A timely short by Bristol-based writing and directing duo Varun Raman and Tom Hancock (aka Parallel Madness). Reminiscent of Terry Gilliam’s 1985 classic, Brazil, “Transmission” follows the detainment of a young man by an ambiguous and erratic authority. Given little more than the brief epigraph — “Welcome to Britannia. Together We Stand Alone.” — we’re immediately thrown into a seemingly timeless world of despair and isolation, all executed with an unsettling amount of cheer.

Providing some context for the project, Raman and Hancock state that the film was written at the height of the refugee crisis and as something of a warning against the anticipated rise in British nationalism:

“Originally, the story seemed like a stretch for western audiences and that the events and scenarios of the film were only possible in another time or country. But then came Brexit. And Donald Trump. Clearly, self-destruction is both sudden and incremental. Society skates on a thin crust of civility. Underneath, lies an ocean of malevolence that can be unleashed in the name of self-preservation. Only two meals separate us from empty stomachs and chaos.”

Check out “Transmission” above as well as credits and some behind-the-scenes images from the shoot below!

Starring:
James Hyland
Michael Shon
Kelby Keenan

Written & Directed by Varun Raman & Tom Hancock
Production Company: Parallel Madness
DOP: Thomas Shawcroft
Editor: Darrin Brading
Television Sequence: Gaia Borretti, Rosie Carmichael & Daisy Mann-Peet
Production Design: Alec Walker
Costume Design: Layan Nourouz
Colourist: Toby Tomkins
Score: Nick Sutton
Sound Design: Seb Bruen
Sound Mix: Harry Platford
Titles: Morgan Beringer
VFX: Will Evans, Chris Keller, Sami Cheikh
Executive Producers: Tom Hancock, Varun Raman, Thomas Shawcroft, Dominique Unsworth
Producer: Peter Robinson
Associate Producers: Ian Pons Jewell, Layan Nourouz, Tim Harrison

Parallel Madness’s Website

Parallel Madness on Facebook

Parallel Madness on Instagram

Tonks’ debut video for “Giles Corey” sees director Ryan Berger cleverly literalize the feeling of being weighed down by life through a series of portraits of people buried waist-deep in the ground.

A wonderfully quirky portrait of Fruit Bats’ Eric D. Johnson by Los Angeles-based director Jonny Look. “Getting In A Van Again (Fruit Bats Documentary)” offers a unique glimpse into what goes into creating the perfect sound. Brilliant performance by DeMorge Brown. See full credits below and click here to check out more of Look’s previously featured work, if you haven’t already!

Featuring:
Eric D. Johnson
DeMorge Brown
Elisha Yaffe
Josh Mease

Directed by Jonny Look
DOP: Chris Westlund
Sound: Josh Landis
Edit: Ting Poo
VFX: Casey Price @ Shipping and Handling
Color: Daniel Stonehouse @ Crayon
Supervising Sound Editor/Re-recording Mixer: Seth Swaaley @ Green House Post
GFX: Dustin Neiderman
Music: Fruit Bats
Additional sounds: Seth Swaaley + Josh Ascalon

Production: The Wellness Center, Merge Records, Eric D. Johnson

Special Thanks:
Jason Soda @ Palomino Sound
Dean Christesen @ Dreamboat Management
Merge Records, Lauren Malizia, Brother Willis,
Patrick Muhlberger, Superfilms!, Scottie Cameron

This video was submitted by Jonny Look and selected by our team. Consider participating here if you have a project you’d like us to check out!

Great styling and casting in this dark high school drama directed by New Jersey band Blood Cultures and New York City-based filmmaking collective Idle House (previously featured here). Shot on Canon Scoopic Ultra 16mm, “Dunk On Me” stars Ava Ferguson, Lily Nelson and Alexander Mendoza in a bloody love triangle.

A delightfully weird animated short about a worm and a vase by German illustrator and animator Elenor Kopka (previously featured here). Sound and music by Skillbard.

Lovely work from composer Patrick Jonsson and Melbourne-based filmmaker Nicholas Verso. Attempting to capture the feeling of emotion and thought crashing into one another, the track takes its name from the Swedish word for ‘snow whirlwind.’ As Jonsson explains further:

“I wanted Nick to take the track and the themes, and make them his own. I love what he came up with. To me it’s an externalisation of internal conflict. A surreal dance, as elegant as it is chaotic and disconcerting.”

Starring Jack Rowan & Dante Zanini-Sassani
Directed by Nicholas Verso
Director Of Photography: Alex Serafini
Choreographer: Shian Law
Make Up: Mia’Kate Russell
Gaffer/Grip: Ryan Fish
Director’s Assistant: Aaron Wilson
Camera Assistant: Srini Madhavan
Grip Assistant: Barun Chatterjee
Camera: Panavision Australia
Colourist: Fergus Rotherham
Special Thanks: Erin Roche, Kelly Ryall

Music Producer: Brett Cox
Recording/Mixing: Nick Taylor, Air-Edel Studios
Mastering: Cicely Balston, AIR Mastering

This video was submitted by Patrick Jonsson and selected by our team. Consider participating here if you have a project you’d like us to check out!

A lovely experimental dance film by New York City-based director Alec Battistoni. Set to the music of French artist Superpoze (Gabriel Legeleux), “Pattern, Break” explores the monotony of relationships and the attempt to break it through the freedom of physical movement. While the struggle to sustain human connection is often seen as a sign of dysfunction, for Battistoni there’s also a certain beauty to the “attempt at success in the midst of an overwhelming potential for futility.”

Starring Tyrell Hampton & Stefanie Noll
Directed by Alec Battistoni
Production: Studio VIC
Producer: Juan Carlos Hurtado Quimper
Production Design: Rebecca Liu
Cinematographer: Matt Foundoulis
Choreographer: Dasol Kim
Cast: Natalie Yang
Assistant Director: Elisabeth Ligonett Lam
Gaffer: Julia Kupiec
First Assistant Camera: Henry Dacosta
Second Assistant Camera: James Coleman
Hair and Makeup: Fallon Horvath
Location Manager: Medi Matin
Production Assistant: Catherine Ryan
Colorist: Alexia Salingaros
Music by Superpoze (Gabriel Legeleux)

Alec Battistoni’s Website

Alec Battistoni on Vimeo

Alec Battistoni on Instagram

Brilliant video for Vince Staples’ track “FUN!” by Los Angeles-based artist and filmmaker Calmatic (previously featured here).

An uplifting portrait of India’s first female professional skateboarder, 24-year-old Atita Verghese by Berlin-based director Adi Halfin (previously featured here). The latest film in Toyota’s “Start Your Impossible” series, and the second Halfin has done for the campaign, this instalment follows Atita as she discusses her role in challenging gender roles across Indian society:

“Who says what’s feminine and what’s not? It’s up to us women to define it. Young girls need to understand that you can be strong, get on the skateboard, and be feminine all at the same time.”

Watch above and see full credits below!

Directed by Adi Halfin
Agency: Dentsu
Production: REJELL
Creative Director: Toshihiko Tanabe
DoP: Roman Linetsky
Editor: Saki Bergh
Producer: Franziska Meier
Service Production: Paper Planes Production
Music: Guy Buttery
Colour Grading: Yulia Bulashenko
Sound Mix: Nils Nuernberg
Post Producer: Tim Freudenthal
Post Production: Slaughterhouse – SLGH

Featuring:
Mini Johni, Kamali Moorthy
Anam, Xami, Naphisa, Pooja,
Rajashree, Spoorthy, Johanna,
Shraddha, Bodhna, Channy,
Padmini, Unnati, Pallavi,
Pavithra, Tanvi, Smitha

We love branded content when it’s engaging, funny, innovative, beautiful or anything in between. Consider participating here if you have a project you’d like us to check out!

A nice compilation of pastel-hued vignettes in this video for Dutch-German duo The Day. Directed by Lumi Lausas, “Where The Wild Things Are” is a lovestory about escaping the ordinary and the adventures that lie ahead. As Lausas states further about the project:

“The music by The Day always brings me in a certain state of nostalgia. Unlike listening to an old playlist, it does not throw me back to any particular period of my life. Instead, it triggers a longing without an object, the sensorial memory of a past mood taken out of context. This relates to an illusion of a future that never materialised, comparable to the colours of a vivid dream fading away with time.”

This is just one of the many lovely submissions we’ve received in the past week. Click here if you have a project you’d like us to check out!

Love this video for Devault by Brooklyn-based artist dayday. Featuring a stunning performance by dancer Savannah Harrison, “Between The Words” offers a cinematic exploration of love and loss. Cinematography by Patrick Golan (previously featured here).

Watch above and see full credits below!

Starring Savannah Harrison & Curtis Back
Directed by dayday
Production Company: Couscous Saumon
DOP: Patrick Golan
Executive Producers: Jordan Illel Cardoso, Salim El Arja
Producer: Benjamin Narich
1st AC: Quinton Rodriguez
2nd AC: Daniel Muchnik
1st AD: Phineas Palmer
Steadycam: Aaron Gantt
Gaffer: Ryan Oppedisano
Key Grip: Adam Schaffer
Production Assistant: Atoki Ileka, Pavle Kujundzic
Art Director: Eloise Ayala
Choreographer: Kitty Mcnamee
Stylist: Penelope Strintz
Makeup Artist: Kailey Stephen-Lane
Editor: Chiao Chen
Colorist: Josh Bohoskey

This video was submitted by dayday and selected by our team. Consider participating here if you have a project you’d like us to check out!

Vermont-based director and photographer Kayhl Cooper’s video for his brother, Colorado-based musician Bohdi. Shot throughout Brooklyn and Rockaway beach over the course of a single day, Kayhl further explains:

“It circles around a manic quest for individuality and a failing attempt to retain clarity. It features clones with jerky dance moves, and floating hands with their own ideas.”

Watch “Not Different” above and check out Kayhl’s previously featured work here, if you haven’t already!

Kayhl Cooper’s Website

Kayhl Cooper on Vimeo

Kayhl Cooper on Instagram