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Regard, Kwabs 'Signals' by Stephen Agnew

Rob Ulitski - 19th Nov 2021

Stephen Agnew directs an exploration of the anxiety that comes with living a glamorous lifestyle, in his promo for Regard & Kwabs. 

The conceptual visuals for Signals make use of drawn-out, hypnotic camera moves, which traverse the rooms like a disembodied consciousness. 

The maze-like location and use of vivid lighting leans into the haunting vibe of the track, feeling very much bittersweet in its presentation. 

STEPHEN AGNEW: 

The story is simple: dead-eyed gorgeous people keep the protagonist from ever leaving a party.

"Fundamentally the idea is crashing an inward-looking indie concept into the side of a massive dance video - balancing the two worlds, without leaning too hard on either. I wanted to give both artists equal rule over the world; the glamorous world that Regard evokes with Kwabs' haunting and soul-searching vocals.

"Kwabs is such an engaging performer the creative naturally leant into that. I wanted to contrive a scenario that justified long, almost remorseful performance sections. Something that could allow me not to cut, but to keep the piece alive, keep it moving.

"I landed on a visual representation of the anxiety and repetition inherent in a what, from the outside, could be read as a very glamorous lifestyle.

"The story is simple: dead-eyed gorgeous people keep the protagonist from ever leaving a party. The long takes, opulent lighting and protracted movement counterpointing the grimness of his predicament.

"This one was tricky. Two units, three days, dropped feature, remixes but it's all part of the game. Looking forward to the next one and super grateful to be back directing!"

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Rob Ulitski - 19th Nov 2021

Tags

  • Narrative
  • Performance
  • Electronic
  • R&B
  • Surreal
  • Lifestyle

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Credits

Production/Creative

Director
Stephen Agnew
Producer
Ersan Beskardes
Production Manager
Kevin Cheung
1st AD
Elle Lotherington

Camera

Director of Photography
Jack WiIkinson
Focus Puller
Jim Mclean
2nd AC
Alex Agopian

Lighting/Grip

Gaffer
Krunal Saadranik

Art

Art Director
Joe Munro

Wardrobe

Make-up
Deemy
Wardrobe
Mollie Ashman

Casting

Casting director
Ola Christian at LEVILE

Editorial

Editor
Stephen Agnew

Grading

Colourist
Ruth Wardell
Colour grade company
Okay Studios

Agent

Director's Representation

Commission

Commissioner
Kat Cattaneo
Label
Sony Music

Other credits

PA

Oli Hill, Lily Ashton

2nd AD

Rose Lucas

Runner

Emily Chaplin

Medic

Oliver Temple

Grips

Jim Philpott, Vis Sopjani

Crane Tech

Eddie Pells

Camera Op/Head Tech

Dan Lobo-Pires

Rigger

Mark Swing

Effects Visualiser

Ralph Fuller

Photographer

Meghan Doherty

Sparks

Anna Brooks, Ed Irvin, Dale Healy

Desk Op.

Ben Hinton

Art Assistants

Sam Dacosta, Edie Morris, Callum Rob

Carpentry

Damian Pajak, Rohan Wadham, Matthew

Scenic

Seda Sokmen Altindag, Anita Gander

Medic

Oliver Temple

2nd Unit 1st AD

Kitty Rajakulasingam

2nd Unit 1st AC

Ernest Tsu

2nd Unit 2nd AC

Kosta Volkov

2nd Unit Gaffer

Amarjeet Singh

2nd Unit Assistant Art Dir

Ahmet Buyukcinara

Rob Ulitski - 19th Nov 2021

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