FEATURE: Duxie Franklin – After the Storm (Dir. Duxie Franklin)
There is something inherently theatrical about an ‘80s power ballad. Simmering emotions give way to sweeping catharsis, channeling personal anguish into something almost epic and victorious. Inspired by her own experiences of chronic pain and mental health, Naarm/Melbourne multidisciplinary artist Duxie Franklin pairs ascendant guitars and ethereal vocals with a stark monochrome music video that transforms the Victorian coastline into a landscape of trial and triumph. The landscape is brought to life by the video’s black and white palette, where the monochromatic imagery strips the landscape back to light, texture and movement, mirroring the emotional tunnel vision that accompanies periods of struggle and grief. Duxie went in-depth about the process of translating the music into visual form, saying how:
“‘80s power ballads tend to have a slow, sustained build culminating in a big, cathartic release; this was exactly what I wanted to achieve both with the song itself and the video. Especially at the start of the video, I kept the shots drawn-out, closely framed and intimate, focusing on details in the rocks, ocean and fabric. As the song expands sonically and emotionally, the shots become wider, the cuts faster and there is increased movement.”
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- Behind The Scenes
Met with the sound of rain and thunder within the opening frames, immediately we are thrown into the eye of the storm. Waves crash against rock as the landscape sits in foreboding hues of grey. The world feels bleak and a little hopeless, personifying the violent emotional force that surrounds our protagonist. The jagged landscape shares equal screen time with Duxie in these opening moments. It’s a physical and inward journey captured in claustrophobic close-ups of grasping hands and searching feet. Equally as suffocating is the fabric encasing Duxie. Stark black against the textured rock, it overwhelms her body, moving with the wind and sand. It’s a powerful piece of costuming that takes on great emotional weight. And this was entirely intentional. Duxie herself put great thought behind the visual impact of her costume, swatching and switching a range of fabrics to best capture the drama and gravitas of the song. She elaborates on the creative process:
“As we settled on the location and I started to visualise the imagery in my mind, I designed a very simple dress from a mid-weight cheesecloth. Then, to accompany the dress, I made an extra long cape shawl out of super light-weight sheer fusible stretch interfacing fabric. I intentionally left all edges of the costume unfinished and then went in with a blade tool and added extra fraying and tears to the edges to exaggerate the feel of raw emotion and the punishing impact of the storm.”
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- Behind The Scenes
As both the song and video reach their climax, we leave behind the oppressive camera angles and reach the moment of emotional release. Finally we see the vast expanse of Duxie’s surrounds, the endless ocean and sky. Her costume too becomes a fixture of this landscape. The cape becomes almost arboreal, echoing the movement of the windswept trees and finally allowing her the freedom denied in the video’s opening. While not strictly a performance style music video, the epic scale of this moment brings about the energy of a live performance. It’s grand, dynamic and theatrical. Despite the landscape’s fundamental role in the video, this wasn’t always the plan. Although the conception of the project was always rooted in an ’80s-ballad aesthetic, Duxie and her team hadn’t planned to shoot on location. That changed after discovering a perfect setting on the Mornington Peninsula, which reshaped the video’s visual arc. As Duxie explains:
“The location wasn’t initially intended to play such a big role in the video. My concept was always to feature a ‘storm’ bombarding the protagonist – rain, wind etc. – in a classic, if somewhat cheesy, 80s style music video. We brainstormed for a while on how to create these conditions in a studio using wind machines and a sprinkler but it was too difficult. So we started looking at outdoor locations where wind and rain could be an authentic factor. I am naturally drawn to the coast and after a scouting trip down the Mornington Peninsula, the scene was set!”
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- Behind The Scenes
Practical considerations shaped the production as much as aesthetics. Battling wind, rain and tides required lightweight cameras capable of moving with the landscape rather than against it. A DJI Action 6 and DJI Pocket 3 allowed for this flexibility, with the latter’s built-in gimbal necessary for achieving steady shots and camera movement. Shooting primarily in 4K also provided significant flexibility in post-production, where subtle digital zooms and pans recreated the dynamic motion characteristic of classic ‘80s music videos. The challenges posed by the location also extended beyond the ocean and the weather. As Duxie discovered, the Peninsula had a few surprises of its own:
“At one point, my action camera operator, Cameron, had to stand in some bushes to get a shot and was bitten on the ankles by bull-ants. During one of the early location scouting test shoots in February, I was trying out a few different dress/costume ideas and stupidly didn’t wear sunscreen and got absolutely roasted. Chris nearly collapsed from the heat and carrying all the gear about 2km across unpaved beach and rough terrain. Happily, the final shooting location was far more accessible. And I wore sunscreen.”
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- Behind The Scenes
As the tide recedes and the final notes disappear into the sound of the ocean, After The Storm leaves behind a final moment of peace. A moment to sit alongside Duxie on the rocks of the Mornington Peninsula and breathe deep. While triumphant in its musicality, the track closes on something quieter; a moment to reflect on the hope we must all hold onto.
