There are three things in this world that I find to be viscerally expressive: music, dance, and the capture of both through film or video. In my most recent experience watching a variety of music videos, there was a commonality that bothered me. The narrative of the songs I was hearing was lost on me visually, and I didn't understand or see the dichotomy that the directors and or artists were presenting on screen. Music videos do not have to be direct in their message, but they should always enhance the song so that they can complement each other, and work as a combined art.
It is challenging to make a great music video, I've only made a handful on shoe-string budgets, but each one felt draining and the result was always just good enough. Every couple of months I see something that inspires me to get better at one my expressive crafts: filmmaking. I'm continually looking for inspiration to aid me in my daily creative endeavors, and when it hits me, I'm overwhelmed with an endorphin buzz so strong that I want nothing more than to share what I've experienced with someone else in hopes that they too are moved in some way. No one will feel what I feel, and reactions to any form of art will be different depending on the mood, environment, and context of an individual, but this is a video I have to share. I remember feeling something like this when I saw Bjork's "Pagan Poetry" and Kanye West' "Runaway" video. Watching these type of expressive videos make me want to become better at doing what I do. Whatever that may be at any given day.
The artist is Sia.
The song is "Chandelier."
Directed by Sia & Daniel Askill, featuring Maddie Ziegler of Dance Moms.
Just watch it, and play it loud.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLTu_mo3y42N38cL8PYh9_hZsYE-w19ptZ&v=2vjPBrBU-TM