Agape - A John Lennon Tribute

Lately, the music on the radio was not connecting with me and I ended up listening to the last two decades of tracks, just wondering what I could do next with video footage and the software I own. Last November, film director and legendary storyteller, Peter Jackson, was coming out with a film documentary series about The Beatles’ “Get Back” session. I had very little knowledge on anything Beatles aside from word of mouth or the infamous rumors that everyone and their mother would recall in regards to each band members. Since it was Thanksgiving weekend and had plenty of free time, I decided to watch the documentary to see what they were really like. My opinions changed the moment I saw how each one had the aura of camaraderie amongst each other.

After I finished watching the documentary, I went into a deep dive on Google and YouTube, searching for more information in regards to their legacy. Eventually I started watching their interviews and individual documentaries on each band member. The most eye-catching documentary for me was John Lennon’s 1988 documentary, IMAGINE. The director was no Beatles fan and was able to objectively tell the story of John Lennon without bias input. His life story was one that was quite tragic and bittersweet. It definitely shined more light on his radical behavior and made it more understanding on what and why he did what he did.

After a few weeks, I went for a walk around the block and listened to some music. A song by Bear’s Den came on and upon closing my eyes, an idea flickered in my head on what I could do with it. I wanted to learn more about Adobe After Effects and found and started thinking what would be a fun challenging way to learn the program. I began constructing the videos in Premiere Pro and created small assets like television static and the room background. I made sure this video was way different than any other video I had ever done since I started this hobby back in high school.

The video is broken into two parts. The first part consists of two interview questions and the event that happened in 1980. The second part begins the music video that chronicles John Lennon’s life from 1958 to 1970. It begins with Lennon’s mother, Julia teaching him to play the banjo, which sets him on the course to fame. The song, “Agape” uses a banjo, which I wanted to symbolize the spirit of Lennon’s mother.

The video is almost eleven minutes long and took me about a month to do everything with the project. I hope those who check it out find it to be enjoyable and entertaining.


Footage Used:
Nowhere Boy (2009)
Dick Cavett Show - John Lennon (9/11/71)
The Old Grey Whistle Test - John Lennon (04/18/75)
John Lennon - IMAGINE Documentary (1988)
The Beatles Anthology (1995)
The Beatles: Get Back (2021)
Various Music Videos by The Beatles (1963-1970)


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