Arlo Parks: Live At WMC
BBC.
Film & TV
We’ve been working with the Festival of Voice, or LLAIS, for a number of years – and 2021 was no different… other than the fact it was online, due to Covid!
We’ve been shooting live sessions since we started out as a company, however the pandemic and the resulting increase in online live sessions, really made us rethink how to do it better. We wanted to give our sessions a truly ‘live’ and personal feel and the obvious answer was to start filming with our camera ops hooked up to a live-editing desk.
This new approach didn’t just give our sessions a new live feel, it allowed our camera ops to think and film in new ways, making filming more spontaneous. Communicating with headsets also helped create a stronger sense of style, with a live editor able to make more creative decisions. It also made our workflow more efficient.
For Arlo Parks, we really wanted to showcase another level of live work, integrating live lighting changes to match the emotions and energy of each song. We knew that in combination with the dramatic backdrop of the Welsh Millenium Centre, we could create something great and keep audiences at home, who were missing live music after a year without, entertained throughout.
Our Director of Photography worked closely with the lighting technician to run through each song; starting out understated and soft with Hurt, to moody blue hues for Black Dog, and ending with hazy light bouncing off a disco ball for the slow funk of Cola.
“The project was a highlight of the festival. On Par are conscientious producers and made the collaboration a real pleasure. Particularly skilled at bringing together the right team, outlining their creative vision to us and Arlo’s management ahead of a very tight schedule. They were professional, skilled and relaxed.”
Wales Millennium Centre
Arlo and the band were a pleasure to work with, still rising in fame at the time. They played to click which meant we could record two full sessions live, and in post-production, cut between the two when needed, while still keeping the ‘live’ feel. Additionally, we conducted an interview with Arlo themself, to give short breaks throughout the session.
We’ve worked with FOV since life returned back to normality, shooting their in-person festival again, with acts like John Cale, Gwenno, and Hot Chip.
