The Director Explains: Aisha Bradu - 'Splintered'
Director Keenan Wetzel speaks to us about the incredibly beautiful visuals for Aisha Badru’s equally beautiful single, ‘Splintered’.
Taken from Aisha' Badru’s album ‘Pendulum.’ ‘Splintered’ reminds me of the brooding indie folk atmospherics of Daughter and the purity and magnetism of Joni Mitchell. This is a deeply moving song which simply cannot be ignored.
On the track Aisha Badru explains: "We often find someone else to blame. We are afraid to take responsibility, reclaim our power, and heal ourselves. Splintered encourages people to face the dark spots within us in order to find the light."
Keenan Wetzel Explains:
Where was the video for ‘Splintered’ film?
The video was filmed at two locations in Detroit, MI.
How does the video connect with the song?
The video connects with the song by being a visual dance representation of "Splintered" human emotions and internal pain as well struggling with how to direct that energy. The flash cuts in the film are meant to show as a society we are constantly dealing with this same type of splintering, where parts of society are not taken care of or treated the way they should be.
Are there any behind the scenes stories you can let us in on?
The cool thing about this project was that it all came from a social media interaction with Aisha and I on Instagram. I messaged her saying I love her music and also happened to have a camera package over a weekend from another commercial shoot. We talked about what the song meant to her and I came up with a concept that I thought represented the song well and was executable with our resources. So moral of the story is don't let anyone tell you social media is always a bad thing!
Could you tell us about the ideas/ themes/imagery used?
The theme of this film is internal splintering. Meaning when wood is not treated properly it begins to splinter. In this music video, this is two-fold. We have the internal pain of the dancer as well as the exterior pain of society in the 1960's. At the end of the film tried to make a point of how this type of struggle and pain is deep-rooted in society is still very much prevalent and still needs to be addressed today.
Interview Feature by Karla Harris