Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Down To Earth

Tuesday Video: Arcade Fire make one of the coolest things ever


The Wilderness Downtown
is an interactive film and music video for Arcade Fire's song "We Used to Wait" off "The Suburbs."  It was directed by Chris Milk but also uses Google to make this come to life literally at the house you grew up in.

Using HTML5 technology, the video uses web browsers in a choreographed fashion as well as incorporating google maps and street views, with video, graphics, text, and all in real-time. Check it out at The Wilderness Downtown. (The above clip will just give you an idea. Try it yourself to get the full, wonderful effect.)

 

The name makes sense it deals with wilderness - it's a commentary on the fact that there isn't a lot of wilderness left and and that trees have been replaced with parking lots. The content of the video highly depends on the address you enter - a city address will be different than a suburban address. But at the end of the film, images of trees are integrated into the google map images suggesting the need for more nature, more wildness.



Down To Earth

The DTE blog is committed to reporting and sharing environmental news and sustainability information from across the Inland Northwest.