Category: Best Music Video ARFF Berlin 2023

Original Film Title: Affentanz – Hunter

Director’s Name: Cyprian Hercka

Writer’s Name: Cyprian Hercka

Producer:Cyprian Hercka, Martin Hillebrand

Country of Origin: Germany

Country of Filming: Germany

Language: English

Runtime: 9 minutes 4 seconds

Film Description:

The name of the song says it all: The hunter on the prowl. A deer in a scope. A finger on the trigger. But then – a crack. A smack from a faceless hooded figure. A knock out and darkness. From there everything will be different. 
Deep in the forest: After an indefinite time, the hunter woke up. But not only does he not know what happened – he is completely naked. Frightened and confused, he stumbles through the forest until he meets another man. He too – naked. And while both are still laughing hysterically about their situation, a shot interrupts her laughter, blood splatters and the real hunt begins. But who the faceless hunters really are and why they hunt, we only find out at the very end. And the resolution is certainly not what you would expect.

Original Film Title: Wallflower

Director’s Name: Yu-Chi Li

Writer’s Name: Yu-Chi Li

Producer: Ray-Kai Chen

Country of Origin: Taiwan

Country of Filming: Taiwan

Language: Chinese

Runtime: 6 minutes 8 seconds

Film Description:

Writer use his hands to write down understanding of the world, love, and self. 
The fictional woman once again chose to meet and disappear with him, become a ghost who sees through the world.

Original Film Title: MLFY

Director’s Name: Goulwen Courtaux

Writer’s Name: Goulwen Courtaux

Producer: Goulwen Courtaux

Country of Origin: France

Country of Filming: France

Language: English

Runtime: 4 minutes 20 seconds

Film Description:

Directed by Goulwen Courtaux aka NKBX, JEFF3000’s MLFY music video takes you on a mesmerizing journey through the vast expanse of human history. This AI-generated creation serves as a tribute to the remarkable trip of the human race, showcasing our triumphs, struggles, and collective achievements. All characters are AI-generated based on a JEFF3000 video choregraphy.

Original Film Title: Doomscrolling (Ultrabloom)

Director’s Name: Matt Nicholas

Producer: Tom Etheridge

Country of Origin: United Kingdom

Country of Filming: United Kingdom

Language: English

Runtime: 3 minutes 29 seconds

Film Description:

Have you ever been stuck in a digital daydream?

The creative team behind ‘Doomscrolling’ brought this idea to life in a video which features lead singer, Rachel, sat on a custom-built toilet dolly rig, drifting through the world as she scrolls on her phone and loses track of what is fake and what is real. 

Original Film Title: Upside 

Director’s Name: Sean Cartwright

Producer: Juliana Capriano

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English

Runtime: 2 minutes 55 seconds

Film Description:

Upside is a modern fairytale that showcases a dystopian world ruled by women who hunt men for pleasure and force them to fight & perform against each other for their survival. The film is a commentary on consumerism, ownership, and lusting after one’s desires.

Original Film Title: KARDI – Skybound

Director’s Name: Jauk Gustavo Ku

Writer’s Name: Jauk Gustavo Ku

Producer: Myungsu Kim

Country of Origin: Korea, Republic of

Country of Filming: Korea, Republic of

Language: Korean

Runtime: 3 minutes 10 seconds

Film Description:

Four middle school students tore and stuck a flower bloomed in summer on their little fingers. 
And they passed out when looked up to the sky. 
They found clear being after woke up in a school. 
That transparent existence takes after themselves.

Original Film Title: Defiance

Director’s Name: Dimitri Legrand

Country of Origin: France

Country of Filming: Indonesia

Language: English, French

Runtime: 3 minutes 47 seconds

Film Description:

In a world of guarded ghettos, where freedom is but a distant memory, a tale of deceit and resistance takes center stage. In this gripping narrative, one man walks the precarious line between two worlds, working for the wealthy elite while harboring a hidden allegiance to the oppressed.

As he traverses the boundaries of privilege and poverty, his role becomes increasingly conflicted. Tasked with recruiting girls from the ghettos to entertain the affluent, he becomes entangled in a web of exploitation and power. A woman from the ghetto recognizes him and pleads for his help. She dreams of escaping their confined existence, offering her skills as a dancer as a way out.

Yet, the man’s true motivation lies elsewhere, he seeks another woman, with whom he shares a secret relationship and the imminent arrival of their child. His desperation to find her intensifies, as she remains hidden, fearing the repercussions of their forbidden love. In his heart, he carries the burden of a double life, pretending to serve the elite while secretly working to uplift the downtrodden. 

Original Film Title: Joyfriend – Fast Lane

Director’s Name: Jamie Rusiti

Writer’s Name: Joy DaMert

Country of Origin: United States

Country of Filming: United States

Language: English

Runtime: 3 minutes 10 seconds

Film Description:

Fast Lane (written by Joyfriend, mixed and mastered by Auragraph) serves as a defiant anthem for the queer and trans community. 

With a frenetic pace and constant inertia, Fast Lane channels the juxtaposed tension and liberation of harnessing gender as a performative agent. 

The clip challenges the conceit of a masculine hero and a femme fatale, combining these two characterizations into an embodied whole… Power, aggression, and sensitivity intertwined.

Original Film Title: Us In Octaves 

Director’s Name: Alex Mastoon

Writer’s Name: Alex Mastoon

Producer: Alex Mastoon, Zachary Mastoon

Country of Origin: United States

Country of Filming: United States

Language: English

Runtime: 7 minutes 44 seconds

Film Description:

In a hyper color summer nightmare, two lovers are haunted by their last act of love: saying goodbye. 
Us In Octaves is an official two part narrative music video for veteran producer Caural and told through an all Womxn & Non-Binary cast. 

Original Film Title: Rain Dirty Valleys – Black Madonna 

Director’s Name: Alon Shai

Writer’s Name: Alon Shai

Producer: Alon Shai, Rain Dirty Valleys

Country of Origin: Israel

Country of Filming: Israel

Language: English

Runtime: 5 minutes 24 seconds

Film Description:

A music video for Rain Dirty Valleys, A band based in Tel Aviv,Israel – A psych-shaman-dark post punk style of music. the video shows a ritual between band members as they play their song and soon enough dark powers arise