{"id":2426549,"date":"2026-05-21T15:19:55","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T15:19:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2426549"},"modified":"2026-05-21T15:19:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T15:19:55","slug":"wake-up-music-video-shows-nostalgia-in-a-new-light","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wake-up-music-video-shows-nostalgia-in-a-new-light\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Wake Up\u2019 music video shows nostalgia in a new light"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Everlit Audio Player\" src=\"https:\/\/everlit.audio\/embeds\/artl_8Kw5rCxOYNP?client=wp&amp;client_version=3.1.8&amp;ui_title_intro=Listen+to+this+story&amp;ui_title_icon=headphones\" width=\"100%\" height=\"136px\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 50th Atlanta Film Festival presented an array of incredible projects that showcased how far Georgia filmmaking has come over the last years while also highlighting the past\u2019s influence on the industry\u2019s current state. However, one project stood above the rest as a cautionary tale of what can happen when you linger in the past for too long.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Through the use of an eerie, liminal warehouse, synths, and intentionally flawed graphics, Sebastian Peoples\u2019 <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/watch.eventive.org\/atlff26\/play\/69f254b139329eaba3c172c8\/69b33c83c66888517798d0dc\">music video for Pedro Gayo\u2019s song <em>\u201c<\/em>Wake Up\u201d<\/a> gives insight into why the past is so appealing, but also why living in it can be detrimental.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gayo, a Florida musician and alum of the Savannah College of Art and Design Atlanta, teamed up with Peoples and other student filmmakers to make a music video for his song, \u201cWake Up.\u201d The music video was shot similarly to a film, differentiating it from the standard flashy visuals of modern music videos and allowing it to convey a meaningful message.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-1    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI knew we definitely had something very unique, something no one else had done,\u201d Gayo said about the music video\u2019s inclusion in the festival. \u201cWhat I want to accomplish is just a good form of escapism and good chords.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A still from the music video for the song \u201cWake Up.\u201d (Photo courtesy of ATLFF)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gayo sees Atlanta as a main source of inspiration for his music. Attending school in Atlanta gave Gayo the perspective he needed to write the song.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEveryone knows Atlanta music, especially with hip-hop, but it\u2019s so much grander than that,\u201d Gayo said. \u201cThere are so many shows constantly going on that a lot of cities and towns don\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-2    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Though his song is what got him into the festival, music isn\u2019t Gayo\u2019s main occupation.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFilm is the main thing I do and get paid for,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m a [camera operator], steadicam, drone op.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gayo\u2019s work in film is how he met Peoples and his other collaborators, like producer Estella Bentley. Bentley took on the project after hearing its unique story and mission.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-3    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe story of this danger that can happen when you\u2019re looking back on the past a little too much, or at least that\u2019s how I perceive it,\u201d Bentley said, \u201cThis unhealthy relationship you could have with a younger version of yourself, and wanting to go back to that time.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bentley has been producing since her freshman year at SCAD and claims to have \u201ca little bit of a knack for it,\u201d crediting that to her time doing show choir in high school. She was able to assemble a crew for the music video because of the various connections she\u2019d made through college and living in Atlanta.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHaving that instant access to really lovely, talented, interesting people is a massive privilege,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-4    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of those talented people is Peoples, who worked closely with Gayo to make the best product imaginable. Peoples said the idea for the video stemmed from his own experiences.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m a very nostalgic person, and I like to look to the past a lot,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen you get depressed and when you don\u2019t know where else to look to feel something, sometimes you can find yourself looking back into your memories.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Peoples sees this sense of nostalgia as a potentially negative thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf you get stuck there and you\u2019re not worrying about what\u2019s happening now and the present and how you can make things better, how you can make yourself better, then you\u2019re just stuck,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The filmmaker took advantage of a 16mm camera to create a contrast with modern music videos. He wanted the video to look gritty rather than too clean, intentionally creating moments of imperfection. He even went so far as to leave dust specs in the camera sensors.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI wanted [the crew] to make it feel like it was living, when every image was dirty and had a touch to it that looked like it was filmed,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Peoples was raised in Atlanta and became connected with the city\u2019s music industry. Atlanta music is his main inspiration. The director has a lot of love in his heart for the city that inspires him to create, which comes through in \u201cWake Up\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI was growing up around music, and interesting artists, and people that had things to say about the world, whether it be relationships or politics, or anything else,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Peoples saw the music video\u2019s inclusion in the Atlanta Film Festival as an opportunity to meet other filmmakers in Atlanta.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think filmmakers really do have an interesting look on society as a whole, and I think I can connect with them a lot easier because of that,\u201d he said. \u201cWe all want connection with people.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside>\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script type=\"text\/plain\" data-service=\"facebook\" data-category=\"marketing\">\n\t\t!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n\t\t{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n\t\tn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n\t\tif(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n\t\tn.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n\t\tt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n\t\ts.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',\n\t\t'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n\t\tfbq('init', '1660251634567832');\n\t\tfbq('track', 'PageView', {\"page_title\":\"\\u2018Wake Up\\u2019 music video shows nostalgia in a new light\",\"user_role\":\"guest\",\"event_url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/roughdraftatlanta.com\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/21\\\/wake-up-music-video-shows-nostalgia-in-a-new-light\",\"post_type\":\"post\",\"post_id\":354991});\n\t\t<\/script><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source roughdraftatlanta.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The 50th Atlanta Film Festival presented an array of incredible projects that showcased how far Georgia filmmaking has come over the last years while also highlighting the past\u2019s influence on the industry\u2019s current state. However, one project stood above the rest as a cautionary tale of what can happen when you linger in the past [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2426550,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[456829,475744,22851,475745,365560,475746,475747],"class_list":["post-2426549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-atlanta-film-festival","tag-estella-bentley","tag-music-video","tag-pedro-gayo","tag-savannah-college-of-art-and-design","tag-sebastian-peoples","tag-wake-up"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/\u2018Wake-Up-music-video-shows-nostalgia-in-a-new-light.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2426549"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426549\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2426551,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426549\/revisions\/2426551"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2426550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2426549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2426549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2426549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}