Goodbye to the Jungle: Shooting Music Videos with Andres Hidalgo

Last year, as part of their Industry Project module, Andres Hidalgo (MA Directing) and Anirudh Ganapathy (MA Cinematography) created a music video for German multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer, Philipp Johann Thimm.

The video, Tripping Over Guns at Sunset, was shortlisted for Cultural Impact Music Video at the Berlin Commercial Festival, and saw Andres Hidalgo nominated for the Local Heroes Award at Interfilm Berlin.

Having found a passion for the craft, Andres Hidalgo went on to direct a second music video for Philipp. The video, Goodbye to the Jungle, was created as his Graduation Project, and featured plenty of collaboration across our MA Degrees – keep reading for the full credits…

Your first collaboration with Philipp was shortlisted at the Berlin Commercial Festival. How did this recognition feel?

It was a nice surprise to be shortlisted in as great a festival as the Berlin Commercial, and with a film that we did for a school project with such a small budget.

I believe it’s sort of ‘payback’ for everyone involved – for all the effort and heart we put into it. Although we don’t do it for the recognition, it does feel good when someone/something is moved by your art – it gives me a little push to keep going.

And this time, you decided to shoot entirely in black and white – what led to this creative decision?

I’ve always wanted to shoot in black and white, ever since I started experimenting with film photography. It’s always fascinated me – the timeless feeling, the idea of something floating, separated from the laws of physics.

When I approached Anirudh Ganapathy (our Director of Photography), he also knew it was the perfect fit, since it brings out a raw reality. You don’t get distracted by colour, and you can just feel the texture of the living being that is the city.

The meaning of the characters and their costumes was also something that influenced the decision. We wanted to see that purity of the white, and the exorcist at the end.

Capturing the perfect sunlight was essential to this shoot. How did you work with your DoP to achieve this?

The scouting was very thorough, because we wanted this brutalist architecture with sharp ends and strong, pointy lines on the image – and of course, the shadows that come from all of this.

Luckily, Anirudh was an architect in his past life, which made everything much smoother for me! We would go around on our bikes, checking out buildings and checking the sunlight, taking photos as we went.

Then, with Imran (Assistant Director), we planned out the timings and schedule for each location, making sure we could either rush to the next, or leave time for the sun to be where we wanted. Imran did a really good job here – he had a lot of patience with us!

Shooting outside is always tricky, because on scouting day it’s beautiful sunshine – and the second you take out a camera, it starts raining.

One day, we had a camera with us while scouting, and ended up calling Arturo (Performer) for an unofficial rehearsal, which led to us getting some great shots. We actually didn’t tell anyone on the team… this is probably the first time they’ll find out!

And on the technical side of shooting in black and white, what cameras did you use to maximise its’ impact?

A lot of it is handheld or gimbal, so Anirudh shot with a RED Komodo, and we got some vintage Leica R glasses (a 15, 28, and a 50mm), all to help us establish a visual language that could live alongside the architecture of the image.

These lenses also gave us distinctly shaped flares and a nice, soft texture on the image, which really matched the feeling we were going for.

With Goodbye to the Jungle being your Master’s Project, what do you enjoy the most about directing music videos?

I enjoy digesting a song and letting it hit me – I listen something like a hundred times! I explore what I’m feeling, forget about the lyrics and the meaning and just take an emotional ride with the ups and downs of it all. Then, I break it down into scenes.

I think that’s what I enjoy the most: you already have the tempo, the moods, and the times of the scenes before you start writing or shooting. And getting paid to do it isn’t too bad, either!

And as you gain more practical experience in this format, what do you think sets music videos apart from other mediums?

For me, it’s mainly the fact that you always have music and lyrics. I often repeat to myself – show don’t tell – because although you don’t have any dialogue, you can play with the lyrics themselves to provide subtext to your story.

I think nowadays, music videos are becoming popular again, so people are experimenting more with the medium, even doing hybrid short films – which is what I’m doing in my next project. It’s all just another way to put your stuff out there for people to see.

Watch GOODBYE TO THE JUNGLE, Directed by Andres Hidalgo

The video concept really comes to life through Arturo Lugo’s performance. As Director, how did you approach the choreography?

Arturo is the best, I’m so thankful that we collaborated. He guided me a lot in the movements, since I’m not a choreographer.

We got together a bunch of times to discuss the life of the story, and he really made it his own. He’s mostly interested in the construction of aesthetic dramaturgies, and the construction of spaces through the use of the object, the body, and space. So the locations played a huge role in his movements, helping to bring a captivating ‘organic’ quality to it all.

And finally, the video opens with Jean Cocteau’s quote about taking the fire from a burning house. What does this mean to you, in terms of the music video?

I read this quote in a book that actually really inspired this film, called Salvar el Fuego by Mexican author Guillermo Arriaga. But, really, it’s not important what it represents for me – I want people to give their own interpretation.

Full Credits for Goodbye to the Jungle

Congratulations to the many MetFilm School Berlin students and graduates involved in the latest music video for Philipp Johann Thimm:

• Director: Andres Hidalgo (MA Directing)
• Director of Photography: Anirudh Ganapathy (MA Cinematography)
• Performer: Arturo Lugo
• Producer: Mariolina Castellaneta (MA Directing)
• 1st AD: Mohammad Imran (MA Directing)
• Line Producer: Valeria Portilla (MA Directing)
• Production Assistant: Pietro Bergamasco (MA Directing)
• 1st AC: Emma Barbier (MA Cinematography)
• 2nd AC: Atakan Narman
• Gaffer: Thomas Brodtmann (MA Cinematography)
• BTS Photographer: Mariolina Falone (MA Directing)
• SFX MUA: Erika Leadbeater
• Choreographer: Arturo Lugo
• Editor: Sebastian Freire
• Colour Correction: Ana Montaño (MA Cinematography)
• Rental: 25p Cine Support
• Production Company: La Canguilera Studio

• Andres Hidalgo studied MA Directing at our Berlin campus. This degree is also available in London and Leeds.
• Explore MetFilm School Berlin at our upcoming Virtual Berlin Open Event, Wednesday 27 March, 6pm CET.