At one of his concerts, Alex's ex-girlfriend appears in the audience. Her unexpected arrival sends Alex through a series of flashbacks of the playful bliss and painful strains of their relationship. Their story unfolds as one continuous narrative over the five songs that make up this visual album.

Interview with Writer/Director Anjoum Agrama

Main photo: Actress Katie Peabody and artist Alex Bloom in a scene from Blue Room.

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Thank you! This all started when singer/songwriter Alex Bloom approached me with the idea to make a music video for one of his tracks. We got to talking and decided to make it a visual album of the first five songs on his newly released album, "Blue Room," tied together by one narrative.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

I think anyone who likes music and film will really enjoy this. There's something for everyone in it because the themes of love, loss, pain, bliss etc are all present. It's in a way, a coming of age film - a story of first love lost. And how memories can be so vivid and powerful, I think that's pretty relatable to nearly everyone.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

There's of course the specific relationship between the two characters, Claire and Alex, highlighted by the songs. But I think everyone can identify with being in love, losing that love and moving on. In this film we're with Alex along that whole process - from that extreme happiness to utter despair. Everyone is familiar with these emotions that come out of your first love, it’s part of the human experience. And Claire's presence at Alex's show stirs up emotions, brings memories to the surface in such clarity it's transportive. This experience is both very personal and specific yet universally shared.

Artist Alex Bloom and actress Katie Peabody as Alex and Claire in Blue Room.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

As I mentioned, we started out with the idea of doing one video only, but Alex had this idea years before of doing a short film and when I listened to the album I also thought it could be strung together into one story. So we came up with the idea to have the first five songs on his album guide a single narrative. The writing process was really collaborative so the script changed a lot as we worked together on it. It was always going to be a relationship story but we wanted to create something more unique so we then came up with the idea to have it all set in the present at one of Alex's shows and the history of their relationship told in flashbacks.

During the editing process as well things changed - mainly structural elements like the order of some plot points. I think for the better. In editing, the film is written the third time so I'm always open to a rewrite if it's going to be more effective.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

We've screened it a few times already and people have reacted very positively to it. We're really happy with how it's turned out. We're also planning to make a super cut of the video, a cut to just one song. That was advice from a festival programmer and I think it's a great idea.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

I shared the video a lot during the editing process since as the writer/director/editor I wanted fresh perspectives from filmmakers I respected. You can get really caught up in your head otherwise. So during that period I got a lot of feedback from Alex as well as filmmakers and friends with no connections to filmmaking. Nothing specific really surprised me but I did see my film through their eyes and that did affect how I edited the film for an audience with no prior knowledge of the script or characters. I would say a lot of their notes were things I knew I needed to fix, things I was trying to figure out and the feedback was spot on and pushed me to make the film better.

Of course you don't always agree with every comment, but I try to look for the note behind the note and give their suggestions a try. I've stopped being so precious with my work, I welcome criticism because that's the only way that you can improve and grow. Of course, if I strongly believe in something as an artist, despite what other people say, I'll push for that.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

We're very happy to be part of this and would love for more people to know about our film. Additionally, this film was made to promote Alex's album so sharing his music with a wider audience is definitely our goal.

Alex and his band performing at The Mint in Blue Room.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

I think we'd really like for it to play in some more film festivals so would be great if programmers were interested in including the film. I think to spread the word, journalists and other online publications will be important so that our release to the public is anticipated and well received. Getting more people in the music world interested would also be great for us.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

We made this film because we were really passionate about the story and this idea to create an extended music video. So we hope people are equally as excited and inspired by it.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

We've noticed programming our film is tricky because it's both a music video and a short film so I think if anything, we'd like to open up the conversation about what makes a music video a music video? What makes a short a short? I think there’s definitely a new genre that’s emerging which includes Beyonce’s Lemonade, The Lumineer’s 3-part video trilogy, and Florence and the Machine’s The Odyssey. I’m excited to see the future of visual albums.

Would you like to add anything else?

I think it’s great you guys are having 50+% of your films by women. As a female director I believe it’s definitely important and essential that women and minorities’ voices are heard, so thank you!

What are the key creatives developing or working on now?

I'm in post production on a few music videos and shorts, and developing a feature film to direct. Alex is working on his next album. Our extremely gifted Cinematographer, Nico Aguilar, is working nonstop on features and commercials. Same goes for our super talented Production Designer, Clara Diez. I've continued to work with the wonderful producer Luke Pastor on some music videos and other projects. We had such a great crew and of course our cast as well. Katie Peabody is starring in Ensemble Shakespeare's "Lear's Shadow" and Shane McGhie stars on the new BET show "Rebel". It was a pleasure working with this talented group!

Interview: May 2017

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

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Blue Room

Length: 19 min

Director: Anjoum Agrama

Producer: Luke Pastor

Writer: Anjoum Agrama & Alex Bloom

About the writer, director and producer:

Anjoum is an LA native film director. She freelance edits and directs for clients such as SONY, Spotify, Red Bull, Beats/Apple Music, and more.

Alex Bloom

Alex Bloom is a singer-songwriter from Los Angeles who independently releases music. He currently resides in Brooklyn, NY.

Luke Pastor

Luke Pastor is a filmmaker currently living between Boston and LA. His passions are producing, directing, and obsessing over Game of Thrones.

Key cast: Alex Bloom, Katie Peabody, Shane McGhie

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): film festival programmers, journalists

Social media handles: @anjoumfa @alexbloommusic

Facebook: Alex Bloom (musician page)

Instagram:@anjoumfa @alexbloom_

Other: anagrampics.com / https://soundcloud.com/alex-blooom

Where can I see it in the next month?

We will send you the link when it’s released!