Kill the Lights – Darius Twin

Kill the Lights is the latest light painting Video by Darren Pearson aka Darius Twin.  

If you haven’t watched it yet… take a moment to enjoy this!  This is absolutely rad!

 

Darren was kind enough to answer a few questions about this video and how he did it.

Amazing work on the video Darren! Congrats! It must be on of the top stop light painting stop motion I have ever seen! How long are you working on that?

Did you do the whole thing in one go or did you break it up?

 

I worked on this video off an on for about 2 years. Every time my wife and I would travel, I would try and capture a few scenes for the film. We toured national parks in California extensively and some out of state and out of country locations as well.

 

I recognize some parts that you have been posting before on your Instagram. Was each and one of them a part of a “master plan”? Did you have a story in mind and you were slowly working on that, or you edit everything so great together?

 

Each sequence was a part of the master plan – divided into categories like ‘Music’, ‘Dance’, ‘Skateboarding’ and ‘Actions’. I felt like I should show them when each scene was made (on Instagram) because they are each pieces in their own right, some I showed and others I saved. I see each loop as ‘Soul Gems’ – a piece of my spirit or ‘light-energy’ captured in the moving photographs.

 

What is your process when you make an LP stop motion? Do you have a storyboard or you improvise?  Can you break it down a bit?

 

I try to flesh it out on paper first, for how I would illustrate the actions with light, each sequence gets its own storyboard or little sketchy flip book. If the opportunity is there or if I feel inspired, then I improvise also.

 

What gear did you use?

 

I used a Canon 6D to shoot the photos on, most scenes are shot with a 24-70mm lens. For some scenes, I used a few wide angle Zeiss – 28mm & 18mm. I also have a 14mm Rokinon for fisheye shots in the cramped spots.

How many different images do you usually use for making 1 sec of video?

 

It takes about 24 frames for a full second of video.

 

What are the challenges of making an  LP stop motion and how do you overcome them?

 

The main challenge is getting everything set up and then getting into the groove for a sequence. Once you are in the groove, it’s easy; but getting there requires great discipline. There are other challenges like the weather and safety but those can be mitigated by proper research and location scouting. I try not to ‘bite off more than I can chew’ when I animate, when you start getting to upwards of 75 illustrated frames in a night it can be too much and you will definitely be sore the next day.

 

What advice would you give to someone who wants to do a lp video?

 

I advise anyone that wants to create an LP animation to storyboard and sketch out stick figures of the proper movement before taking it to a real location. Animation is a game of patience and vision, you have to take the time to create every frame – don’t skip a few here and there. This work is not for the lazy, it’s for the crazy!

 

Here is a small BTS of the Drums scene:

Drums from darren pearson on Vimeo.

 

 

You can find more of Darren’s work on his website and Instagram 

 

Check out our LP video library with some more cool videos using Light Painting techniques