Filmmaker Rus Khasanov (previously) was working on a challenging shoot in Seoul, South Korea when he got the idea for this latest experimental film, Unity. The short work follows hundreds of paint bubbles as they roll, explode, and merge across the screen, creating dazzling bursts in shades of purples, oranges, pinks, and blues set to a soundtrack by Dmitry Evgrafov. Khasanov had been attempting to make two paint balls merge perfectly for his original commercial shoot, which he was finally able to achieve on the last day of shooting by chance and luck.
After several various ingredient experiments, he was able to learn how to get paint balls to absorb without bursting. “When you master the technique,” he explains, “you can already playfully turn the flaws into advantages: now in the bursting paint ball I see not a nightmare, but a bright colorful explosion which reminds me of fireworks.”
The film has elements that are in sharp focus while others imitate the bokeh effect, showcasing the sparkling paint elements in a soft out-of-focus that makes the entire thing seem like the bright spots of a blurred photograph. You can see more of Khasanov’s short films on Vimeo and Instagram.
https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2019/08/unity-by-rus-khasanov/