A World Away

My fascination with dance, which I pursued into my mid teens, has never left me and movement remains an important element in my work.  The objects I create are inanimate and lifeless, but they come to life with the movement of the body, like a mask or a puppet.  I had long dreamt of capturing the movement of my pieces that a still photograph does not convey.  This video marked the beginning of a new direction in my work.  It was also my first collaborative project.

Back in April 2015 I had the pleasure of meeting Jenna Lee at a party.  We agreed to collaborate on making a video of a dancer wearing some oversized jewellery.  In order to create an otherworldly feel we needed people with the necessary skills and equipment for shooting in a blacked out space and we were fortunate to gather a talented team.

Time was short and I completed the necklace only days before the shoot, not knowing how it would behave on Nancy, our lovely dancer.  Fortunately, it worked.  In fact there were a few surprises as it did more than I'd envisaged - it flicked up with a roll of one shoulder and closed over her face, like a Venus flytrap, when Nancy shrugged her shoulders.  I stood back and watched as the necklace was brought to life in ways I hadn't imagined.

The last addition to the mix was my good friend Ed from the band, GAPS.  I had been following their music for a while and played their debut album, In, Around The Moments, at the shoot.  The mood of the record fit perfectly with the feeling we wanted to create.  Ed and I discussed the idea of making a new track/sound scape for the video, but on seeing the rough cut, he proposed that our video could be the music video for their next single, A World Away.  And this is the result.

Click hear to watch the full music video

Huge thanks to everyone who gave their time and creative energy to the project.

Choreographer:  Jenna Lee of JLee Productions
Dancer:  Nancy Osbaldeston
Music:  GAPS
Camera/lighting assistant:  Benjamin Ringwood
Production assistant:  Matt McCartney
Colourist:  Dave Austin
DoP and Editor:  Josh Cowdry
Hair and Makeup:  AJ Juttla
Assistant and still photography:  Ellen Alberti
Assistant:  Stacey Blackman

With Special thanks to:
The Royal Ballet of Flanders
Dr Sarah Siegler
Inge Heylen