When Vancouver-based WideAngle Studios needed to find the perfect place to film a robot’s escape from the mundane clockwork of everyday life to the majesty of nature, it didn’t take long to find just the right spot: here at home.
The video production company, led by Principal-Producer David Alonzo, recently released a music video for “Wired Monkeys” by local band Lincoln’s Beard. WideAngle’s Johnny Winningham directed the fanciful, dialogue-free short film that tells the tale of a robot (Joseph LeBard) who travels from the city to the wilderness in an odyssey to find his true self.
“He’s literally become robotic. Eventually, he decides he’s had enough,” Alonzo said.
When Winningham first pitched the project, the concept was a hit with everyone involved since it played off themes heard in the song, Alonzo said.
Various locations around Clark County, where the Mountain View High School graduate grew up, were used to represent the robot’s long journey from a mundane 9-to-5 existence to freedom. Those who know the county well will recognize a number of landmarks, including Battle Ground’s Lewisville Regional Park, the streets of downtown Vancouver and the Georgia-Pacific paper mill in Camas. Filming took place in the summer and the video debuted on Lincoln’s Beard’s YouTube page this week.
“We wanted to keep everything on this side of the river,” Alonzo said. “I wanted to say we shot it all in Clark County. This is a great place to film.”
The music video is somewhat of a departure for the production company that was founded by Alonzo in 2007 and typically focuses more on marketing and promotional videos rather than art. Alonzo did say he and his team strive to create work that mixes information and amusement, whether its a broadcast television commercial or online videos promoting a product.
As more projects roll in for WideAngle, Alonzo said he is pleased that his small team has been able to make such high-quality work while also being able to showcase his hometown.
“For about the past three or four years, ever since the economy took an upswing, it’s been busy,” he said. “We’re in a really good space right now.”
In addition to their regular string of gigs crafting marketing campaigns, public service announcements and other promotional films, WideAngle Studios also created a humorous mockumentary (written and directed by Winningham with cinematography and editing by Alonzo) called “Our Urban Wilderness.” It just finished its run on the film festival circuit and picked up some awards, including Best Creative Short at the 2013 Columbia Gorge International Film Festival.
“If you can entertain and educate and promote a business all at the same time, that’s really ideal,” Alonzo said about his company’s efforts. “That’s really the winning combination.”
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