Shake The Baron is quickly gaining notoriety for their incredibly polished promos. Self-confessed serial storyteller Alex Amoling took on the challenge of making the video for the all important title track from Ghost Hits, taking a more bruising approach when retelling the story of a break up. With their previous work heavily featuring post-production, it was fitting for Shake The Baron to focus this video on lead singer Andrew Oedel, while still staying true to Alex Amoling's style and fascination with violence. We got the chance to chat to Alex who explains just how he got such cheek-rippingly realistic punches, theories as to why violence is a reoccurring theme, and why he thinks there was an undeniable chemistry between the cast.

Luke: Was the idea for this video something you had previously, or is it something you felt would work well with the song?

Alex: The idea of finding a different way to show a couples' heated argument had been roaming around in my head for a while, but it never really materialized until I was introduced to the band and their album. That was about a year ago, when I was the 1st AD and VFX artist on their previous video "Crazy Align." I found myself listening to their album on repeat multiple times each week, and then story lines and images began to form in my head. When I thought about the album's progression, with its highs and lows, the title track and name of the album "Ghost Hits" just stuck. I started thinking about being hit, in a psychological manner, and times when, in an argument, words the other person used hit me like a pile of bricks because they knew how to stab at my innermost self. That's when my desire to make a film about a couples battle and the opportunity to do it clicked and boxing became the visual representation of their words. Later at a party, I drunkenly pitched the idea to some of the band mates. Seed planted.

Luke: The couple look really beaten up by the end of it, how were you able to achieve these realistic looks?

Alex: The credit goes to our SFX Make Up artist Madeline Jane, who's a screenwriter just starting out in the make up field. She really rose to the challenge and gave us something simple, yet brutally effective through the practical application of different blood elements, bruising, and cotton that had such a natural progression. Another contributor was simply the fact that both Andrew Oedel, the lead singer/guitarist, and Marion Le Coguic, our lead actor, were both physically worn down from about four hours of non-stop sparring.

Luke: The slow motion punches look real, did you actually have your cast punch each other?

Alex: The punches are real, but not in the way one would think. Since we were filming with the Phantom Miro, I went into the project thinking we'd just have Andrew and Marion go at it. However, since it was a very physical piece, I wanted to make sure we took the proper steps and had a stunt person. Corey Pierno, who's done stunt work on Boardwalk Empire and Person of Interest, came on as our fight choreographer to create a way to sell the material in the safest way possible. From his experience on projects, he brought us a nifty little trick where someone punching at a bit less than quarter speed still gave a pronounced ripple across the face. And to think I was just going to have them brawl.

Luke: The performance from the cast is really believable. What was the casting process like? Did they know each other prior to the video?

Alex: Marion and Andrew met for the first time halfway through the first day of filming, right before their argument scene under the M train on Myrtle Ave. Even with that barrier, we only spent thirty minutes right before action just to get to know each other and discover what they were arguing about. They did an amazing job and the chemistry was undeniable. First going into casting, the most important element to the video was their relationship and selling it so the audience could, without any doubts, go along with the extremes of the journey. Because Andrew wasn't an actor the goal was to find someone that could play naturally across from him and allow him to just be himself and forget the cameras. With this in mind, our casting director, Raine Hilai, brought a lot of amazing talent to the table for me to choose from and amongst them was Marion. Previously, I had been editing the band's 2012 tour videos so I knew them quite well, maybe more than they would like to admit, and with that knowledge my gut chose Marion.

Luke: Do you find that longer music videos allow you to take their time to build the story?

Alex: I think that for the types of stories I like to tell, having those few extra minutes allows me to stretch and develop. For "Ghost Hits," if it was two minutes less then the end product would have had a very different message and aesthetic. This one needed that extra intimacy to tell the heart of the story. Otherwise, I look at shorter videos as more of a challenge that I look forward to tackling in the near future. Above all else, servicing the story is the most important aspect.

Luke: Several of your videos deal with violence, what do you think draws you to explore it in your work?

Alex: I think violence is a part of human nature that we spend so much time repressing, for good reasons of course, that it finds a way to embody itself in our desires of what we watch and what we create. Some would call it a fetish. Creatively, I don't fear exploring it, but rather encourage it. Something about how people react in extreme circumstances has always fascinated me. Part of it could be the fact that I've never thrown a punch in my life and I don't fully understand why someone would resort to violence. I guess this is a way for me to explore the motivations behind it in some of my projects. Lately, with the material that has come my way, it just finds its way to creep in. Either way, I don't mind challenging an audience as long I've succeeded in motivating what I'm trying to say.

If you liked what you read, head over to Luke's blog, Word Is Cheap, or his Twitter @wordischeap, for more thoughts on his favourite music videos.