BAD HOP’s New Music Video Kawasaki Song Shot on Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K
Spikey John and Seiya Uehara team up to shoot hip hop group BAD HOP’s last music video using Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K.
Blackmagic Design announced today that the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K digital film camera was used to shoot the popular hip hop group BAD HOP’s latest music video. The video was directed by experienced music video creator Spikey John, with cinematography by Seiya Uehara, both of whom are members of the GROUNDRIDDIM collective of musicians, artists and creators.
BAD HOP is a hip hop group with eight members based in Kawasaki City, Japan. Their song “KAWASAKI SONG (feat. DJ TY-KOH, Bark, T-Pablow, Benjazzy, JJJ, BIM and A-THUG)” was part of their final album released in February. This music video, being their last before the group’s disbandment, is considered a culmination of their work.
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Director Spikey John began making music videos as a teenager and has directed videos for many hip hop artists, as well as earning the trust of major artists like Fujii Kaze and BUMP OF CHICKEN.
“When I was in high school, I couldn’t keep up with classes, so my friends and I would skip and play around. That was when smartphones came out, and we started filming for fun. We’d make up impromptu stories, had people fight or do funny things, then edit the footage and show it to our classmates for laughs. That’s how I got into video production,” John shared.
Supporting John is cinematographer/photographer Seiya Uehara, also of GROUNDRIDDIM. Uehara has worked on a wide range of projects, including portraits of popular artists, music videos, and promotional videos for brands.
“I’ve been into photography since I was a child, and I met Spikey through a mutual rapper friend when I was 20. Our work together started as an extension of play. I’d be invited to shoots, help out, and eventually, they handed me a camera and I began filming,” Uehara explained.
Both John and Uehara have worked with BAD HOP before. The “Kawasaki Song” music video, being the group’s last one, became a particularly memorable project for them.
“BAD HOP only gave us the direction to shoot in the streets of Kawasaki, without much detailed planning. I thought it would be challenging! They must have trusted us to capture the natural feel of the streets,” said John.
“We wanted to shoot various parts of Kawasaki in a documentary style, so we used a mix of different cameras, including 8mm film and MiniDV. We wanted to differentiate my main camera from the others, so we decided to go with Blackmagic’s full frame camera,” Uehara said.
He also chose the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K for its mobility and size. “We often use a gimbal for camera work, so for shoots that prioritize mobility, it’s important to see if the camera can fit on the Ronin S,” said Uehara. “The Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K has a large, bright screen, and it also supports Vari angle, which made it easier to shoot from low angles without needing to attach a separate monitor to the gimbal. That was one of the biggest advantages of using this camera.”
Color grading was done by Colorist Ben Conkey using DaVinci Resolve Studio editing, color grading, visual effects (VFX) and audio post production software. “Whenever I can, I try to rely on a professional colorist. I’ve worked with Ben many times, and he often comes up with looks that we wouldn’t have imagined ourselves. This time, too, we let him take the lead, and then did some fine tuning. It turned out great from the start. When the budget is tight, I use DaVinci Resolve Micro Panel to do the grading myself. For this music video, I also created the LUTs in DaVinci Resolve and imported them into the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K for use during filming,” Uehara noted.
Both John and Uehara shared their final thoughts on the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K. “The footage shot on the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K has a punch to it. With depth, even wide shots don’t look flat, which pairs well with shooting rappers and street scenes,” said Uehara.
“I don’t know much about the technical details, but in terms of impression, the camera produces images with a lot of power. It has a quality that really connects with rappers and musicians. I definitely want to continue using it,” John concluded.