A score is the heartbeat of a film; the smallest of nuances in a key change or the inclusion of certain instruments or effects can alter how one perceives the story being told. It can be hard for a filmmaker to get their vision to translate sonically, but not for Kristìn Björk Kristjánsdòttir. Kristìn – who goes by the name Kira Kira – dually operates as both the director and composer in her short animated film We The Lightnings, a tenderly told story about the healing power of love, friendship, music, and nature when a person comes undone.
We The Lightnings is made up of dreamlike hybrid animation with art from Oscar nominee Sara Gunnarsdóttir (My Year of Dicks). The film revolves around Nua, a young woman who returns to her birthplace in rural Iceland, a sanctuary at the end of the road where her friends have gathered for a letting go ritual in honor of her mother’s passing. Music, performed by an ensemble of Icelandic musicians who appear in the film and play on the score, serves as the welcoming embrace that catches Nua on her arrival back home after her life has spiraled out of control.
Cinemacy is excited to premiere the title track from We The Lightnings.
The dreamy atmospheric vocals with lullaby-like melodies feel like a warm hug by a cozy fire. It immediately transports the audience to a safe place, one where we are given permission to feel our raw emotions and complicated feelings. Through her score, Kira Kira connects with the sense of grasping for tangible connection, only to realize that the most precious gifts of all – time, love, and memory – can never be held. It’s the feeling of letting go that so beautifully resonates throughout the track We The Lightnings, its ethereal nature as precious as life itself.
“The music I wrote for We The Lightnings is an act of love for that which remains with us at times of loss,” says Kira Kira. “So rather than lamenting what or those who have passed, I like to gently move on in the certainty that love does not die. Music is energy and keeping a sacred space of clarity around it is paramount to me. That does not mean articulating why or explaining how. It is just a filtering system that only lets love through. I hope the music beams some sense of wonder and comfort out there.”
Born in Reykjavik, Kristìn comes from a background of experimental ambient music and soundscapes. In 1999, she founded the music collective/label Kitchen Motors with guitarist Hilmar Jensson and the late, great composer Jóhann Jóhannsson. In 2011, Kristìn’s first film Grandma Lo-fi won the sound & vision award at CPH DOX and screened at MoMA, SXSW, IFFR, and hundreds of international film festivals. In addition to film scoring, Kristìn has recorded 5 solo albums that have been released internationally on various labels, including Berlin’s Morr Music, Tokyo’s After hours, California’s Time Released Sound, and Iceland’s Smekkleysa.
“We The Lightnings” (Original Film Soundtrack) will be released on digital platforms and 10” vinyl from Reykjavik Record Shop this Friday, March 10th.
