Breaking all the rules. There’s nothing like a contrarian spirit who knows the way things SHOULD be done and decides to do the exact opposite, as if to say, “I’m here. I will not be forgotten.” In my last post I mentioned The Velvet Underground, who brought this idea to pop music with tracks like Heroin that details the relationship of an addict to his fix in a ballad arrangement. More immediately in my life, though, is my friend Shozo Michikawa. As a ceramic artist, he’s often told me of his pathological drive to defy every rule. He twists and deforms the clay from within, never touching the outside, resulting in chaotic forms that defy preconceptions of beauty. This idea of examining the nature of beauty is another recurring theme in the music of one of my favorite artists, Serge Gainsbourg. He first gained fame writing music for young, beautiful Yé-yé singers in the 1960s. But by the late 60s, he was already experimenting with twisting this idea that all that is beautiful has to be… well, beautiful. Even the lush arrangements of his 1969 concept album Histoire de Melody Nelson defy a morbid and illicit story of a Lolita-esque relationship that ends in murder. Gainsbourg also famously, perhaps apocryphally, once painted his Louis Vuitton luggage all black as if to actively defile the beauty of luxury itself. His 1981 track Evguénie Sokolov took things even further by featuring fart sounds over a reggae beat as part of a sonic adaptation of a novel from the previous year. But perhaps the most famous example of a contrarian artist is Marcel Duchamp. His Étant Donnés compels audiences to look closer through a tiny hole in a wooden door and then abruptly confronts them up close with a diorama of a very naked and very exposed woman. It’s something we know we shouldn’t look at, but in the privacy of that peephole, we maybe linger a bit longer than we would otherwise. It’s tasteless, vulgar, and yet utterly compelling. It’s perhaps telling that all these artists were working post-war. Perhaps the destruction and savagery that they and their parents had witnessed taught them to look for the beauty that exists in spite of, dare say, in defiance of ugliness.
Posting regularly on social media is hard. At least it is for me. As a director you’d expect me to be posting about my work regularly, but the truth is, production schedules are so long that by the time I can post anything, I’m usually burned out and ready to move on to the next thing.
So this year, I’m trying something different. Rather than just posting about work, I’m also going to write regularly about the things that make me tick, as a creative, as a father, as a husband, as a person.
So here it is, things that make me tick, number one: Dots and Loops - Stereolab
Stereolab is a band that formed in the 90s around a love for analogue synthesizers, Marxist ideology, and space-age bachelor pads. Their first few albums are heavy on distorted guitars and repetitive melodies – think Sister Ray by way of indie rock. By the time they released Dots and Loops in 1997, they had almost entirely moved away from the guitar to a kitschy, jazz-infused electronic sound palate rich with strings, bass, and a kaleidoscope of percussive sounds. The first three tracks, Brakhage, Miss Modular, and The Flower Called Nowhere are seminal. Brakhage, in particular, perhaps because of its advantageous position, is a track that I come back to often as an inspirational rudder. Named after the experimental filmmaker Stan Brakage, the track begins with the electronic crackling of a synthesizer, somewhere between the buzz of a quarter-inch cable being plugged into a hot amp and the cacophony of an orchestra tuning. This fades into a repetitive xylophone and a droning baseline. Finally the track properly begins with Laetitia Sadier’s vocals;
We need so damn
Many things
To keep our dazed
Lives going.
It’s Esquivel for indie rockers.
I love things that are artificial, things that embody kitschy aesthetics and a childlike wonder for things that are new, futuristic, and inorganic. And I love when these things are used to contrast human elements through a considered and cynical worldview. Like the opening lines of Miss Modular, the recognition of artifice is simultaneously a recognition of human creativity and a criticism of commercialized inauthenticity. #filmdirector #tokyocreative
📣Last chance for “Mido Kazuhiro: 70 Years Of Dreaming” photo book.
The Kickstarter for completing Another Home is just 24 hours from ending. The campaign is fully funded thanks to you!
If you are still interested in securing the limited edition “Mido Kazuhiro: 70 Years Of Dreaming” photo book, there’re just over 20 copies remaining on Kickstarter. This photo book will not be reprinted in its current form beyond the original run of 200.
There is also a digital copy of the photo book available at a lower tier.
Thanks to everyone’s support, I will be taking “Another Home” in person to Italy to the BorgoFuturo festival in Ripe San Ginseio this week.
🔗Check out the link in my profile.
📣 写真集『Mido Kazuhiro: 70 Years Of Dreaming』、手に入れるラストチャンス！
ドキュメンタリー『Another Home』完成に向けたKickstarterキャンペーンは、終了まであと24時間。
皆さまのご支援のおかげで、目標はすでに達成されました！
限定版写真集『Mido Kazuhiro: 70 Years Of Dreaming』は、現在Kickstarterで残り20冊ほど。全200部のみの発行で、今後この形での再販はありません。
より手軽なデジタル版も、別の支援コースでご用意しています。
皆さんの応援のおかげで、今週『Another Home』を携えてイタリア・リーペ・サン・ジンセーオで開催されるBorgoFuturoフェスティバルに行くことができます。心から感謝しています！
🔗プロフィールのリンクからぜひチェックしてください。
📣Big news! The "Another Home" Kickstarter is now fully funded.
First and foremost, a big thank you to everyone who supported this campaign through pledges, spreading the word and encouragement. 🙏
There are a few days left until the campaign officially ends on June 30th, so anyone who still wants to support the project and receive one of the rewards there is still time. 🔗The link can be found in my profile.
The limited edition photo book reward has just over 20 copies remaining. Just a reminder that this photo book will not be reprinted in its current form beyond the original run of 200.
For those who are interested there is also a digital version of the photo book.
I’ve also decided to make the film accessible to all backers at all tiers. There are no other plans to make Another Home available online, so if you are interested in seeing the film and aren't able to attend an in-person screening, now is your chance.
Thank you again! 📣ビッグニュース！ドキュメンタリー「Another Home」のKickstarterがついに目標達成しました！
まずは、このキャンペーンを応援してくださったすべての方に心から感謝します。ご支援、シェア、励ましの言葉、本当にありがとうございました。🙏
キャンペーンは6月30日まで続いていますので、リワード付きでプロジェクトを応援したい方は、まだ間に合います。 🔗リンクはプロフィールにあります。
限定版フォトブックのリワードは残り20冊ほどです。このフォトブックは全200部の限定印刷で、再版の予定はありませんので、気になる方はぜひお早めに。デジタル版もご用意しています。
また、すべての支援者の方に向けて、「Another Home」をオンラインで観られるようにすることに決めました。現時点では一般公開の予定はないので、上映会に来られない方もこの機会にぜひご覧ください。
改めて、本当にありがとうございます！
With just under a week left to go, the Another Home Kickstarter is almost funded. We’re sitting just under 70%. Thank you to everyone who has pledged so far; just a bit further to go.
The final design for the main title is now complete. Big thanks to Maegawa Yuichi for generously sitting with me to go through all sorts of options. The final design incorporates visual references to the mountains of Sasama and the kanji characters are directly inspired by the stamp that Mido Kazuhiro used on his photo negative sleeves.
The sound design and sound mix are currently underway thanks to Okita Junnosuke. Together, we’ve come up with what I think is a very moving way to sonically highlight the decrease in school students through the years. It’s a part of the film that always leaves me feeling emotional and now its impact hits even harder.
And finally, I’m just about ready to send the Mido Kazuhiro photo book to the printers. It’s been a very long process, one with a lot of lessons learned along the way. I’ve actually increased the physical size of the book from B5 to A4 to better show the photos.
If you haven’t pledged support for the campaign yet but are interested in learning more, the link is in my profile. If you aren’t able to pledge but are interested in the project, even just a shout out would be greatly appreciated!
Day two of my Kickstarter to complete my documentary "Another Home" and bring it to the BorgoFutura "Future Village" festival in Italy. I've created a special trailer for the film that lays out the existential threat this small village in Shizuoka and many other villages like it face. Link to the Kickstarter in my bio.
Today I launched a Kickstarter campaign to help complete and screen a documentary I directed about a small village in Japan and the quiet, determined efforts of its residents to keep their home from disappearing.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing more about the film, the people behind it, and why this story means so much to me.
Link in my bio.
静岡の小さな村をテーマにしたドキュメンタリーの完成と上映に向けて、今日クラウドファンディングを始めました。
これから少しずつ、作品の内容や、どうして自分にとって特別なのかを投稿していきます。
プロフィールのリンクからぜひ覗いてみてください。
Award won!
Last night at The Drum Awards for Marketing APAC 2025 the "Oku-Matsushima: Where All Roads Lead Home" campaign that I directed won a silver award in the Sustainability and Responsibility category.
If you haven't seen it, the full film can be seen here:
/watch?v=Vk7jehKdQ6w
Congratulations to the incredible team at BBC StoryWorks who took home the award and brought this project into the world.
@unrealthrill@racylim@emma_misstired@azrlrfze
And thank you to the entire production team.
Directed and edited by me, Tom Slemmons
Producers: @settokyo and Shino Kazuki
Camera: @brandon.strack
Sound: @jeffrey_jousan
Production manager: @egawa_yoshifumi
AC: @rosiehubbard_
Color: @_michelle_madden
Post production assistance: @alexis_wuillaume
Drivers: @iship014 and Masaki Hayashi
Featuring @guimartinez and Abe Koya
And so, so many people from Oku-Matsushima who helped us along the way.
And finally, thank you to @visitjapanjp Japan National Tourism Organization for trusting our vision.
Photos of tea picking in Sasama over Golden Week. This is one of a dwindling number of places in Japan where tea leaves are still picked by hand. With the local population at just around 300 and the average age over 65, tea picking has become more and more difficult. Some people have chosen to dig up all their tea plants so they don’t grow back rather then let them become giant and unruly reminders of a struggling industry and community. Still, there is some hope for a future. While the field themselves are owned by locals, there is a growing number of younger people who are showing interest in manage them and an even greater number of people from outside the community who want to help. When it comes time for harvest, relatives and friends of the community come to Sasama for a long weekend and volunteer their time to help out. Big shout out to @yamanohatosora for their amazing work in the community and just being amazing people!
ゴールデンウィークに静岡県笹間で撮影した茶摘みの写真です。ここは、日本でも数少ない、いまだに手摘みでお茶を収穫している地域のひとつ。 人口はわずか300人ほど、平均年齢は65歳を超え、年々お茶摘みが難しくなってきています。中には、「放っておくと大きく育ちすぎて手に負えなくなるから」と、茶畑ごと茶の木を掘り起こしてしまう人も。衰退する産業と地域を象徴するような風景を残したくない、という思いからだそうです。
それでも、未来への希望はあります。畑の所有者は地元の方々でありながら、若い世代の中にも管理に関心を持つ人が少しずつ増えています。そして、地域外から「手伝いたい」という声もさらに広がっています。収穫の時期には、家族や友人が長い週末を利用して笹間に集まり、ボランティアとしてお手伝いしてくれるそうです。
コミュニティのために素晴らしい活動をしている @yamanohatosora さん、本当にありがとうございます！これからも応援しています！
I'm super excited and very honored to announce that the piece I directed about Oku-Matsushima for BBC StoryWorks and JNTO has been nominated for a Drum Marketing Award.
The awards ceremony will be held on May 29th, one day before my birthday, so I'll take that as a positive sign. 🤞
This would not have been possible without the support and leadership from the incredible team at BBC StoryWorks and the amazing photos of @guimartinez@unrealthrill
Racy Lim
@emma_misstired
"If one needs to find the most unassuming, humble examples of sustainability, perhaps they need look no further than to their grandparents and parents. The lessons we've received since childhood to fix something before throwing it away, or to tend to our gardens with kitchen leftovers. For many, these are living embodiments of “sustainability”, from a time before it became a sexy buzzword. "
Check out the link below for the full write up.
https://lnkd.in/gEnp5-KJ
I recently directed and edited a project for BBC StoryWorks and the Japan Cabinet Office promoting business innovation in Fukuoka and Sapporo.
In every project I make it a point to try something new as a way of both adding to my technical skill set and exploring new visual languages. At the crux of the film is a transition from Sapporo to Fukuoka, which felt like the perfect opportunity to use 3D gaussian splats to seamlessly travel across Japan.
Having never used gaussian splats in this context before, there was an inherent risk. In fact, we didn’t even pitch the effect to the client initially and planned for a backup in case it didn’t work. Thankfully everything came together and the client loved it.
The project also benefited massively from titles designed by the StoryWorks team.
Thanks again to everyone who made this project possible!
Producers: @settokyo and Shino Kazuki
Directed and edited by: Tom Slemmons
Camera: @yuzuru_yoshizawa
Sound (Sapporo): @jeffrey_jousan
Sound (Fukuoka): Shinobu Uchisonoda
Drone (Sapporo): @masaki_toriya_drone (PRISMO)
Drone (Fukuoka): Yasuo Iizuka (Niceflight) @niceflight_fpv
Project Management: @yoshifumiegawa
Drivers (Sapporo): Kamiguchi Ryuto and Oishi Kazuyuki(masuku)
Drivers (Fukuoka): nakamura keizou , yoshida tomoyuki , fujiwara mayumi and nishikawa fumihiro (kogapro)
Contributors:
@davidquist
ariladitian
@vikogara
BBC StoryWorks:
@unrealthrill
Racy Lim
@emma_misstired
Client: Japan Cabinet Office
