Dezeen Magazine

Household liquids create cosmic patterns in Quenum's 5AM music video

Dezeen Music Project: Berlin videographers False Manners Productions mixed fluids including milk, food colouring and make-up remover to create the cosmic patterns accompanying this track by producer Quenum.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

Fernanda Mattos and Federica Marchese of False Manners Productions immediately associated Quenum's chilled-out 5AM track with natural phenomena and galactic movements.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

"5AM is a very romantic track," Mattos told Dezeen. "We couldn't stop associating it with an amazing sunrise, the movement of the stars and all the planetary motion."

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

The duo used all the fluids they could find in their homes and experimented with mixing them together to form the desired densities, shapes and patterns.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

"We went back to study basic science and interactions between different fluids, densities and compositions," said Mattos. "We used a lot of different stuff - so many trials that we lost count. Of course we used water, milk, food colouring, different oils. We basically took everything liquid that we had at our places, including a fancy eye make-up removal."

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

Movements caused by stirring the concoctions and liquids reacting with one another were filmed close up to capture the detailed patterns flowing past the lens.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

The video starts with illuminated large colourful blobs and smaller speckles that could be mistaken for glowing planets and sparkling stars.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

The subsequent visuals show colours swirling in layers, creating patterns reminiscent of cosmic dust clouds.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

Globules of oil move around each other like orbiting celestial bodies, then coalesce into constellations.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

"[The visuals] make you dream, wonder and let you flow through the universe," said Mattos. "An authentic landscape for such timeless song."

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

The video took the pair a full weekend to shoot, then a few more days for editing and post-production.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

"We withdrew ourselves into the studio from Friday morning until Monday afternoon, non-stop day and night," Mattos revealed. "We ended up with so much footage that it took us a few days to prepare the files and select the approved material."

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions

5AM features on Quenum's latest LP Face to Face, released with record label Serialism. False Manners Productions also produced the videos for the three other tracks on the album.

Quenum 5AM music video by False Manners Productions