Running out of Road is a narrative music short directed, shot, edited, co-written and co-produced by current student Cole Smith and co-written and co-produced by musician Lauren Jenkins.
According to Jenkins label, Big Machine, “In the short, Jenkins strives to untangle the threads of her relationship with a photographer against the backdrop of the American West. Shot on location in Miami, New Mexico and Cheyenne, Wyoming, the film melds narrative drama with constantly evolving imagery, as the young woman’s memories fuel her fight to free herself and move forward. Underscored by three original songs written and performed by Jenkins, Running is an evocative, accomplished piece of musical filmmaking that puts Jenkins on the map as an emerging artist with an uncompromising eye for storytelling across mediums.”
Running out of Road premiered with Amazon Music March 15 in conjunction with the release of Jenkins’ debut album NO SAINT. It initially screened at a Sundance showcase for Lauren's music, and will screen in competition at the Roswell Film Festival next month. Jenkins and Smith have also shot three other music videos and six live performance videos together, including Maker’s Mark and You, and No Saint, where Smith served as director, cinematographer, editor, co-writer and co-producer.
The collaboration came about in the likeliest of unlikely ways. Cole and Jenkins are childhood friends. In an interview with Billboard, Jenkins said, “I called a friend of mine that I used to ride a school bus with, middle school, Cole Smith. He's a filmmaker. I was like, 'Hey, I have this idea for this video. This is the story I want to tell. Will you break into this place with me?' He said yes.”
They ended up shooting the music video Give Up the Ghost. The video, shot nearly two years ago, was a proof of concept for Lauren's label, Big Machine Label Group. “We shot Ghost with basically no budget in two days as a sort of template for what we would do if they gave us the opportunity to shoot more music videos. They loved it and sent us out to New Mexico with a proper budget and crew,” Smith said.
