Il Pagliacci : MUSIC VIDEO

This project marks my first music montage collaboration with musician Mario DiSanto, built around his track “Il Pagliacci” from the album Distorted Proportions. Blending raw energy with a vintage aesthetic, the track delivers a powerful garage rock sound reminiscent of artists like Jack White and The Black Keys, while still carving out Mario’s own unique musical identity.

Mario DiSanto’s approach to recording leans heavily into old-school analog-inspired techniques, bringing the spirit of 1960s rock music into a modern context. The result is a gritty, authentic sound that feels both nostalgic and fresh.

Straight from the album Distorted Proportions by musician Mario DiSanto, Il Pagliacci is a cinematic music video directed by Erick Moya that blends opera-inspired drama with the surreal realities of modern life.

🎬 Film Details

• Starring: Mario DiSanto

• Written & Directed by: Mario DiSanto and Erick Moya (New York Film Academy)

• Director of Photography: Erick Moya

• Music: Mario DiSanto

• Produced by: Bad Hombres Films & Moera New York

• Shot on Location: Wall Street, New York

• Camera: DJI Ronin 4D

For the visual concept, we quickly developed the idea of following a Wall Street finance professional navigating the streets of New York’s Financial District while confronting his inner turmoil. The narrative introduces a subtle clown motif inspired by the character of Pagliacci, symbolizing the duality between outward professionalism and inner emotional conflict.

Shot on location in the Financial District of New York, this montage captures the tension between the structured world of finance and the chaotic emotions simmering beneath the surface. The visual storytelling complements the song’s intensity, creating a short cinematic piece that reflects the dramatic themes embedded in Mario DiSanto’s music.

Few places in the world capture the feeling of cinema quite like New York City. The city has long served as a backdrop for iconic films, music videos, and classic television commercials, and it was the perfect setting for this experimental music montage for Mario DiSanto’s track “Il Pagliacci” from the album Distorted Proportions.

For this project, I wanted the visual style to feel as if someone had discovered an old VHS tape recorded over countless times, with fragments of footage bleeding into each other. The editing approach intentionally creates a layered, analog texture where pieces of imagery overlap, distort, and reappear—evoking the feeling of rediscovered media from another era.

The result is a surreal and slightly chaotic visual experience, where bursts of color and fragments of imagery blend with the main narrative. This technique mirrors the emotional tension within the music itself, creating a visual journey that feels both nostalgic and unpredictable.

Filmed on location in New York City’s Financial District, the project blends urban cinematic imagery with experimental editing techniques to create a unique interpretation of the song. The city’s energy, architecture, and historic streets provide a dramatic canvas for the story unfolding on screen.

This music montage was created as part of an assignment at the New York Film Academy, where I had the opportunity to collaborate with a small and dedicated crew. Projects like this highlight how much creativity can come from independent filmmaking with minimal resources, allowing storytelling and visual experimentation to take center stage.