Having previously collaborated with two different friends on my first two music videos, I decided it was time to have a go myself! I definitely have a lot to learn about the art of film making but as a first attempt at shooting and editing everything myself, I am really pleased with how it has turned out.
I compiled this video from footage I took during a trip to Naples, Italy. The song is written about the volcanic eruption that wiped out the town of Pompei, so I thought it only fitting to create a video from the site of the tragedy.
For anyone who doesn't know, Pompei was a Roman town in Italy that was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD79. As there wasn't the same level of knowledge about the forces that cause volcanoes and earthquakes, I write from the perspective of the normal townspeople who will have sought supernatural and religious explanations in their desperation before their demise.
You can read more about my visit to Naples on a blog I wrote for the Northern Fire art collective here.
Locations
The footage is taken from 4 locations across the Naples region and the first was entirely accidental! To begin with, I was keen to learn more about the history of the region so I walked over to the archeological museum in Naples itself. In here, I found a number of preserved mosaics rescued from Pompei, where the remains are at risk of being destroyed by the unforgiving Italian sun. Among the mosaics I filmed, I was lucky enough to see the great Mosaic depicting the victories of Alexander The Great, which was excavated from the House of the Faun at Pompei. This was another area of history that has always fascinated me so it was a jaw dropping experience being able to be in the same room as something so old.
I then travelled to the ruined city of Pompei itself. If you have seen any images from the site, you will know that the remains of Pompei are pretty impressive… However, the sheer scale of the place is something that can only be appreciated in person. I am not exaggerating when I say that you could easily walk around the ruins for 2 days and still not see everything. The scale of the disaster is pretty appalling and to give you an idea, the city used to be by the sea, but after the volcano, it is now situated 2km inland due to all the ash and lava deposited by Vesuvius.
I also visited another city, Ercalano, which was destroyed by the eruption at the same time. Unlike Pompei, the ruins are situated within the modern day town itself so it is a strange experience of walking down a normal looking street and seeing a giant archaeological dig sprawl out below you! It is smaller in scale than Pompei but some of the houses are actually better preserved so both are well worth visiting. Here, the human cost was very evident as there are large numbers of skeletons preserved under the town which really highlights the tragedy.
My favourite shots in the video are from the summit of the mountain itself. Within Naples itself and the surrounding bay as far as Sorrento, the sky is dominated by Vesuvius, a giant volcano with a massive chunk missing from its summit. I knew that it would be big but reaching the top and looking down at the size of the crater was an eye opening experience for me. I was awestruck by the sheer power of the forces involved in the eruption and can only hope that my song does it justice!
