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Bear Hands 'Peacekeeper' by Andrei B. Schwartz & Sam B. Jones

David Knight - 7th Apr 2014

NYC-based directors Andrei B. Schwartz and Sam B. Jones describe their video for Bear Hands' Peacekeeper as 'White Heat meets Jodorowsky. Alphaville meets Keystone Cops'. And Promo could hardly better that.

The video follows two detectives as they romp and blunder through a stylised sci-fi noir cityscape populated by machine-gun toting half-naked molls, on the hunt for Dylan and the rest of the band. 

Cinematographer/director Andrei has known Ted Feldman of Bear Hands since college days, and has directed videos for them before - most notably on Crime Pays in 2010. Ted brought him the Peacekeeper video a week before the band was leaving on tour for three months. Andrei then brought in Sam - with whom he's co-directed on four previous videos, most recently for Le1f’s Boom.  The result is, the say, their most fully-realised collaboration yet - and a very fun ride.

SAM & ANDREI: "We wrote the treatment together in one sitting knowing it was crazy to take on so much. By the time we got approval there were only five days left before we had to shoot. Our producer Sara’o Bery is really the one who whipped it all into shape and made it happen. He found a studio, DP, equipment, 20 cast members, props, and got us a jail cell in that time. All on a tiny budget (around $7k US). 

"What was amazing is that everything went as planned on the shoot day. All the talent, the gags, the camera, the effects just worked. If even one thing had slipped we would not have pulled it off in our 14 hour day. We had an amazing crew!

"After that we had two weeks to muscle through the edit and all the effects ourselves before bringing it to color and sending it off to our commissioner Sam Seager at Warner Music, UK. We couldn’t be happier with how it turned out, and the band and Warner Bros were very pleased as well.

"Peacekeeper is our most fully realized project to date: in our minds, were feeding acid to the old movies we liked and hoping for the best. White Heat meets Jodorowsky. Alphaville meets Keystone Cops. 

"Among us and the crew there’s a great sense of Holy Shit We Pulled it OFF!! Now we’re like - If we can make Peacekeeper in 5 days… what can we do with real time and money? Hope to find out soon enough!" 

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David Knight - 7th Apr 2014

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Credits

Production/Creative

Director
Kidshow (aka Sam Jones & Andrei Schwartz)
Producer
Sara'o Bery
Production Company
Glass Embassy
Executive Producer
Warner Music, Uk
Production Manager
Lindsay Keys
1st AD
Jonathan King

Camera

Director of Photography
Brian Lannin
Focus Puller
Donovan Decesare
2nd AC
Gabe Elder

Lighting/Grip

Gaffer
Peter Steusloff

Art

Art Director
Katie Hickman
Art Director
Steve Grisé

Editorial

Editor
Andrei B. Schwartz

Grading

Colourist
Alan Gordon

Agent

Director's Representation
None!

Commission

Commissioner
Sam Seager
Label
Warner Music, Uk

David Knight - 7th Apr 2014

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