NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE – Leveraging the power of music to guide viewers through a unique perspective on planet Earth, National Geographic has partnered with multiplatinum, Grammy Award-winning artist, DJ, composer and producer Zedd and Universal Music Group & Brands to create an original composition and performance music video, inspired by the channel’s “ONE STRANGE ROCK” episodic series executive produced by Darren Aronofsky & Nutopia.
The partnership, conceptualized and managed by Universal Music Group & Brands, also sees Nashville-based multi-award-winning content studio Evolve Studio handle end to end production and post production on the video and BTS films featuring Zedd’s creative journey and performance.
Directed by Evolve’s Joel Edwards, the leading 3’31” film shot in Hollywood’s Bronson Canyon cave combines live-action, VFX and projection-mapping to produce mesmerizing visuals to complement Zedd’s original music piece. As the musician performs on a grand piano, in the infamous ‘Batman’ cave, the stunning images of our planet and solar system encapsulate the space. As the music heightens the world in the cave comes to life and gravity starts to warp.
The video’s Producer, Melissa Daniels, also echoed the excitement of this project. “Working with the entire Zedd, Universal & Nat Geo team was a collaborative process from beginning to end. It was incredible seeing the vision for this project realized. The care our team put behind ensuring the projections matched not only the music itself but the intricacies of the cave was a true challenge. Our production team really rose to the occasion and knocked it out of the park. Projecting nature on nature and mixing in the track created a unique way for us to connect and celebrate this planet that gives so much to us.”
Mirroring how ONE STRANGE ROCK unravels the story of our planet, the performance is part of a series of four films which follow Zedd over the course of his creative journey with, an interview and a behind-the-scenes look at Zedd’s recording process — all culminating in this final performance.
The film launched on Zedd’s Vevo account on 9th April.
