As early as August, I began seeing Halloween-themed decorations appear in many different stores throughout Seattle. I became intensely inspired by these bursts of pumpkins, skeletons and spider webs—I knew I had to create something with this imagery. I began to collect various props, decorations, and candies, thinking of different ways that actors could interact with them on camera. The process of creating the video was entirely experimental. I knew I wanted to make a music video revolving around a queer couple, and I knew I wanted it to be Halloween-themed. Those were the two most concrete things I knew in the process of creating; besides that, everything was in the moment and without a plan. After casting the couple and meeting up to talk about the video, we wandered the streets of Seattle together and naturally came across locations at which we wanted to film.
I tried to create scenarios in which the actors could be free and spontaneous with the props, each other, and their environment. I wanted the connection between the two of them to feel raw and authentic, so I allowed them to do their own thing as though they were on an actual date, and I was simply there capturing it. I liked the idea of using a really upbeat and playful song for a Halloween video—I thought it would be an interesting contrast with the creepy masks and the usual darkness that accompanies the topic of Halloween. So I decided to make the video to a song by the band Dante Elephante called “Never Trust a Junkie.”
Isobel Brown
Toulmin Jahncke
Olivia Morrison
Juliette Potier