Encapsulate Beauty
There’s something intrinsically beautiful about death and tragedy sometimes.
I’ve probably seen this video, I don’t know, upwards of a hundred times or more since I discovered it. Initially, it was a film competition put on by my favorite band, Sigur Rós, and while I myself never had the opportunity to participate (despite my nagging want to), I combed through every winner and nominee that put their videos out on the line. What ensued was something magical.
I’m a huge fan of music. More specifically, I’m a big fan of the emotive powers of music. The storytelling aspects and power of music to move and motivate the soul, and when used properly in film or video context, it can be the most emotional experience one can ever endure.
Of course Sigur Rós is well known for their work and their propensity to garner some of the most beautiful images out there. But what I found even more fascinating is the collective movement they had started and how similar, no matter what language or culture barriers we have, we as human beings think. There’s a sort of predisposed disposition that is hardwired into our brains about what beauty is on a large scale. Sure, my color red may not be the same as your color red, but emotionally we’re attached to it’s vibrance; and the same can be said for music. Specifically this song.
I think what Nick Abrahams has created in this video is the perfect example of what beauty means to people in both life and death. He encompasses the gorgeousness that is nature, instills us with the fear of being lost, the comfort of a guiding voice, the empathy we often feel for creatures in dire situations, the beauty and sadness of death and loss, and the all-enveloping feeling that life, when all is said and done, is one of the greatest gifts this Universe could have ever mustered.
Coupled with the Universal elements that Sigur Rós has a propensity for delivering in their music, with the fantastical elements presented in this short film, this is a true and perfect example of basic human emotion represented in video form. A marriage of beauty and loveliness that often goes unnoticed in our day to day lives, but when condensed down to a 10 minute segment, it immediately stirs one’s emotions and conjures appreciation for the art that is, and always will be, storytelling.
Kudos to you Nick Abrahams and your team for developing this wonderful piece. Though brutal in its depiction, it really exemplifies the natural wonder that is life.
Thank you,
