About the Project:

We had been planning this trip since high school, but due to Covid we were unable to go at first. Somehow, through a joint effort, we were able to coordinate a trip after all of our graduations at different universities. I knew going into the trip that I wanted to document it, but I wanted a specific aesthetic. As soon as we arrived in Japan, I bought a used camcorder. Japan has a deep respect for preserving physical media and sells vintage tech in excellent condition at affordable prices. I found a camcorder from the early 2000s that would give me that Y2K aesthetic—drained-out colors and sharpened edges—a look that felt right for the way I remembered the trip.

The Journey

This was a condensed version I made to highlight the overall experience. I had up to 12 hours of footage recorded on this camera alone and managed to edit it down. I also ended up making a full feature-length cut of our trip—a Cinema Verité-style observation of our 11 days of traveling. I had so much fun re-editing our trip into just under two hours, highlighting my favorite places and memories we had. The shorter version became more of a visual postcard, while the longer cut serves as an archive of the journey itself.

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Roles:

Director, Director of Photography, Editor

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Andre Lendi www.growingproductions.com