Maximalism with Francis Day
Francis Day, the stage name for musical powerhouse Ricky Ybarra out of Oakland, Ca, will be releasing his latest Psychedelic EP which will be accompanied by a video for his track Can You Hear My Thoughts. Ricky and I first worked together on the score for my short film No Quiero Verte which I am proud of. When it came time, he asked for me to conceptualize and make him a video in kind. Kindly demonstrate for me the meaning of Maximalism…here we have it.
Right off the bat, I knew that Ricky’s video would be next level due to the nature of his songs. Some of his biggest influences have raised the bar of absurdity pretty high and he never shies away. He suggested the work of Tim & Eric's Awesome Show (2007). To put it simply, we threw in everything, and the kitchen sink into this damn video...Low-Fi...Collage Animation…a Ferrari...a Bird person…several Outfits influenced by Rock Icons...and what would be 4 separate shooting days. Maybe I am too generous with my time or can’t say no to a good friend…but with my ambitious imagination and Ricky’s exhilaration, I would soon find myself once again neck-deep in a project with no end in sight.
He told me that the song tells the story of a time when his prescription clashed with some psychedelics he took which sent him cascading into a different dimension. Days before all the covid pandemic closures I recall sitting with Ricky to discuss concepts and my approach. For me, I just saw the filming as being delayed with no reason keeping me from the animation. I pushed this thing as far as I could and was happy to let the animation take control. This process began with finding magazines to cut out of which were scanned and then used to animate with. There were so many layers in this project. Layers upon layers of paper topping one another, layers of different mixes of the song, layers of struggle.
I found that I could create some very nice abstractions by taking layers of merged images in photoshop and then allowing for the program to fill in gaps when portions of the image were deleted. The results were generally random but could be repeated over and over again and even animated to create some very bizarre images.
Leo Maco, the DP I typically work with, suggested a new workflow he saw another director using. He suggested that I form a precise edit for the video by gathering material from other videos and or content shot simply on my cell phone. Considering shooting time might be under constraint due to covid, Leo convinced me this was a good idea. Anyways, why would I not want to try a new technique for prep? I took up my cell and a few volunteers quarantined with me and we filmed little mock-ups for moments in the video.
My mock-up performance was total madness and right on track with Ricky's approval. Before I knew it, I was out in character playing a version of Kurt Cobain as well as Courtney Love in the same scene. We filmed moments of myself as Kurt and when that was done everyone took a 20-minute break while I went for a shave.
While the pandemic became ever prolonged as did this project. Shooting dates were canceled and rearranged throughout 2021 and as time went on the production seemed to gain weight and quite literally grow in richness. After all, we had many feelers out in every direction...and at some point, someone came across a man-sized teddy bear costume. Of course, I could make use of the thing. I'll put a chainsaw in its hand and made a villain of it. Looking back I should have done more to the bear suit before filming it. It is too soft and cuddly and unfortunately recognizable. If I had even just poured Elmer's glue on it with a coat of paint, it would have transformed entirely and likely have been more ominous.
The track concludes with a Rock breakdown adding an extra minute to the 4-minute song...from the beginning, it was up for debate if we would form anything for this part. Ricky said that the part was really more of a transition into the next song...but that it could be in the video if we wanted...Eventually, we all got to a spot where we figured what the hell? This video is already out of its mind. Let us take it even further and see what we get. For the video's sake?
"Vampire children...and they rip the bear into pieces....Yes, with confetti and streamers."
Thanks to my Assistant Director Rienel Campa, she was able to deliver on our young helpers for the shoot. It was a delight working with all of them and a lot of laughs.
Generally, the way I work is weighted much in the early planning stages where we all can learn what we are about to create. Francis Day's Can You Hear My Thoughts was given permission to grow its own legs and wings and go where it would. Rarely did we disown an idea or reject something that fell into our laps. Rarely will I be in such a position where literally anything goes. Maximalism.
Douglas Lawlor