Best Video Nominee: Feist's "1234"
Director: Patrick DaughtersMemorable credits: Feist's "I Feel it All," The Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Gold Lion," Death Cab For Cutie's "Title and Registration"
The Video: To the sounds of a strumming acoustic guitar, a lonely Feist steps into a cavernous warehouse. Before she can count to 10 (despite skipping numbers 7 and 8), a rainbow of bouncing hipsters floods the room. While Feist croons about "old teenage hopes" the crowd skips and bops about with all the ebullience of a kindergarten gym class – if their teacher happened to be Busby Berkeley. After the three minute mark, you'll be dying to learn the choreography yourself – and possibly considering a new iPod purchase.
Where the concept came from: According to the clip's executive producer, Jannie McInnes (Revolver Films for the Directors Bureau), the idea was first sparked by Feist. Growing up in Cow Town, young Leslie Feist got the chance to dance in the opening ceremonies of the 1988 Calgary Olympics. "She was part of a large group choreography – where they created, for example, the shape of a large bird with hundreds of bodies," says McInnes.
Between Feist and Daughters, a concept was hammered out, and then presented to choreographer Noemie LaFrance for workshopping. "The treatment suggested that a large group of friends were dancing together in a random industrial empty space creating various shapes, in a video shot in one take," LaFrance recalls. A number of routines were scrapped before they settled on the video's showstopper steps, she says, but each incarnation of the choreography shared a common inspiration. "I also was informed by the song itself that reminded me of adolescence and the love and the sentiments of belonging to a group that we never experience again in the same way as an adult," says LaFrance. "I wanted to get some of that feeling back in the room."
Biggest challenge in making the video: McInnes sums it up in a single word: time. They had a mere three days to execute all the fancy footwork that made the final cut. "I remember looking at Patrick during the first of two rehearsals with an 'OMG' epiphany of what needed to be pulled off with such a large group in no time," says McInnes. "There was no, well, you can just cut to the Feist performing in the other set up option if they don't get it together. But then they pulled it off 150 per cent!"
"We worked very fast," adds LaFrance. "As dancers and choreographers we don't usually choreograph a piece in three days. It's like if we asked a musician to write a song and do the arrangements, rehearse the song with the band and record a final product in studio in three days. It's a bit insane, but everyone involved teamed up and worked really concentrated and intensely at their best on the piece and that was an amazing feeling.
Why they'll always remember this shoot: McInnes is all exclamation points when recalling the shoot's "unparalleled good vibes" and LaFrance seems be in perfect agreement. The choreographer recalls: "we shot the piece more than 20 times and each one was as fun as the next and at the end the dancers did not want to stop."
Adds McInnes: "There was just such synchronicity between the incredible energy of the dancers, fantastic support from the crew and the inspired three people at the top of the production – Patrick Daughters (director), Noemie LaFrance (choreographer) and Feist. It was very exciting to feel we were pulling off something really special concept-wise for an artist who everyone loves so much. It's rare to get all those things at once. And it's rare for dancers in Toronto to work on a music video that isn't about booty shaking. Those dancers gave really generously!"
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