Experiencing Interruptions?

IMMERSE

A proposed campaign for Armani Exchange Menswear. IMMERSE shows a man in a dark blue suit dipping into the bathtub of his Penthouse. While the suit projects formality, its immersion alludes to nonconformity.

The man submerges himself in the water and rises up again. It is an allegory of the rites and rituals in the path to success ... Whatever we perceive success to be and however unconventional our choices may seem to others.

  • Alex Sierra
    Director
    4 Grados, Organismo, Control P, Una Mujer, Pablito
  • Iván Garcia
    Director
    Antaeus, Pasarela, Hipódromo, Moto, Calidoscopio, Contrast in Action
  • Sebastian Montanez
    Producer
    Antaeus, Pasarela, Hipódromo, Moto, Calidoscopio, Contrast in Action
  • Jose G Velasquez
    Key Cast
    "Himself/The man in the dark blue suit"
    Antaeus, Pasarela, Hipódromo, Moto, Calidoscopio, Contrast in Action
  • Project Type:
    Short, Other
  • Runtime:
    45 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 5, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    3,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Colombia
  • Country of Filming:
    Colombia
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Alex Sierra, Iván Garcia

Alex Sierra studied Filmmaking at Politécnico Grancolombiano in Bogota, Colombia. He later specialized in Cinematography in Argentina. His first award was for "4 Grados" a short film presented at the Cinemaibut Festival in Romania. He later won 1st place at the Rally Cinematográfico for "Organismo". He also was winner of the 140-Character Film Festival for "Control P". Alex currently lives in Bogota, where he collaborates with fashion editorial productions to create campaigns & short fashion films.

Iván Garcia has 12 years of experience in producing and directing short film, music videos & fashion films. He specializes in post production & sound editing.

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Director Statement

I have directed 12 fashion editorial films featuring José G Velásquez, the protagonist in this film. Everytime we've teamed up for a new project, we've started with the intent to create something completely different from the previous film. For the model to expand and diversify his portfolio & for me to express myself with total artistic freedom. That is why each film is in an entirely new kind of environment. One which complements the fashion styling & mood. Hence, by the time we reached our 5th collaboration, we called upon a drone pilot & underwater camera crew to film scenes from new perspectives. That was for a swimwear editorial which we filmed in the Caribbean at Tayrona National Park.

For IMMERSE, the initial concept was to create nude portraits in the bathtub & focus on face closeups. Separately in the same editorial, a Suit-and-tie look was planned for a different corner of this penthouse suite. However, the plan evolved and the two scenes morphed into one, as consent was given to get the suit wet if we wanted to. I visualized the bathtub more like a body of water which the protagonist was surrendering to. I used a Blackmagic camera, which has a cinematic quality and allows recording at 120fps to capture the movement of the water like waves in slow motion.

The film was shot at the end of a 17 hour day. We had started at 4am to gather the crew and start on the Makeup & Styling. We wrapped after 9pm. That morning, our first location was a country road on the outskirts of Bogotá, where we had José riding a motorcycle. With the crew driving in a car in front of him & a drone flying overhead, we attracted the attention of a policeman on patrol. With José being a foreigner* in Colombia, he was given a hard time. We were grilled about not having a permit to shoot, which we didn't actually require since this was out in the hills beyond city limits. Suffice it to say, the incident set us back two hours. At the end, the policeman made friends with José and offered him a cigarette. We resumed our shooting and got great material.

As a film maker, I like meticulous planning and to work according to schedule ... but I also love spontaneity because that's where the Art and Poetry really happen. And that is how this film took its final form.

* José is from Venezuela and has lived in Colombia since 2018.