Cut glass: L'Hotel Dystopie
A dark future of excess and grandeur, voyeuristically detailed
Jake Harmer is a Producer and Editor at LoveHate productions, a company fast becoming known for creating moving images of great style and originality.
For his directorial debut Jake collaborated with Darren Knight (Fashion Director on the printed version of glass) to create a disturbing and enigmatic vision of the future. He took time out of his busy schedule to talk to us about his new piece.
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This is your Directorial Debut for LoveHate, how did the experience differ from your previous roles?
As Director it is your vision that every single person on set is working hard to create, and although filmmaking is a collaborative process if it turns into a disaster generally the buck stops with you. So there’s a constant pressure nestled at the back of your mind. Though this is massively outweighed by the pure joy of realizing a dream, or colliding of thoughts and styles from your sub-conscious into existence, into a cohesive film.
As your role has changed how have your relationships with the crew changed? Your dialogue with the Director of Photography must be now much more involved.
Within Producing my primary role is to support my Director and the crew, though creatively my impact is limited. When directing my focus is on the artistic processes where constant concise communication with the Director of Photography is essential. On this occasion Sam and I met pre-shoot several times where we watched visual references, discussed camera techniques and the options available to us. His experience and talent filled me with confidence and he played a huge role not only as Director of Photography, though also as my mentor throughout production.
What were your particular inspirations for this film?
My primary inspiration was to link a series of stand-alone scenes that were highly surreal in their nature yet maintained a distinct abstract beauty. I imagined each environment to have the texture of a perfume commercial from a distant realm or alternate dimension.
Narrative concepts included the Adam and Eve fable, genetic selection and a potential dystopian future. Stylistically I was influenced by science fiction, the psychedelic and strange, though definitely aimed to portray elements of ‘1970’s pop’ the emerging trend for 2011.
Neon blue and pink feature quite heavily in the film and a hotel where all manner of things can (and may) happen, is the setting. The photographer David La Chapelle has used both these motifs as well. Is he a hero of yours?
His unique imagination, vivid colour and dreamlike fantasies I marvel at, though I don’t have any hero’s as such.
My hero would be an amalgamation of various elements from Photographers, Filmmakers, Authors, Musicians, Sportsmen, Designers and Painters that I love. There’s no one hero that totally embodies every single point that I find inspiring, interesting, cool, or relevant.
I believe that’s the driving reason everyone who peruses a career in any artistic field does so, In order to satisfy primarily their own unique complex human nature to develop into their version of what a hero is.
Who else do you admire from the world of photography and film and why?
From the world of Photography I would say Guy Bourdin, Helmut Newton, and Gregory Crewdson for their ability to instantly conjure infinite complex narratives from just a single frame.
From film Gasper Noe for his ability to create the profound from the raw, from the chaotic. I believe he will go on to be one of the most celebrated directors of our time a spiritual successor to Stanley Kubrick. Their influence is both evident in L’Hotel Dystopie along with the master surrealist David Lynch.
Anyone who challenges the status quo through thought provoking art I massively admire.
Also Richard Kelly for creating my favorite movie of all time Donnie Darko.
Moving forward in to 2011 the thought of new projects and ideas must spring to mind. What's excitng you creatively at the moment?
O Children a band that provided my album of 2010 and their stunning track Heel’s for L’Hotel Dystopie. Romain Gavras the music promo director, cant wait to watch Notre Jour Viendra (Our Day Will Come) his debut feature film.
What themes would you like to explore in your next film?
Intimacy. Existentialism. Natural Light.
What's in store for you next?
2011
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