From a hit Amazon show to “Spic’Span”: Lewis Andrews Transforms Prague into a Cinematic Playground

While working in Prague for six months on a Amazon Studios’ highly episodic series, Lewis Andrews directed a fresh new music video, “Spic’Span” for artist Richard Akam. In this article, he tells us about his creative thinking and production approach.

Back in the early 2000s at primary school, Andrews remembered watching “T-Mobile’s Flex Advert,” which featured the original track “Just Another Diamond Day” by Vashti Bunyan. The song stirred a deep sense of nostalgia in him, bringing back memories of summertime and being free to play in the park after school. The guitar pattern, paired with the delicate vocal, struck Andrews as something that would sound great with a full, compact drill sound. It was a fusion he was ready to explore, and when Richard sent over a sample, it clicked instantly.

Originally, the team had planned to create a video with a storyline emulating Richard’s relationship with his father. As the “diamond day” meaning lost its place in the creative process, Andrews kept it simple and highlighted Richard’s versatility as an artist. The video took more of a “commercial-looking” route, with a directing style that showcased Richard’s character rather than a detailed story. This allowed Andrews to use different camera operating styles and be more fluent in how he planned and executed the shoot.

Prague in Focus

It wasn’t by chance that Prague became the backdrop for the video. Andrews was already there working on an Amazon episodic series. Prague has amazing architecture in the city center and Old Town, with lots of gentrification. The city has an ancient, preserved feeling and an upcoming “Shoreditch-like” vibe.  After work, Andrews cruised down cobbled streets on an e-scooter, finding small pick-up areas to film little moments. He was searching for the European “global traveler” feeling—colorful buildings, deep perspective, and opportunities to use as much of Prague’s hilly landscape as possible.

On the way to shoot the Amazon project at Barrandov Studios, Andrews could see the outskirts of Prague. The suburbs caught his eye when scouting for urban-looking locations to shoot some connecting scenes for “Spic’Span.”  He realized he could make it seem like the London-based artist’s performance was shot in his hometown while filming in locations a UK audience couldn’t quite place.

Tools of the Shoot

Andrews wanted to keep the setup light, knowing they would be running and gunning around the city for most of the shoot. The Pentax 40mm (manual) lens he used was his mother’s first photography lens, which he borrowed for the Prague trip. He had purchased some cheap Pro-Mist filters from Mr. CAD Photographic before a trip to Japan and since then had been satisfying his Pro-Mist cravings by using them as much as possible. In the final film, he imagined a diffusion filter with LED tubes would have a “glowing” effect. He envisioned the sun setting and the landscape feeling soft and more vivid than reality.

For the urban scenes, he wanted to keep the soft theme consistent and add a nice contrast to the city’s gritty backdrop. The other filters used were a small variable ND and a gradient filter. The only scenes without filters were shot using the Sigma 8mm fisheye lens.

Andrews also relied on the RED KOMODO-X camera, an incredibly compact and lightweight, Netflix-approved camera he had used on several music videos. He described the resolution as breathtaking, with beautiful colors. According to the director, everything becomes super dependable when adjusting the R3D raw settings in post, allowing him to bring out the blacks and sharpen the footage before color grading in Da Vinci Resolve.

A Director’s Touch

When he came to direct Richard as a performer, Andrews likes to let artists be themselves as much as possible. Richard already had a natural on-screen charisma, exuding a cool, relaxed, low-energy presence that conveyed confidence effortlessly. The last thing he needed to do was ask him to be something he wasn’t.

Andrews works with each artist on a case-by-case basis to identify when they need pushing and when to let things be. He only gave him minimal guidance for the scenes shot in front of the council estate buildings using a DJI Ronin 3-axis stabilizer. He wanted Richard to feel a bit like a character from Top Boy for those shots.

Wardrobe

For wardrobe, they wanted to keep brand names from the viewer’s mind. Andrews believes people are shifting from luxury brands to genuine individual style and self-expression. He sent Richard a color palette so he could either work with clothes he already had or select items that were comfortable. The palette for the “un-British” scenes was bright and meant to complement Prague’s pastel-toned architecture.

He also requested one dulled-down outfit to use for a more serious tone. The staple look he wanted to nail was a denim fit with a red bucket hat. A lot of drill imagery tends to have an aggressive, hostile appeal. Andrews also wanted to create synergy with Paddington Bear and promote the genre in a lighter way—presenting Richard as highly approachable.

Letting Creativity Flow

Andrew’s setup played a key role in shaping the final product, especially in achieving the balance of grit and beauty he was aiming for. One of the joys of handheld shooting is the variety of cutting styles it allows. Each moment of filming has a unique camera motion that can be pieced into the edit in varying, loose styles. For the shots on the hill, they filled the frame with vast levels of color using LED Creative’s lighting equipment. With the control desk, they could pull any hue from the color spectrum or match the colors in the sky.  Andrews wanted to disrupt the composition of colors and lights with rickety camera movements, creating a striking visual contrast for the audience.

This project taught Andrews the value of letting creativity flourish in the moment. While production logistics, crew, and locations were carefully planned, the experience reinforced that these elements should support the creative process, not constrain it.