Musician Raleigh Ritchie has unveiled a brand new short film made in collaboration with TOPMAN TV and inspired by his song “Cowards”, which he wrote, directed and starred in as part of TOPMAN TVs fan based, interactive project Open Shoot.
The film, the outcome of months of hard work from both Ritchie and his collaborators, follows the birth and the growth of a romantic relationship, showcased purely through the visuals and the actors facial expressions, and their usage of just one word, “Hi!”, in a multitude of scenarios ranging from their first meeting to their first date, with actress Abby Wilson portraying Ritchie’s love interest.
With a strong concept that is well executed, and with the right balance of cool, quirky and edgy that made TOPMAN a stand out fashion brand, it’s a must watch and a six and a half minutes well spent!
Raleigh Ritchie, who is known to fans around the world as Daenerys Targaryen’s right hand man and commander of the mighty unsullied Greyworm in the HBO hit series Game of Thrones (in which he is credited under his real name Jacob Anderson), might have already stacked up acting credits on film like 4.3.2.1 and the critically acclaimed British Cult Hit Adulthood, but the short film, titled Hi Maintenance, marks his directorial debut; an even more impressive feat when you consider that much of the cast and crew where fans invited to participate in the making of the film through the Open Shoot project, and that most had never stepped foot on a film set before.
“Directing and acting is proving to be the toughest thing because it’s quite hard to sort of, to look at my own performance with a directors eye and try to be objective about it. It’s quite difficult” said Ritchie, in the behind-the-scenes making of documentary that followed the actor/director throughout the films production.
The song “Cowards” not only inspired the film, but has been exclusively rearranged to serve as the films score. The original version of the song, which can be heard here, was never available as a single but could be heard on Ritchie’s 2016 debut studio album You’re a Man Now, Boy.
Hi Maintenance is just one of a number of collaborative videos and short films that TOPMAN TV will release this year, with their aim being to engage the fans of an artist and involve them in the creative process.
For more information on TOPMAN TV and their Open Shoot Project, as well as an exclusive interview with Raleigh Ritchie and a run down of his favourite films and songs, click here to visit the Topman Open Shoot website.
The full Hi Maintenance film can be seen below, and a series of online documentaries, ranging from meet the artist, a visual moodboard, plus the full behind the scenes look at the films production, are all available on the TOPMAN Youtube Channel.
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