CMU School of Drama


Thursday, March 30, 2017

2,300 LEDs Sync Up with Beats in Lusine’s New Music Video

Creators: A custom lighting rig featuring 2,300 LEDs was used to create the hypnotic pulsing visuals in the music video for Lusine's track, "Just a Cloud," taken from new album Sensorimotor. The video is by director Michael Reisinger, who collaborated with Alex Borton to create the setup.

The rig, featuring 11 separate LED panels and over 1,000 feet of wiring, surrounds an actress listening to her headphones as she travels along on a city bus. The LED lights imitate the beats of the music with the journey becoming more intense until the woman awakens into a new reality.

2 comments:

Rebecca Meckler said...

First off, the images and videos in this article are stunning. I was honestly surprised to find out that this music video was created with lights. I would have assumed, if I had seen this video seperate of the article, that the effects were created with CGI. I would have thought that CGI would have been an easier and cheaper way to create the images. therefore , I was surprised to find out that they were recorded live at first. I was also surprised by the size of the lighting rig. To me, 2,300 light and 11 LED Panels sounds like a lot of lights for a music video. However it's great that the director wanted to be innovative. Another part of the article that I thought was interesting, was when the director said that he makes a conscious effort to make sure that the videos are about the art, not about having cool effects. I think that is a very interesting line to think about. Where does making something high tech and interesting meet with making art.

Madeleine Wester said...

I really enjoyed this music video. First of all, the actual story that is trying to be portrayed in this video is pretty unique. The concept that this person is reaching a higher level of being and is experiencing incomprehensible emotions and sensations is so intriguing! I feel like recent music videos have focused on more tangible and visceral concepts, so it's nice to see a music video that focuses on such an abstract idea. On top of that, the lighting rig and the work that went into making it is amazing. The LED's on the woman's face create an interesting ethereal feel. I could see Lusine's idea and video spurning more of an interest in abstract music video art. I could also see this sort of lighting rig being used in many more music videos or potentially theater. Similarly to Rebecca, I think it's unique that the artist emphasizes the art part of this and not the actual tech being used.