How Apps Shape The Future Of Music Video Production

Adam Jenkins and Jeff Stevens lead a collective of producers and app developers at Feed the Walrus. They recently embarked on a project in which they released Florence + the Machine Strangeness & Charm exclusively on Interview Magazine’s October issue app, which can be downloaded here. The music video itself was directed by Craig McDean and edited by FTW’s Lise Lavallée.

In talking with the two founders,  we sought to understand how the music video is changing as a mode of artistic expression and commercial tool for bands. We met up with Adam and Jeff to talk about music video production and how the art form is contextualized digitally.

What are you working on right now?

We’ve just finished a great music video piece for Florence + the Machine, a beautiful commercial for Giorgio Armani’s ‘Boudoir’ campaign,’ and an iPhone App for Fireflies West – an annual charity bikeride which helped raise just under $60,000 for cancer research. Our most exciting upcoming project is an iPad/iPhone photography app for photographer Joann McPike.

Tell us about your project with Florence+The Machine.

We were given a great song and fantastic live footage of a charismatic performer and told to go for it! Everyone wanted a jaw dropper. And there’s a lot going on in this piece, a lot of layers, all seamlessly working together. Each frame has been created painstakingly, each frame could be a work of art and there’s 24 of those a second. This can only be achieved by tirelessly trying many, many combinations until you find the right visual aesthetic that then has to work perfectly with the music, it’s a Rubik’s cube. Our challenge was to create a piece that not only stayed true to Director Craig McDean’s vision but also captured Florence’s unique personality, the mood of the song fit well as an exclusive piece for Interview magazine.

How do you define creativity in general? How is it defined in the making of this music video?

In respect to the Florence video, it’s the desire to push it, to put fear and apprehension to one side and take the time and effort to really explore. To try everything, sometimes the best things happen out of a happy mistake. There is also an intuition, trusting your eye or gut, if it works, don’t question it, if it isn’t working, then go back to the drawing board.

Is there demand from artists to combine music video production alongside app development and other interactive/video solutions?

One thing that is for certain, there are fewer and fewer rules about how we absorb media and how we create it, the playing field is now wide open. We create apps, we create music videos, so a simple answer would be yes, we’re very keen to push the interactive aspect. We feel that the viewer can now participate in the art of the music video and we think this could reinvigorate the music video world.

Where do you go for inspiration? (Feel free to mention other artists, bloggers, publications, sites…etc.)

Absinthe? As owners of FTW, it’s our job to look at everything that’s going on around us and we are lucky to work with very inspired people. Social networking has made accessing inspirational work easier, it’s astounding what’s out there and what gets put in front of you. It’s hard to say there’s any one specific artist etc., when there’s so many.

Thanks Adam and Jeff!

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