SIAMÉS || The Wolf – Notes

– Here is the transcript of my notes for the presentation of the music video for SIAMÉS’ ‘The Wolf’ –

– Whilst I elaborated on many of the points in my notes during the presentation, there were also some that I missed out on (as just the notes exceeded the word limit quite a bit) and, as this presentation will be informing some of my future creative decisions, I thought it would be only right to put a copy here for reference. I have also added in extra notes that I wanted to expand on in the presentation but did not get the opportunity to. As I am posting this after the presentation, how the video has informed my own creative process has already evolved so I also wanted to elaborate on what I mentioned in the way of animation –

“The Wolf” was produced by Buenos Aries based studio Rudo Company for the Argentinian band SIAMÉS. The music video was released in April of this year.

{The making of}

Produced independently, “The Wolf” was animated in Toon-Boom animate using traditional 2D animation processes. That means that each frame was drawn up by hand, rather than using a rigging process. This would have been a lengthy process that, whilst assisted by the minimalism of the videos style, still would have required much dedication. According to a statement by Rudo Company on the process of making the video: “From initial rough to final clean up, each take has been animated by a single person to maintain the mood, style and vision of that artist.”

This should also be taken into account as the production team was reasonably small, as would be necessary for a lower budget production like a music video. The animation work itself was heavily inspired by Japanese animation and the process of creating the video was influenced by the concept of “Sakuga”. This simply means animation in Japanese, but fans use it to refer to specific points in which the animation quality improves. Rudo company used this idea to match higher quality animation with the more dramatic moments of the music video. This is an aesthetic decision, but also an economic one.

The moments of “Sakuga” that I have experienced in the anime I have watched in the past inform my knowledge of this concept and I found the effect it has resonated in this work as well. Whilst Sakuga often translates to a boost in detail (something that wasnt entirely possibly with such a minimalist art direction), frame rate and character movement also play a huge role, which Rudo Co. took advantage of. Colour was an approach they took to this concept that I have not experienced before however. The bridge is a really poignant portion of the clip as the previously sparse colour use gives way to a flood of pink and the characters are brought to life. They use this section to elaborate of the vices of each of the characters and the imagery is so vibrant and resonant that much more attention is payed to their positions. The characters here are seen as helpless, their colourisation being completely connected to a sense of them being overcome by the wolf. This is helped by a separation from any worldly environment, it is immediately clear that this is a reflection of their inner states – something that is difficult to muster in a visual production

{Influences of the work; both in the music video genre and other forms such as advertising, film, television, visual arts}

The visual style of the music video was inspired predominantly by these Japanese animation works largely outside of the music video genre. “Sakuga” is used most often in reference to TV shows due to their production schedules and budgets.  The stylistic simplicity that it takes advantage of to create fluid transitions between the three characters, however, was likely to some extent inspired by music videos like the Arctic Monkeys “Do I Wanna Know” (2013) and Tame Impala’s “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” (2012). This style has become quite popular as the minimalism of the visuals allows more focus to be held by the music itself, whilst also being more cost-effective means of animating a music video. The style also allows concepts of the song to be explored in a more fluid and metaphysical sense as we are less tempted to take the imagery literally.

Another point that should be made here is that if this concept were to be tried within a live action setting it would likely be more expensive due to the necessity for fx. Whilst rotoscoping is a long process it simply takes time and ToonBoom software which Rudo Co. would already have either a subscription to or the full licence of. Rudo Co. is (by what information I could find) a two man team (though they likely hire freelances) so whilst animation can be time consuming the choice of medium and style reflects what the team was most capable of and what could deliver them the most polished final product.

{Why “The Wolf”, the reason for my choice}

This is why I think that this production is a perfect example of why music videos exist (and why I chose it for this presentation). The video doesn’t simply decorate the music, it elaborates on it. It informs how we experience the music. The subtle themes of addiction within SIAMES’ song are further explored through the visual manifestation of the wolf. The use of starkly contrasted positive and negative space allows the wolf to become metaphorical. The moment it is in the shadows, it is the shadows. And as no scene exists without shadows (or else it would be a blank white screen) the possibility of its emergence is constant. This is a really beautiful visual technique to show the effects of addiction.

{What sets this work apart from others. The aesthetic qualities, its narrative premise, and its subtextual meanings}

If it was inspired by works like “Do I Wanna Know” I think this use of metaphor is where is diverts and makes its own mark. The wolf never gives the impression of being an actual wolf (as demonstrated by the fluidity of its visual existence), it is something more than its image. The animation allows this metaphor to become obvious but not obtuse. Simple negative and positive space is used to set mood, keep budget, and create dynamic imagery that seeks to give a body to the antagonist of the song, without diminishing or humanising it. Animation was a really ingenious way of capturing the essence of something innately non-physical like addiction.

The fluid and minimalist style is often used rather pragmatically for all its abstract potential. This style is often used to set the scene of the events prescribed within the film, but does little to elaborate on its subject matter. The music video for “The Wolf” engages with the song, but it seeks to give us more information. It is inspired by the song but not bound to it, which gives it the ability to add to and emphasise certain themes and moments of the song.

{Relation to the readings / class discussion}

The idea of a faux-narrative is quite prevalent in this music video. There are characters, we follow them, and there are events that transpire… however no conclusion is reached nor are the characters developed or elaborated upon. They exist within a single state, in which a narrative sense of time passing was completely absent. The videos simplicity highlights the music and the animation style especially allows the visuals to mould to the beat. The relationship between the music and the visuals is notably different from movie scores in this regard as the visuals submit to the sounds rather than the other way around. You are not engrossed in the characters, the production doesn’t inspire questions as to the universe outside of what we have been shown, it exists at the mercy of the music and lyrics, existing within their context alone.

{One aspect of this work that might influence your own music video production}

Whilst it is unlikely that we will pursue animation when it comes to the creation of our MV for this studio, I have been really inspired by the use of negative space, and the film-noir-esque use of a single colour throughout the video. The chiaroscuro effect, and simplicity of the visuals could lend itself well in a live-action production too. I would really like to experiment with their methods of using positive and negative spaces to define the message of the song we are producing for.

When I presented this music video I was not thinking broadly enough about the processes required to create it, my vision blinded by the gap between live action and animation. Rotoscoping is a tool that is used in live-action too. Combining frames and incorporating multiple elements into a single shot requires (in most cases) some basic rotoscoping work. If we are looking at realising a duality of the main character in our music video I will in fact need to use similar techniques to the ones used in this music video, all be it to a completely different effect. Reflection on how a small production team created a clean and elaborate end product made me realise that such process can be applied to our work and to great visual effect. If I incorporate some rotoscoping into the editing process we can make something far more visually interesting than what we can make simply relying on our minimal budget with minimal location shifts. I want to use these editing techniques to help make a music video that is visually resonant.