Inspired by the work of Koyaanisqatsi director Godfrey Reggio, co-directors João Vaz Oliveira and Tiago Higgs wrap CG and time-lapse live-action in a monochrome grade and chiaroscuro lighting for their passion project Kairos.

João Vaz Oliveira: “‘Kairos’ comes from the Greek and means ‘the right moment’ – the decisive instant when something can change. That’s what the film explores, the turning point of humanity divided into three parts — Awe, Restlessness, and Consequence.

“From the day Tiago introduced me to Godfrey Reggio’s masterpieces, to today, Kairos has been in development for one year. From the start, Tiago suggested we take a unique visual direction that includes using a monotone grade with contrast as the main element, minimizing depth of field, and extensive pitch-black areas with hard shadows.
 

“Early on, we decided not to create an animatic — we wanted the thrill of seeing everything come together all at once. When we assembled the first cut with several completed scenes, it was an incredible moment.”

 
“Kairos came with its challenges, like creating a CG-heavy film in our spare time, collaborating from different geographical locations, and balancing parenthood in the midst of it all. We had to remain flexible with task distribution but also allow each person to focus on the shots they were most passionate about.

“Tiago and I also share a love for camera work, so we hit the streets — Tiago in London and I in Lisbon — to capture live-action time-lapse shots. These sequences added energy to the Restlessnessphase of of the film.

“Early on, we decided not to create an animatic — we wanted the thrill of seeing everything come together all at once. When we assembled the first cut with several completed scenes, it was an incredible moment. From there, we knew exactly what needed to be done to finalize the film.

“When it came to sound, we were so captivated by the mix I created using Michael Stearns’ score for Ron Fricke’s 1985 IMAX film Chronos that I decided to reach out to him. To our surprise, Michael agreed to let us use his track and we are eternally grateful.”
 
 

 
Director: João Vaz Oliveira, Tiago Higgs
Producer: João Vaz Oliveira
3D Lighting/Animation: Afonso Amaro, Tiago Higgs
3D Modeling: Afonso Amaro, Tiago Higgs, Milton Fernandes
Camera: João Vaz Oliveira, Tiago Higgs
Editor/Post: João Vaz Oliveira

Music: Michael Stearns