Most videos start with a treatment, which is essentially an idea put on paper. Some treatments are incredibly detailed, some are simple. Some videos wind up looking exactly as described in the treatment, and sometimes videos morph during the production process into something much different.
Nigel Dick started out at Stiff Records in London where he began as the motorcycle messenger and worked his way up to the point where he was the producer for the label's owner who also directed all the videos. He left for Phonogram where he was the first ever full-time commissioner for Polygram. Dick started directing the tiny-budgeted jobs and then moved up the directing ladder to the bigger budgets and artists. He eventually left the world of record labels in 1985 – moving to LA and focusing on his directing career.
'Wonderwall' was the first single of the 1995 Oasis album "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?" and the Sony was seriously trying to break them through in the States.
Nigel spoke with Videostatic to discuss the treatment and how it all came together.
The Lead-Up
I made a total of five videos with Oasis, 'Wonderwall' was the second.
Of course you never really know if something is going to be a hit or not. I usually don't have any perspective on that. I make the video, and you leave that stuff to the other people. If you have a strong opinion – this is going to be a hit – that's the end.
Sony thought I could connect with the band – because no one in NY could understand their accents and was kind of scared of them and their fighting. I was under strict instructions - Don't make them "act" or they will leave the set.
Noel apparently wanted black and white with splashes of color. That was the band's one specific note.
We were all concerned about them getting bored – which is why we had the foosball table and the showgirls in high heels and stockings. Keep them entertained. Much like rap videos, really.
The Production
The band really related to the Beatles. I 'borrowed' the idea of the showgirls from 'Hard Days Night'. The people playing saws, also comes from that English music hall / vaudeville world. There is also a lot of that in Hard Days Night – definitely part of growing up in England in the 1960s.
We shot in disused factory in London. The only place we could find on short notice, it actually had the white walls. My producer's wife was pregnant and actually gave birth half way through the video - leaving me to finish the video myself.
The Gallagher brothers had one of their distinctive battles on the set. They argued over something. I'm not even sure what about. It lasted five minutes and then we were shooting again. Unlike 'Champagne Supernova' where Liam stormed off and was gone for hours – this was just a few minutes. In retrospect, it was a good day.
On a side note, the clowns fought. The clowns didn't like each other.
The Video
The band hated doing videos. They were not engaged in the process. It was something they HAD to do. They were loathe to appear, and left as soon as they could.
I gave one of them in a newspaper, someone else a guitar and lined them up for the first shot. Once the camera started rolling, they started acting their hearts out.
There is actually one early version of the video that is just a single take of them sitting side by side on those chairs, switching places around and staring at the camera for the whole song. That's not the kind of thing that you can put down on paper, but when you saw it, you wondered why you'd want to have anything else. (Tried to find this one-take version on-line and had no luck.)
I've not watched that video in years. I only watch my old work if I have to. By the time the video gets released, it has achieved its primary goal. It's for other people to watch and get some insight into the band and hopefully be entertained. It's found its place in the world. If someone wants to buy the record, I've done my job.
You can read more about Nigel doing his job on his very entertaining website.
'Wonderwall' - original treatment
Oasis - Wonderwall
Video concept #1 by Nigel Dick: 9/13/95
The video is shot in black and white. Rich, contrasty photography of images that are carefully composed and often designed so that shapes in one image dissolve or are replaced by a similar shape in the following image. In other words a video that has a homogenous quality to it: not just a random series of images.
Whatever the image is, the band are encouraged to be themselves. There is no effort to make them 'act' or do something they don't wish to do. For them this video is simply a piece of photography, a document of a moment.
We shoot in a vast space...a modern, empty warehouse, almost featureless with vertical elements (pillars) horizontal elements (rolling shutter doors) and little else... we supply all the interesting stuff.
Rather than placing the band in one spot, together, and then simply covering every angle we will create separate scenes in which we will shoot everybody separately and then bring the band together in the edit.
The video can be best imagined by describing the different scenes / images one by one (but not necessarily in any particular order). Illustrative examples are included wherever possible.
The word 'oasis' fills the screen. A mechanical jerking sound can be heard. The camera pulls wider and we discover we are looking down at the label of a 45 sitting on a record player. As the arm swoops in and down onto the record the logo starts to revolve. The needle makes contact with the plastic, the music starts.
* Noel's guitar can be heard. The screen is white, overexposed. A small dot can be seen in the centre. In jump cuts the dot gets larger and larger. It is Noel, seated with his back to us playing guitar. (See illustration).
* This is intercut with the image of an acoustic guitar hanging from a washing line, swaying to and fro like a metronome.
* We see a more frontal shot of Noel playing. This image is multiplied. (See illustration).
* The oasis 45 continues to revolve. The image dissolves to a hand holding a mirror in which we can see Warn's face as he sings. (See illustration). The circle of the oasis label is exactly the same size as the circle of the mirror.
* We start to see (parts) of other band members: the folds of their shirts / trousers moving: differing patterns, polka dots, stripes. (See illustration).
* In the huge empty space the five band members move in incredible slow motion. One bounces a soccer ball up and down, then kicks it to another band member. This image will re-occur throughout the video: totally non-structured, the band enjoying themselves, relaxing with the football. At one point the camera dissolves from the above mentioned mirror shot of Warn singing to the circular shape of the soccer ball, spinning in some-one's hand.
* We cut to a close-up of Liam's face as he sings. The light falling on his face is in the shape of a cello. This image dissolves as the cello sound arrives to a cello being played between two legs (See illustration) the identity of the player is not revealed.
* As the track kicks in with the whole band we see the various members with their instruments, though not necessarily playing them. E. G. Alan sits beside his drum kit on a riser, playing with his sticks (See illustration), Bonehead can be seen leaning on top of his amp (See
illustration), Paul stands in front of a mic and looks away (See illustration). The feeling is relaxed and casual but full of style.
* Warn sings and as he does so the camera rotates, so his face goes round in circles, as it does so it dissolves to a circular montage of many smaller images of his face singing (See illustration). This will be repeated later with all band members faces in the circle.
* Warn sits on a chair playing the tambourine, just like he does at gigs. The tambourine is the star-shaped one he uses.
Two band members play on a Fussball machine, the players spin in ultra slow motion.
In a separate scene a band member jumps in the air: very slow motion. Perhaps this happens again only now he catches the soccer ball.
* On a washing line five saws hang, swinging...(this will resolve itself presently).
* A goal has been painted on the wall of the warehouse. One by one the band members take penalty shots at different camera speeds. Some shots are accurate, some miss by a mile. The penalty shots are jump cut together.
* The five saws hanging from the washing line are picked off the line by five hands. We cut to find five men (Not the band) sitting in line playing the saws over the cello sound (See illustration)...perhaps we see the cello player stop playing, picking up her cello and walking away.
* More multiple images of band members, re/axing, standing, playing. (See illustrations)
* Five sets of shoes sit on the hard floor of the warehouse. (See
illustration) Unlike the polished shine of the Beatles shot enclosed the oasis shoes are trainers, their laces, scuffed and dirty, trailing away out of the picture.
* Where the five saws (and earlier the guitar) hung on the line we now see five shirts on coat hangers: each one a shirt worn by the band members: perhaps the stripes seen earlier, a soccer shirt etc.. The shirts swing to and fro.
* Some-one holds a flower in front of their face (See illustration), some-one else plays a few bars on their instrument as a totally incongruous figure stands in the background behind (a clown?). Ditto another band member only now its a show dancer, her head with plumed feathers. The band member is seen in close up and blinks in very slow-motion paying no attention to the figure behind.
* We see a split screen of two faces of band members combined (See illustration). Perhaps Liam's mouth moves as Bonehead's eyes look around. Noel's mouth stays emotionless as Liam's eyes move, Liam's mouth keeps singing, Paul's head walks out of the shot.
* (If required) the band are seen together in one shot sitting on five chairs in a line (just like the guys playing saws). Liam is in the middle singing, another reads a newspaper, Noel plays with the machine heads of his guitar that sits between his legs, one plays with a football, another gets up and walks out of the shot.
* The circular montage of the band, mentioned earlier, rotates as the track nears its end. This finally dissolves to the oasis 45 rotating on the record deck. The music finishes and the needle and arm lifts off the record.
THE END
As can be seen, all these images are very graphic and intentionally simple allowing maximum effect to come from the band. Even an expressionless look will have huge impact when shot with this kind of simplicity. If required certain elements in all the images can have a single colour inserted. For example the oasis logo on the record is in light blue. Noel's guitar is red, the stripes on one of the shirts are green etc.. However care must be taken not to take this too far or the power of the monochromatic imagery will be diluted.
There is also plenty of room for the band to specify activities they would like to be doing in individual shots if they have something in mind. c. Nigel Dick, Squeak Pictures '95
Doug Stern also writes music video treatments and rarely fights with clowns.
