Analysis: Leeds Rising

Leeds Rising from squintopera on Vimeo.

The video on the right was produced by squintopera on behalf of the Leeds Initiative to present 'Leeds: A Rising City'.

The video follows the narrative of an owl, the city's emblem, flying through the streets and bringing colour and life where it flies.

The techniques used to differ between the current Leeds and the rising Leeds are simple and subtle, but create complex thoughts.

The desaturation/sepia of many images is used to show a city 'going about its daily business'. Unfortunately I am left a little confused as to whether this video attempts to present it as positive or not. I get the impression it tries to say it is changing but frantically with no real way forward. I am also left puzzled as to whether the words that appear are aims or things they want to get rid of.

The entire video is filmed as if filmed in a single shot. This works surprisingly, but I feel the whole style of the video fails. It does not depict a bustling metropolis, but feels like an idealistic Sim City. I feel this is created by the overuse of graphics- yes, they are good and helpful, but in a time of austerity the public are cynical of utopian schemes. The music is also an odd choice.

More positively, I like the use of an owl to lead the necessary narrative. It implies the plan is at least somewhat rooted in traditional culture. I also like that the video forces the viewer to be creative, and start debating the things that happen themselves. Having said that, I don't like how it doesn't anchor back to reality at the end- I feel a 'bottom line of confidence' is needed.