Franz Impler builds cities impressed by video video games for Zouj's new music video
“The name of the song, j0_0j, can be translated into“ Jouj ”. That means “two” in Moroccan Arabic, ”explains animator Franz Impler, the brain behind the new music video for Zouj's (also known as Adam Lenox) new title.
"For me, the song is about standing between two worlds and entering a new one," adds Impler. “I tried to translate this through the different worlds in the video. There is this unreal and threatening city on the one hand and on the other hand this flowery landscape that is dreamy and soft, but also a bit unreal. Everything flickers as if between different states. I tried to imagine the transformation of the worlds. "
Impler has known the musician for some time and a mutual appreciation of each other's work has led him to collaborate on this project. “Adam's new music project was the perfect opportunity to begin our first collaboration. He asked me if I wanted to make a video for his new project and I immediately said yes, ”says Impler. "To me, it feels like my animations would sound a bit like Adam's music if I could hear them."
We first wrote over Impler's love for video games was in the 90s last year and he has adapted that playful, purple hued video game aesthetic for the video. "I like the imperfection and rawness of the aesthetics of old school video games, the ferocity and speed and the transformation of those aspects for my work, ”says the animator.
When creating the video, Impler started with a raw storyboard, but early on he started building the city in Cinema 4D. "I kept moving away from the original storyboard and the ideas, ”says Impler. “I like to create the worlds in which my animations take place first, even before I know exactly what is going to happen there. This gives me the opportunity to handle the work and the entire process in a very playful way. Then I can still change everything or add new things so that the idea and concept can evolve along the way. "
Although Impler had the appearance of the video free, he was aware that the song came from a personal perspective. "It's a very personal song from Adam. I have a completely different background than him, so I had to find my own approach to the story of the song, ”explains the animator. “I had to be aware of both my own position on the subject of the song and Adam's. It was a balancing act. Adam gave me complete creative freedom, but I kept in touch with him and he gave feedback and advice. That helped a lot. "
Music has always been one of Impler's main sources of inspiration, so it felt like a dream project to be able to make a music video. “Listening to music is often the starting point for my projects. It triggers my visual / cinematic imagination. Especially Adam's distinctive sounds, which to me feel very visual, ”says Impler. “So making animation for music fits in very well with my usual creative process. And it's great fun to use the rhythm of the music and translate it into a cinematic rhythm. "
The animator hopes the video will enhance the experience of listening to Zouj's song, rather than just acting as accompanying visual elements. "Kind of a complementary story or feeling," he says. "But I'm also happy if it's entertaining and people like to watch it while they hear the song. I really like the music and the song and I hope the video can enrich the whole experience. "
franzimpler.com