French techno DJ I Hate Models is the star of a new short film called Requiem for Synths. The atmospheric and enthralling four-minute film follows the masked artist as he roams the anarchic streets of New York City. The film was directed by Italian director and screenwriter Mitzi Peirone and co-produced by Renegade, a New York party brand and experiential agency, and Nina Tillberg Grindvik, the founder of the Apelago Agency.
Shot in the run-up to the U.S. election in 2024, the film captures the artist, whose name refers to a rejection of idol worship and conformity, as he makes his way through throngs of Manhattan’s unconventional characters. Amid the chaos are banners and masks with dissident slogans, law enforcement officers armed to the teeth, and newspapers carrying ominous headlines blowing in the wind. The film provides a snapshot of chaotic times, with society seemingly on the verge of breaking down.
Peirone had this to say about the film: “It was starting to feel as though reality itself was having an identity crisis, fueled by the loss of trust in institutions and political figures, and then further torn to shreds by the hallucinatory, year-long carnival that is New York City. The stakes of existential precariousness and the need for an iconoclastic figure to rise are real: it was an exceptional time capsule that needed to be captured, and what a better leading man than I Hate Models.”
The film takes an intense and dynamic turn when I Hate Models reaches an abandoned mall in Chinatown and locks eyes with the camera. The visuals then shift into footage from his headline set at a Renegade event last November, where the audience swelled into energetic party-goers. Renegade, co-founded by Bekim Trenova and Sam Black in 2020, has always had an anti-status quo or rebellious streak in all its work, a philosophy that mirrors I Hate Models’ brand.
The Renegade brand has extended beyond a party promoter to become a fully-functioning experiential agency. In addition to producing films, the brand also provides immersive experiences and creates digital campaigns to promote artists and brands. Requiem for Synths is a masterful film that captures the essence of the Renegade and I Hate Models marketing philosophy.
Watch Requiem for Synths below to experience the film in all its glory
Read the full article from Mixmag here: Read More
