American Cola: three days of filming in Dakar
The "American Cola" music video was shot over three days, moving between central Dakar and the coastal corniche. The starting idea was simple: capture real street energy instead of recreating it on a set. The crew — almost entirely Senegalese — worked in natural light from sunrise to the last light of the evening, to keep the image raw and textured, true to the project's visual identity.
The biggest challenge in Dakar is often logistics: traffic, permits for shooting in public spaces, unpredictable weather during the rainy season. Knowing the city — its rhythms and its light — means you can plan around these things instead of being caught off guard. It's also what allows you to stay reactive and catch unplanned moments, often the best shots in the film.
On the camera side, the choice was short focal lengths, a light rig to stay mobile in crowds, and minimal supplemental lighting — the idea was to let Dakar's own light do the work. The result, visible in the Work section of the site, carries that raw on-set energy all the way through to the final edit.
In short
Filming in Dakar means working with a living city, not against it. That approach — realistic, reactive, rooted in the place — is what Cédric Randriamalala brings to every directing project, whether it's a music video, a commercial or a brand documentary.
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