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Courage Under Lighting

Recently I had the opportunity to direct a music video for a local Chicago band called Flatfoot 56. On this particular project, the narrative would be completely shot on a sound stage and the performance piece of the band would be shot at one other location. Lighting the performance location wound up taking roughly eight hours to rig, utilizing around 22 heads and drawing about 23,000 watts. So where did we end up and how did we get there? Come and take a ride along with us; our first stop is in Gary Indiana. Read on…

The Project

I don’t direct a whole lot, I consider myself primarily a DP. And when I do direct I still find myself approaching things from the standpoint of a DP. So I’ve found that it helps me to collaborate with a highly-qualified DP; it helps to minimize my micro-managing that department, at least to some degree. On this particular project I worked with long-time friend and fellow DP Chris Gearhart. Chris and I have one of those rare working partnerships where we have developed a shorthand and have similar sense of style and approach that seems to make projects flow smoothly.

Just a little background on the project; the song for this video is all about the working men and women in the 1940s during WWII. It’s about their courage and sacrifice to pay the price for the benefit of the next generation. While working on the treatment, I knew I wanted to bridge the gap between the 1940s era and 2010 where the band was playing. I decided to do that visually using the location they were playing in. I wanted a location that would have existed in the 40s and had been abandoned much like the men and women of that era that we were speaking about. The environment would stand in as visual bridge tying the band in 2010 back the era they were singing about. I wanted a location that existed in that time period and had been forgotten, like the heroes in the song. To do that, the location selection would be very important to this project. Below is the treatment for the project:

TREATMENT

“Courage” by Flatfoot 56

Director: Kendal Miller

Theme:

Courage through everyday sacrifice. A Celebration of American work ethic.

Visual Styling:

Vintage, mid 1940’s. Band performance will be in a place of urban decay, wardrobe and styling is modern. Ship and Shipyard will be CG pieces.

Tone:

The overall emotion should feel uplifting and encouraging, summoning the strength of the viewer, raising their own courage to tackle the challenges in their own life.

SONG BREAKDOWN

Intro (25sec)

A steam whistle cuts through the still morning air. It is a warm morning and the sun is barely up yet on the Chicago docks. A line of workers stand at the gates, lunch boxes in hand, hardly awake. Slowly the gates open and the men shuffle in, we crane up to reveal a Chicago shipyard with 2-3 vessels on land in varying degrees of completion.

Verse 1

(00:25-00:41)

Born to a fighter on the deep south-side

A sweaty blue collar, but you didn’t mind

The cost of a family meant your blood and tears

Fourteen hours in a world of gears

It is the locker room, men drop off their lunch boxes and grab their gear, welding goggles, and assorted tools.

(00:41-00:58)

Your daughter, your son, the joy of your life

They’re all that remain of your cherished wife

You bore the weight with a steadfast air

The world around you just didn’t care

As Henry, (mid 50s) opens his locker we see a worn old portrait of a woman, and next to her a photo of him with his kids, carefully taped to the inside of his locker. He touches it reverently, a reminder of why he is here.


Chorus (1:00-1:19)

Courage, your name means something to me

These heroes, they last through time

Courage, your name means something to me

A champion of the daily grind

Band performance is intercut with montage of Henry at work welding in the yard, showers of sparks and sweat.


Verse 2 (1:20-1:31)

Not because of a movie or a magazine

But because of your example you inspired me

Sacrifice in the midst of pain

You bring a tear to my eye when I hear your name

Quick montage of portraiture shots set in locker room or in the ship, poses to camera, worker 1.


(1:32-1:47)

You hit the beaches in the Second World War

You carried it with you when you came home

Everyday was a courage fight

A colored soul in a world of white.


We see John, a young man, as he grabs his gear from his locker, a photo of his brother in a uniform, he picks up a dog tag and hangs it around his neck,

before closing his locker, a reminder as to why he is here.

(1:48-2:07)

Courage, your name means something to me

These heroes, they last through time

Courage, your name means something to me

A champion of the daily grind

Band performance intercut with montage of John hard at work in the yard with a grinder.

Bridge (2:08-2:19)

Not because of a movie or a magazine

But because of your example you inspired me

Sacrifice in the midst of pain

You bring a tear to my eye when I hear your name

Quick montage of portraiture shots set in locker room or in the ship, poses to camera, worker 2.


Instrumental Break (2:20-2:42)

Focus on just the band and their performance as they rock out.

Chorus (2:43-3:01)

Courage, your name means something to me

These heroes, they last through time

Courage, your name means something to me

A champion of the daily grind

Band performance intercut with montage of different people at work showcasing diversity…Henry, John, women, show the scale, and scope of the work. Continue this through the next chorus. Cuts become upbeat and energetic…

(3:03-3:21)

Courage, your name means something to me

These heroes, they last through time

Courage, your name means something to me

A champion of the daily grind

Band performance intercut with montage of different people at work showcasing diversity…Henry, John, women, show the scale, and scope of the work.

(3:22-3:31)

Not because of a movie or a magazine

But because of your example you inspired me

Sacrifice in the midst of pain

You bring a tear to my eye when I hear your name

Portraiture shot to camera of worker 3.

Outro (3:32-3:49)

As the song closes the camera turns to reveal an old man sitting in a chair clutching a photo, he has been the sole witness of the band’s performance. The photo in his hand is the photo of his family from the locker room in 1940…It is Henry…his sacrifice has left him alone, unrecognized.

On the next page we will examine the location scouting process and rough lighting concepts. Continue to Page 2…

(Page 1 of 4 pages for this article  1 2 3 >  Last »)

                   

 

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Great post. Out of interest, How long did you spend shooting the performance part after the lighting and rigging? I just finished shooting my first music video and we shot from 12 to 7pm with the band. We over shot but because it was our first we did that intentionally. We didn’t want to under estimate the amount coverage we needed. Is something like 5 or 6 hours realistic? I really like the final product.

Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)  on  04/19  at  11:02 AM

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