PLANNING : Theme and Story

 The song "Nutshell" was written during Layne Staley's difficult years as he was dealing with drug addictions and depression and anxiety had had a grip on him. He felt really lonely despite having so much fame and had no one to open up to easily. The lyrics reflect this idea of a man suffering in silence, facing all the hardships a lonely life comes with, and he implies he'd rather be dead instead of feeling such kind of pain.

outtake from the "Nutshell" album cover shoot

I want to carry out the same idea but portray it by the dark and lowkey lighting of the night, with compositions of the lone character isolated from the world, with no company. I want the transition of dusk to nightfall to symbolise the darkness of life returning to surround and consume our character. His body language will depict his swaying discomfort and lost-in-thought characteristics. I also want all of Rafay's footage to look like memories being recorded on an old camera, so I will probably include clips of him jumping around just being natural. The natural aspect of life is my favourite thing to catch on camera, so I will definitely include that. I don't think I will be needing a "forced" acting performance from Rafay. 

Rafay's clips will be entwined with the clips of me singing the song. My shots are intended to be the visualisation of the frustration of a man who suffers in silence. The lighting and projection will be done in a way to represent the madness in one's head, who is suffering from such pain. These can also influence the thought of me being someone who lost a friend who could bear his hardships anymore since all of his footage is reminiscent of memories. 

The cover idea is to translate what the song sounds like to me into colour and give the audience a visually pleasing video with subtle narrative and symbolism. To me, songs are like paintings, but instead of touching or seeing them, you hear them. I want to make a video that transforms the song into a moving painting.