THE APPROACH
A series of images rather than a story.
Nikolina is already the Siren. We find her through glimpses of water, her body and its reflection. The images are held together by the speakers and the bass, leaving room for each one to feel strange in its own way.
On set, a veil of water on a plastic sheet simulates the pool. Depth and scale belong to the image we build in post.
01THE WATER PIPE
We keep the opening image: a constant water flow through a lit canal runs out. An isolated detail, surrounded by darkness.
02THE EMERSION
Nikolina is rising from the depth. We only see a brief shot of her moving towards a surface that reflects her face; as soon as she touches it, we understand it’s water. An abrupt cut brings us to the next image. This shot is mainly built in VFX.
03THE WALK / THE REFLECTION
Shot from afar, she walks slowly towards the camera, dripping with water. We zoom in very slightly as the camera advances and tilts down. During the slow tilt, her prosthetic modifications reveal her as the Siren.
Thin slits of backlight and slight diffusion from above give the image an eerie look. Flying dust and debris in the foreground convey a sense of relentless motion. A minimal array of regular speakers sits behind her.
Her fragmented reflection then fills the frame. As she drips, the falling drops break the surface. An eerie water transition takes us into the closing images.
04FROM BELOW
The surface becomes even again, and we now see Nikolina from below. She stops above us for a second, looking down, before walking away. This whole shot feels impossible. A faint blue-hour sky above her head gives us just enough context.
05A LAST GLIMPSE
For a brief closing second, we see the scene from above: a rounded pool surrounded by grass, with Nikolina walking away from it. The pool and its surroundings are completed in post.
SOUND
The speakers follow us through the whole sequence. The first bass beat lands exactly as she emerges. Vibrations are timed to the images, and a faster and faster bass beat builds tension until the end.
HOW WE SHOOT IT
Five shots, built around a small number of practical setups. We keep real water for the texture and reflections, then use VFX to change the depth, the scale and the point of view. A clean grey background across the setups would help; where that isn’t possible, a small grey patch behind the area to isolate can be enough, depending on the framing.
| SHOT | ON SET | IN POST |
|---|---|---|
| 01THE WATER PIPE | ON SETA practical water pipe or lit channel, filmed as an insert during the photo session if possible. | IN POSTKeep the real flow and its stop. Clean up the frame only where needed. |
| 02THE EMERSION | ON SETNikolina on a table; a mirror on a controlled rig slowly lowers towards her face. Capture her approach to the reflection. | IN POSTWater VFX turn the mirror into a veil of water. Composite the apparent rise, contact, surface distortion and depth. |
| 03THE WALK / THE REFLECTION | ON SETA thin water layer on plastic sheeting, with a minimal regular speaker array behind her. Shoot the walk, then a tighter pass of the reflection and falling drops. | IN POSTExtend the water plane, add foreground nature generated with AI, integrate drifting dust and debris, and build the water transition. |
| 04FROM BELOW | ON SETAn extremely low shot with an ultra-wide lens as she approaches, pauses and walks away. Photograph her footwear from several angles, including the soles. | IN POSTExtend and reframe the low shot into the impossible view from below; add water, footwear detail and a faint blue-hour sky. She does not need to stand on a transparent layer. |
| 05A LAST GLIMPSE | ON SETA brief overhead plate of her walking away from the water veil, plus a clean plate without her. | IN POSTDefine the rounded pool, extend its dimensions and add the grass and surrounding nature. Match the water, light and direction of her exit. |
SETUP SCHEMES
Conceptual side views — not to scale. Final framing and rigging will be tested with camera and VFX.
Her body stays supported on the table while the mirror lowers. VFX supplies the water contact and the apparent depth.
She walks over the water veil. The camera advances, zooms slightly and tilts down into the reflection. Slit backlights define her outline.
Shoot her normally from a very low position. Use the footwear photographs and post extension to complete the underside view.
PROJECT DETAILS
NASTY Magazine editorial featuring Nikolina
Production: Truecolor
Film: 1 × 30 seconds
Formats: 9:16 / 4:5 / 16:9
Planned shoot: 15 October — Milan
Final delivery: 2 November