Since his March 2013 acquittal, Lamb of God’s frontman has released a short film on his blog. Rany Blythe’s video depicts the emotional experience of being on trial for manslaughter in the Czech Republic.
In March 2013, Lamb of God frontman, Randy Blythe was acquitted on all charges of manslaughter in the Czech Republic. Upon his return to the Czech Republic in February, prior to the acquittal, the lead-singer had only just reached the end of long and emotional trial. Since returning to the US, Lamb of God has faced a future of uncertainty after the band’s finances had been depleted by the costs during Blythe’s trial in the Czech Republic. With the announcement of a Spring 2014 release of Blythe’s memoir recounting the trial, and Fall 2013 tour with Killswitch Engage, things are looking up for the group.
Now, Randy Blythe has released a short film he directed, produced and scored to depict his emotional journey of being on trial for manslaughter in a foreign country. The video features Czech marionettes, black and white footage of the Republic, and isolated shots of Blythe. The music for this short-film, is raw, emotional, thoughtful and sad, drawing on the details of the filmed landscape.
This is a movie I made in Prague during my trial. I filmed the footage with a Canon EOS 60D, edited it with Final Cut Pro X, and wrote the music using Reason. I wanted to release a slightly different version of the film right before my judgement was rendered by the court (the very last shot in this version was not there until after I was pronounced innocent). My idea was to show my mind set through film and music during the process of my trial, and have a more ambiguous ending heading into my final day in court. I did not know what was going to happen to me, only that I felt I was doing the right thing by being there. Working in a creative capacity during the trial helped me to remain calm — it is what I know how to do, so I wanted to share it with people. I showed the clip to my lawyer and he advised against releasing it until after the trial was over, thinking the authorities might not understand what I was trying to say with the movie. It is all over now, so here is my poor attempt to try and create art in a time of great personal uncertainty.
Note- the Devil plays an important part in Czech fairy tales, and marionettes are a bit of Czech folk culture I came to love while I was there — the marionette hangs in my study now. The Devil is different in Czech fairy tales though, to my understanding- the puppet is representative of me, the way I viewed myself, the way I was viewed by society at different times- all sorts of things. It is not representative of evil- just wanted to clarify that.
The video is available to view on Randy Blythes blog here.
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