Hailing from Mouguerre, a small town in the French Basque Country, Caroline Morin is now making a real impact in her adopted country.

Since joining Wash as colourist in June last year, Caroline has graded numerous music videos, commercials and other shortform pieces at the London-based colour grading and finishing house - including videos for Ama Lou, Bastille, Bree Runway, Denai Moore, Jonas Blue and Tom Walker, working with directors like Gemma Yin, Zac Ella and Emilie Norenberg.

Caroline studied in Biarritz, south-east France, graduating in BTS in Audio-Visual Discipline,  specialising in 'Technical Engineering and Use of Equipment', which she says "enabled me to approach all of the different aspects of TV and filmmaking, from editing to broadcast events." From there, she completed several internships in Paris. Then it was off to London. 

Now 26, and living in Hackney (where else?) she has, of course, been WFH over the past few months - and staying very busy. We caught up with Caroline, to discover her biggest influences, her favourite projects, and greatest passions - including longboarding, and Vulfpeck. No, we didn't know what that was either... 

WORK:

How long have you held your current position? What were you doing before this?
I joined Wash as a Colourist last June, and previously I was working as a Junior Colourist at CHEAT.

What was your first job, or first significant break in the industry?
I worked in TV and broadcast events in France but I feel that my significant break in the industry was when I moved to London and started working as a runner in different post production houses. I felt like I finally found my place and was surrounded by really talented people that I was always learning from.

I felt like I finally found my place [in London] surrounded by really talented people.

Name one music video that inspired you to get involved in making music videos?
That’s a tricky question! I’ve always been fascinated by music videos from a really young age - even when I was a child. I used to watch them on TV instead of cartoons! I think the one I couldn't stop watching was Karma by The Black Eyed Peas. I loved the crazy concept that really worked with the song, the perfect timings and the use of repetition.

I was fascinated by music videos from a really young age - and I loved the crazy concept of Black Eyed Peas' Karma.

Name one project you’ve done that was significant as a learning experience – and why?
I’ve learnt a lot from various projects I worked on as they all present different challenges, but if I had to give one example, the music video DDD for Ama Lou was a great learning experience for me.

 It was one of my earlier projects and I worked closely with Ama (the artist) which was a wonderful experience. Being able to talk to her directly and understand her vision and creative style really pushed me to try new things and go out of my comfort zone.

What are the favourite projects (music videos or otherwise) you’ve worked on in the past year or so?
I really enjoyed working on the music videos for Bastille's Bad Decisions, and Luna for Piet Row. I liked the concept of the videos and the tracks themselves - they were both really fun in terms of colours too.

I am also really happy that I’ve worked on the recent commercial for Mulberry 'The Season of Light’. Having the film out live in the world is amazing - I remember seeing it in the airport on my way on holiday by chance and it made me feel really proud!

What are you currently working on - and how has work been affected by lockdown?
I’ve been working on some exciting short films, music videos and commercials. Some of them have been shot entirely during lockdown and I’m actually really impressed by the results! Isaac Rentz's video for Jonas Blue ft MAX is one example of what I'm talking about.

Lockdown has definitely affected our way of working - but I'm glad to see the new solutions that people are finding.

Lockdown has definitely affected our way of working but I’m glad to see all the new solutions people are finding to still shoot and create beautiful films. All of us at Wash we have set up our grading and Flame suites at home. We’ve had to develop new ways of working remotely of course, but our clients have been great adapting with us throughout this challenging time.

What kind of work would you like to be doing in future?
I would love to try different techniques, experiment and continue to work closely with artists and directors. I love being able to tell a story by the use of colours, I find it fascinating.

What advice would you give someone entering your field?
Work hard, never give up, stay positive and don’t forget to take care of yourself! Working in the film industry can be really stressful and mentally exhausting but it is a work of passion that many of us are choosing.

It is really important to have a nice balance between work and life and if you are motivated and hard working you’ll get to where you want to be!

I love being able to tell a story by the use of colours, I find it fascinating.

LIFE:

Tell us something that we don’t know about you...
I love longboarding - especially longboard-dancing and freestyle.

When you’re not working, what do you like to spend time doing?
It might sound simple but I love to relax and do this by pursing my other passions. I have a great interest in visual art in general and I like to create and try things out which is a different experience. It normally takes the form of painting, drawing, photography and digital art. Music is also a great passion of mine, singing (mostly out of tune) playing instruments and dancing around. Last but not least, longboarding!

Our clients have been great adapting with us throughout this challenging time.

Where did you go on your last holiday (or vacation)? And where would you love to visit?
My last trip was to Bali to visit my little sister who was working out there. It was the best holiday I’ve ever had, being able to discover the Islands with locals; it felt so different to what I’m used to.

I’ve always wanted to go to Japan, it’s definitely one of the places I would love to visit  - as well as La Réunion (Réunion Island) which is where my grandparents came from.

What are your favourite currently-running TV shows?
I haven’t had the time to watch all the TV shows I wanted in the last few years but I really liked Stranger Things.

What’s the best movie (or movies) you’ve seen recently?
Like many people I loved Parasite. Such a beautiful movie.

Your favourite music videos (by other people) in the past year?
I’ve really liked the music videos made for Rosalía. I liked her music and I’ve been even more captivated by her when I’ve seen her videos. I loved the references to Cry Me a River by Justin Timberlake in Bagdad; the concept for Juro Que was at the same time surprising and beautiful, and I loved the energy and the beauty of Malamente.

Favourite music artist(s), and favourite gig(s) in the past year?
I listen to a lot of different genres of music and it changes depending on my mood to be honest! I love Vulfpeck, Christine and the Queens, Billie Eilish but recently I’ve been listening to artists that my parents used to listen to when I was a child: Les Rita Mitsouko, Daniel Balavoine, Fleetwood Mac.

Music is a great passion of mine: singing - mostly out of tune - playing instruments and dancing around.

I am also a fan of metal and rock and roll. My favourite gigs in the past year were the Hellfest (metal festival in France) and Vulfpeck at the Royal Albert Hall [Vulfpeck are not metal by the way, they're a funk band - ed]

Best book you’ve read recently?
I’ve just finished reading Madame Rêve by Pierre Grillet, who is a French songwriter. The book is about a song he wrote for Alain Bashung that my parents used to listen to all the time. I’ve always wondered what was the meaning of the lyrics, and the book actually tells the story of the women and relationships that inspired him while writing the song.

Best recent purchase (send photo, if poss)?
I decided to try learning how to play piano so I bought a small keyboard to play around and it’s going well so far, I’ve really been enjoying it!

Work & Life - balance/ imbalance out of five (1 for imbalance; 5 for balance)?
I used to be a 1 but slowly getting to a 5!

•  Caroline Morin is a colourist at Wash. Watch her showreel here