EN
PLMusic video “Testament” for the Institute of National Remembrance
On November 2, 2022, the music video for Maciej Ciesielski’s song “Testament” premiered – a film production that I directed on behalf of the Institute of National Remembrance.
You can watch the music video at the link below.
Pre-production
The entire production took place between July and August 2022. I began the project by preparing a script based on the guidelines presented to me by an employee of the Institute of National Remembrance in Białystok.
After the script was approved, I began preparations with the Historical Reconstruction Group “Beskidy” from Bielsko-Biała, with whom I had already had the opportunity to work on other historical projects and photo shoots.
The reenactors proved to be extremely helpful in planning the shots, and thanks to them, we managed to find two out of the three locations where we shot.
Production
At the end of July, we began shooting at the IPN headquarters in Warsaw (the prison scene). We finished shooting in about four hours, which was half the time we spent driving from Bielsko to Warsaw and back.
We split the second day of shooting into two parts. The first half of the day was spent at the Pszczyna Village Museum, and the second half was spent on location in Międzyrzecz.
This production confirmed my luck with the weather, as I wanted the entire project to have a heavy, cool atmosphere, and the weather cooperated. Why lucky? Because the day before and the day after the shoot, it was 35 degrees!
Editing
Thanks to precise planning, the music video was edited fairly quickly, and to my satisfaction, the first cut was approved by the clients. We only had to wait nearly three months for the premiere. Nonetheless, I think it’s worth showing off.
Details
For those interested in more detailed information about this project, I am providing a director’s explanation that I prepared during consultations with the clients.
The music video entitled “Testament” will be divided into two stages corresponding to two time axes interwoven with each other. The entire project will be filmed at a speed of 100 frames per second (4x slow motion). Black Pro Mist filters will be used to soften the image and give it a more analog look.
The first axis (A), or the prison scenes, will be shot using static shots (tripod or dolly shots). Each subsequent appearance of the protagonist, D, will involve more injuries. As time passes, we will change the lens to a wider one while simultaneously moving the camera closer to D. We will start with an 85mm lens for full shots (if the location allows), and end with close-ups using a 24mm lens, thus smoothly intensifying the horror. We will follow the same approach with lighting, starting with slightly flatter lighting that shows more detail, and ending with very low-key lighting (darkness). Cool colors with occasional warm light will be used, and we will smoke the room as much as possible.
Second axis (B), which includes scenes related to flashbacks, will be filmed in a slightly more relaxed scheme. A handheld camera will slightly increase the dynamics (even at 4x slow motion, the movement will still look very subtle). We won’t introduce the order of using lenses and setting shots. Most shots will be filmed in natural light supplemented by artificial light (adjusted to the weather conditions). Scenes inside the cottage will be filmed in a lower key with sunset light (a large LED panel with an orange filter) shining through the window.
We’ll supplement the fire with blue light imitating the moon.
In post-production, we’ll emulate the Kodak 2383 film stock with film grain overlay.
Gear used:
Camera: Sony FX6
Lenses: Sigma Art Prime + Black ProMist 1/4
