FEATURE: All Regards – FALLBACK (Dir. John Stokes)
Caught in a cycle of self-destruction, Stefan Sepulveda of Melbourne Emo Punk band All Regards, wanders a house surrounded by symbols of his decline. His bandmates, distant and cool, perform around him as he repeatedly gives into his compulsions. It’s a simple metaphor for addiction, but one that perfectly embodies the band’s latest single FALLBACK. The clip’s director, John Stokes, elaborates.
“With Stefan ‘falling back’ into a Groundhog Day-esque repetitive cycle, the song is about being deeply affected by addiction (whether that be toxic relationships, all the way to substance related). We wanted to show someone unable to break a habit and this style of filmmaking felt like the most effective way to convey the meaning.”
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- Photo Credit: Act Four Photography
Shot in a beautiful Airbnb in Gembrook, deep in Melbourne’s Dandenong Ranges, the clip aims to captivate viewers with its fluid one-shot style. Inspired by what the band deems “the coolest one take video of all time” – Covered in Chrome by Violent Soho – they hoped to represent the isolating cycle of addiction. The video itself focuses on the consuming reality of alcohol abuse, centring Stefan as the protagonist caught within a self-destructive loop. He is surrounded by empty bottles, as he repeatedly walks the same route, not able to even seek solace in sleep. The location was crucial to the clip’s sinuous style, with the team embracing the wide-open space of the rustic Airbnb to create a video that’s always in motion. Already familiar with the beautiful “art-inspiring” places available in the Dandenong Ranges, the team was able to find the perfect location to realise this concept. However, trying to plan the video around a location with limited accessibility required a great deal of flexibility from the team.
“While we always knew the concept we wanted, we had to build the story around the location. We actually didn’t have time to check the place out yet, so we had to build a visual layout of that location in our heads based on the pictures alone!”
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- Photo Credit: Act Four Photography
The clip narrative elements are interwoven with electrifying moments of the band, yet, neither work in isolation. The band, increasingly present at Stefan’s every turn, help to create a burdening sense of loneliness around the protagonist. They neither acknowledge nor participate in his journey of addiction, unless it’s to enable his behaviour. When Stefan eventually breaks the cycle and re-joins the band for the final chorus, it’s a powerful instant of catharsis that elevates the explosive musicality of the song’s final moments.
“While some bands get away with it, I think it is super important to always be showcasing the members of a band in their music video. While some may watch the music video purely for the art of it, in reality, music videos are about showcasing the band as a whole. However, halfway through the music video, the band is put to further use by ‘enabling’ Stefan’s (Singer) addiction by passing him drinks. This definitely calls attention to the idea of peer pressure. But by far the most important part of the entire band performance was that they never truly acknowledge each other, which really drives the point home about addiction feeling like such a lonely journey”
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- Photo Credit: Act Four Photography
Pre-production was critical to the success of the clip’s ambitious style. The team completed a pre-visualisation of the video, so the edit could be planned prior to production. To allow for precision in the cinematography, the team added “clicks” into the track to mark the beginning of each new shot. John was also required to edit on the fly, ensuring that all difficult transitions could be executed successfully.
“It really needed an editing brain as we couldn’t totally do the transitions all in camera as we wanted to be as steady as possible with a gimbal (which is very hard to whip and rotate around). So, there were a lot of digital zooms and patching scenes together.”
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- Photo Credit: Act Four Photography
Shot on a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro, with a fast 24mm lens, the clip highlights the skills of Cinematographer and Camera Operator David Truasheim. The Blackmagic Pocket Camera was chosen for its ability to shoot 6K, allowing John more freedom in the edit to seamlessly patch scenes together. With the camera mounted on a gimbal, David filmed the clip’s striking single takes, all while focusing the camera manually – an incredibly impressive feat. A selection of Aputure lights were positioned outside the house and through the windows, while director Stokes walked behind the camera with a key light to illuminate the talent. Unfortunately, this complex set up was met with a frustrating surprise.
“The biggest challenge was we had a forecast of no rain and we knew we had to have lights blasting through all the windows to get the look we wanted. Of course, it started to rain like hell which meant we had to run out and get everything under cover. It definitely set us back a little but we shifted the schedule around to shoot scenes that didn’t require windows and brought the lights inside, so we didn’t lose too much time.”
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- Photo Credit: Act Four Photography
The high levels of coordination required to film the video also brought with it a unique obstacle for the band’s front man, Stefan.
“Some takes were pretty full on in showing multiple elements of the story. In one take people had to be in different spots both behind the scenes and in front of the camera. This took a bit of practice, all while trying to limit takes so poor Stefan’s stomach didn’t explode from a grape juice overload. Ah… I mean… wine.”
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- Photo Credit: Act Four Photography
FALLBACK was an immense outlet for the band, one which personifies the isolation and hopelessness that co-exists with addiction. The music video is the perfect accompaniment for such a track, elevating these thematic beats while also showcasing the force of the band’s live performance. It is taken from All Regards’ upcoming EP All Our Dreams Turn To Nightmare, which came out on November 1st.
Here is the official video for “FALLBACK“
Music Video Credits
Production Company: Shotpro. Director & Editor: John Stokes. Cinematographer: David Truasheim. Photography: Beth Morrison (Act Four Photography). Graphics/Artwork: CJ Holmberg (Kyomei) & Jack Smith (Party Frog Designs).
