The Cipha - Part Two

What's good people?!! We've decided to do the second part of our on-going review of The Cipha documentary which features a range of emcees from the LES. The clip under dissection today features Anonymous, who needs no introduction since I've talked at length about him in previous posts. Please note that we've posted other segments of the documentary on our Youtube Channel; you can gladly go there to view them.

We shot Anonymous' scene on the same day that we did Blitz' and Kislev's scenes. The latter two shall be reviewed in due time, but I reckon it is a significant point to note since the three emcees' appearances are interspersed within their respective scenes. For instance, Kislev can be seen on the last shot of Anonymous' scene. Incidentally, they were also the first scenes that we shot and edited, and, to our eyes at least, the level of experience is quite evident. Some of the techniques we used make for quite interesting viewing tough!

This part of the documentary opens up with a video we shot for Anonymous. In it, him and Sanhedrin (from Other Intelligences) happily sit in front of a shop while munching on some fatcakes and kicking freestyles. The video then progresses into other scenes which deserve a totally new post all on their own. For the sake of this review, I shall not dwell on them. The narrative gels in well with the different scenes as the narrator tells of Anonymous' maturation over the years, using phrases like 'prolific rhymes and style' to bring to the viewer's attention this emcee's genius.

This has got to be the most left-field of the emcees we managed to interview while compiling The Cipha. He talks of the perfect cipha as taking place during night-time when zombies and wolves come out to play. The snare will be provided by some other-worldy figure hitting a spade against a huge chunk of metal, and an eyeless figurine would be centre-stage, ripping his fair share of the microphone apart. I don't know about you, but that is some pretty hectic stuff, legendary indeed. It is just a whole lot better when you view it yourself.

After his anecdote, the documentary cuts into a cipha scene where Anonymous himself is representing, bringing lines like:

"Kicking freestyles is what I do per night see/ I'm kicking freestyles on a
super-mic/ you can't touch this/ Anonymous I am the roughest/ and if you look in
my eyes, you'll see enough shit".

Stylistically, we went for pretty interesting edits as mentioned earlier. We had just discovered how to do the split-screen effect, and made very prolific (if I should say so myself) manipulations of it. We also put the mirror effect to good use by taking a single shot and pimping it so that it seems as though the scenes were shot at different times, albeit with duplicate hand motions and all. Once again, it makes a whole lot more sense when you view it yourself.

Anonymous' scene ends with another cipha. We went into the crates and dug up a gem we took the day Dunamis was shooting his "Mastered seed" video; we'd decided to go to the location just to show support. Hymphatic Thabs, who is the video's director, joined us in the cipha, and we all had mad fun. Shout out to Matz and Karabo who were also with us. Anonymous' genius is revealed as he freestyles lines like:

"You can't have it/ cuz now it's mine, under my matress/ I'm that kid who comes with that black magic/ I stab anthems/ I kick freestyles and, you can't imagine the stuff that I come with/ you know that you new to here/ I cut your head off and take you to souvenirs.../

Check out the clip in question below, and please leave your comments. We will highly appreciate your support. Peace!

The Cipha - Part One

Yo!! Hope all are still well in this field of life. The post today is centred around the first part of 'The Cipha'. I shall walk you through what went into shooting the scenes, and how they were put together. So, hang on, and enjoy the ride.

The scene opens up with a shot of the National University of Lesotho's main entrance, then cuts into the first emcee to bless the documentary, Black Ice. We shot the scenes with a beatmaker called Symptorme (nuff shout), who assissted with some of the camera angles. During editing, we managed to get hold of some old footage which had Black Ice on it, and it became a perfect fit into the whole plot.

After a short interval/break in transmission, the documentary cuts into a scene of Black Ice spitting freestyles (something the man does quite well). The reason for this stylistic decision is that we had edited the second part of the documentary prior to the opening scene; actually, the opening scene was dictated by the narrator's script, which, by the way, wasn't scripted at all! This was another stylistic decision - to keep true to the tradition of the cipha, it was only fitting that the narratives should be freestyles.

Another break in transmission comes after the freestyle, and the documentary proceeds to the section where Black Ice breaks down his definition of the cipha. We used two cameras (another one courtesy of the man Symptorme), so the different angles make for quite an interesting view. Poisonfoul, another emcee from Lesotho, sits in the background as Ice carries on with his thoughts.

Black Ice's scene was one of last parts we shot for the documentary, but ended up being the opening part. We had already gotten the hang of the editing software, so for the hallway scene where he's freestyling, a split-screen stylistic effect was chosen. I find it quite amusing how people who have seen the documentary in my presence become boggled by this particular scene. Secret: well, there is not secret at all, we used two cameras - camera1 on the left side of the screen, and camera2 on the right, on either side of the emcee. One can even see Symptorme holding his camera if proper attention to detail is paid.

The documentary then reverts back to the interview where Black Ice continues to explain what the cipha means to him, amidst noise from a passerby truck (the joys of filming outside!). All in all, that's a bit of info on how this first part of the documentary was put together. If you dig it, leave comments. Please forward any questions through, we'll be happy to answer them.

Peace!!!

The Cipha - Intro

What's the deal people??! Still staying alive I hope, and keeping positive vibes flowing. Today's post concerns a film project me and Fairo worked on towards the tail-end of 2007. It's a documentary details the gwaans in the Lesotho hip-hop circles, especially the cipha scene.

For them who don't know, in hip-hop terms, a cipha happens when emcees form a circle and start rapping - simple as that. It's a big thing all over the globe, and we as Corporate Nemesis wanted to get a Lesotho-based emcee's perspective on the cipha scene; how it influences/inspires them, what they get from it, etc.

We've uploaded a number of clips from the documentary on youtube (check out: www.youtube.com/nemesisRepublik), and I'll be uploading the links here on the blog and giving inside information on how the particular clip was put together.

First up is the introduction. The beat on the clip is done by a fairly unknown Lesotho-based producer who goes under the moniker Profane Hermit. For those who don't know, the quote "Time for s**** y'all n**** ain't heard yet/ cuz the radio is repetitive bull****", is taken from a Lootpack song off of the Antidote album. Madlib recites that particular line.

Check it out; love it, hate it, and please, give some feedback. Peace!!!