Director Marc Wilkins, who’s repped in the U.S. by bicoastal Rabbit, captures a slice of Kiev nightlife frozen in time in the sultry and atmospheric new 2:20 “Shake,” for the Ukrainian alcoholic beverage of the same name, produced direct-to-client by Radioaktive Films, Kiev.
“Shake” brings the same ‘time-slice’ film technique used in the now-famed Philips “Carousel” to a swinging night out on the town.
Said Wilkins, “The solution is actually a “fake time-slice,” where people pretend to freeze–standing still on set–and the camera moves through frozen time. As a fan of unusual storytelling, I was excited to experiment with this approach myself.”
The spot consists of a single shot, opening on a statuesque model frozen in a pose on a city street. As the camera pulls back, we see the scene around her: a crowd of club-goers and a doorman opening the velvet ropes for her, all frozen completely still. The camera continues to move inside the nightclub as techno music throbs, passing more motionless beautiful people, picking up the same model again later on in the evening, locked in mid-stride away from the bar carrying a bottle of Shake.
Continuing to move through the club, where drinks are frozen mid-pour and revelers’ hair is suspended mid-dance, the camera picks up the model again. On the dance floor, we see a well-dressed, handsome man in the midst of reaching out to her. The camera continues to push past her, once again maneuvering through the clubscape of statue-like partiers. The camera’s serpentine movement through the club continues to pick up the model and her new boyfriend at intervals throughout the night: taking over the DJ booth, spraying champagne and, finally, locked in a steamy embrace. The two minute-plus camera move continues across the floor before picking up the couple one last time–this time, she is frozen in mid-motion again as she leads the handsome stranger by the hand towards the exit, where the dawning sunlight pours through the open door. In her boyfriend’s hand are two bottles of Shake.
To create the seamless camera move, Wilkins used six different Steadicam shots, shooting at 50fps with the ARRI Alexa. “Shooting at 50fps helped the actors maintain their frozen pose, but also forced us to move the Steadicam even faster. In post, we didn’t have the time or budget for a lot of VFX, so we had to do as much as possible in-camera. This adds a level of realism that I’m really proud of,” said Wilkins.
“Shake” is currently airing in the Ukraine.
“Overnight Success” Has Been More Than A Decade In The Making For Meghann Fahy and Eve Hewson
Meghann Fahy and Eve Hewson, two of the stars of Netflix's whodunit "The Perfect Couple," have news for you if you want to call them breakouts: They've been working in this business for more than a decade.
Fahy made her TV debut in 2009 in an episode of "Gossip Girl." Hewson's first big film role was in 2011's "This Must Be the Place." They do concede, however, that it's recent TV roles — "The White Lotus" for Fahy and "Bad Sisters" for Hewson — that have led to new frontiers of opportunity.
Susanne Bier, who directed "The Perfect Couple," says both Fahy and Hewson are "going to be big stars."
"They certainly have proper, profound star quality, Both of them in very different ways," Bier says. "Both are incredibly creative, incredibly smart, and also have a impressive insight as to who they are. You can be a great actor or actress and not necessarily really know who you are yourself. And they do."
Hewson, 33, whose dad is U2 front man Bono, may have grown up in a famous family but she's now in demand in her own right. She will next be seen in a second season of "Bad Sisters, " out in November. She's in Noah Baumbach's next film, alongside Adam Sandler, George Clooney and Riley Keough. She's also been cast in Steven Spielberg's next production and is set to star opposite Murray Bartlett in a racing series for Hulu.
Fahy, 34, is in production on a limited series with Julianne Moore and Milly Alcock called "Sirens," written by Molly Smith Metzler ("Maid") for Netflix. She also has two films in the can with Josh O'Connor ("The Crown," "Challengers") and Brandon Sklenar ("It Ends With Us").
The two actors spoke candidly about this phase of their careers. This interview has been condensed for clarity and... Read More