Director: Benjael Halfmaderholz
Director: Benjael
Halfmaderholz
Artist: Temples
Video: Mesmerise
Production Company: www.hylas-film.com
Production Company: www.hylas-film.com
How were you
approached for the job?
Jeff Barrett from
Heavenly Recordings contacted us via email. He had seen some of our work
online.
What inspired you
on your idea for the video?
First of all the
band´s sound. Apart from that, I always like connecting with the boys from
Hylas. We share experiences and things that influence us. Such as film, art and
travelling. Alot of this shared energy goes into our work.
Tell us about the
production process?
It was 3 weeks of
production, including weekends. A lot of the sets were created while we were
shooting.
What were the limitations you faced with the production?
Time was the big
pressure point. We originally were going to have the hero of the video, the ‘floating
pyramid’ animated as a model in stop motion. But the time constrains on us lead
to it being 3D animated.
What was the
turnaround?
One week of
conceptual work, 18 days of Shooting and 4 days of post-production. The
processes were overlapping, which is not unusual with stop motion animation.
Who were your key
collaborators?
I worked with my
home crew from Hylas Film. A small team of five, that united in Berlin. The
members are: Michael Amstad, Philipp Halfmann, Volker Langholz, Dominik
Mader and Benajmin Lützow.
Have you worked
with any of them before?
Oh yes, a lot.
How did you all
meet?
At the time I was
working on a Norwegian ship. We had a day off in Hamburg, when I met this
circle of five in a drinking hole close to Reeperbahn. That night became a
foray of lucid Inspiration. Naturally it didn't take long for us to meet again
and start Hylas.
Do the members
all have specific skills?
I consider them
alchemists. They know how to transform things depending on their needs. In stop
motion this quality comes in as a major advantage.
What did you
shoot on? What lenses did you use?
Canon 550d with
the standard zoom lense and a couple of old analogue photo lenses.
Where did the
production take place?
It´s an old
Berlin coal cellar, that is used as the workshop and studio for all the stop
motion projects of Hylas, including the mystery series ‘Circus’.
There was a 'Holy
Mountain' reference in the video, are there any other influences from any other
films in the video?
Not sure I would
call it a reference. We love the film´s look and figured it catches the vibe of
the song. So we wanted to recreate a similar feel.
The same goes for
all the other elements. Working in a team this intense means that
there are alot of antennas absorbing everything from
movies, comics, videogames, but also personal experiences and dreams.
How involved were
the band and label?
The band wanted
to be puppets in the video originally. So we pitched the idea of the giant
heads and they liked it. Once we came up with the treatment, they trusted us in
realising it our way and we were pretty free to go into production.
If you had a
chance to approach it again, what would you do differently?
Under these
circumstances I couldn´t make too much differently. But given more time, I
would have loved to reshoot a couple of shots. But I know that this is a
sickness of the creator´s eye.
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