image looks when the lens is detached. C100mkii is the best for lens whacking in my experience! Lovely look to it.
there was one transition where she gave you the look as you were rotating, looks cute even if probably was not planed :D
i think you were mentioning lens-whacking before. that is something that i would probably never think about (and i did use detached lens for macro shots). looks interesting.
i would guess you need a manual (or older) lens for that because electronic aperture (iris).
so back to my helios :)
Ah yes, that ‘look’ was indeed planned!
Well, atleast during the shoot after about 4 takes I said ‘this time, as I come around look at the camera and sing the line’ - she did and it was my favourite one :)
Yeah man, give it a go. Some cameras switch off automatically once the lens is detached though. Proper manual lenses might be awesome. Would love to try some soviet ones!
i always recommend Helios 44 because it is cheap (30 eur in a really good shape) but really good for that money. also i have jupiter 135mm, nice lens when you don't have anything else :) not sure how it would hold quality this new cameras.
i know 80d works with lens off, just gives a warning. i did not try it on R6, kinda did not have the balls for it :D
Nice work man the finished product is great, especially for a one day shoot. The lighting and mixing is wicked.
Not a bad tune either might have to check out some more of their stuff.
As for the transitions... 11/10
Thanks @rubido, for the kind words!
I can handle the 11/10 score 😂
Love it.
Transition was tricky… getting the timing right on set.
Timing the run-up towards her so it ends behind her head on the right line, and reveals on the other side at the correct moment to spin round and catch her saying the line. I had a fudge a few bits with a speed ramp but over all they tended to fit! Result!
Great song and a really cool video. It really captures the energy and the transitions get your attention. I bet your heard that song so many times in a day. Just wondering if the drums can get a bit much as I guess other instruments are not plugged in. I hope she's really happy with it.
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Thanks man! Yeah they were really pleased with it. The edit was a super quick turn around as well, which helps.
Indeed I’ve heard the song about 40-50 times. I still like I though.
Glad it captures the energy!
Thanks for watching and the feedback 🤘🏻
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