In a partnership with the agency Flixel, we developed cinemagraphs for Bates Motel, focused on the characters of Norma and Norman, in a shot-for-shot recreation of the 1960 archival press photography shot by the cast of Alfred Hitchcock's iconic Psycho, with a modern twist

To warm up, along with remarkable photographer Dylan Coulter, we shot a set of images on both Kodak T-Max 100 and Polaroid Type 55 film stock that we referred to as the "Heritage" series: exact black and white recreations of the original press images from Psycho. We followed the film shoot with our cinemagaph shoot, with each image featuring a subtle movement (tapping of Norman’s finger, a rocking chair moving back and forth with no one on it, the nodding of a head), which created menacing vibes and drew viewers into the Psycho world.

There were four cinemagraphs, which focused on major tableaus: Norman pressed up against the wall under his terrifying taxidermy; Norma and Norman staring with terror at the rocking chair that represents Norman's madness; the final frame of Norman's dissolution into his Norma persona; and a wider version of this shot, which opens said sequence in the film. Each piece appears at first glance to be static, but very subtle movement reveals that these are more complex, and far higher resolution than a .gif would be. We released these four different versions of our cinemagraphs on Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr and Twitter prior to and during the beginning of the new season.