I was recently involved in a music video project for Club Smith, who will be supporting the Kaiser Chiefs on tour next year. Director Andy Little approached me about the project, and when I heard the track I was immediately excited to be involved.
The shooting took place over an intense two day period, encompassing multiple locations and scenes. We had a fantastic time filming, and it was wondered at one stage if we were filming a modern tragedy or a black comedy. One shot in which I hurled my bland egg sandwich furiously at the side of a bin could well have tipped the whole thing into farce.
A great many of the shots that did make the cut appear for only a split-second, but naturally took much longer to film. Key among these were sequences in which I showered fully clothed, rock scrambled in business shoes, attempted to drown myself in my morning cornflakes, walked down busy streets with a gigantic computer monitor to the bemusement of the Leeds populace, and argued with my very convincing boss over a report that contained the wrong figures.
The finished product looks tremendous, thanks to Andy’s editing and Craig Goode’s post-production grading. Despite my many acting endeavours, it is still comparatively rare for me to be in front of the camera. After this, it’s an experience I’ll be looking to repeat. Andy’s clear vision for a man trapped in a quasi-dystopian quagmire of questionable grind has resonated, and the feedback we’ve received since the release seems to confirm that there’s a great deal of empathy for the character’s situation, and real catharsis in chucking a cathode ray tube off a cliff.
