A ring of black text on a transparent background, reading 'Monday Short'.

Mirai Mizue & Yukie Nakauchi's "Poker" (2014)

it's such a burst of cheer and refreshment that it seems perfectly suited to a late July afternoon.

Screen shot from Mirai Mizue & Yukie Nakauchi's "Poker" (2014). A mandala of multiple colours, from mushroom shaped heads of orange, green and red, to cables intertwining in the middles iwth bright red and blue cables from yellow stiches into red flags in the center.

NOTE: This Monday short was originally posted on July 23, 2018. We are re-uploading Peter Hemminger's original Monday Shorts until further notice. I picked this one for the colours, and the same sentiment that it's been super summery and hot with random bouts of thundershowers. Hopefully Stampede is great for all who are going!

It is pretty darn summery outside, and I can think of very few shorts that suit that mood better than Mirai Mizue and Yukie Nakauchi's video for Shugo Tokumaru's song, "Poker". Not that there's anything explicitly sunny about the video, but it's such a burst of cheer and refreshment that it seems perfectly suited to a late July afternoon.

It starts simple enough, with a strange little bird rendered in a style somewhere between Mclaren's Blinkity Blank and the Nazca Lines floating around as Tokumaru sets up a spritely bossa nova melody. As the song gets more elabourate, the animation matches it with increasingly kaleidoscopic compositions, all crafted with Mizue's trademark fluidity. It's a joy to watch, and a rare animated music video that doesn't feel like it would've been stronger as a stand-alone film.

title : Poker
music : Shugo Tokumaru
album : In Focus?
label : TONOFON / P-VINE
directed by : MIRAI MIZUE & YUKIE NAKAUCHI (MIRAI FILM)

2014

Shugo Tokumaru Official Website
shugotokumaru.com

MIRAI FILM Official Website
miraifilm.com/