Shallow — Acoustic Live Session at The Penthouse
One song. Two performers. A London penthouse transformed into a cinematic stage with over 600 lights.
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Case Study
Not every project starts with a client brief. This one started with a song, a guitarist, and a singer who wanted to see what happens when you point 600 lights at a living room and press record. Shallow felt like the right choice — a song built on the tension between two voices finding each other, performed in a space intimate enough to make that tension real.
The Brief
The concept was simple on paper and ambitious in practice: film a live acoustic cover of Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper's Shallow inside The Designer's Penthouse in London. No playback. No lip-syncing. No safety net of a second take that could fix the first. Etienne would perform on guitar while directing the production; Jessica would handle vocals. The finished piece needed to feel like a music video but sound like a live recording — cinematic without losing the rawness that makes acoustic performances worth watching in the first place.
The Challenge
- Transforming a residential penthouse into a performance space capable of cinematic multi-camera filming.
- Lighting the interior with over 600 units while preserving the warm, intimate atmosphere of the original space.
- Capturing broadcast-quality audio in a live setting without the controlled acoustics of a professional recording studio.
- Balancing the dual role of performing as guitarist while overseeing the production as director and cinematographer.
- Delivering a single continuous performance that sustains emotional intensity across the full duration of the song.
- Creating a music video aesthetic that feels organic rather than overproduced, despite the technical complexity behind the frame.
The Approach
- Designed a lighting plan using 600+ individual units to wrap the penthouse in warm tones that complement the existing interior — leather, velvet, plants.
- Positioned multiple cameras at varying angles and focal lengths to create visual rhythm within a single unbroken performance.
- Chose the penthouse specifically for its acoustic character and visual richness — the Persian rugs, teal sofas, and tropical greenery do half the art direction naturally.
- Rehearsed the performance with Jessica beforehand to map emotional peaks to camera movements and angle switches.
- Recorded live audio on-set with dedicated microphone placement for guitar and vocals separately, mixed in post for clarity.
- Kept the crew minimal to preserve the intimate energy between the two performers and avoid the self-consciousness that comes with a large set.
The Execution
The penthouse was lit over several hours — each of the 600+ units positioned to layer warm amber tones across the existing furniture and greenery. The set design was essentially the room itself: leather armchairs, teal velvet sofas, a Persian rug underfoot, tropical plants catching light in the background. Jessica took her seat with the microphone; Etienne sat opposite with the acoustic guitar. Multiple cameras rolled simultaneously from wide, medium, and close-up positions, capturing enough visual variety for the edit without ever interrupting the take. The SOUND ON watermark in the final cut is deliberate — this piece only works with the audio turned up.
The Outcome
What started as a personal creative experiment became one of the portfolio's signature projects. The session produced a complete cinematic live performance that demonstrates a capability most commercial portfolios never show: the filmmaker as performer, not just observer. It also functions as a proof of concept for The Designer's Penthouse as a filming location — intimate enough for two people and an acoustic guitar, yet technically equipped for broadcast-quality multi-camera production. The piece represents something that client work rarely allows: total creative freedom, from song choice to lighting design to the moment of pressing record.
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