When we were children the sense of marvel we were endowed with was unlimited. The last time I felt unlimited was one month ago, when, recklessly scouting for locations in upper Austria, the production van entered an unannounced fog as thick as all the imagination I owned in my childhood’s hours. I had to shoot a Christmas music video for the KISI Kids, and we needed to reach a perfectly immaculate snowy area.
That precise moment when I found myself surrounded by absolute whiteness, I lost all my bearings and regained my childhood. The van was driving into nothingness, an infinite limbo, yet I felt home. I turned to the driver: “Do you have the slightest idea where we are going?”…”No. But’s it’s safe here”. She said with magic awareness. For one long minute, not accustomed to mountain fog, I was petrified. Then I decided to do the only thing I could do: trusting the driver. It was not automatic, it was a forced decision, because sometimes trust implies a certain effort. After all I was a city guy, I knew nothing about the liturgy of high mountains. Little by little, while we were driving through the fog, all the most basic monolithic feelings of a buried childhood started to flow in my mind. They were: fear, trust, hope, calm, joy, and again fear, trust, hope, calm and…(Finally I made out a cabin) JOY. the fog was suddenly gone. My sense of marvel back.
I was ready to film.
This is the result of those 3 days. I would like to thank the indefatigable Hannes for trusting my vision, Birgit for this wonderful song, Johanna for all the work in the preproduction phase, Ines for being a brilliant production assistant, and of course all the surprising KISI, who kept singing and dancing during the snow storm. Thank you and merry, merry Christmas to everyone!
Released today in 25 tv networks: “We sing merry, merry Christmas”. Music and lyrics by Birgit Minichmayr. Performed by KISI.
STRICTLY FOR CHILDREN.
I repeat:
STRICTLY FOR CHILDREN.
Enjoy!
Manuel
