Amidst the widely threat
COVID-19, a breath of fresh air was experienced by some young students, and
Swifties, from Pampanga when the original director of Taylor Swift’s Wildest
Dream applauded the group’s re-creation of the said music video for their
school requirement.
After garnering thousands of
reaction on twitter, some fans tagged the original director, Joseph Khan, of
the music video.
Filipino Wildest Dreams just ended me. https://t.co/xCmtQnQvbs— Joseph Kahn (@JosephKahn) March 23, 2020
Beneath all the fame and
recognitions, we are sure that some interesting things happened even before the
post-production of the music video and so we asked them more about the video.
Jerome and Alanis, directors
and Swifties, knew instantly that they have to do something related to Taylor
Swift once their teacher announced their school requirement. After deliberation
they’ve decided that they will do the Wildest Dream to utilize the empty lots around
their area for the recreation of the field scene from the original video. And in
lieu of wild animals, they have local livestocks, something they proposed to
the group which others agreed on.
When asked about the creation
process, here’s what Alanis said:
“The process was faster than we'd
expected. It's actually easy because we're already familiar with what we can
offer (individually) to the table, like how we didn't need to discuss that
Guillermo would be the one to do the camera works and editing, that Justine and
Paulo would play the main, since they're usually the leads when it comes to
role-plays and short films (same with Diana, Earl, and Benedik who we knew
could play their roles excellently), that Mikha would fit as stylist since she
knows her way with clothes, or that Alex and Karen will be the ones in-charge
with the props because they're the artists. They let Jerome and I direct
because who would better direct a Taylor Swift music video project than
Swifties themselves?”
Recreating a music video can
be a tough job but recreating a TAYLOR SWIFT MUSIC VIDEO is a whole new level
of difficulty. Her music videos are known to be grand and very meticulously
done with a hefty amount of budget to spare.
Thankfully, with wild animals’
intervention, their group were able to replace wild animals with local ones. At
first, they wanted to use of video clips of pigs to replace the lions but due
to the African Swine Flu which affected pigs they were advised not to. Since
one of their location is a rice field it was fortunate for them when a group of
carabaos passed by. Another fun fact is their disclaimer ‘no animals were
harmed in the making of this video’, apparently it was an inside joke since
they found a dead chicken while filming the yellow dress scene so they decided
to put the disclaimer even though the poor animal wasn’t shown.
Also, if you will look closely
into details, some lion shots from the original video were replaced with… cats.
The scene where a lion bared his teeth was replaced by a portrait of a cat and
then another scene were Taylor dramatize beside a lion was replaced by Justine lip
syncing beside a tractor under the brand Caterpillar Inc. or stylized as CAT
(as seen on the music video).
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| Original Music Video |
 |
| Filipino re-creation |
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| Original Music Video |
 |
| Filipino re-creation |
Another help the group got is
from some bikers who lend their lights to shoot the night scene.
 |
| Night scene with the help of the borrowed LED lights from some bikers |
“We were having trouble shooting
the night scene since we only had our phones to use as flashlights when some
bikers saw us and they were generous enough to lend their LED flood light,
which provided good lighting for the bridge part of the music video.”
When asked about their
reaction with Joseph Kahn’s reaction here is what they have to say;
“It was unexpected! It didn't
sink in immediately that the Joseph Kahn acknowledged our video, and even
praised it. He's an amazing director, he's directed for Taylor, Lady Gaga,
Britney Spears, Mariah Carey, Katy Perry, and so many more amazing artists. I
think most of us started to realize how real it was when there were articles
& people congratulating us. It's still so mind-blowing!”
Despite all the challenges
they faced, resources, time-constraints, and other stuff, their main takeaway
from this experience is that despite the limitations they knew that they can do
great things especially when it’s something they are passionate about.
“Always do your best whatever you
do. As long as you have the commitment to your work and the right people to
work along with you, the results will surely turn out to be great and other
people are bound to appreciate it too. It is a completely different experience
to create something you love, because you made it with the people you trust and
with the best of your talents.”
Watch the video here:
YOUTUBE (Extended Version with Behind the Scenes) :
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PGDaAB1eunU&feature=youtu.be
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PGDaAB1eunU&feature=youtu.be
Directors:
Jerome Cortez
Alanis Renei Berja
Cinematography and Edting:
Guillermo Quizon
Cast:
Justine Manalansan (Taylor Swift)
Paulo Mendoza (Male lead)
Earl Justin Lagman (Director)
Karen Mae Bengco (Supporting Actress)
Alexander Singque (Supporting Actor)
Benedik Tuaño (Supporting Actor)
Mikhaella Santos (Supporting Actress)
Diana Rose David (Supporting Actress)
Stylist:
Mikhaella Santos
Props:
Karen Mae Bengco
Alexander Singque
The Daily Mix Mag is an online music website based in the Philippines which is dedicated to all the latest news and happenings in the music industry. We feature news, events, latest song releases, and artists. For collaborations and partnerships please see this link.
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