Wax

Music video about a protagonist trying to escape an abusive relationship, who discovers that to survive, they must become the thing the fear the most. An exploration of conforming sexuality and gender identity to please others.

"Wax” implies that maybe the horror isn’t in the supernatural and unexplained, but rather lies in the everyday terrors that are out of our control.

  • Aurelia (Gabriella Bavaro)
    Director
  • Aurelia (Gabriella Bavaro)
    Writer
  • Aurelia (Gabriella Bavaro)
    Producer
  • Melina Nakos
    Producer
    Refringo, Queens English, Kill the Rabbit, Rachel, Nevada, Jucio, Home
  • Aurelia (Gabriella Bavaro)
    Key Cast
  • Melina Nakos
    Director of Photography
    Refringo, Queens English, Kill the Rabbit, Rachel, Nevada, Jucio, Home
  • Jes Burke
    A.C.
  • Maddie Dico
    SFX
  • Aurelia (Gabriella Bavaro)
    Colorist
  • Aurelia (Gabriella Bavaro)
    Editor
  • Nathan D Miller
    Produtcion Assistant
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Music Video, Short
  • Genres:
    Thriller, Horror, Music Video
  • Runtime:
    3 minutes 19 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 1, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    400 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital/Blackmagic Pocket Cinema
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Aurelia (Gabriella Bavaro)

Aurelia (they/she) sprung from the mind of New York born producer, vocalist, and visual artist Gabriella Bavaro. Conjuring up a world of electronic and experimental music that is bolstered by her eclectic background of classical instrumentation, opera, & world influenced rhythms, the Aurelia project seeks to shed light on mental health stigmas and themes of finding light and strength. Latin for gold, "Aurelia" is a project about seeking light in the darkest of places.

The project had been in development for the past 2 years, sparked into reality after a suicide attempt/hospitalization and being diagnosed with PTSD. Gabriella then picked up Ableton & began songwriting in 2019.

That time has been essential, and allowed Aurelia rise to become a full scale production powerhouse, with writing/production credits for notable independent acts such as Icarus Moth & Ehiorobo, as well as larger corporations like Coca Cola.

An avid classical scholar, "Aurelia" was also way to encapsulate enlightenment and humanism, & the Plotinian ascent of the soul. Her creations (film, music, photo) have worked with an intent to use art as both a personal healing process & a way to discuss issues that have more often plagued women & LGBTQ+ youth, with a project that is equal parts personal and universal, for an illuminating and introspective experience.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

The song/video is very much about being stuck, and being desperate for affection, that stems from both a childhood sexual assault experience (personally) and from rejection of my real character and queerness. About constantly freezing your own progress for other’s comfort. The wax hardens around the formed character, in the same way one gets ‘stuck’ in their own behaviors.

This idea motivated the song and the video to fruition, that abusive behaviors can manifest and trap you. I was trapped and contorted into a real monster, someone I didn’t want to be, and involved myself in relationships that were completely destructive. It culminated, and 2018 I was hospitalized and diagnosed with PTSD, CPTSD, depression, and was held for being extremely suicidal. I’m healing now, but not brand new. I wanted a video that encapsulated that time period, and I wanted the MV to be horror-esque, to demonstrate how I felt: monstrous. I wanted to talk about how suffocated I was via the abuses I endured, and the ways I tried to constrain myself.