Reframed The Podcast

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▶ About This Episode:

Director Daniel Warwick joins Dylan Hahn to break down his Westpac campaign, a commercial that turned an entire community into a human helicopter. Daniel explains why he chose to build the impossible practically instead of relying on CGI, how Martin Parr's photography inspired the film's distinctive 16mm aesthetic, and why shooting front-lit in harsh sunlight became the project's biggest creative advantage. They also dive into production design, static camera work, film stock, color, location scouting, and Daniel's philosophy on protecting the human soul of filmmaking in the age of AI.

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▶ About This Episode:Director and photographer Aidan Cullen joins Dylan Hahn to break down his commercial spot for Cosmos starring Odessa A'zion, and to discuss what makes certain performers impossible to look away from. Aidan shares insights from a decade of working with actors, musicians, and brands, including his creative collaborations with Odessa, Omar Apollo, Malcolm Todd, and more. They talk about directing talent, building creative chemistry, shooting on film, creative direction, the realities of "overnight success," and why consistency matters more than inspiration. Aidan also shares lessons from founding Nova, working with some of the biggest names in entertainment, and the mindset that helped him build a career across photography, directing, and entrepreneurship.

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▶ About This Episode:Cinematographer Todd Banhazl joins Dylan Hahn to break down Olivia Rodrigo's "Drop Dead" music video, a project shot entirely on vintage BetaCam, VHS, and MiniDV cameras. Todd shares why the team wasn't chasing nostalgia, but the unique beauty these formats bring to faces, movement, and atmosphere. They discuss preserving interlaced motion, lighting for low-resolution cameras, filming at Versailles with director Petra Collins, the resurgence of lo-fi imagery, and why the industry's pursuit of realism may have gone too far.

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▶ About This Episode:DP Adam Bentel joins Dylan Hahn to break down KFC’s “Eat the Rules” campaign, directed by Zee Ntuli. Adam shares how the team turned a single abandoned community center into a surreal party world using practical effects, lasers, dancers, mirrors, confetti, and a lot of experimentation. They get into collaborative scouting, shooting at 250fps on the Alexa 35, building atmosphere with practical effects, lens choices, and how giving talented people room to play led to some of the spot’s most memorable moments.

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▶ About This Episode:Director and Abyss Digital founder Shapxo joins Dylan Hahn to break down how some of his most insane VFX shots actually get made. From Unreal Engine previs and robotic camera systems to CG avatars, seamless eye transitions, and LED volume stages, they dig into the real process behind modern VFX work. They also talk about AI, filmmaking culture, creative collaboration, and why some of the best ideas still come from grabbing your friends and making something with almost no money.

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▶ About This Episode: Director Rick Darge joins Dylan Hahn to break down his wildly absurd Popeyes “Chicken Chicken Chicken” campaign. It's a musical commercial built around one word, one weird idea, and a ton of meticulous prep. Rick walks through the entire process of directing a big budget commercial, from casting actors who can sing, navigating UK food advertising laws to solving VFX problems on the fly and keeping a set calm under pressure. They get into comedy theory, agency collaboration, lens choices, actor auditions, production company culture, and why the best comedy commercial work often comes from committing fully to one strange idea.

▶ Find Inspiration and develop your ideas with Frame Set:https://go.frameset.app/3RbjW6d▶ About This Episode:Director Simon Becks joins Dylan Hahn to break down a surreal Iceland-shot music video about a man stranded in a frozen wasteland who falls in love with a snow woman. Alongside co-director Folkert Verdoorn, Simon shares how the team turned a strange one-line concept into a massive practical shoot involving glaciers, handmade sleds, puppeteered snow creatures, and brutal conditions across Iceland. They get into worldbuilding, production design, collaboration, and the challenge of balancing emotional storytelling with a playful, cinematic visual style.

▶ Find Inspiration and develop your ideas with Frame Set:https://go.frameset.app/3QFEmUS▶ About This Episode:Director Leon Liehr joins Dylan Hahn to break down a spec commercial featuring Headspace that was made as a student project. Leon shares how a small team used location choices, practical effects, and VFX to create the illusion of ceilings closing in, all within a three-day shoot. They talk through previs, lighting strategy, in-camera solutions, and the process of aligning a spec piece closely enough to a real brand that it gets their attention.

▶ Find Inspiration and develop your ideas with Frame Set:https://go.frameset.app/4tywEKA▶ About This Episode:Director Alex Takacs returns to break down his music video Brush Me Like a Horse, a simple but striking concept built around a man running on a treadmill over a cliff. Alex shares how the idea expanded into a full world through production design, performance, and careful visual choices. They get into the realities of the shoot, including difficult locations, rattlesnakes on set, a broken treadmill, corrupted footage, and a last minute pickup shot that brought the piece together. It is a conversation about problem solving, trusting your instincts, and finding a way to finish the project when things go wrong.

▶ Find Inspiration and develop your ideas with Frame Set:https://go.frameset.app/3ODQSU9▶ About This Episode:Director Morgan Le Faucheur joins Dylan Hahn to break down his cycling campaign and the detailed process behind creating a high-end commercial look with limited resources. Morgan explains how he developed the treatment, pitched the idea in person, and used a combination of moto crane, drone, handheld camera, and practical lighting to build a strong black and white visual language. They discuss multiplying riders with subtle VFX, mixing stabilized and imperfect movement to preserve energy, and even capturing product shots using an iPhone with the Blackmagic app. The conversation also explores the balance between craft and new tools like AI, and why strong ideas still matter most when trying to stand out as an independent filmmaker.