EDY KHEMOD
Edy Khemod is a video producer & director from Cerahati, also a drummer for Seringai. Resides in Jakarta, Indonesia.
EDY KHEMOD: “Everything is new, everybody is learning.”
[interview.ak / photo.khemod docs / January 2012]
What's Your ultimate goal as a video producer/director in making music videos and TV commercials?
Bringing visual sensation and creative gimmicks to every works. So beside serving the projects objective, we also play with a certain creative gimmicks that differentiate the projects. Hopefully the audience can remember and identified the works from the creative gimmicks.
I hear Cerahati is expanding by making new divisions. Can you elaborate a bit?
Now we also added a new divisions, Cerahati Digital Media. We focuses to be a complete digital media solution for agencies, brand, and more. Utilize in web development and social media activation, developing creative digital activation for campaigns. We join forces with Robin Malau (ex-Puppen) for this division.
Tell us about Your Cinehouse rental equipment and digital media division?
So Cerahati now changed into "Cerahati New Media Works" with 3 core business, production house, studio & equipment rental, and digital media. A one stop shopping for integrated multimedia needs. In the studio & equipment rents, we now have facilities for color grading, offline & online editing and DSLR camera with accesories.
You guys are some the pioneers of music videos in the local independent music scene. We've seen Mocca's first video and your latest work is Burgerkill's new video. Can you tell us a bit on Cerahati's history?
It started more from friendship and community. At the early 2002, we were just a bunch of art student hanging out in a cramped space, playing and experimenting with visual sensation & video editing. With close relations with the independent music scene, we then helped some new indie artist for their music video. Started from VC for Koil & Mocca in 2002, and then naturally it progressed from there.
It was also the first time MTV started to aired music video for indie bands. So the momentum was there, the booming of indie scene.
You've done video making seminars too in the old days right? Are there any new exciting video makers in Indonesia that we should know about?
Nowadays there are so many exciting new video makers, I started to lost tracks. From our seminars in the old days, Tromarama definitely stands out as a new audio visual groups, now focuses more in art scene. Angga Sasongko also have a unique view in directing music videos.
About Burgerkill's music video, can you tell us a bit on the process?
This projects is a collaboration with the management of Burgerkill's, where we also wanted to try out this new Red Epic Camera which can shot until 300 frame per second. So this is actually an experiment project. About the concept, I wanted to put all the Burgerkill's member in a near death experience, as what happened in the AACC tragedy. And we shot all this near death experience in an aesthetic way, so we can still see beauty shot of a gory subject. We put so much agony to all the Burgerkill's personil, I hope I don't get beaten afterward hahaha..
Videomakers and designers are selling images. When some band decide wants to make a video with Cerahati, how's the brainstorming process goes?
Music video is a three way love story, between the band, the producers who pays for the video, and the clip maker. Ideally we have to make everyone happy in a relationship. For me the ideal music video is the one that makes the clip maker happy asthetically, but also a good marketing kit for the band. Cos different from commercial works, in music video you also paid for the personal artistic outlet of the director. So sometimes you let the director come up with a concept that would surprise you, and hopefully it can work also as a marketing kit for your band.
Are guys gonna make a move to films or documentaries? What are your next projects for the music department?
Soon enough we're gonna shot a documentary movies, about the Indonesia independent music scene. The working tittle now is "Membakar Batas", taken from Ucok's Homicide fanzine. We're going to interview some of the pioneer in independent music scene from Bandung, Jakarta, Jogja, Bali and many other cities. Hopefully this is going to be a comprehensive documentary of Indonesia's indie scene from music to any other areas.
You are also Seringai's drummer. So when's Seringai's new album gonna hit the record shelves? Any exciting stories behind the making of Seringai's new album?
One of the longest recording process we ever had :D we had the material for the new album since 2009, yet till now we're still recording :p But I think this is also the best we ever done, technically. We recorded the drum tracks at Jaya Roxx's studios, using the legendary (alm) Ari Roxx's drums. The guitar & bass parts taken at Alexa Band studios.
In this album we also have an instrumental song, using double drums in some parts. That's exciting and new to us.
So hopefully this year in April or May we can hit the record shelves.
Any advice to new video or filmakers? Thanks for the interview
Nowadays there are no new filmmakers or old filmmakers. Everything is new. New technology, new camera, new everything. Everybody is learning again. Kodak filed for bankruptcy, celluloid film is dying. Internet killed the TV stars. Everything is new, everybody is learning. So jump aboard to the new territory.
