Fashion photographer, L. Basnight, captures images illustrating every element of fashion. Visually stimulating public eyes with editorials, he has now forged those still images into fashion films. I wasn’t surprised by Basnight taking the initiative to bring something fresh to the city. When you’re really becoming a master of your craft, you look not only for personal gains, but how you can bring growth to your surroundings.
When asked what cultural gains he looks to bring to the city by combining fashion and film, relevancy formed the base. “By combining fashion and film, I am looking to bring relevancy to Atlanta’s promising fashion and creative arts scene. Atlanta is often late to the punch when it comes to cultural movements. Fashion film has exploded all over the world in the past two years or so. Every legitimate designer, agency and model are using fashion films as creative branding statements. I am bringing that legitimacy to Atlanta.”
Going back to one of his initial projects with designer, Taryn Andre, he explained how the collaboration developed and the inspiration behind the story line. “That project developed from an equal admiration of one another’s work. Her designs are dark and edgy, yet very sound in technique and execution. There is a rawness in her work. I would like to believe that a lot of those same qualities are to be found in my photography and film. After months of scheduling conflicts, we finally came together and came up with the “Villainess” and “What Do You See?” concepts. The first stems from our shared interest in super heroes. She wanted to convey an attitude in her brand; Something that a practical female super villain might wear. The “What Do You See?” idea is based around audience interpretation, which in my mind, is the purpose of all art. The film was designed in order to challenge the audience. We wanted them to literally think about and analyze what they were viewing.”
There has always been a giant margin between the creative heads in Atlanta. You can work parallel towards the same goal, but not “join forces” with someone of your medium unless they feel you’re prevalent. However, Basnight’s approach to collaborative efforts is one to be mimicked. “Honestly, I’m looking to work with anyone who’s willing to be innovative and challenging to the accepted cultural normalcy of this city. I have never been one to hang onto to names or notoriety. I can care less about who you are or who you know. I just want to know about what you can do. What are you trying to say through your craft? If you are professional, committed and are willing to buck a trend or to start your own, I want to work with you. People with the trailblazer mentality are those who will change the face of Atlanta’s fashion culture.”
To gain a better understanding of his creative niche, I deemed it necessary to comprehend not only the work of the artist, but the public gain as well. “I always tell people that the Artists’ Prayer is to simply be recognized by their peers and compensated for their craft. This is true,” says Basnight. “I just want people to know that I am a unique individual, that I purposefully try to bend the genre, offering work that is unlike any other. If people are inspired or motivated by my work and collaborations, that is a great bonus as well.”
What is Basnight currently working on? ”Right now, I am in the postproduction phase of Teknicolor (sp) makeup Artistry’s fashion film. I am composing the sound design, modeling the 3D animation, key framing the motion graphics and cutting the film myself ( I do all of my editing and design work under the alias of @elbeethrie ). Her film is simply a branding and marketing tool. I truly believe that her utilization of a fashion film by myself will increase her company’s awareness, allowing people to recognize that her brand is at the forefront of the fashion industry. ”
There’s a rukus amongst the streets of Atlanta. Creative minds are joining forces, sparking a movement greater than themselves.What will we see next?
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