Ben Strebel has created a strikingly metaphorical and intensely visceral video for The Hour; a harrowing look at disenfranchised Britain and the exploration of freedom.

The film features faceless, masked figures engaging in a dramatic event, which appears ominous and threatening. But Strebel invites the viewer to explore their perceptions, as the lack of sinlge identity is shown to be liberating:  no class, no gender, no race, no disability. Everyone is the same, and ultimately a supportive community.

The Hour is a collective of anonymous artists who themselves wear masks when performing live on stage, allowing the group to change freely over time. The mask is about being free and equal, also captured in Strebel’s film. 

He explains: “I wanted to examine the almost utopian idea of anonymity in the face of a society crazed by nihilism (social media driving us to extreme antisocial behaviour and mental illness).”