This Video Sucks!

The Foo Fighters let us hang them upside down and hit them with sticks.

The Challenge

NuContext has worked with Fuse on main titles, episodics, promos and PSA’s. So when they called with a new job, we were ready for anything… except possibly this. “Would you be available to shoot a series of spots with the Foo Fighters to promote a fan-made video contest?” Um, yes… Yes. I think we could work that into our schedule.

INDUSTRY: TV WORK: Live Action / Editorial

The Solution

The brains at NuContext immediately started storming. The spots had some business to get across – the Foo Fighters were inviting fans to make videos for the songs on their new album. But they also had to be irreverent, energetic, visually arresting and funny – Foo Fighters style. Dozens of concepts were fleshed out and presented to both the network and the band, and lead Foo Fighter Dave Grohl was most excited about one concept centered around the phrase, “THIS VIDEO SUCKS.” In an unexpected move, Grohl contacted NuContext directly and offered tons of hilarious input. We were more than happy to work with him to bring his vision to life.

And what was that vision? Well, it involved the Foo Fighters as human piñatas, angry dwarves with sticks, pyrotechnics, celebrity pals, a friend of the band in drag and an ex-porn star.

Yup.

Was NuContext up to the task? You bet. Our production team worked closely with the Dave and the Foos’ management team, using some creative framing and set dressing to squeeze 3 sets out of the band’s studio compound and parking lot. Knowing that the band was in the midst of an album launch, we worked with speed and precision, getting all the shots and performances we needed for several spots in one afternoon.

Back at NuContext HQ, our editor tuned into Dave’s frequency, making the spots come together easily and quickly. Fuse was delighted when the spots went viral. And the Foo Fighters liked it so much they hired us to shoot two music videos, a behind the scenes spot, and a tour commercial.