Added: 4 years ago
From: iamthenewthing
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  • But she didn't do the bow at the end. I wanted to know where they all went at that part =/

  • i was sure they just twirled the footage in post which may've been easier to do, but kudos for rotating it manually at 4:10

  • @Vaipan No because they had to "zoom" in and go forwards with the camera it would'nt have looked good at all if they just turned the screen

  • l love that sweet girlish wiggle in the beginning.

  • Imagination > $10, 000, 000

  • This video is brilliant and it's all in one take, so please dont't say it took several takes.

    It did took a lot of training ;)

  • This video puts single ladies to shame

  • @Priormiles I think you should rethink your approach to commenting. It was obviously filmed to promote the song like all music videos are. The location, choreographic methods, costumes and filming procedures are irrelevant when it's clearly a mashup of on-the-fly recordings of various rehearsals. You can even see Feist dancing in a white t-shirt at around 4:22. This wasn't billed as 'behind the scenes' anyway: just the making of which it clearly illustrates.

  • this must not be the final cut, as there are several moves that are different.

  • I cant understand how people think this video is made out of MULTIPLE takes,you can see clearly how its made and not out of seperate scenes!

    The end is funny,the group remains standing but cant be seen when Feist bows out...

  • @dborhem

    Sorry to say it is a an editing mix of different takes. In some sections Feist can be seen in a white t shirt as if rehearsing and in the 'making of the video' clip she actually uses a different move to the one that finally is seen in the finished video. In this clip she 'waves' people into falling over in a spiral but in the final video she 'shoots' them down with a pistol grip stance. Despite the obvious mash-up, still very clever.

  • soooo cool wow all in one shot love it

  • this is a way better than a fucking lip dub!

  • this "making of" video is almost more entrancing than the finished product.

  • awesome u like the horrors and feist!

  • That boom camera is so cool!

    At 4:10 it is doing barrel rolls!

  • no its a machine gun!

  • yeah, it is an amazing one shot video...its amazing....given all the digi effects out ther e and CGI she does that,,amazing...love it!

  • wow, i'd be scared to do that at 0:56!

  • No special effects used? So how we see nothing behind Feist and then a lot of dancers leave out?

  • didn't you see them crouching behind her at 2:36? I think that's how they did it...

  • It's all Forced Perspective.  The angles and distances are just right that we don't see the dancers crouching behind her. You'll notice they move up as she gets into position

  • Comment removed

  • why do i sense that they also did a second take?

    coz the shooting finger gun wasn't like bouncy hands liek she did in here

    and i dont rmbr she held her "heart" when she was being carried by the hands

    o_O or i jst didnt notice that at first ?

  • Oh yea, this take is DEFINITELY different than the finished product

  • thank you, i knew i'm not crazy lol

  • actually at .42 they are looking at an even earlier take and commenting on improvements

  • yes and she did a humping thing with her arms wen they did the circle thing

  • this is really one of the greatest music videos i've ever seen. without any cut. awesome! I'm so glad to found that making of. Seemed like to be a set where it's fun to work at.

  • WOW!!! 1 ov the best vids ever!!

  • One of the best fun videos I`ve seen. The choreography was brilliant and they all looked like they were having fun.

  • Agreed 100%

  • omg

  • thats so tight how the camera spins

  • This video is such a genius piece

    I love this video!

  • simply genius. talent from everyone involved. awesome direction and cinematography. better than all the other music vids out there. love the song too! You guys are just TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL!

  • now I know how they manage the line!

    simple but brilliant!

    bravo for the director and all the crew!

  • Were the dancers professionals, or amateurs? I quite hope it was the latter; I love to see people doing things just for the love of it, without obsessing about making it artistically worthy (not that this video isn't artistically worthy!) You really pick up on the fun the dancers were having, and I also like how they obviously all had to find their own costumes.

  • agree...

    your comment also makes ME feel better cause it actually makes me feel like i've got a chance in being one of these... which i would so luv!! xD

  • woah this was taken all in one shot????? thatz amazing!

  • Yup..one AMAZING shot!

  • Amazing!!!!

  • i love this video!

    i also have to get my hands on one of those camera contraptions!!

    they look awesome!!

  • i <3 Feist!

  • what a cool video

  • has anyone ever told you that you were?

  • I love this even more then the video itself. Thank you very, very much for posting this. ♪♫

  • It looks like fun.

  • Holy crap nice. When I was the orginal video, I was thinking damn it must of been hard to make the video. Cause there was no cut scenes at all, its just all one shot.

  • it's great to see how they've done the special video!

  • so great

    i love it

  • OMG! I LOVE it! The coreography was on point! ^_^

  • Continuous shot, one camera, this video is of a dress rehearsal probably. Creative video

  • Its an earlier version of the dance... One of the differences I noticed was when they're all in a spiral and she makes it to the center; in the original he makes a gun with her hand and spins to knock people down, in this one she just waves her hand to the beat. Her hands at the end are different as well.

    *I played the real one with this one at the same time (Ya, I'm a nerd I guess :-P )

  • I'm confused. In the actual video, she puts her hands together while she's spinning and the people are falling down, but in this one she points specifically. Also How do the dancers appear and disappear at the beginning and end if they're just standing there in this video?

  • Magic! ^^

  • With a cut.

  • Wow. What a smooth cut.

  • Yes it is. Wonderful technique.

  • I don't believe you can smooth-cut this...

    Even if it's a motion-controlled camera, you'd need every single dancer in exactly the same pose... Forget it...

    A much simpler explanation is that they used a different cut for the whole video, than the one used for the making of, which had minor flaws anyway.(ex. some person is seen in the end when the singer moves a bit too much :)

  • Also, for me the nice thing about making a video like this, is to not "cheat" anything afterwards, where'd be the fun in that?

    I just wanted to know where the dancers stood in the beggining, having watched the video a lot of times, and never seeing anything behind her in the whole cam-move.... Brilliant coordination! I'll keep my eye open for this director...

    ok maybe a little colour grading, and still...

  • I also think that it is much more easier to make it in one shot - yes I have seen Forrest Gump pasted into footage with Kennedy and I know it's possible, but here, I can't see any purpose to that.

    If there's a cut, please tell us when??

  • amazing!!!

  • yeah this isn't the take they used for the video there are a couple of differences one is when they do the circular fall down shes waving her hand in the video she is just pointing and before the do the crisscrossing colors in the video a group hug her until it starts in this one no hugging before it starts.

  • this is not a continuous take! Notice at 5.02 she puts her hands on her chest and there's lots of dancers beneath her and then the very next second her hands are waving in the air and some of the dancers had disappeared from underneath her!

  • well this is the making mate

  • could you do a cont. take???

  • They simply changed camera views- thy had to 2 cameras going one kinda ground viewish and the other an ariel view

  • Easily one of the best videos out there.

    Feist! <3

  • Just beautiful.I imagine Shawn Kim (cinematographer) and Noemie LaFrance (choreographer) won't be having trouble getting work after this. Notice how all the dancers are dressed in bright bold colours, and how each one seems to really be into their movements and having fun.

  • Was this actually done in 1 take do you think?

  • no. When she goes around the cricle she does not "shoot" them like she does in the finished video.

  • The final version was shot in one take. They had to practice it first though!

  • shes amazing.. so unique.

  • she has such a relaxing voice

    its so beautiful

  • brilliant!

  • Ahh, that is a-very nice.

    True, the bangs are part of it.

    I like the previous album moreso.

    When she plays the big electric guitar and sings I melt.

  • This is how real music videos were made before rap. Now its just yelling men saying filth and saying its music. Thats really laying the foundation for the next generation!

  • Yeh I agree. These days it's just niggas pimping and hurling abuse at others. Promoting violence and flashing cash! What a discrace.

  • Lmao this is the best possible reply.

  • Agreed

  • Haha yes! Good call man.

  • very talented, stunningly sexy woman.

  • Um.... To everybody who says that you're surprised no computer effects/compositing was done, did you not just watch this? The people are behind her to begin and end with. They filmed it with a motion controlled camera that then shot the entire thing again on an empty set and then used a digital compositor to mask out the people at the beginning and end. Clever choreography yes, but not at those points.

  • Okay, I watched it again, and although the choreography is excellent in those points I still think some digital retouching would have been needed to fix some problems. Notice how you don't see the shadows of the people moving foward on the ground behind her, just the shadows of the people standing still.

  • I thought for sure the making included someone on the can droppin a deuce

  • i find brilliant the precise positioning/timing required to make all the people invisible behind her, especially since we see the space she covers not a second before she gets there. I honestly thought there was some compositing/visual effects done to get that (and the same, but not as technically troublesome, at the end). Very well choreographed.

  • Parenthetically, a small personal issue i had with part of the music video that has nothing to do with lack of quality or any objective fault--I don't like the physical style, if you will, she adopts as she begins singing "oh teenage hopes arrive at your door". I much preferred the innocentish, quirky presence she had at the beginning, rather than this overemphasized hip-swinging thing. Dunno how to describe it. But for some reason that bugged me a bit. Other than that, though, excellent.

  • Yr opinions are enthralling, please write more

  • damn...is that one continuous take?

  • they filmed it more than once because there is a difference with the one they filmed here and their actual music video. But they did a very goo job!

  • Yes.

  • cool

  • I was hoping that there was a movie showing how "1234" was made. Thanks.

    Feist is really exact in her movement, but she acts like she is a bit clumsey, or young and undefined. That is what makes her lovable. High tech camera, no computer, on a crane plus a great crew.

    How can any guy not fall in love with her and her music. Girls too for that matter, well, I am guy. Thanks again.

  • amazing!!!

  • And all in one take! Brilliant!

  • OK now that you think of it there is a lot of resemblance from feist and the girl who plays Chuck in Pushing Daisies

  • i think ur dumb!!!!!!

  • soz, dat werent meant 4 u

  • perhaps it's the hair. particularly the bangs.

  • How do you define CGI?

    I think I see 7 or 8 traveling matte dissolves even at iTunes and YouTube pathetic resolutions.

    Great video, Feist on SNL was the Shiite.

  • She's converted to Islam?

  • It's an unfunny way of saying "the sh*t".

  • hahahahahahahahaha. awesome

  • where did you hear that?

  • Read rt94103's original post, to which my comment is a response. It's a joke in response to the original poster's unintentional spelling.

  • haha

    as in shi'ite

  • freaking awesome! there are some who say it was CGI... but they are WRONG

  • incredible...so lovely!

  • This was all done in one take. They finally got the flawless run at about 8pm. The had 1 day of rehearsal, then 1 day of shooting.

  • I wonder how many hours, days even, it took to do the final take.

    I think this video but scratches the surface of their collective efforts.

    A whole bunch of talented people came together to bring this off.

    The fact that the final result is a finished, one continuous shot is amazing.

    And of course with out Feist it would be all for naught.

  • This was taken with more than one take.

    Watch Ms. Fiest in this video doing the clock and circle run. In this video she's waving whereas in the final cut she's pointing straight arm.

    Same with the zoom out where the dancers cross each other. Here she's playing the piano and other actions, in the final she's her arms are above her head.

    Nevertheless Well done!

  • I think it's not so much whether it was done in one take, as the fact that what you see is one continuous shot. You don't get something this intricate completely perfect the very first time you do it.

  • I think it is pretty clear that the version where she is pointing at them is simply a different take. They did complete several takes successfully,and the director was able to choose his favorite to use in the final video.

  • I have been wondering how 1234 was shot, since iPod's use in an Apple ad, and the song that Leslie Feist created. DennisDegan above confirms my reasoning I imagined the scene was 'shopped to clear any remaining extra bits and shadows and reflections. but the above certainly shows how well it was all planned, and carried out.

    Very well done.

  • polyphonic spree anyone?

  • excelente trabajo en equipo!!!

  • My first impression (of the original video) was: "Wow! This visual is even more charming than the audio!' Then I thought: "Great choreography...this seems to be a single take!' And then: "I bet there were LOTS of imperfect takes before this one." And finally: "This is a pretty huge undertaking for an artist who was not well known when it was filmed. Bravo!" At any rate, this video just adds to the cool phenomenon that this little song has become.
  • i agree with te fruit loops thing! Love this video, really well done

  • Stunningly done, a masterpiece no less.

  • This video makes me want to eat fruit loops. So said some girl and I'm stealing it from her.

  • Though this video might have been done in one take, I noticed that a motion-controlled camera rig was used. All the camera moves were acurately repeatable through computer control. MC'd camera rigs are commonly used in special effects work, allowing various elements to be shot separately. It's possible that different takes of this video were combined to create the finished product. MC also allows the editor to "paint out" parts of a scene by using a "clean pass" without the dancers.

  • Great editing allows this video to look as seamless as it does. Great job on every level - dancing, cinematography, choreography, editing.

    I'd love to work on a shoot like this.

  • are you sure it's editing and not just great camera work?

  • Oh I'd say its amazing camera work, and for all I know its a one shot. I think you can agree if it isn't a one shot, they sure fooled us huh?

  • This video does not heavily rely on camera work. Its more on Choreography and Directing.

  • cool!!

  • Wow!

  • Where is the non-director's version? I want to watch that too.

  • all you have to do is look up 1234 aand click on the first one.

  • great video.. technical wise and choreographed wise..good song as well

  • amazing!

  • Of course it's all one shot. But it took a few takes.

  • how many takes?

  • that was preetty neat...the way the dancers can form that perfect line at the end...amazing choreography

  • Since some of you have asked, there is a New York Times article that reveals the video was filmed in a warehouse in Toronto. It took three days, two to rehearse and one to shoot. And in another interview I read, Feist says that the dancers loved doing it, and wanted to do it at least once more but they had run out of time.

  • dont tell the whole thing was done at once. i thought there was no way

  • superby,

    Are you mentally challenged?

  • May I simply add that this was not done without editing and computer editing actually? I have been a magician since I was 5 and Im 54 now! I was there when David Copperfield vanished the Liberty Statue and the Jet Plane from a runway, etc I'm not sure the reason for 'the making of' to make it seem like it was done this way. I could be getting old and my brain may be going:) but there is no way. Comments? I love the song and the video. Great, great stuff.

  • Crazy much alan?

  • hey Arthur. I love this little video! my profesional opinion is that it was not made without lots of computer edits. I was performing magician developed stage effects for 25 years. It's okay to believe but since they are implying a one shot, maybe it really isn't 'fair' ?

  • But are you a cinematographer? Different tricks of the trade I'm sure. I'm assuming you're talking about the appearing/disappearing dancers, check out the high school production by hrhobo, they pull it off almost perfectly, albeit with fewer people.

  • You're definately right, some of her dance steps are different from the actual video we watch on T.v. .... soooooo there must have been more then one take !

  • Gotta love a track that's got a banjo AND a horn section. :)

  • Super! I like how simple the choreography was. It made it look personal and down to earth. Great job. I would also like to know where it was filmed as does sooznlo.

  • That's pretty incredible.

  • frickin' RAD.

    i was wondering about that beginning... good to know.

  • Great clip, it's really amazing how it was made.

  • ZOMG! my sister is in this!!!

  • Oh yeah, sure!

  • can you ask her where it was filmed, please?

  • A friend of mine told me that this looks like a rehearsal room at the Nashville Ballet Co., and that he thought a couple of the dancers looked like guys in the Nashville Ballet. Can anybody confirm this or give me a place to research?

  • This is a rare video and song that just makes me happy by listening or watching it. It is amazing to see the performers being that much in synch with each other.

    Does MTV still have their annual Best Video Award? If so, this definitely should win the next time.

  • Maby or maby she just thinks she's a bunny.

  • WOW!

  • Haha. Yeah I noticed she was playing air piano.

  • was that all ONE take?! wow!

  • Brilliant video,song, performance, idea, and finished product! They all should get an award for this!

  • That's my favorite part!

  • WOW! Awesome! this settles the dispute we're having on 'feist- director's cut' video. some people swear the people were added in fancy post-production for the first and last shots. I KNEW it tho! Humans are capable of cool stuff, who needs post-production? :)

  • o wow...this is different then the normal video (moves i mean) instead of a gun it was her waving her hand

  • they looked like they had a lot of fun;)

  • Thanks for posting this, ever since I first saw the video it's been driving me crazy trying to figure out how they pulled off the opening and closing sequence! Brilliant piece of work! Like jimgriff said this should get some kind of award,but I wouldn't bet on it,not commercial enough.

  • What a diabolically brilliant and fresh piece of work. One take. One unbelievable take! It looks all so simple but the timing and positioning of all elements (camera, principal and dancers) for this long, unedited single take left absolutely no room for errors or missteps and required breathtaking surgical precision (especially the beginning and end bits where the dancers appear and disappear).

    If Patrick Daughters and Shawn Kim don't win awards for this video, then there is no justice!

  • I agree...In my mind I'm awarding this video the "best music video of 2007"...it's just brilliant music video making at it's finest...I don't think i have been "wowed" by a music video in a looong time! except for this one. Simplicity but technically challenging. A serious 'round of applause for eveyone involved! Congratulations!

  • I think this is almost as exciting (if not more) than watching the video itself. Brilliant.

  • Simply amazing video.

  • Yes children, this is the way things used to be, dancers actually dancing without the camera cutting away every 2 seconds. Go back and watch Fred and Ginger do incredible dance sequences in one camera shot.

  • Well done, a great video! :)