Filmmaker Ratool Mukherjee on using new techniques in the music video, Ayna
Recently released on digital platforms, music video Ayna is already drawing a lot of attention for its emotional depth, experimental presentation, and psychologically driven visual storytelling. The creators believe the project will resonate strongly with younger audiences looking for unconventional and emotionally intense musical experiences. Directed by Ratool Mukherjee, the music video presents singer Silajit 2.0 and actress Sumana Das in completely new avatars. We speak with Ratool to know more about the making of the video.
What is the main concept behind the music video?
I had worked earlier with Silajit 2.0 but he had worked as a sound designer earlier in my films. I enjoyed the way we used to design the sonic experience of my films together. Silajit Chakraborty as a musician is very talented and when we had decided to create a music video together, I had just told him three things "A broken mirror, A broken heart, A microphone". It acted like a catalyst. Silajit created Ayna overnight. It was completely at sync with the theme I was thinking. Ayna, as the name suggests, is a reflection of a restless state of mind where the thin line between reality and fantasy overlaps with each other.
What made you create the visuals with AI?
People have a wrong notion about artifical intelligence, they believe you just write two three lines and boom your video is generated. Wrong. Things dont work that way. To blend real footage with AI, lines of python codes are written as skill function in your research tool. Matching and maintaining the character continuity is a different skill. Adobe after effects and colour grading tools gives life to it. I am fascinated with technology always, and it has always evolved in the past, right from analog to digital, camera inside helicopters for moving aerial shots changed to drones, VFX came into picture reducing the amount of on set special effects.
Technology has always shaped the visual language of cinema. Why should we deprive the bengali audience of stunning visuals, do they only derserve to see music videos shot on a roof with limited zones? I used to be a software engineer, have studied AI as a subject. I am happy to create and use visual effects myself to enhance my storytelling. Ayna happens to be my first professional work where the entire visual effects was created by me along with the concept and direction.
I enjoyed the journey.
Don't you think this would hamper your or other technicians' work, since AI is making things easily accessible?
If it's easily accessible why isnt everyone making it? And creating it? Because it isn't. AI will never eat up jobs. When computers came into picture, people thought it is going to end manual jobs. It did initially but later created job opportunities for people who added Computers in their skill sets. Ai will rather create more job opportunities. This isn’t about AI replacing filmmaking. It’s about what becomes possible when the barrier between having an idea and seeing it on screen almost disappears.
For anyone who’s ever had a story they couldn’t afford to tell ... that gap is closing.
What are the challenges of working with AI in a music video? How is it different/same from here normally shot music video?
This isnt a complete AI music video. It's more of a hybrid. We can say that real shot sequences have been blended with AI and VFX to give the audience a never before experience. For creating a music video or any audio visual content for that matter, we create the structure first and break it down into small sequences and shots. Making Ayna wasnt different from the grammar. All the characters are real, we just took our audiences on a fairy tale trip visually through our contributions.
What are your upcoming projects/plans?