Berwyn 'I'd Rather Die Than Be Deported' by LOOSE
Rob Ulitski - 4th May 2021
LOOSE follows up her video for 100,000,000 with a spectacular one-shot promo for Berwyn's I'd Rather Die Than Be Deported.
Shot in a guerilla fashion, the video sees the artist performing as he hangs out of a convertible car driving over the Dartford Crossing.
Despite the adrenaline rush of moving vehicles and stunt shots, the video echoes a reflective, nostalgic vibe, inspired by the themes of the track.
LOOSE:
We couldn’t shut down the bridge, so we had to act very guerilla on the day.
"I am obsessed with obnoxious rap videos. In this freestyle, i wanted to create the something that subverts the intimacy and vulnerability of Berwyn’s words with the fearlessness and ego that you would more likely expect from a rapper.
"I drove over the Dartford Crossing for the first time at 3am in the middle of lockdown when it was completely empty and it blew my mind. It’s fucking epic and I couldn’t believe I’d never seen a video on here before (after delving deeper into the practicalities of this with production and the police... I can see why!). Regardless, I was set on making something sick.
"When I got sent I’d Rather Die everything clicked into place. We wanted to create a one-shot freestyle with a twist... like the 017 freestyle which I made with Berwyn last year but much bigger.
"Without being too obvious - the connotations of crossing two masses of land, whilst so close to death by hanging out of the car, worked perfectly for the song. Even more coincidently, Berwyn actually grew up in Rainham which is the closest town to the bridge. It felt so close to home and was indefinitely meant to be.
"We had a convoy of cars going over the bridge, Berwyn's performance car, the camera car alongside it with the camera in the space where the passenger seat would have been, a splitter for the label following and another car to keep the lanes clear.
"We wanted to carry on the story told in the 100,000,000 video I directed. So we used the same car and same styling, as if both videos unfold across the same night. It feels neat and I think it’s important that the viewer remembers that Berwyn’s homeless reality wasn’t a one night only thing, but a big part of his life.
"We spent A LOT of time figuring out the perfect car, route and camera to film Berwyn from. Tom English (who is my hero) and I spent long nights 3D animating our dream interactions between the cars so the precision drivers could watch it back and have the best possible chance of getting it right in the day. Also shoutout to the producers Shea and Scarlett who put in the work to make sure we’d get away with the shoot without having police take us down.
"To be honest - it was a pretty sketchy shoot. We couldn’t shut down the bridge so we had to act very guerilla on the day and I had no idea how it would pan out as there were so many variables... traffic, weather, light, car frames... After about 15 laps of the bridge everything aligned and we got the shot!"
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Rob Ulitski - 4th May 2021
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Credits
Production/Creative
- Director
- LOOSE
- Producer
- Scarlett Barclay
- Production Company
- Stink Rising
- Production Company
- SF
- Executive Producer
- HB
- 1st AD
- Joe Starrs
Camera
- Director of Photography
- TE
- 2nd AC
- Christopher J Orr
- Focus Puller
- Chris Steel
Wardrobe
- Stylist
- Frankie Noller
Editorial
- Editor
- Charlie Hutchins
Grading
- Colourist
- Jonny Thorpe At Glassworks
Other credits
Production Assistant
Anna Peduzzi
Colour Producer
Athene Aristocleous
Grip
Dan Laviada
Precision Drivers
James Herring & Stewart Homan
Follow Vehicle Driver
Toby Lawrence
Medic
Greig Wyllie
BTS
Reuben Bastienne
Focus Puller
Chris Steel
Runner
Nikos Wood
Rob Ulitski - 4th May 2021