The passion and hunger to pursue your dreams now rather than later with Mason & Oliver - OKIRU Huddle Pod #54
Mason Moon and Oliver Gates are two young Melbourne creatives. Mason is an up-and-coming rapper and Oliver is a talented videographer. In this episode, we discuss Mason's latest release and the creative process behind the music video. They talk about how they're inspired as creatives and their learnings from their creative endeavours. Mason has been making music for two years and Oliver has been making videos since the age of twelve. Their collaboration has created music videos with an artistic vision.
Mason has an incredible vision for his music videos and creates elaborate scripts for Oliver to work off. He’s inspired by many artists and rappers who have paved the way for young artists like himself to tell a story and let their words run free.
Oliver has a vision with his camera and is always recording events, which leads to amazing videos. No matter where he is, no matter the journey he does his best to be open to inspiration from the world around him.
We also discussed their first music video together and broke down the creative process; from grinding it out the night before to scoping out the location, and then shooting it in a mansion in one day. The process of creating the video took two and a half months. The second video discussed was created as an introduction to the music industry and was inspired by the protagonist's anger, which he was expressing in his music. They went to great lengths to create their vision to life by designing and creating a whole spaceship for their music video. The vision behind the video was to put himself in a space where he could be alone, so they listened to the song multiple times and thought of how they could put the audio into a video. The shooting for this particular project took two days and was done from dawn to midnight. This goes to show how passionate and driven they are when it comes to their creative endeavours. The pair were amazed at how their creative idea came to life and was relieved when their parents approved of it.
Mason and Oliver met at school and collaborated on a song, but decided to focus on their own music for now. They were inspired by Australian music, as well as Kendrick Lamar, Cole, Tyler, and the Creator. The protagonist is continuing to evolve and branch out, and is inspired by everything around him.
Timestamps
0:00:00
Interview with Mason Moon and Oliver Gates: Exploring Creative Processes and Inspiration
0:02:42
Behind the Vision of His Music Video
0:05:06
Creating a Spaceship Vibe with Sheet Metal Factory Materials
0:06:28
Oliver's direction with his videos
0:14:15
Conversation on Inspiration and Favourite Film Directors
0:16:33
Digging deeper with Oliver
0:18:59
Exploring Creative Direction in Music Videos
0:20:34
Pursuing Creative Projects and Investing in Oneself
0:22:24
Reflections on Taking Risks and Investing in Yourself
0:27:34
Reflections on Pursuing a Career in Music
Highlights
I've realised my influence, I think, on the people around me, and for the better, you know what I mean? I'm just influencing people in music. The more I do, the more I make. And if you don't listen, then don't listen, it's fine, you know what I mean? You can go and do your own thing, but if you can take something from me that's positive, then go ahead. As I put more music out and dress the way I want to and talk the way I want to and whatever I'm like, people are, like, not biting my shit.
I can relate to that feeling. I feel that, too. My missus feels that a lot with her job as well. I think she did because she works in a startup, she's in marketing, so there's a lot of pressure when you're a startup as well, you get thrown a lot of curveballs. And sometimes I come from a more chill background character, so I'm all right if I relax and rest. When she's relaxing and resting, she's like, I feel guilty. Why am I not doing something right now? I have to be doing something.
Like the smoothness of the shots, the way the camera moves and everything subtle, but it adds so much to the story. And obviously, like, that is the focus. You know what I mean? And then it changed focus. It looks cinematic, but when you break down what it is, he's really doing a lot behind the camera to make it look that way and then put him on a set and all these things, like, we've got a keypad and we've got guards and they've got to be killed and stuff. And then it's like really pushing the boundaries of the cinematographer and the way he managed it and coped with what was seriously what was put on your plate. It's really impressive.
Yeah, that's something I'm really trying to get better at. Using framing to evoke an emotion of maybe isolation or even stuff like if you're shooting, like, two people talking, whether it's like a shot from over the shoulder, which makes it kind of feel like the two characters are including they're on the same page, versus then it gets to a close up of just one character. It's stuff like that, like the little stuff that you really have to look for.
Well, like I said yeah, I used to listen to a lot of Australian. I guess you wouldn't really know if you weren't from Australia. But like, you're chilling at Husky. That was kind of where it was at for high school to maybe early, like JMC, mid-JMC. And then I started branching off. And then last year I went to Box Hill and a big diverse group of people that we were in and opened my eyes to Kendrick Cole Tyler, the creator. Just all of those little sims even. And all of these rappers and artists and singers and things that I'm just like, take a bit of everything and you don't have to be confined to this box. And like, look, guys, like, I'm not wearing TN’s.
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