Chemical Brothers | Midnight Madness
Movement Genre:
• Breaking (Break Dance)
• Movement Direction / Coaching
• Parkour / Freerunning
• Physical Theatre
• Popping
• Street / Hip Hop Dance
The Chemical Brothers are a multi-platinum selling, Grammy & Brit Award winning electronic music duo who are pioneers of bringing the big beat genre to the forefront of pop culture.
Shot over a single night around some of the less salubrious alleyways of London’s Soho, ‘Midnight Madness’ follows a goblin-like homunculus as he emerges from a bin at midnight, cavorts around the alley and then leaps up the wall ascending to a rooftop. Further frolicking then brings him into the famous Astoria, where he performs briefly on stage before hitching a ride on a passing police car back to his bin.
There were four performers used for the promo. Three of them were human, each an expert at a particular skill in parkour, popping/hip-hop and break dancing. Castings for the roles were held internationally in Paris as well as London. The most dangerous stunts – shinning up drainpipes, leaping from rooftop to window ledge, for example – were handed over to a digital double who’s movements were created and animated based on choreographed movement recordings of the parkour runner in the gymnasium.
The song was nominated for Best Dance Video & Best Visual Effects at the UK Music Video Awards & featured in the sports game Pro Evolution Soccer and in the racing game Midnight Club: Los Angeles