To film the music video for Guy Sebastian's new single, Get Along from the album Armageddon, the production team travelled to some of the world's most fascinating destinations. On the itinerary were such countries as Madagascar, the United Arab Emirates, India, Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia. However for the video's editor, Hayden Topperwien, it was Jordan that was the most surprising country.
Madagascar locals as captured by Hayden and Phillip for Guy Sebastian's Single, Get Along
"The generosity of the Bedouin in Jordan was really overwhelming. Inviting foreigners into your house for dinner is not something that most people in our culture do, but for them it was a matter of honour to make strangers feel welcome," said Hayden.
"Kenya was also amazing and I think I will be returning. If you play it cool with the people; then they are really open. In general I found that the people with the least money and possessions are the most generous and willing to smile."
Guy Sebastian penned the song when he was in the UK, with the X Factor judge performing the single live at the grand final of the hit TV talent series.
"This song tries to encapsulate that hunger for utopia, that perfect world; when everyone is in harmony and everyone just accepts people. Obviously that's not a world that we currently live in. There's a line in the song that says, 'It's easy if they're faceless to hate the other side.' And it's so true. When someone is human to you, when they have a face and a soul and a heart and you get to know that person, it's hard to have the same hate for them," said Guy.
"I've sent Phillip (the Director) around the world to capture life and love. People that watch this video will see people who are different, who come from different cultures and different backgrounds and different religions."
So Phillip and Hayden embarked on a whirlwind tour. Hayden, who previously edited the travel series, Roam for National Geographic and edited material for Beyonce, Kate Miller-Heidke, Slash, Pink and Jessica Mauboy, said that the idea behind the video clip was to put a human face to distant places and issues.
"Where ever we went we focused on finding the people who lived there, getting to know them and trying to represent their character on screen. We did very little research before taking off, which was initially troubling, but we found things we would not have if we had planned everything. It was sensory overload - like being strapped to the front of a train," said Hayden.
Director Phillip Graybill said in the Making Of Get Along, that one of the magical moments during the filming process was the children they encountered in Madagascar.
"As we were going along we spotted this little village and decided to take a right turn and head towards it and once we entered it, it was like a mob. We got attacked by all these kids that came out of nowhere. We ended up hanging out there for quite a while - the kids were just completely lit up. There was one shot in particular that was the brightest, cheeriest, I mean, most genuinely ecstatic moment I captured on film for most of the trip," said Phillip.
"It's interesting, with all the things that we able to see. When you see the kids and you see the poverty, the really cool thing is that everybody is happy - these people don't have anything but they all have smiles on their face and they're offering you food and they're like, 'Hey man, life isn't so bad.'"
When not producing videos, Hayden loves to travel through Germany.
"I used to live in Berlin and spent a lot of time in Hamburg. I think the people are really interesting. They have a great music scene. Germany really is my home away from home."
Watch the Music Video for Get Along
Watch the Making Of Get Along
Hayden Topperwien currently works with the production company, Motion Pictures Militia.
