Two days before the inauguration of President Barack Obama, the 9:30 club held a show to celebrate the president-elect. Body upon body packed the floor, forming one great throng, chanting “Obama!” at disc jockey Will Eastman and a screen with a series of images ranging from a psychedelic cityscape to twin neon-Obamas in aviator blinds sunglasses.
After Eastman finished his set, the headlining act took the stage while the images changed to a new motif; Moby pumped his fist in front of a larger-than-life replica of himself, and the crowd emulated the motion. Bright-white light filled the room, illuminating the horde of swaying fans. Then suddenly — darkness.
High above the crowd, School of Communication Professor Kyle “Kylos” Brannon put aside his projection equipment and picked up a Flip Video camcorder. With the help of his roommate, Brannon turned the epic event into an impromptu documentary.
That night was just one of many Brannon has spent as a video jockey at an array of D.C. clubs.
Every fourth Saturday of the month, Brannon said he collaborates with Eastman at the Black Cat to create “BLISSPOP,” a dance party for all ages. While Eastman plays audio, Brannon said he projects whatever video clip, animation or other image he feels fits the party onto a screen at the back of the stage.
“So I take stock footage,” Brannon said. “I take graphics I’ve created or bought or had exchanges with, and I layer them, and I add effects, and I speed them up, and I slow them down, and I mix it live against whatever is going on in the club.”
Brannon, who could easily be mistaken for a grad student with his shock of red hair and prominent tattoos, said that all of his work is improvised.
“If I hear something that feels red to me, I start working with red stuff, and if I feel that it’s something that needs a lot of cartoons — if it feels playful — I’ll grab some cartoons I have,” Brannon said.
Eastman said he and Brannon have known each other nearly a decade. They first became friends when Eastman noticed Brannon’s black nail polish at a work function.
Eastman said the idea for their collaboration at the Black Cat came about “organically.” After he left his job to DJ full time, Eastman discovered Brannon experimenting with video techniques and asked him to video jockey, or VJ, for his monthly show. Two years later, the duo is still together.
Eastman said his VJ was most like the breakfast cereal, Rice Krispies, “because he has snap, crackle and pop.”
Casey Trebisacci, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs, said she had Brannon for Visual Literacy last spring.
“Kylos!” Trebisacci exclaimed upon hearing his name. “I’m friends with him on Facebook!”
Trebisacci said Brannon was very engaging, and his classes were “super fun.”
“One of our assignments was to make an ad for a “BLISSPOP” night, and he actually gave them to DJ Will Eastman, and they chose a winner,” Trebisacci said. She said the winner received free admission to one of Eastman and Brannon’s performances.
When Brannon was growing up, filmmaking and video play were not part of his life, he said.
“I did a lot of theater in high school and even out of high school,” Brannon said. “In college I worked with a student-run theater group at [Pennsylvania State University], even though I wasn’t a theater major ... I’ve worked on maybe over 100 plays.”
After high school, Brannon earned two bachelor’s degrees from Penn State: one in photography and one in French. At 18-years-old, he started a job that shaped his later life.
He worked in an audio-visual department and taught himself Adobe Photoshop when he had nothing to do.
Brannon graduated in 2000 and hit the road, bound for D.C. He wanted to continue his education in film but found many schools required a film major in order to attend their programs. AU, however, did not.
Brannon said the school believes each student brings a unique background to the table.
While earning his Masters of Fine Arts at AU, the Corcoran College of Art and Design asked Brannon to teach some summer classes in graphic arts.
“It gave me time to do my own projects, and I just found that I enjoyed [teaching],” Brannon said.
In 2007, Brannon began teaching full-time at AU. He said he prefers the job to any others he has held.
“I still remember some of my professors, and some of the things they said to me still comes to mind when I work on my stuff,” Brannon said. “And I would like to think that sometimes I may bring some things to people’s experiences, lives or educations that will stick with them, and sort of pay it forward, always adding to the landscape and people’s experiences and lives by contributing what I learned.”
You can reach this staff writer at sparnass@theeagleonline.com.
