WOLVES
MUSIC VIDEO TREATMENT
Video portraits of day-in-the-life rituals of a collection of beautiful wāhine from different walks of life - with a shared connection.
Home alone. Their collective experiences tell us the story of the ones who are left behind while someone is out and struggling with addiction.
This isn’t an earnest, sombre, pity party - the song wouldn’t allow for it. It’s too funky.
This is resilience through adversity. This is finding strength in uncertainty. This is self-care when the love has gone away. Sorrow and joy hand in hand.
The Song
Will the wolves get him his money, when he’s running outta food?
Forest of flashing lights trick all them fools.
He feeds the mouth of the taker.
Doesn’t see he is a faker.
Cos’ he won’t give when he’s running outta food.
It is just like chasing rainbows, the pot will always move.
I’ll tell you a little secret, that is the rules
He plays along with the fantasy.
And doesn’t see it is a travesty.
Cos’ he won’t give when he’s running outta food.
No chime to your dime.
Wasting your time.
Another dollar gone. Will he push on…?
Better run run run, run run
Cause the game ain’t done…
Sun is rising - gonna catch the train, gonna catcha that train.
Sun is rising - gonna catch the train, gonna catcha that train
Sun is rising - oh oh, the packs on the hunt you’re getting low low low.
Now grin and bare, catch the last train outta here.
Wolf howler to the moon (hey hey hey)
Midnights knocking,
Hungers kinda wearing you thin.
Forget or regret, the sin you got to do in the end.
Oh you gotta, gotta, gotta do in the end.
The Story / Escalations
Introduction (00:00 - 00:14)
Anger
Our ominous hook. We see three women - expressing rage, alone. Yelling into a phone, slamming it down, shoving across the table. A drawer jammed, is yanked out aggressively, spilling onto the floor. Storming past a chair, and bumping into it then kicking it across the room.
First Verse (00:14 - 00:44)
Denial
We introduce spaces through empty wides and close details. We see our first character. A departure from our raging introduction, she goes through the motions of a private moment at home. Slow and methodical.
Second Verse (00:44 - 1:12)
Distraction
As the second verse picks up the pace, we introduce two more characters. Making their way through domestic activities. In separate houses one washes, and another dries. One gives the children a bath, and another puts them to bed. All three unified, although alone.
Pre-Chorus (1:12 - 1:26)
Loss
We see signs of an absent loved one. A meal gone cold, their jacket hung up, their side of the bed unmade, glances to an empty carport.
Chorus (1:26 - 1:41)
Avoidance
The pace picks ups as our hero women whip through domestic activities. Sweeping. Wiping. Folding. Packing a bag. We introduce several other women, on their own different but shared journeys. Towards the end of the chorus we start to approach the chaotic energy of our angry intro.
Interlude (1:41 - 2:08)
Sadness
One by one the frenzy slows, they get caught in a memory, their gaze drifts off into middle distance.
We see exteriors of different houses, slow zooms.
Bridge Part One (2:08 - 2:38)
Bargaining
A lightbulb moment. We see the women leap into action. Searching, collecting, assembling everything they need. Candles. Dried herbs. A mortar and pestle. In each household the materials are different but the intention is the same.
Bridge Part Two (2:38 - 3:04)
Proactiveness
Separated through space, the women take part in a protection spell for their absent loved one. The magic is all different. For some it’s assembling a pouch of herbs. For others, a word written on a leaf and then burned. For another it’s an eyes-closed incantation over a photograph. By the end of their ritual a smile is touching the edges of their mouth.
Second Pre-Chorus (3:04 - 3:25)
Empowerment
Triumphant, the women return to their activities but now with a spring in their step. The kids are in bed. She’s bopping to the dishes.
Second Chorus (3:25 - 3:55)
Self-Care
We see the uniqueness and individualism of each character - an insight into what this woman does when home alone, after everything that needs to be done is done. At an easel making art, painting their nails, dancing to a record, playing with their dog, feeling like everything is going to be okay.
Outro (3:55 - 4:14)
Acceptance
We end on our three hero women. Cleansed they are sinking into a state of calm. Whether it’s getting into bed or snuggling up to watch a movie. Our opening woman is sinking into a bath - but in the final moments her relaxation turns back to a ‘stuck in a thought’ intense stare. Maybe everything hasn’t been resolved that easily.
Method / Approach
While we have our intended build of escalations throughout the video and we will make sure to get those moments. We will also be looking for additional material, making the most of the location, any atmosphere or light play. We will capture anything that is true or natural for that performer and anything with production value, or interest. We will also collect as many ‘static’ and ‘kinetic’ close moments as we can in each location. This will give us broader scope and flexibility in the edit.
In order to give ourselves a comfortable amount of time to find all these moments and make them the best we can do we want to give ourselves plenty of time to be creative. We will shoot over multiple weekends, shooting one or two characters/locations a day.
In each location we will also do a 15min photo shoot of the performer and a few interview clips with Lou’ana.
Cinematography
The cinematography should feel close and personal. Subtle movement that evokes the breath and eye line of the viewer. In each location we will be looking for graphical shapes, unusual framing, frames within frames, reflections, light and shadow, atmospheric haze. The profound in the mundane. Everyday beauty. We will use found textures, wallpapers, colours, etc.
I want to shoot on mixed formats, both digital and video tape. Digital for the dynamic range to capture all the nuances that create beauty in the domestic spaces. Tape so the images have a texture and romance. A home video but nobody showed up to your birthday. The raw edge of reality.
Editing
The way we will contract or expand time by cutting through many different shots showing one slow action or cutting from many varied actions. Although our moments may be slow our editing should be able to be fast-paced to flow with the rhythm of the song. If the editor’s cuts made a sound they should feel like an instrument in the song.
Production Design
We want the domestic spaces to be a visual feast. These are not everyday domestic environments. These are heightened - super slick, interior designed spaces. These are pinterest living rooms, instagram bedrooms, retro kitchens and decadent bathrooms. We are relying heavily on the locations to bring their own character, colour palate and aesthetic interest.
The elements of the arcane will be a mixture of commonplace household objects - like herbs, water, flowers, pen and paper. But ramp up to the more purpose-built magic items - crystals, candles and divination tools.
Cast
Characters full of life - freckles, wrinkles, stretch marks, unique individuals, interesting faces. Classic beauty and unconventional beauty. Strong women with an sense of style that embraces their authentic self.
Some cast will do more of the ‘heavy lifting’ performance of the story beats- for this we will rely primarily on our actors. Other cast will be utilised for honest and naturalistic performances of the nuances of day to day life - just being themselves.
Costume
We want to style the cast out of their own wardrobes. And will ask them to do their own hair and make up. We want them to feel comfortable but also bring colour and aesthetics to the overall production design of the video. Bringing in any vintage or retro clothing will be an asset - visually and to tie in to Lou’ana’s other videos.