Alex de Campi: Gojira!

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5.5.07 Dead Letter Office: Sixnationstate

You may recall about a year ago I posted my first Dead Letter Office, a failed pitch to the BBC New Music scheme. This past Thursday I went to the launch of the 2007 scheme, where they showed the previous year's completed films. I then was forced to immediately rush out and buy large amounts of intoxicating liquors, for the pitches chosen instead of mine were all so... average. Camerawork, lighting and animation were all barely above student-film levels.

If I made film for anyone rather than simply to amuse myself, I would have given up long before now. It's a hard fight, and the great public, its main characteristic is apathy.

Here's another couple pitches I wish desperately I had been allowed to make. Both are for the band SixNationState. I had a friend at their label, who asked me to pitch and sent me some of their songs. Before that, I had vaguely heard their name, but never their music. When I got their tracks, I totally fell in love with their music and became really excited about doing a video for them. So I pitched this idea ("basically, it's a joyful ode to really wrong sex") for their Spring single "Where Are You Now". They didn't pick me, and went with this video instead, because the director had worked with Larrikin Love, or something.

My mate felt bad for me, and asked me to pitch again, for their next single, "Keep Dancing". They already had a video for the song, but their label wanted a new one. So I pitched this idea ("It's like a 3-minute version of SCARFACE"). After a couple weeks of hearing nothing on that pitch, the band announced they were fed up with commercial videos and would be doing their own from now on. Yikes! But anyway, go and "friend" Sixnationstate or see them play, for they are an excellent band.

Ah well. There's nothing you can do but shrug and get on with it. A friend of mine who's a bona-fide animation guru and I have plans to do another freebie music video for a girl band. So if you know any deserving girl bands, send me links.

Also, I'm getting my act together on a feature. I now know what I'm doing, and where I'm going. It'll be no-budget, just made by me and my mates because, frankly, the system can get stuffed. It ain't no friend of mine.

( 12:53 PM )

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