Stephen Mejias

As I’ve mentioned, I enjoy making connections between all kinds of seemingly disparate things and ideas, but I take special interest in finding connections between different musical genres or artists. I obsess over this game, as though finding common ground between Drake and Ryuichi Sakamoto—an easy example, but a valid one—will somehow make me a stronger person, make me more intelligent and attractive, allow me to better understand others, make the world a more beautiful place.

It’s in these connections that stories are made. And I love stories. Caught by the idea that everything happens for a reason, that every event is leading to someplace meaningful and magical, I’m hungry for connections, like a DJ attempting to create the perfect mixtape, one that can represent a sum of life’s experiences, wonderful and mundane.

Seems I’m not alone. (Whew.)

Through Kickstarter, director Trevor Undi and producer Sean Barney hope to fund their Kymera Project, a sort of “visual mixtape,” setting songs to images to tell a story that takes place in New York City.

Undi explains:

This is the ultimate movie for music and film lovers. I grew up in the MTV era and music video to me has always been about innovation, and I think it’s time to do something truly cinematic and different with the medium. I think this is not only an exciting new format for a film, but it also breathes life and innovation into the music video form by bringing it closer to how we experience movies.

Music for the film can’t be confirmed until the project is fully funded, but Undi hinted, “As far as sounds go, it’s about harmony and diversity. It would be amazing to flow every which way from James Blake to Ryuichi Sakamoto, Nicolas Jaar to Drake.”

And those are the words that really caught my attention. It’s as if Undi had been scrolling through my recently played albums.

The project is ambitious: The team needs to collect $80,000 by Tuesday, May 22, and, like all Kickstarter projects, the Kymera Project will be realized only if that goal is reached. Kickstarter works on an all-or-nothing platform. If the Kymera Project does not reach its goal of $80,000, no monetary transactions are made. Contributions are met with some intriguing rewards: Pledge $10 or more and you’ll receive graphic artwork, desktop backgrounds, and iPhone wallpaper; pledge $25 or more and you’ll receive an HD version of the film; pledge $50 or more and you’ll receive a Kymera mixtape and get your name in the credits of the film; pledge $5000 or more and you’ll receive all of the above, plus an associate producer credit, and be invited to filming, screenings, and parties. There are more awards above and below pledges of $5000; visit the Kickstarter page for complete info.

In this video, you’ll get a general idea about the project and meet Trevor Undi (director), Sean Barney (producer), Luam (choreographer), and Matt Feldman (music supervisor).

And in this video, you’ll learn more about the “visual mixtape” concept. At around 1:39, you’ll see several album covers representing possible musical choices for the film. One in particular caught my eye: Heather Duby’s self-titled 2006 album for Sonic Boom Recordings. (Heather is a friend. I really feel like someone has been rummaging through my LP shelves and CD racks. Perhaps I deserve a spiritual advisor credit.)