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Seramic 'Same Mistakes' by Yagaboo

David Knight - 19th Apr 2017

Following his beautiful, blissful, syncronised swimming-based video for I Got You, the director known as Yagaboo reunites with British producer Seramic for another dance-based video – and a very different beast indeed.

The video for Same Mistakes was shot in Hong Kong, transforming the tempestuous relationship between two middle aged adults into a compelling choreography played out on the city streets, in which the star is certainly the very charismatic Angela Hang.

With the fluid camerawork of Luke Jacobs complimenting the brilliant casting of Hang – a dancer considering retirement when she made this – the result is mesmerizing. The fact it manages to combine the sensibilities of Asian drama with the Western musical, is remarkable, particularly considering its paltry budget. And that's a great testiment to the skills and resourcefulness of everyone involved in this.

YAGABOO:

“Making this video was pure madness. With only £3500, having put half of that in ourselves, any sensible person would have opted for a 1 or 2 day shoot in London. We decided to spend 6 days in Hong Kong sharing a tiny room in the notorious Chung King Mansions with about 3 hours of sleep per night, trying to find 6 dancers and an actor with not much money, or even a fixer.

"Once we managed to cast we had to then shoot synchronised choreography on busy streets at night, with no permits, no AD, no location manager, no gaffer and no runners as well as shooting fire breathing in an estate ran by Triads where the focus puller refused to go because of its notoriety and the local producer said afterwards “Are all Western crews as crazy as you?” 

"Although the shoot was exhausting it was absolutely worth all the hard work just for the friends we made in Hong Kong. One of the best things about making the video was casting Angela [Hang] as the main part. Angela is 49 and was planning to retire from dance altogether once she hit 50! She had given up performing in public for 25 years thinking she was too old for key roles, and so set up her own dance school and taught instead.

"Some of her students came to the audition and she decided she would too as I had written in the treatment I sent, that I wanted to see older dancers too. She said she only came because she wanted to feel what it was like to do the audition and to push herself in dance a last time before she stopped the next year! When we saw her dance, we were really moved by the emotion and the power she had. Casting a pretty young dancer would have been so boring, it was far more interesting story and emotional wise to cast Angela who brings more of a back story to the piece. 

"Angela has since told us that the whole process of making the video was profoundly moving and in a point in her life when she was looking to stop dancing she has suddenly rekindled her passion to perform and wants to do more dance projects. It’s this sort of thing that makes you think a project was worth doing, far more than any number of likes it might get."

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David Knight - 19th Apr 2017

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  • Choreography
  • Director's notes

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Credits

Production/Creative

Director
Yags
Service Producer
Hanson Fok
Executive Producer
Sam Seager

Camera

Director of Photography
Luke Jacobs (DoP)
Focus Puller
Mike Fong

Wardrobe

Make-up
Karen Yiu
Make-up
Regina Chan

Choreography

Choreographer
Jen Chiang

Editorial

Editor
Matteo Bini
Editing company
Western Edge Pictures
Sound design
Nick Davies

Grading

Colourist
Matt Turner
Grading company
Absolute Post

VFX

Post Producer
Geri Krasteva

Misc

Creative Director
Seramic
Production Assistant
Danielle Barnes
Production Assistant
Jason Chan
Drone Operator
Austen Wylde Stark
Drone Operator
Dan Disuye

Other credits

Cast

Angela Hang, Kirt Kishita, Ling Tse, Tonia Wan, Kim Dange, Jen Chiang, Jonathan Hung, Jessie Jing

David Knight - 19th Apr 2017

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