story by Michael Todd | behind-the-scenes photos by Nicholas O'Bradovich
"Sometime in the not-too-distant future, there's been a plague. Millions have died. Survivors fend for themselves in empty towns. We watch two teenagers spend the day in an abandoned house, dancing, drinking, destroying stuff, loving and trying to survive."
Thus begins the treatment, fully revealed below, of the music video for Icky Blossoms' "Perfect Vision," released July 2012. Today, we return to this scene and this abandoned house in the name of those who provided it: Habitat for Humanity. Icky Blossoms plays Habitat's Band Build fundraiser concert on Saturday at The Waiting Room. Blue Bird, Life is Cool, and John Klemmensen and the Party will open.
But back to the not-too-distant future and the filming that captured it. Icky Blossoms' Nik Fackler says the video for "Perfect Vision" was produced in a mad dash, similar to how he says the Omaha band does most work. One element needed to finish a music video that focused on the destruction of a house is finding a house to destroy.
Fackler says after desperately searching for the right one on their own, producer Tory Lenosky got a hold of Habitat for Humanity, which offered five houses "they would destroy anyway." Of the five, one stood out, Fackler says, because it was the nicest.
"This (video) came around because (Habitat) was so helpful supporting a local band and local artists," Fackler says. "We had a very small budget and very big vision, so it’s pretty amazing for them to come through and help us. I don’t think in a bigger city that would happen."
The video's cast, Jake Dunwoody and Emma Penrose, then swung bats at lamps, threw chairs through windows, and stomped on glass, wood and anything else that would break. Fackler says they listened to Ceremony at full volume as they filmed.
Take a look at materials released from the production of the "Perfect Vision" music video to get a sense of what else went into it:
PROP LIST
SCRIPT
SHOOTING SCHEDULE
FINISHED VIDEO
Credits:
Through A Glass Productions presents: Perfect Vision
Director: Icky Blossoms
Producers: Tessa Wedberg, Tory Lenosky
DP: Jeremy Osbern
Cast: Jake Dunwoody
Emma Penrose
Art Director: Greg Berger
Props: Greg Place
Key PA: Alex Lenosky
Prod Assistants: Dereck Higgins, Mason Kenton, Emma Penrose
HMU: Chevy Kozisek
BTS: Nicholas O'Bradovich
Gaffer: Nate Selee
Grip: Dominic Ciafalo
DIT/Cam Asst: Logan Gee
Colorist: Corey Hart
Asst. Editor: Jon Tvrdik
Editor: Nik Fackler
Special thanks to Nick Rowley, Carol Schrader, Tracie McPherson, Chery Griffin, Wes Clowers and Kjell Peterson.
TREATMENT
Sometime in the not-too-distant future, there's been a plague. Millions have died. Survivors fend for themselves in empty towns. We watch two teenagers spend the day in an abandoned house, dancing, drinking, destroying stuff, loving and trying to survive.
The teenagers are your typical young kids in love. Their families are gone and they only have each other. They're drifting. The video focuses on their relationship/ interactions never telling the story of what's going on outside. It's playful and light but with a sense of something dark and heavy just out of frame.
Throughout the video there are small hints of the state of the world but that story is never told.
Through loose handheld and cinematic shots we see the couple spend their day in the empty house. The girls wakes alone. She is wearing a medical dust mask. In a bedroom, we see her pace, read a book, journal, scour over a city map on the floor. She is bored but at peace. She seems to prepping for something. Crystals and amethyst line the window sill. There's a rifle leaning in the corner. She has a future device (Ipad). She puts on eye liner and mascara in a full length mirror. She's wearing a medical bracelet. Taking a sip from a crystal glass she throws it at the mirror shattering it. She is now spinning around.
Her boyfriend arrives. Hugging her from behind. She brightens.
We are now in a kitchen. The boy is unloading items onto a table from a canvas backpack. A jug of wine, rolling tobacco, fruit, can goods. candy, batteries, needles and medicine. The girl is excited. The boy pulls some handpicked flowers from under the table. They are tied with a shoestring. The girl laughs and blushes as he hands them over. There is a moment.
They are both still wearing medical dust masks. Her sleeve rolls up exposing the bicep of her arm. We see a vile of medicine. A needle being filled. The boy is giving her a shot. She returns the favor. They are face to face staring into each others eyes. Another moment. He removes her mask. She removes his. They go in for a kiss.
We are now in a mostly empty living room. The couple is dancing to an old vintage record player. Quick shots of them hanging out drinking, dancing, smoking. Showing the crawl of a lazy afternoon. The flowers in a vase filled with wine. They are happy to be here with each other. Shots of the boy skating around. The boy is doing 360's in the middle of the room with he takes a spill sending the skateboard flying. They laugh. She grabs the board, throws her glass up in the air and swings the board sending shattered glass and wine across the room.
They laugh harder. He does an uncoordinated spinning kick into the wall. She is now hitting records with the skateboard. Things escalate. Passively challenging each other they are flirtatious as they run from room to room destroying things. Plates against the wall, can foods being juggled, a dead potted plant across the room, skateboard against a light fixture, exploding lightbulbs, the boy jumping on the kitchen table, it spits in half, smashing kitchen chairs, kitchen chair through a window, spray painting the walls, running through a wall. They're fucking shit up and it's playful. They chase each other around.
We are now upstairs. They are exploring. An old dresser. A closet. The boy finds a box of items in the dresser. A rosary, old cold medicine, photographs… Items from another time. Someone else's past. In the closet the girl discovers an old ugly church dress and a neatly folded military uniform. Laughing she approaches the boy with the dress. We see the boy removing his shirt. With a smirk the dress going over his head. He is dancing around the room in the old church dress.The girl is on the bed laughing. Her reaches out for her hand. She motions, "Hold on." We see her putting on the military uniform. Swimming in the uniform,a generals cap on her head we see her spay paint a crude bulls eye on the wall. We now see the boy in front of it with the vase of flowers on his head. The girls has the gun. It's a stand off. The boy is visibly nervous. She shoots the vase. It explodes. Laughing they run to each other.
They slow dancing in the room in there costumes. Her head on his shoulder. A moment. As they dance we see more imagery of the house being destroyed. Things exploding. The boy shooting up a room with the gun. The girl running through a wall as fast as she can. The wall explodes as she falls through it and the boy laughs. They play hop sketch and spray paint on the floor. They throw empty wine glasses instead of rocks. They smash on the floor.
They are in a bathtub. Facing each other. Eating junk food. Trying to throw chips into each other mouths. Drinking the rest of the wine. Smoking a joint. Chewing bubble gum. Blowing bubbles. A bubble pops over his face. They laugh. They kiss and hold each other.
They hang out on the roof. The boy spray paints a giant SIGIL on the roof.
We are back in the bedroom. Evening is starting. They are packing up. They pile up clothes, their trash, a medical pamphlet, a future object onto the bed and light it on fire. Instead of seeing the fire, we see the faces of the lovers side by side. Colorful light dances across them and the walls. They're mesmerized. A moment.
Leaving, we follow them through the wrecked house and and to the front door. Face to face again, he puts her medical mask on her. She puts his on him. They leave.
Outside, the couple hand in hand are running towards the camera that's running with them.
Michael Todd is Hear Nebraska's managing editor. He has broken a total of three windows so far. Reach him at michaeltodd@hearnebraska.org.