“Nobody Knows / Keep Calm and Carry On- Moon Bride” by Daniel Rosenberg
“Nobody Knows / Keep Calm and Carry On” is a medley featuring not one, but two songs off of Moon Bride’s latest album, Insomnie. Staying true to the album’s theme of restlessness and awakening, it visualizes a woman breaking free from the mundane to find a world in technicolor, but no more answers than questions. The eccentric, retro-pop soundtrack quickly turns from a Judy Garland-style lullaby to an upbeat, rockabilly-grunge ballad with nods to Weezer and The Pixies.
In a whopping 3 1/2 minutes the team managed to fit 9 characters (all played by Kotula herself), a dozen different sets, and 9 outfits - 6 of which were handmade by Victoria Singleton. Singleton looked to the name Moon Bride for her otherworldly designs, as well as tastemakers of the 60’s futurism movement. Invested in recreating the quality of traditional film processes, director/editor Daniel Rosenberg drew inspiration from orthochromatic film (“Nobody Knows”) and 35mm technicolor (“Keep Calm and Carry On”). The crew shot for 3 full days at NODA Art House in Charlotte.
The first collaboration between Moon Bride and producer, Boy Howdy, “Nobody Knows / Keep Calm and Carry On” is as playful as the songs it envisions. Taking inspiration from Old Hollywood classics and Harper’s Bazaar’s Man Ray with a sci-fi punk-rock spin, it is an artful, extravagant, and totally original trip through time and space.
FROM THE DIRECTOR
“This was not only the debut video for Moon Bride, but the first major project for Boy Howdy. With that in mind it was critical that we didn't hold anything back and wear our heart's on our sleeves. On Moon Bride's Insomnie, "Nobody Knows" & "Keep Calm and Carry On" are sequenced back to back. The contrast they provide to each other made for a perfect opportunity to do a double feature. The isolation and melancholy of "Nobody Knows" allows "Keep Calm and Carry On" to feel even more cathartic. For "Nobody Knows" inspiration was drawn from the fashion photography shot by Man Ray for Harper's Bazaar. "Keep Calm and Carry On" pushes us a few decades further and leans into technicolor spectacle, the futurism of Pierre Cardin, and the mad cap musicals of Ken Russell.
The ambitious scope of this project combined with the razor thin budget meant that being meticulous in pre-production was essential to achieving the very specific vision our team was looking to execute. This was made possible by Art Director Zoë Lotus' storyboards, which acted as our north star throughout the project. Working in tandem with Art Director Zoë Lotus, Costume designer and Makeup artist Victoria Singleton was brought on with the brief, "Is it possible to do Pierre Cardin on a shoestring budget?" She ran with this and created 9 outfits 6 of which are bespoke for the project.”
-Daniel Rosenberg
Credits
Produced by Boy Howdy
Directed and Edited by Daniel Rosenberg
Art Director// Zoë Lotus
Assistant Director// Pat Kotula
Costume Design & Hair and Makeup// Victoria Singleton
Music and Performance by Moon Bride
Filmed at NODA Art House in Charlotte, NC
Special thanks to Daniel Harp, Tom Taich, and Hannah Glavin for their contributions.
SONG CREDITS
Music and lyrics by Carly Kotula
Vocals// Carly Kotula
Piano, keys, and acoustic guitar// Phil Hodges
Drums/percussion// Michael Minkoff
Synths and electric guitar// James S. Smith
Bass guitar & organ// Adam Higgins
Electric guitar// Patrick Smith
Vocals// “The Dying Pigeons” (Adeline Scully, Amity Minkoff, Sari Smith, Selah Minkoff)
Produced by James S. Smith and Michael Minkoff
Produced, Recorded, Engineered and Mixed by James S. Smith and Michael Minkoff at Clubmen Studio in Blairsville, GA
Mastered by Matthew Barnhart at Chicago Mastering
Send Us Your Film
Hey filmmakers! Have a project of your own you’d like us to check out?