top of page

Raindance Film Festival 2021
Music Videos

It's all fun and games until it's not in this seemingly normal studio performance by Good Wilson.

Hey Rupert, it's great to talk with you, how have you been keeping during these strange times? 

Thank you, it hasn’t been to bad luckily, there were ups and downs but most of the time a lot of work.

Has this time offering you the chance to find some new inspiration or opportunities?

More like new challenges, for example I had a shoot not that long ago where we made custom FFP2 masks with the faces of the actors printed on it, to create a safer environment to shoot a group scene.

The rest of my workflow hasn’t changed that much, I was used to working from home before the pandemic and also used to shooting in small teams, since that’s something I really love to do in general, if the project allows it. 

Congratulations on having Till We Meet Again at Raindance 2021, how does it feel to you to be back at the festival?

Thank you, I’m really happy to be back! I was there two years ago with another video „Leyya - Wannabe“, it was great to visit the festival and meet everyone there. Sadly I wasn’t able to make it this year, but hopefully there will be a chance next year again.

Can you tell me a little bit about Till We Meet Again, what inspired this music video?

I’m good friends with the band so I was confident enough to pitch them the idea where I basically said, ok you will perform in a studio and I will hire this actor who messes around with you. You won’t know what will happen, you just have to keep performing.

That was a really fun concept to explore and the idea of shooting a performance video where I mess with the band was something I wanted to do in a long time. A great inspiration for this was the amazing video „Real Estate - Darling“. The band performs in a studio and they just put a horse next to them and no one knows what the horse will do next. It’s so simple and so genius, I really love it. I basically just swapped the horse with the great actor Alexander E. Fennon and came up with some silly childhood pranks.

What was it about Good Wilson's music that connected with you as a filmmaker?

I really love the laid back and dreamy vibe and that kind of music is a great stage for humour, something I also love to work with. Also all of the band members are super fun and chill, so it was great to shoot that kind of video with them.

rupert_portrait.jpg

As well as writing and directing Till We Meet Again you also Edited and produced your music video, how do you manage all these creative roles on a shoot like this?

I always direct and edit my music videos, it’s just the workflow I’m used to and I think it’s a productive process, since I (mostly) have really detailed scripts and concepts, so it makes sense to edit it on my own as well, other than having to explain how I want it to someone else. I think it also won’t be that fun for someone else to edit it, since there is a pretty clear plan most of the times. 

The fact that I also often produce videos myself is just a matter of budget, sometimes there’s just not enough money to hire a producer.

How important is the collaboration between a director and the artist on a music video like this?

In this case it’s really important in terms of trust. I didn’t include the band at all in the preproduction intentionally, since I wanted genuine reactions from them during the shoot. But to have them on board to do that, trust is really important. 

Where did your passion for filmmaking and music videos come from?

That’s a good question, I didn’t have that classic experience where I saw a specific movie and then went „Oh yeah I want to do that as well“. We had a camera lying around when I grew up. When I was really young we recreated some commercials we saw on TV with my dad, my mom and my sister, that was really fun. And when I was about 14, I started experimenting with the camera myself and created silly videos which I uploaded on Youtube. The first one I ever made was for a video competition and I came 3rd place and won a ski helmet, that was a great motivation.

"...sometimes everything sucks and you just have to force yourself to keep going, that’s also part of the game."

How much has your style and the approach to writing and directing music videos changed since your debut?

Quite a lot. I originally started exploring a lot of effects, playing around with After Effects etc. but then came to a more „classic“ narrative style, making some short films and also working with narrative concepts in music videos. There was a specific music video „Mynth - Smog“ that inspired my style a lot. We shot it in Spain at Muralla Roja, a surreal building by Ricardo Bofill, that place was a great inspiration. Since then I love to work with colours, architecture, subtle humour and subtle visual effects. I love the feeling of people asking „is that real?“. I found out that I basically went back to my origins, to that weird stuff I made as a 14 year old, just better (I hope).

Do you have any advice or tips you would offer fellow directors?

The key is consistency, don’t give up if your first project(s) don’t turn out exactly as planned, it’s a long and hard process, but it’s always worth it, if you give it your everything.

Other than that just find a style you love and something you enjoy making. It’s important that it’s fun. And sometimes everything sucks and you just have to force yourself to keep going, that’s also part of the game.

And finally, what do you hope people will take away Till We Meet Again?

I’d say just a fun experience while watching and maybe some thoughts after it, how all that came together.

© 2025 The New Current

  • Threads
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Email
bottom of page