Pulse Films has added directing duo SOB to its music video roster. Having met studying graphic design at Central Saint Martins, Sosa Ohen and Joe Shaw began collaborating. The focus of their personal projects went beyond graphic design as they began to experiment with art direction, branding and moving image. As their work continued to evolve, their creative vision grew and after graduating in 2018 the pair decided to collaborate more officially under the SOB moniker. SOB’s creative partnership with artist Collard was struck during their second year of university. Since then the directors were put in full control of Collard’s creative and artistic direction for the performer’s debut album Unholy. SOB ‘s direction included album artwork, music videos, marketing and tour visuals. Their visuals for “Warrior Cry” and “Hell Song” have garnered widespread acclaim for their richness and sophistication. SOB launches at Pulse with Collard’s latest video for “Merciless”….
Does “Hundreds of Beavers” Reflect A New Path Forward In Cinema?
Hard as it may be to believe, changing the future of cinema was not on Mike Cheslik's mind when he was making "Hundreds of Beavers." Cheslik was in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with a crew of four, sometimes six, standing in snow and making his friend, Ryland Tews, fall down funny.
"When we were shooting, I kept thinking: It would be so stupid if this got mythologized," says Cheslik.
And yet, "Hundreds of Beavers" has accrued the stuff of, if not quite myth, then certainly lo-fi legend. Cheslik's film, made for just $150,000 and self-distributed in theaters, has managed to gnaw its way into a movie culture largely dominated by big-budget sequels.
"Hundreds of Beavers" is a wordless black-and-white bonanza of slapstick antics about a stranded 19th century applejack salesman (Tews) at war with a bevy of beavers, all of whom are played by actors in mascot costumes.
No one would call "Hundreds of Beavers" expensive looking, but it's far more inventive than much of what Hollywood produces. With some 1,500 effects shots Cheslik slaved over on his home computer, he crafted something like the human version of Donald Duck's snowball fight, and a low-budget heir to the waning tradition of Buster Keaton and "Naked Gun."
At a time when independent filmmaking is more challenged than ever, "Hundreds of Beavers" has, maybe, suggested a new path forward, albeit a particularly beaver-festooned path.
After no major distributor stepped forward, the filmmakers opted to launch the movie themselves, beginning with carnivalesque roadshow screenings. Since opening in January, "Hundreds of Beavers" has played in at least one theater every week of the year, though never more than 33 at once. (Blockbusters typically play in around 4,000 locations.)... Read More