Behind-The-Scenes at the Needles//Pins' Lomokino Music Video for 'Drop It'

A few weeks ago, we premiered a Lomokino music video for Vancouver-based band Needles//Pins’ single ‘Drop It’ shot by Lomographers Nick Benidt and Brittany Maisonneuve. We’ve got some more behind-the-scenes photos and also a bit of insight on what it’s like to shoot with the Lomokino, as told by Nick – read on for tips!

Give us a bit more background on your relationship with Needles//Pins and how the music video came to be.

I was in London, Ontario to meet with an illustrator of an old Rock zine called, What Wave. I went there to discuss the upcoming artwork for my rock DVD. After our meeting, I was looking for somewhere to go to kill some time before my Greyhound ride home. My friend told me about this rock and roll bar, Call The Office. I went there and Needles//Pins were playing. I loved their sound and went to talk to them after their show. I told them I thought they sounded a bit like The Replacements. This struck a chord with them cause it was the singer, Adam’s, favourite band. I told them I was from Minneapolis (home of The Replacements) which scored points with them and about how I was in London to meet a record store owner about artwork for my DVD. We became fast friends and ended up drinking the rest of the night. At about 3:30, while we were playing guitars, clapping and drunkenly-singing Paul Westerberg covers from inside their tour van, I realized that I had to catch my Greyhound in 30 minutes! They asked me if I had anything going on the next couple days…I didn’t have to work for the next 3 or 4 days so I said no. They said, “hey we’ll just take you with us to Waterloo/Kitchener for our show tomorrow night and bring you back to Toronto the day after.” So I slept in the back of their van and bummed around with them partying for 2 more days. They’re great people and a wicked band. It was definitely one of the highlights of my summer!

What gave you the idea to shoot a skate video for their song “Drop It”?

I’ve always wanted to do a skate video, but I don’t skate and I don’t know any skaters in Toronto. One night at a local bar in The Junction where I live I was talking to a skater who was friends with my friend who was bartending that night. I asked him if I could film him and his friends sometime. It didn’t happen till weeks later, but the bartender, Dale, helped organize and fund my project. As soon as I had been presented the opportunity to film skaters, It all clicked. I knew that it would be for Drop It and I knew that I would use the Lomokino. The song just reminds me of skating. A nice summer day with friends and beers and skating. The choppy aesthetic of the Lomokino was exactly what I had in my mind for the song.

How long did this project take?

The shoot took two days. But the post-production took weeks. Once you get your negatives developed you have to scan them in sections of about 11 frames at a time in a film-bed scanner. Because I wanted this to be as gloriously High-Def as possible to show off the aesthetic of the camera, scanning at a high DPI added to the time. It’s also a learning curve, I think next time I shoot with the Lomokino, the post production won’t take so long. It’s a lot of trial and error.

How was it like shooting with the Lomokino?

Super fun! Its very light and as with the Fisheye viewfinder its not 100% accurate as to your frame line of what’s being captured, so there’s a definite thrill of knowing that what you’re seeing isn’t exactly what you’ll be getting. That’s the best part of working with film and Lomography style cameras, the imperfections.

Describe the Lomokino in 5 words.

Warm. Unique. Friendly. Nostalgic. Simple.

Any behind-the-scenes deets you can give us?

To keep our ‘crew’ happy we were supplying McDonalds and tall cans to the skaters. It was a lot of fun, everyone enjoyed themselves that night!

And lastly, any tips for Lomographers looking to shoot projects with the Lomokino?

When possible use rolls with 36 exposures, because 24 goes fast! Also buy and have more film on hand than you think you’ll need. As always with shooting on film, you never know if a roll will turn out the way that you wanted it to.

Lastly, patience! Scanning your rolls and editing them can be time consuming, but remember: good things take time!

Enter a new analogue dimension with the LomoKino. Lomography’s own 35mm analogue movie camera allows you to capture action and immortalize your story on film! Shoot 144 frames on any 35mm film and create your own cinematic masterpieces. Want to watch your movie the old-school way? We also offer the LomoKino and LomoKinoscope package!

written by ashleyaang on 2012-11-16 #videos #toronto #lifestyle #skate #film #black-and-white #music-video #35mm #canada #skateboard #analogue-photography #pins #ontario #needles #lomokino