Public art projects make me happy.

Portland is all the better for the Forest for the Trees mural project – I love discovering new ones as I go about the city. (My personal favorite is this brilliant piece by Faith 47.)

I am hoping to make my “Story Without Words” project center on a participatory public art project, and I came across this video from Perth, Australia while looking for examples of public art-based videos.

There’s a lot of beautiful filmmaking here, and a really nice mix of shots – timelapses, slider shots, interesting angles, quick cuts, handheld, reaction shots, etc. Despite the lack of words on screen or voiceover, the captivating subject matter, the variety and quality of the shots, and the quick pacing keep it interesting over its nearly five minutes.

The “unanswered question” lies in seeing the finished mural (the primary one featured), but there are lots of little surprises along the way, like how large the scope of this project is (more and more pieces keep appearing!) and when the public sees the pieces and start snapping pictures.

And of course there are lots of matched action sequences – several examples are back-to-back starting at :31. I also think the matched action sequence at 1:40 is interesting, because it goes a bit opposite from what you’re typically used to, going from wide-to-tight-to-medium rather than wide-to-medium-to-tight.

I was particularly impressed by the quick cuts at :29 and how well they matched the music. If I know anything about video editing (which is very debatable), I know that synching cuts to the music can really elevate the production value.

I hope that a video like this gets made for the next Forest for the Trees project in Portland!