this (http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/universalmotown/universal/michael_andrews/video/00_madworld.asx) is one of my favourite Gondry videos evar. i think with that and Eternal he's really starting to tap into the deeply, beautifully personal side of his work potentiallized in the short film "La Lettre" and the "i've been 12 forever" doc on the dvd.
didn't think the director's label thread or eternal thread would work.. so there. whenever you find a new one of his up, give this thread a ring.
Light and Day (http://www.eternalsunshine.com/video/music_video-480x270.mov)
Ride (http://boss.streamos.com/download/capi001/thevines/ride/video/ride_v300.mov)
Walkie Talkie Man (http://www.capitolrecords.com/steriogram/walkietalkieman/)
Mad World (http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/universalmotown/universal/michael_andrews/video/00_madworld.asx)
...
most clips get posted here (http://www.director-file.com/gondry/D.html), come to think of it.
:| :arrow:
The one he co-directed with brother Oliver "Twist" Gondry is great.
Quote from: cronopioThe one he co-directed with brother Oliver "Twist" Gondry is great.
i think ur talking about Star Guitar?
in which case yeah it's definitely the pinnacle of that sort of game where every image corresponds to a sound. been done before and he did sort of the same thing again in Hardest Button to Button. i hope he's over that now cos his best stuff is less literal.
Quote from: PubrickQuote from: cronopioThe one he co-directed with brother Oliver "Twist" Gondry is great.
i think ur talking about Star Guitar?
in which case yeah it's definitely the pinnacle of that sort of game where every image corresponds to a sound. been done before and he did sort of the same thing again in Hardest Button to Button. i hope he's over that now cos his best stuff is less literal.
Oh, I thought "Behind" by Lacquer was the only one that he had co-directed... I was talking about that one. Have you seen it?
Quote from: cronopioOh, I thought "Behind" by Lacquer was the only one that he had co-directed... I was talking about that one. Have you seen it?
oh yep that's more recent, i assumed it was the other one cos Behind ain't that great.
time-lapse is another thing that is dead, the most interesting things happen in an instant.
the last amazing video he made was prolly Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground, tho i havn't seen the Willowz one or Mad World version 2, isn't that just gary jules on a bike?
The Mad World video is linked in the first word of this thread and yes , it is very very beautiful.
Quote from: cronopioThe Mad World video is linked in the first word of this thread and yes , it is very very beautiful.
Indeed it is. So very elegant and simple.
i like "The Hardest Button to Button"
I enjoy his work so much and normally I really wouldn't. He's a person that promotes an innovative idea over execution and normally I think those things deserve an equal part. His videos are very rushed looking and rough, but that's what contributes to his style.
I personally like the original Mad World video better just because of Donnie Darko, but this newer one has the same visual aesthetics as the song and helps promote it.
And I can't agree with P on the time-lapse. No technique is ever truly dead, only waiting to be revitalized by an innovative spirit.
more info from imdb, partially about gondry.
QuoteStunning redhead Julianne Moore has bared all for an arty 42-page spread in American high-society magazine W. The actress appears lounging provocatively on a chez lounge, wearing only gold-colored shoes and a huge red ring as part of a three-story spread - told in pictures. The naked picture, shot by Michael Thompson, begins a pictorial tale about a Mrs Robinson-type diva who seduces a younger man. The spread also features an odd tale of a woman who loses her nose, shot by video maker Michel Gondry, who manages to erase the actress' nose in one of the shots and has her attending a business meeting wearing a fake nose and glasses in another. The shots can be seen in the September W.
that looks exciting.
I can see it now:
"What did you buy that for?"
"There's a cool thing about Gondry in here."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sure, sure, sure. Don't forget to wash your hands!"
Quote from: bonanzatazmore info from imdb, partially about gondry.
QuoteStunning redhead Julianne Moore has bared all for an arty 42-page spread in American high-society magazine W. The actress appears lounging provocatively on a chez lounge, wearing only gold-colored shoes and a huge red ring as part of a three-story spread - told in pictures. The naked picture, shot by Michael Thompson, begins a pictorial tale about a Mrs Robinson-type diva who seduces a younger man. The spread also features an odd tale of a woman who loses her nose, shot by video maker Michel Gondry, who manages to erase the actress' nose in one of the shots and has her attending a business meeting wearing a fake nose and glasses in another. The shots can be seen in the September W.
that looks exciting.
Freud buffs, eat your hearts out.
Quote from: CinephileI can see it now:
"What did you buy that for?"
"There's a cool thing about Gondry in here."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sure, sure, sure. Don't forget to wash your hands!"
haha. hey now.
I'll be buying it just for the Gondry (https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.click-smilies.de%2Fsammlung0304%2Fgrinser%2Fgrinning-smiley-020.gif&hash=4ff8debc5c34b00b1c0a96b368f24983adee718b)
who likes movies anyway
not me
Kylie Minogue's Come Into My World video...
Damn, that was a really great job. How da crap did they do that?
That was one Kyle Minogue and several look-a-likes. I thought everybody new that.
Quote from: CinephileThat was one Kyle Minogue and several look-a-likes. I thought everybody new that.
How's that? I've never seen a Gondry video before...
...and look-a-likes? Damn, disappointing. Thought there was magic involved.
Quote from: kotteThought there was magic involved.
there was.
if u follow the link on first page, it takes u to this site http://www.director-file.com/gondry/contents.html covering all things gondry, which was momentarily down at the end of last month. anyway, since i doubt anyone will go to the site themselves, answering all their questions about gondry and his videos, the same with the cunningham site that keeps being reposted, and not to mention PTAnderson.com, i will just post the relevant part.. explaining Come Into My World:
The video was an elaborate, expensive production. Shot in the Parisian suburb of Boulogne, in an area called Point du Jour, the video required the area to be closed off and manned by 50 extras (including actress Sacha Bourdo.) Filmed by a large motion control rig, Kylie Minogue walks around town, amidst the townsfolk busy with their own lives. As the song progresses and the chorus repeats, she returns to the point where she began and is joined by another Kylie. This continues, and by the end of the video there are four Kylies, as well as multiples of all the townsfolk.
"Come Into My World" is a better execution of the concept Gondry first used in his Neneh Cherry video, where Neneh was replicated as she walked down a likewise- replicating city block. Perhaps this time the technology and technique were ready. Apparently it took fifteen takes until everyone was satisfied with Kylie's video. After the Sept. 7 rehearsal and Sept. 8 shoot, 15 days of special effects were performed by Olivier "Twist" Gondry and his Twisted Labs, with post by Mikros and Duran. (https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.director-file.com%2Fgondry%2Fkyliebig.jpg&hash=c8c674c6124eeef5ebb2a57d3ee8d07794d11952)
I could say "Great, this gives him an opportunity to improve on Eternal Sunshine", and I could call the premise promising. But I happen to adore the hell out of Eternal Sunshine, and this just seems to strike one similarity too many. I'm going to put my faith in Gondry, though. If I'd trust anyone with knowing the pitfalls of unoriginality, it'd be him. Besides, after this he can just make one more in the same vein and dub it an unofficial trilogy.
Quote from: peteQuote from: bonanzatazmore info from imdb, partially about gondry.QuoteStunning redhead Julianne Moore has bared all for an arty 42-page spread in American high-society magazine W.
that looks exciting.
Freud buffs, eat your hearts out.
http://www.style.com/w/feat_story/080804 or more specifically http://www.style.com/images/w/feat_story/080804/img01.jpg
Quote from: BethieDid any of you buy the September issue of W magazine?
Of course.. W... of course. 8)
Sorry, Bethie.
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.blender.com%2Fshared_images%2Farticles%2Farticle_1097_michael_gondry.jpg&hash=22604377ae4c6b0039868b73f533f82693dcb827)
Michel Gondry
My Music
THE CD THAT MAKES ME THINK OF MY CYCLE
Björk, Debut
Elektra, 1993
"Guys have cycles too, and sometimes, we feel feverish and we don't know why. When I heard this album for the first time, I was in the subway in Paris and I was wearing an orange jacket and feeling feverish. I was feeling very anxious — I wanted to make a video with her because each song inspired me, but also because I wanted to keep in touch with her. It's not every day you meet someone with a brain like hers."
THE CD TO GET STUCK IN TRAFFIC TO
N.E.R.D., Fly or Die
Virgin, 2004
"I was in a car on my way to do the Charlie Rose Show and I asked the driver to play this. When 'Wonderful Place' came on, the driver, who was in his 60s, and a publicist both caught the beat. We were in traffic, but we didn't care because we were having such a happy moment! We played that song 10 times, and when we arrived, I gave the driver my copy. He was happy to hear music from younger people he could really dig."
THE CD THAT REMINDS ME OF FARTING
Michael Jackson, History: Past, Present and Future, Book 1
Epic, 1995
"At 2 a.m. every night during holidays, my brother and I sat on his bed to watch TV with a remote control made out of a broomstick. I'd go under the covers and fart, coughing to cover the noise, and he would get upset. The program Bonsoir le clip showed videos: That's where I saw videos for Michael Jackson's 'Bad' and 'Billie Jean.' In terms of music, he's a genius and way above everyone else."
THE CD THAT MAKES ME FEEL YOUNG AGAIN
Ariel Ramírez, Misa Criolla
Philips, 1990
"My mom played this choir music when I was a kid. It's from Argentina. The voices are very homogeneous. Their hearts are all on the same wavelength. It's an odd record that Björk and I both see as being very influential. When I hear it, I remember being young and feeling good. Religion creates the most horrifying events in the world, but also the most beautiful, creative and pure. For me, this album illustrates that."
THE CD THAT MAKES ME FEEL WHITE
Missy Elliott, This is not a Test!
Gold Mind/Elektra, 2003
"The first and last time I met her was at the Beverly Hills Hotel. She was in the gym. I was on the rowing machine and she was on the bicycle — just kidding! For a video, she wanted me to create a 3D effect that involved people wearing those glasses. Very impractical! So, by the time I figured out another idea, she was working with Hype Williams. This happens all the time in hip-hop. It's very hard to break into the entourage."
THE CD I THOUGHT I WOULD HATE
Ray Charles, Wish You Were Here Tonight
Columbia, 1983
"I was at the FNAC, a big retail store in France, looking for a new Charles record. You choose for the cover, and he was looking good on this one, so I got it. When I got home, I realized it was country music. I was so disappointed! But eventually, it became one of my favorites. It is so slow, you can hear every grain of sand of the texture of his voice. His voice has a bitterness that is addictive."
THE CD RHYMING "CHICKENS" WITH "DICKENS"
Ian Dury & the Blockheads, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll: The Best...
Rhino, 1992
"He is a true funk man and his orchestra are the true funk. His voice is very human, and when I was young, I liked his odd sense of humor: 'Spread your chickens when you think of next, what the Dickens if they're highly sexed?' I don't know what that means, but I like it! I think he redeemed himself at the end of his career he didn't sing so much about drugs, which I don't like necessarily."
THE CD THAT MAKES ME THINK OF MUSTACHES
Peaches, Fatherfucker
XL, 2003
"When I heard Peaches's Fatherfucker, I imagined a salesman with a mustache who puts a briefcase on a table and out pops a girl who looks like him. She walks over to a table next to him, opens her own case and another salesman pops out! The word 'fatherfucker' is so satisfying to the ear. Peaches says the dirtiest things, and she's still pure. There is this happiness in her that isn't cynical."
THE CD THAT MAKES DEATH SEEM LESS SCARY
Talking Heads, Remain in Light
Sire, 1980
"When this came out, I was in art school and it was the beginning of the Walkman craze. I can remember each little bit playing on my headset — the stereo on this album is totally amazing. It was before they used a lot of drum machines. There is a lot about death and decay in their lyrics. I'm scared of death but on this album, there is something serene about it. This album puts my cells in loops in the same direction!"
THE CD FOR WALLOWING IN SADNESS
Beck, Sea Change
Interscope, 2002
"Beck makes such beautiful music when he's sad. This record is about the aftermath of a break-up with his girlfriend. When it came out, I had a break-up with my girlfriend, so these songs were very meaningful for me. The way he described his new record [out 2005] to me, the music seems more uplifting. I can't wait to hear it!"
I love him. Thanks for the article. 8)
QuoteTHE CD I THOUGHT I WOULD HATE
Ray Charles, Wish You Were Here Tonight
Columbia, 1983
"I was at the FNAC, a big retail store in France, looking for a new Charles record. You choose for the cover, and he was looking good on this one, so I got it. When I got home, I realized it was country music. I was so disappointed!
^This part made me laugh really hard!
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.click-smilies.de%2Fsammlung0304%2Fgrinser%2Fgrinning-smiley-020.gif&hash=4ff8debc5c34b00b1c0a96b368f24983adee718b)
someone who is in this (http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000DBJ9J.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg) sent me this (http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000DBJ9J.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg) finally and although she is as pretty as a butterfly in it, i think 'la lettre (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0219872)' is my mostfavourite part of the disc.
dude we get it.. you know bjork. nobody cares.
i knew it, 03.. you are dokaka!
Quote from: onomatavivaQuote from: peteQuote from: bonanzatazmore info from imdb, partially about gondry.QuoteStunning redhead Julianne Moore has bared all for an arty 42-page spread in American high-society magazine W.
that looks exciting.
Freud buffs, eat your hearts out.
http://www.style.com/w/feat_story/080804 or more specifically http://www.style.com/images/w/feat_story/080804/img01.jpg
There's something severely wrong with me... I look at those pictures, and all that goes through my mind is: "Will Bart Freundlich ever make another movie as good as 'World Traveler', or is it all 'Spy Kids' ripoffs from here on out?"
here's his 'heard em say'
http://rapidshare.de/files/8913030/Kanye_West_ft_Adam_Levine_-_Heard_Em_Say_AMNBX.mpg.html
rehashing old tricks
cut the splits
yay brion
same ol thing for gondry but i frigggin love it. it has such a nice feel to it. it makes me happy. and it's great to see brion. but seriously, moving beds. think of something new gondry.
what ? brion was there? i already erased it :doh:
riiiiiight, the dude with the tiny white piano... i just remembered lovely hobo mr west (mr west mr west mr west) and patrick rockwell /sam bateman alias maroon 5 guy.
by the way , kanye has another version of the video. yep he directed it with the drawings of bill plympton.
here's the whole story:
http://www.director-file.com/gondry/kanye.html
from ew
French director Michel Gondry, whose screwball fantasty The Science Of Sleep sold for $6 million, is eyeing a mainstream comedy for his next project. While discussing the film with his agent, Gondry procured from his pocket a small head shot of an actor he wanted to cast. The guy in the photo? Terrence Howard.
For those of you who wanted Gondry, McG and Ratner all in the same book, it has arrived:
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.amazon.com%2Fimages%2FP%2F0452286816.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg&hash=da15413bcc0982fb20c7119e583e3ae324ffc5a0)
Entertainment writer and TV producer Horowitz encountered "diverse voices" when he asked 22 contemporary filmmakers about their aspirations, influences, contradictory methods and problem-solving approaches for this probing collection. For Monster, Patty Jenkins wanted to explore how a normal person could become "a feral animal." Acclaimed for Girlfight, Karyn Kusama believes "there's a way to take those kind of social realist dramas and do something lyrical with them." Discussion topics range from filmmaker fears to technological advances. Alone in his apartment, the reclusive Kerry Conran created a film on his Mac that was so innovative he soon found himself on a set directing Gwyneth Paltrow (in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow). Yet French-born Michel Gondry, lauded for the mental gymnastics of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, feels digital effects inhibit performance. Other subjects include Neil LaBute (In the Company of Men), Kevin Smith (Clerks) and Jon Favreau (Zathura). Childhood backgrounds are a constant theme, as are dreams. As Conran puts it, "We've finally come to a time in our history where you can create what you see in your imagination, what you dream."
Book Description
A revealing look at the influences and aspirations of today’s hottest filmmakers
A new era has dawned in Hollywood, with a wave of innovative filmmakers redefining the art of big-screen entertainment for modern audiences. Entertainment journalist Josh Horowitz provides an in-depth look at twenty directors on the leading edge through a series of candid interviews.
Horowitz covers a full range of styles and sensibilities—revealing both the points of agreement and the sharp distinctions among this eclectic group:
• Kevin Smith’s do-it-yourself aesthetics in Clerks and Chasing Amy
• Michel Gondry’s surreal dreamscapes in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
• Trey Parker’s love of fart jokes in South Park
• How Jon Favreau’s teenage obsession with Dungeons & Dragons helped make Swingers
• Todd Philips’ journey from documentary filmmaker to box-office success with Old School
if their selection was a little more discriminating i would buy that in a second. but alas, ratner and co. :yabbse-thumbdown:
no joke. talk about B-List (save gondry).
On a related topic, I posted a mini-review of that book on my blog (http://talktomeharrywinston.blogspot.com/2006/03/anna-faris-brett-ratner-fauxteur-and.html) (I know a little self-pimpin' there :oops:):
QuoteNope, you weren't seeing things. Brett Ratner (aka the Fauxteur, thanks Defamer!) and McG's names are listed alongside the likes of Michel Gondry and David Gordon Green. Gotta give Josh Horowitz credit for that brave move. Seriously, it takes cojones to do that.
It's not a great book or anything, but it's a fairly enjoyable read. Some interesting trivia facts:
-The NYU Film School admissions administrator is not the only person who should be held responsible for the Fauxteur's success. Steven Spielberg and Amblin Entertainment sent a check to young Ratner... after being impressed by a student film of his. I know... like WTFF?!! Oh Steven, Steven. I can forgive you for The Terminal, but I can't find it in my heart to forgive you for this. *shakes head* On a related note, the Fauxteur claimed that Spielberg played matchmaker to his own daughter. Is Spielberg's little girl that fug?
-Michel Gondry wanted to direct I Know What You Did Last Summer, but was ultimately turned down by the producers.
-One of the South Park creators (was it Trey or Matt?) considers Pedro Almodóvar as one of his favorite directors. Interesting.
from the Directors Series DVD...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=lrZU-hZVfBM&search=david%20cross
Yeah I think this a pretty weak film. Ditto the Pecan Pie short.
This video seems to have slipped by. Cody Chesnutt -
King of the Game (http://beam.tv/beamreels/play_clip.php?reel_file=XGTqmjPkhF&action=open)You can also read about the illustrative technique here. (http://www.the-mill.com/article.php?A=500)
Quote...Michel solicited Mill New York's Creative Director Angus Kneale to develop a technique of making the paper drawings 3-dimensional. Using a single sheet of paper and a bolex camera, Michel drew images a line at a time and photographed the progression so that when played back, the images looked like they were drawing themselves.
It looks like the same technique was used in the Science of Sleep trailer for all of the text.
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.realone.com%2Fassets%2Frn%2Fimg%2F1%2F2%2F7%2F8%2F11058721.jpg&hash=125dd5cda36be1c25dccada8500944482b3c53cb) (https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.realone.com%2Fassets%2Frn%2Fimg%2F2%2F2%2F7%2F8%2F11058722.jpg&hash=d3ae561057627344e4f7eb71ff871ca55dc6bb2b)
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/11067457/behind_the_scenes_becks_video_shoot/print
Captainmarc22 found a Rolling Stone news article that has nine beautiful, full-color pictures from the Cell Phone's Dead shoot, which took place on 11 June.
I'll be so bold as to reveal a tiny bit of the treatment. As you can see from the pictures, it takes place...
"...in a small New York apartment. It's a bit run down and, at first glance, looks simple. Through the window, we see an adjacent ominous building. The room has a 50's era film noir feel to it. Additionally, everything we see is black and white."
Having seen the treatment, I can say that the pictures really excite me. Y'all might think Gondry's Gone Plaid, but I'm sure you'll agree that those patterns are really neat, and Beck's suit is super-stylin'. Three cheers to the art department! It all depends on the execution, now.
Beck's new album will be out in October, but no date has been set yet for this first single.
27 June 2006
EXCLUSIVE INFO: CELL PHONE'S DEAD
Michel's next Beck video, Cell Phone's Dead, has already been shot. I have been told there is still a considerable amount of post production work left to do. I have also seen the treatment, and someday I'll be able to post it online.
Like most of Michel's work, Cell Phone's Dead will be a (black-and-white) mind-bender - a video that is perhaps closest akin to the enigmatic, somewhat haunting surrealism in his and Pierre Bismuth's The All Seeing Eye. Cell Phone's Dead will look like a one-take video, but it will certainly not be one. But the effects won't be post-heavy; there is a conscious effort here to make the surreal real.
The video's cinematographer was Shawn Kim. Post is being supervised by Louis Morin at Fly Studio. This is the second video to be produced by Raffi Adlan - King of the Game was his first.
According to my source, Beck and Michel have a long-time personal friendship and were very excited to be able to finally coordinate their schedules once again and regroup for this video. Their first collaboration, of course, was Deadweight in 1997. Indeed, Beck and Michel have tried several times to do a video together, but there was always a conflict (Eternal Sunshine, Science of Sleep, Beck's tour, Beck's son's birth, etc..). They both made a great effort to make this video happen no matter what, even though there were conflicts this time as well.
That's all I can reveal right now. That, and I'm terribly excited.
saw gondry speak and answer questions for 2 hours tonite. it was a lot of fun. some tidbits...
- he said he is starting to film Be Kind Rewind tomorrow in New Jersey. he also wrote the script (i didnt realize that before)
- ended up working with the white stripes because of a misunderstanding. they had seen a lenny kravitz video by mark romanek and mistaken it for gondrys kravitz video (which Gondry admitted is not very/as good). but when they met with him, he brought with him a lego head of jack white and they were immediately sold
- he said he shoots about 2 music videos a year now that he is doing films because of the time. he also showed us 40 seconds from the new Beck video "Cell Phones Dead", which looked pretty amazing. it was also in black and white
- he has been shooting a documentary for a few years about his auntie who was a schoolteacher, shooting footage at various tiny schoolhouses she has worked at during her life. he is now in the process of editing it.
- he also showed us a video he made for a song cody chesnutt played spontaneously during the filming of Block Party and he said it was the best musical moment in the film. he made a video for the film himself using the live recording as music and animating it using a "stereo" technique of drawing something and scanning it in, replicating that image in many layers to give a 3D effect. it was very handmade looking and said it was made to be included on the dvd, but they left it off so he plans on using it in the future on something
- he said he hopes to make a 2nd volume of videos and shorts but that he had not seen a dime from the first Directors Label DVD he produced which he estimated had sold 300,000 copies. he said he hoped the money was going to charity jokingly.
- he said he kept a notebook of all the bad reviews he had gotten on Human Nature and kept going back to it to see why each thing bothered him, mostly because there was some truth to it. so prior to making Eternal Sunshine he learned a lot from trying not to repeat his mistakes and it was very helpful for him
- WB had sent along a few clips from Science of Sleep but each were only about 30-40 seconds so he would try to setup a clip and then it would play but the clips were so short and devoid of context that he apologized for having to watch them. he had thought they would be longer.
- got my Eternal Sunshine DVD signed = me :yabbse-grin:
now is a good time to let you know that I don't like you at all
seconded.
Looks like Bethie and Cine got mod's Gondry...
Right Here.
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.marketingpunk.com%2Fimages%2Fcrotch-grab.jpg&hash=2c3e5368fb3e51f9def8f3385d80884d773c4291)
ATTN: NYC
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.deitch.com%2Ffiles%2Fprojects%2Fmgscience_poster_th.jpg&hash=70f06c00c321eab746823b52eaa43f74fdbfc360)
September 06, 2006 — September 30, 2006
76 Grand Street, New York
Deitch Projects is pleased to present The Science of Sleep; an exhibition of sculpture and pathological creepy little gifts by Michel Gondry coinciding with the release of his new movie The Science of Sleep. Though he first rose to acclaim as a director of award-winning music videos and feature films, Gondry is also an immensely imaginative artist. In this exhibition, The Science of Sleep movie sets are presented and elaborated on as to allow their more concerted consideration as sculpture. A walk through the exhibition will immerse the viewer in the sculptural experience of the movie in three dimensions.
http://www.deitch.com/projects/sub.php?projId=195&orient=v
this is a few blocks from my apt. i wonder if it will be PACKED?
http://mutinycompany.com/gondrybooth.html
interview with Gondry: http://www.aintitcool.com/node/30121
incl. info on another project...
QUINT: Since you've been writing your last few projects, are you going to have a hand writing the screenplay for MASTER OF SPACE AND TIME or are you going to leave that all to Daniel Clowes.
MICHEL GONDRY: We'll see. I mean, SPACE & TIME I've started to work with Dan Clowes, who is great, but I have another project I started to write on my own, too, and we'll see how it goes. If I have some ideas...
QUINT: You're writing something else, too?
MICHEL GONDRY: Yeah. I have a French project I started to write.
QUINT: What's it called?
MICHEL GONDRY: It's called THE RETURN OF THE ICESKATE.
Gondry Tours Japan
Olivier Gondry, brother of Michel, also a director, takes a tour through the Asakusa area of Tokyo.
http://www.pingmag.jp/2006/10/10/walking-asakusa-with-olivier-gondry/
BECK
Cell Phones Dead
Dir: Michel Gondry
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opsaPhXZzWM&eurl=
Great video. Great album.
what i don't understand is why music videos would get taken down for copyright infringement. first off, somebody else sees that it's not there anymore and just posts it right back up. secondly, i was not going to buy the new beck album until i saw this video. aren't music videos supposed to be advertisements for the artist and the album? why would the record company not want to take advantage of the free advertising?
michel gondry solves a rubik's cube with his feet
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiQXgmVVGNA
of course he does.
i got bored and clicked on this link. the interviewer is hilarious.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfrIAqg4kgY&mode=related&search=
once again a warning to not waste your time on JG's link.
Quote from: JG on December 15, 2006, 08:30:06 PM
the interviewer is hilarious.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfrIAqg4kgY&mode=related&search=
not to sound like i'm picking on you for no reason.. but that is neither hilarious nor interesting in any way. it's a dime-a-dozen Gigli of interviews out of hundreds of Giglis made every day. it's not even attractive or unique as a bad interview, it's just a complete waste of time. very much like that EWS crapfest you linked a while back.
Quote from: JG on December 15, 2006, 08:30:06 PM
i got bored and clicked on this link.
this is the bit i don't get.. how you could say you were be BORED by Gondry solving a rubik's cube with his feet (which is the very definition of entertainment), and then recommend something "hilarious" when it is actually truly the very definition of boring.
Quote from: cronopio on December 15, 2006, 12:17:10 PM
michel gondry solves a rubik's cube with his feet
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiQXgmVVGNA
regarding the the rubik's cube trick, i'd like to see one solved where the footage wasn't just run backwards (this one seemed to have cuts too), but it was nice to see gondry do it. pozer's reaction is really the punchline here. it wouldn't be out of character for gondry to really do something like that, or to tap-dance while playing an accordion as he balances a bench on his head that sits grampa and jasper playing checkers.
Quote from: Pubrick on December 16, 2006, 12:21:14 AM
once again a warning to not waste your time on JG's link.
Quote from: JG on December 15, 2006, 08:30:06 PM
the interviewer is hilarious.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfrIAqg4kgY&mode=related&search=
not to sound like i'm picking on you for no reason.. but that is neither hilarious nor interesting in any way. it's a dime-a-dozen Gigli of interviews out of hundreds of Giglis made every day. it's not even attractive or unique as a bad interview, it's just a complete waste of time. very much like that EWS crapfest you linked a while back.
Quote from: JG on December 15, 2006, 08:30:06 PM
i got bored and clicked on this link.
this is the bit i don't get.. how you could say you were be BORED by Gondry solving a rubik's cube with his feet (which is the very definition of entertainment), and then recommend something "hilarious" when it is actually truly the very definition of boring.
its fine dude you can pick on me all you want. i'd be lying if i told you i watched the video i linked the whole way through, i just thought the guy was funny and awkward, not in jaw-dropping way, but enough for me to feel compelled to link you guys to him. like most youtube videos, either the premise is funny or is starts out funny and gets...unfunny (then maybe funny again). hilarious is an overstatement, fine. i just used it to justify the link.
the EWS analysis i linked was shit admittedly, i don't think i said it was good, but i don't get why you try and deter people from "wasting their time" on these links. does macguffin always censor the quality of his interviews? it was a write-up on a movie we all love, so without hesitation i linked it. it doesn't take too long for people to decide for themselves, does it?
but its all so trivial so lets shut up and give each other an e-hug. :)
Quote from: JG on December 16, 2006, 08:37:35 AM
i'd be lying if i told you i watched the video i linked the whole way through,
the least i expect from video links is that the person posting it has seen whatever they're showing us. i figured that was just common sense.
Quote from: JG on December 16, 2006, 08:37:35 AM
a) the EWS analysis i linked was shit admittedly, i don't think i said it was good,
b) does macguffin always censor the quality of his interviews?
c) it was a write-up on a movie we all love, so without hesitation i linked it.
was there a point in this mess?
a) no you called it an "analysis for those who are interested", well anyone interested and with any self respect would not hav called it an analysis much less recommended it. and yes that is what you're doing when you link something, it's a recommendation. you didn't realise it was shit until ppl actually went to waste their time on it. like the video above you prolly didn't read it.
b) no but he doesn't recommend them either. articles that are cut and pasted without selection other than relevance to the topic don't require any screening process. besides, his sources are mostly reliable and informative. the badly written ones have been reviewed as such and so been avoided by ppl who would rather not waste their time. that's what i've done with your (two) links.
c) please spare me the link for when you find a piece of dog shit on the ground layed out in an E W S formation, which you will no doubt be compelled to post.
e-hug postponed until you start making sense.
i still love you.
you're still an idiot.
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimage.guardian.co.uk%2Fsys-images%2FFilm%2FPix%2Fpictures%2F2007%2F02%2F09%2Fgondry3.jpg&hash=99c8733f4a0cc06034f5700f15e1fdb43aa6d5f5)
Michel Gondry
The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind director on working with Björk, playing cut-and-paste dialogue games with Charlie Kaufman and why he made the jump from music videos to feature films
Source: Guardian Unlimited
Sandra Hebron: A very warm welcome to Michel Gondry. Thank you so much for being here. I watched The Science of Sleep again this morning and I was struck by how everything is connected. And I felt, even in the first few minutes of the film, that there's an awful lot in there of what interests you and how you approach the whole idea of being creative. Do you think that's fair?
Michel Gondry: Yes, that's really accurate. In fact, you could see this film as the first album of a rock band. Let's say you sign the contract when you're 20 and you record the first album at 21 - you pour your whole existence between age 0 and 21, all jammed together, all the ideas that you accumulated, all come out in this first album. Then the second album is where you express all the thoughts between the first and second album, which may be about two years later. In my case, I kind of did it the other way around. Obviously, this is a movie, but it has the qualities and maybe flaws of what a first album is like. So it kind of reflects what you just said.
SH: Yes, and there were just lots of things that were very personal in there.
MG: It's true. It's the first screenplay I wrote and directed myself. I could only explore what is inside me. I couldn't really do something about a guy running a restaurant. I have to find what is inside myself to work on.
SH: So just to pick up on that, could you please tell us about your family background and what it was like growing up, because you didn't have the most conventional upbringing.
MG: We were not freaks or anything; we lived in a quiet suburb, in Versailles, but we were not typical of Versailles. Versailles is a very bourgeois place with a lot of retired military types, and we were the other side of that. I would say that my father was a rightwing hippy. He was a self-made man; he had long hair and was very interested in music and pop culture. My maternal grandfather was an inventor with many patents for electronic musical instruments. So it was a background that mixed science and art, which I think is a really nice mix to grow up with. My parents were really encouraging and not judgmental. So that describes a little about where I grew up. It's interesting because now my son is 15 and I wonder what's the best for him - I had a lot of encouragement and tolerance from my parents, but I also have many friends who didn't get that from their parents and in a way they have more strength from spending years where nobody believed in them. But I have made my choice and it would be really mean to not encourage my son. So I do encourage him.
SH: Let's pick up on two of the things that you've mentioned - music and invention.
MG: Well, I've always liked the idea of inventing stuff. My father told me, because I was naïve, I would think things could work and therefore do them, because I would have no doubt even though there was no solid foundation for this confidence. I don't think I would be a real inventor. But when I set out to do animation, which was my first step into film-making, I realised I could achieve this idea. I could take some elements, create a sort of clumsy invention, and make them work for the camera. But yes, invention is in my background, and I don't know if it's the genes or just being in contact. My grandfather lived across the garden from us, and in his attic he had a lot of radios, appliances and inventions that he had made over 50 years, such as a keyboard called a clavioline, which can be heard on some Beatles songs - it was popular in the 60s. So we had all that at home.
SH: So in that context, what was it that prompted you to pick up a camera for the first time?
MG: My father had a Super 8 camera when I was a kid and sometimes he would use it. I did some animation with it. I did a lot of flipbooks. But mostly, it was when I shared an apartment with a guy with a small 16mm camera and I asked him if I could use it. I was in this band, Oui Oui, in Paris in the early 80s and I did some animation for them. But the first time I thought that this could be something I could do for a living was when I came back from the art store and I had spent a good amount of money for this project I was working on, and I realised that if I were to do animation, I could have a good time at the art store, which I've always liked - I love to buy notebooks and pencils and paper. I remember clearly when I came home to my apartment in the 18th arrondissement in Paris, with all these art supplies, that that was something I would like to do for a long time.
SH: So you started to make videos for your band, and that meant that they got seen and you got recognised.
MG: That's the beautiful thing about being a person who makes things. I explain this to my son sometimes. He has great energy, he's a painter, he's 15 and he's amazing, but he says that sometimes, when he's depressed, he has no desire to make anything. And I always tell him that we are fortunate because we have ups and downs, but when we are in a good mood and we create something, we can look at that object when we are down in the dumps and get ourselves up again. There's also the other dimension of other people looking at it and giving you feedback. The beauty of doing film is that you construct whatever you do block by block and you can build something that will stay.
SH: In terms of your work then, how do you balance your own vision when you're collaborating with other people?
MG: That's a good question. Right at the beginning, when I was in the band, the leader of the band was very opinionated about visual and musical ideas and I was never in a position where I could just say, "Okay, it's going to be like this." I remember the first video we did was called Ma Maison, which means My House. I wanted to do a video with shadows to indicate the way we live our lives, but he just rejected the idea, even though we didn't really have a choice. He wanted a video about insects. But I had this flexibility, so it didn't bother me. I thought I could take on his idea and yet do something really personal. So I learned right there to collaborate but to make sure that I could use somebody else's idea and still feel that I'm not just the technician, and I'm not being used. I think the art of that is trying to figure out the positives of outside input and what's negative, and then filter out what you think is taking away from what you believe you want to do, and use what reinforces it. When I started to work together with Björk, it was the same thing. So when we did our first video, for Human Behaviour, I was thinking: "Great, we're going to Iceland and we're going to shoot a lot of great landscape." And she said no - she had a similar idea as my friend Etienne in Oui Oui, she wanted to use animals to reflect human nature. And it was great, because as soon as she started to throw some ideas, they started to bounce in my mind and imagination and I immediately came back with other ideas, and we did a video that was very collaborative. But I didn't feel that I was being used, because little by little I would gather elements by different collaborators that would always reflect me. This became clearer when I did a compilation of all my videos, which came out before Eternal Sunshine. And at this point, I had met a lot of very strong personalities. From my bandleader Etienne, a very creative and opinionated person, to Björk and Charlie Kaufman. I was starting to feel like maybe I was just the arm of those people, and they are my brain. I started to doubt a little bit. But when I put all the videos together, I realised that they were going in many directions but the core of them was me and it made me feel really strong about myself, and gave me the strength to start the communication on Eternal Sunshine. I had a difficult position on my first film [Human Nature] because Charlie Kaufman had a very big aura and I was a little swallowed up in that project and it was good for me to come out of that and express my point of view. I didn't know how much this film would reflect of me. So when I did Eternal Sunshine I was really scared, even though I brought the concept to Charlie Kaufman and I was more part of the creative process, I was still concerned that I would be asked: "Why did they get you to direct this movie?" or "Why didn't Spike Jonze direct this?", which I faced all the time with the first film. So my compilation clarified all that because people could look at them all together and decide that I had a brain of my own. And when I was asked to talk about this film, I got asked intelligent questions, which was very pleasant.
SH: Which is a good point at which to look at one of those videos. This is Hyperballad, with Björk. It was very difficult to choose just one, but in the end I chose this one, partly because I love it, but also because it has a dreamy quality, which fits in with tonight.
[runs clip]
SH: Everytime I see it, it makes me think that things get categorised in certain ways - people think of that as a music promo, but actually I would see that as a perfect piece of experimental film-making. Could you talk a little about the creative process to get you to that?
MG: Björk had a very beautiful idea in this song - she explained to me that the song is about a woman in a relationship, and there are all these inside tensions, but because she wants to preserve the relationship, she goes to the top of the mountain and she lets it go by imagining that she jumps from a cliff and breaks into pieces, thus letting all the negatives out. Then she comes back and she can go on with her life and relationship. That's what I like about Björk, she's really a hard worker and she's very sensitive to the human condition. It sounds so pompous but she takes a very simple, everyday element - like in this case a relationship between a boy and a girl - and find the magic in that, and find how to make it work and use all our creativity to solve problems. So, on my side, once she told me the reason why she wrote this song, I imagined her being dead and alive at the same time. So we had her lying down, with makeup to make her appear dead, and then we had a holographic image of her singing superimposed on her. And this was the first time that I had used motion control, which is this big machine that you can programme and do all this at the same time. So we shot all that on one piece of film by superimposing 14 exposures. I remember my DP was going crazy. He was telling me: "If you screw up one exposure, you'll ruin all the film." He was against it but I liked the idea that there was a good chance that it could all go wrong, kind of stimulating. And it worked out. We were all sweating when we were projecting this. In my calculations, I had calculated the motion of the camera, but I forgot to add the volume of the screen, and the camera would have crashed into the screen, so right in the middle of shooting, I had to recalculate. But I think it's really interesting to have a heavy, technical aspect to deal with while making sure that your message comes across. You have to go to the technique to make it happen, so you can't be too precious about detail, especially in this form of working, where you do everything in the camera. So you can't look back and say, "Oh maybe that should be a little more blue or green." Those are details, but in the end you just want the piece to make sense.
SH: I also like that there are times in your films where they're obviously very technologically complex and very carefully thought through, but then there'll be something very low-tech in there. Is that part of balancing things out, or do you just have a fondness for cardboard and low-tech?
MG: I think your first explanation is quite accurate. I like to use a bit of chaos when I shoot. I think it may be something from the way I shot my first film - I was very scared, of course, and I prepared everything, I wanted to make sure that the characters did the right thing at the right time on the storyboard. But then I realised that in life, there is so much more than what you can predict or write in advance, that when you shoot the story, it's good to leave some gaps where you lose control. So you can prepare so you know what's going on when you come to the shoot, but you also want some gaps where nobody knows what they're doing and are left to react in the moment. I think this combination of chaos and organisation gives a kind of quality.
SH: So let's talk a bit about your first feature. You'd been making music videos and commercials, very successfully so. At what point did you decide that a feature film would be the next step? And why did you choose to do it in that particular way, in America instead of France?
MG: It's connected to Björk. We did this video called Isobel, where everything was shot on film. And then we screened it at the Electric Cinema in London, and it was the first time I'd seen a video I'd shot projected on a big screen with a roomful of people who were there just to see it. And I realised how different it was instead of it being one of the millions of things bombarding the audience on a small screen. And I thought maybe I could continue to do my work, but for a story that would be projected on a big screen. That was 10 years ago, and it was probably about five years after that that I did my first picture. So it wasn't like it happened the next day. But I remember, until then I was happy being a video director, and I thought directing a feature film was way out of my field. But when I saw that on the big screen, I thought why not and tried to find a way to get there. So I went to America because in France, if you don't come up with your story... I didn't have confidence in my own writing at this time and I thought I would find material in America. I worked on different projects. First one was a very big, franchise movie called The Green Hornet, and I worked with the screenwriter who wrote RoboCop and Starship Troopers. We worked together on a story that we thought was really interesting, but after one and a half years, it was shelved by the studio. It was really... at this time, my son was really into this type of story and I had to tell him that I was not going to do it. We already had the designs for the cars, the weapons... So it was a very long process, and through Spike Jonze I met Charlie Kaufman. He had this spec script that was not being shot and didn't have people willing to do. So I took this project on and this became Human Nature.
SH: Let's take a look at Human Nature.
[runs clip]
SH: How was it for you, working with someone else's script, something that was not your own original work?
MG: In a way, I was used to that, because as I was saying before, I had been working with a lot of artists and I would be able to integrate their vision and ideas and work with it. It was a little difficult because my understanding of the language was not so perfect, and sometimes I would be embarrassed to ask Charlie what exactly he meant. And I was really trying... And you know, when you're the director you have to constantly pretend that you know what you're doing. You have a team of 50, 60 people working for you, asking for your decisions, and you have to constantly pretend that you know where you're going when, like everybody else, you don't really know. So I had to do a lot of pretending. It was really scary. And some parts of the story, I would really identify with - I have to be honest, I really identified with the Rhys Ifans character, it really captivated me. The part of the scientist, who was very ambitious and kind of selfish, I had not had time to absorb it, so I think you can see in the movie... I don't know exactly what to think. The first thing I realised when I did this film is that you do all this work but can't enjoy it because you just see pieces that you stick together. And then when it's finished, you look at it and remember each pain and it's hard to watch it as an ensemble. While with the videos, I could watch it and say, "Yes, that works" or "No, that doesn't work." For a feature film, I will never really be able to achieve that. But with Science of Sleep, it's the first time I can watch it over and over again. I think Charlotte [Gainsbourg] and Gael [Garcia Bernal] did such a great job. Maybe it's because I wrote the screenplay, and I feel as if they took my torment away from me and so when I watch them on screen, I'm glad I'm not on my own. So I really like to watch Science of Sleep over and over, but maybe it's just because I'm a narcissist.
SH: Let's talk a little about working with actors. I don't think it's just a matter of being lucky that got you great performances.
MG: I'm not saying I got lucky. I think I just learned to deal with people being uncomfortable in front of the camera. I remember when I did my first video that was not animated, and not with my band, it was with this band that was not very good. But I had to do it because it was a job for me. And I was glad to do it because it meant that I could make a living while being creative at the same time. So good luck for me that this video was never finished. It was a lot of work but something was missing. But my producer Georges Bermann, who also produced Science of Sleep, he gave me my first piece of advice: "Whatever you do, after each shot, go to your actor or your singer and tell them: 'You were great.'" I had this idea of taking this woman and making a fairytale around her, and she was wearing this wedding dress. Something very important was missing - I never made her try the dress. She looked like a transvestite in that dress. It was horrifying. And I had to go to her after each take and say she was great. It was so embarrassing. So I had to learn to lie a little bit. Now I work a little differently. Actors are so used to being complimented, so sometimes I feel I need to put them a little off their balance, so they feel they don't know what they're doing and are refreshed. So when they ask: "Was I good?", I say: "Yes, but don't worry, if you were bad, I wouldn't tell you." I want them to feel comfortable but not too comfortable. A lot of times, I throw in counter-orders at the last minute. My flatmate, the one who lent me his camera, he did the lighting on the Science of Sleep. In the 90s, he did a re-edit of L'Atalante, which is one of the great movies of French cinema. I had a chance to look at some footage, and you would see Jean Vigo, the director, he would say, "Action!" and then "No, no, stop!" and then "Yes, go". This sort of uncertainty I guess would project on the actors, and creates an atmosphere where everybody might think, "I'm not sure if we're shooting or not, but I'm going to go anyway" and it puts them in the moment. That was one of the elements that I absorbed. When you reach a stage where there is no uncertainty, you enter the world of schtick, where everything is predictable. So I always try to preserve that, sometimes by overcomplicating a situation, or sometimes by letting my doubt come across. So I give people a lot of freedom. When I worked with Charlotte and Gael, I would not give them a lot of direction - it's stupid because they have their own ideas and if I give them my take before they try theirs, they will never get to know what they had in mind. In the scene where Stéphane presents his calendar, in my mind, he's very shy and awkward, but Gael had worked on this presentation during the night and was very confident and very funny. So he asked if he could do it his way and I said yes. When he asked me later what my idea was, I said my idea doesn't matter. I get the credit anyway as the director.
that's a good interview.
way better than Brick.
Quote from: Pubrick on February 12, 2007, 09:26:52 AM
that's a good interview.
way better than [future Xixax Award Nominee] Brick.
:yabbse-grin:
In brief: Gondry, Carax and Joon-ho take on Tokyo
Source: Guardian Unlimited
Directors Michel Gondry, Leos Carax and Bong Joon-ho are to collaborate on a portmanteau film set in Tokyo. The film-makers will each write and direct one segment of the picture, which will tackle various aspects of the city. "It will be just like New York Stories, but set in Tokyo," said Joon-ho. Gondry won an Oscar for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and his latest film The Science of Sleep is still on general release. South Korea's Joon-ho attracted rave reviews for last year's monster movie The Host, while Carax remains best known for the stylish melodrama Les Amants du Pont Neuf. Production on the film, tentatively titled Tokyo, is set to begin in the summer.
haha I like how them backwards brits claim science of sleep as a current film but the host was "last year's monster film". oh man, someone got dizzy in a time machine. FUCKING ASSHOLES.
My guess is that The Science of Sleep is still playing in the UK, and that The Host played there last year sometime.
Quote from: matt35mm on March 01, 2007, 01:59:26 PM
My guess is that The Science of Sleep is still playing in the UK, and that The Host played there last year sometime.
Yeah, you're right. The Host played in the UK last November while The Science of Sleep just opened two weeks ago.
yeah I was joking. nevermind.
A 50 minute video of Michel Gondry and Robert Stickgold discussing film making, dreams and the scientific method is online.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6521301642729655970
Gondry the spokesman
Source: JoBlo
Just about anything involving Michel Gondry immediately grabs my attention, folds it into an origami crane, paints it, and then unleashes it into a shattered television, no CG, all in-camera effects. That's why I'm going to blast all of you with this little Hewlett-Packard ad spot about the director's creative mojo and the computer he uses to bring it to life. To be honest, I'm just shocked that dude doesn't use a Mac. Or maybe he does, and was paid a handsome sum to tell us otherwise. Most directors aren't worthy of a one minute advertising spot because they'd be unable to floor you in 60 seconds flat. Not Gondry, who is bursting at the seams with some of the moist outrageous ideas in film these days, be it commercial, music video or feature. Funny, thing is, his brother directed this one. Check it out BELOW, and his Jack Black Comedy BE KIND, REWIND bows April 4th next year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfCJ-7kMgRs
new music video
paul mccartney "dance tonight"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTNXrkBSp_o&feature=dir
directed by you know who.
MTV Cribs: Michel Gondry (http://www.superdeluxe.com/sd/contentDetail.do?id=D81F2344BF5AC7BB5708A754A3BC010F85D8FF1D528F2FEF)
You'll thank yourself for clicking on it.
Gondry does it again. (http://youtube.com/watch?v=pB8XedMowDU)
HOW THE HECK DOES HE THAT?
edit: i guess thats kinda old
Quote from: mogwai on May 23, 2007, 11:14:22 AM
new music video
paul mccartney "dance tonight"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTNXrkBSp_o&feature=dir
directed by you know who.
when i saw it i thought this was just post fx stuff but later did i discover that the "ghost thing" was done in camera, using an old magic trick technique. he is a cazy man
Quote from: davidchili on August 24, 2007, 02:47:08 AM
when i saw it i thought this was just post fx stuff but later did i discover that the "ghost thing" was done in camera, using an old magic trick technique. he is a cazy man
yeah, at first i thought he was ripping himself off again like the kanye video, this time dead leaves and the dirty ground.. but then i read up on how it was done and while interesting and "novel", it's just not that impressive. doesn't help that the song is forgettable and portman keeps her clothes on.
welcome to the board, introduce yourself here. (http://xixax.com/index.php?topic=2.720)
Motorola ad:
http://media2.adforum.com/zrIf58670C/C/CU/CUTW_66455/CUTW_6645555_6703301W.MPG
very cool... he knows that stuff better than anyone, for sure.
Making of the Motorola ad and interview with Gondry:
http://direct.motorola.com/hellomoto/razr2/razr2makingof/
Before he took his wild imagination to the big screen with "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," French director Michel Gondry was best known for his frequent collaborations with Björk, perhaps most memorably on the video for her song "Human Behaviour." Now the two are at it again. Gondry revealed to MTV News that a month from now, he will be directing the music video for "Declare Independence," from the Icelandic singer's latest album, Volta.
Bjork's Declare Independence:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGC0VVobi6E
well, that was boring and repetitive.
Quote from: The Perineum Falcon on December 08, 2007, 06:44:29 PM
well, that was boring and repetitive.
yep.
i thought the same thing and blamed it on watching it at 2am right before i went to bed. now i'm awake (i think) and it's still the same if not worse. poor gondry, poor bjork, they really fucked it up. at least she doesn't look really old like in earth intruders.
oh, can't wait for the defenders. "i like the minimalism/other fucking meaningless buzzword". none of his other videos needed justification. there is an idea here, that's not debatable, the problem is that it goes nowhere. it's lame by any standard.
it's like he had to make it on the cheap with practical effects. this should hav been epic.
only just saw this. it was alright. i definately liked it more after watching the making of, didnt even get wat gondry was trying to do wen i first saw it. p's right tho, this should have been epic, on a bachelorette scale. this is their long awaited collaberation after, wat, a decade? meh.
If you skip ahead a lot and skim through the video, it's pretty cool.
aside from it being relatively static and not as 'epic' as we might have liked to see... did anybody else think it was making a fucked up argument?
the video didn't develop any of its symbols in a way that said anything about independence from the mechanism that was making people zombies... they just became more festive zombies.
ATTN: NYC
indieWIRE continues its monthly series with Apple Store - SoHo that presents indie film professionals discussing various aspects of the filmmaking process.
WHEN: Friday, January 11th, 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m
WHERE: Apple Store - SoHo, 103 Prince Street, NYC
COST: Free, No RSVP required. Seats are first come, first serve. Seating is limited.
Filmmaker Michel Gondry will participate in a discussion and show scenes from his latest film, "Be Kind Rewind," which stars Jack Black and Mos Def. When a man whose body accidentally becomes magnetized unintentionally erases every tape in his friend's video store, the pair set out to remake the lost films, including "Back To The Future" and "The Lion King". New Line Cinema will release the film in theaters in January 2008. The event will be moderated by indieWIRE Editor in Chief Eugene Hernandez.
i'm not going though cause this movie will suck and i already saw him there. but maybe someone else is interested?
Gondry guest edits YouTube
Source: Mark Sweney; guardian.co.uk
YouTube has appointed Michel Gondry, the director of movies including Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Science of Sleep as well as music videos for acts such as The White Stripes, Radiohead and Bjork, as a guest editor.
Gondry, who is curating YouTube.com during the Sundance Film Festival, will follow in the footsteps of Oprah Winfrey and musician and director Rob Zombie in guest-editing the homepage of the Google-owned video-sharing website.
The French film director will choose his favourite YouTube clips to showcase during the week-long film festival.
Gondry explains his role as a curator (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEI7ekLjLSc) in a typically quirky clip that features him pretending to pick his nose.
On the official YouTube blog (http://www.youtube.com/blog?entry=pr40ZL_QXn4), the company said that he will "programme a festival of sorts right here on YouTube".
With 233 million unique users visiting YouTube.com in November, according to web measurement firm ComScore, the decision to bring in a guest editor is no trivial matter for the world's biggest video-sharing website.
Guest editing has become fashionable in old and new media in recent years.
Vint Cerf, chief evangelist at Google, was one of a number of guest editors to take the reins at the Guardian's Monday MediaGuardian supplement towards the end of last year.
Bob Geldof guest edited an issue of Germany's biggest-selling daily newspaper, Bild, in June last year. He replaced the tabloid's usual saucy front page with a picture of an emaciated African child.
Bono guest edited the Independent on May 16 last year, while Giorgio Armani was guest designer, resulting in a sales rise of around 70,000 copies.
25 of Michel Gondry's Favorite Videos
The French-born director of acclaimed offbeat movies has also directed numerous groundbreaking videos for Bjork, the White Stripes, and more. Here, he offers his picks of the best videos of the past 25 years
Source: EW
''Billie Jean'', Michael Jackson (1983)
''Sledgehammer'', Peter Gabriel (1986)
''Give It Away'', Red Hot Chili Peppers (1991)
''Sabotage'', Beastie Boys (1994)
''It's Oh So Quiet'', Björk (1995)
''Rockit'', Herbie Hancock (1983)
''Individual Choice'', Jean-Luc Ponty (1983)
''Burning Down the House'', Talking Heads (1983)
''Un Autre Monde'', Téléphone (1984)
''Close to Me'', The Cure (1985)
''Perfect Kiss'', New Order (1985)
''Fight for Your Right to Party'', Beastie Boys (1986)
''Walk this Way'', Run DMC featuring Aerosmith (1986)
''You Can Call Me Al'', Paul Simon (1986)
''Leave Me Alone'', Michael Jackson (1987)
''Like a Prayer'', Madonna (1989)
''Wild Thing'', Tone Loc (1989)
''Bust a Move'', Young MC (1989)
''Unfinished Sympathy'', Massive Attack (1991)
''Are You Gonna Go My Way?'', Lenny Kravitz (1993)
''Virtual Insanity'', Jamiroquai (1996)
''Drop'', The Pharcyde (1996)
''Come to Daddy'', Aphex Twin (1997)
''A Ribbon'', Devendra Banhart (2004)
''Trapped in the Closet'', R. Kelly (2005)
Gondry directed Flight of the Conchords Feb. 15 episode. (http://xixax.com/index.php?topic=9682.msg270780#msg270780)
Michel Gondry Entertained For Days By New Cardboard Box
http://www.theonion.com/content/news/michel_gondry_entertained_for_days
Video for "open your heart" by Mia Doi Todd
http://vimeo.com/9167609 (http://vimeo.com/9167609)
I enjoyed that. It feels South American, North American, and European at the same time. It also feels effortless, even though all evidence points to a lot of effort being put into it. How does this cocksucker keep doing this?
that's excellent.
great use of public spaces and public colours. wherever it was shot, matt's right it feels very multicultural and effortless.
my favourite parts are around 1:40 when they're running down some stairs and the fat chick is the last one down, and then at the end after they're done spinning that one dude on the right is about to collapse. definitely hard work made to look simple. it's inspiring.
gondry needs to shut the hell up (stop writing scripts) and stick to the visuals, his language comes off perfectly when he sticks to what he's good at. english is not what he's good at.
He just needs to go ahead and make a musical already.
I thought it was pretty lazy. He's a creative dude but he's been a lot better (1998-Be Kind Rewind). It's like he said, "I'm gonna put these schlubs in shirts, film them and then go to lunch. action."
Still, even creatively drained Gondry is better than most.
SPOILER The short film where a japanese girl becomes a chair is fucking DANK.
SXSW Exclusive: Michel Gondry's Next Is New Project 'The We & The I'; Updates On 'Green Hornet,' 'Master Of Space & Time' And More
Source: ThePlaylist
Yesterday, we brought some news from a panel at SXSW with director Michel Gondry, who provided some updates on the status of his animated project "Megalomania," which is set to feature the voices of Steve Buscemi, Seth Rogen and Juliette Lewis. We caught up with Gondry in a one-to-one interview later in the day, spoke to him about this new documentary, "A Thorn In The Heart" (more on that later) and we picked up a few more tidbits on some of the French auteur's future projects.
First up, now in post-production and heading for its December release date, is "The Green Hornet," the Seth Rogen-led superhero movie, also starring Cameron Diaz, Christoph Waltz and Tom Wilkinson. Gondry was originally set to make his feature debut on a previous incarnation of the project 13 years ago, and was pleased to be able to return to the character and see it through, "It was great, because I sort of abandoned my son when he was young to do that [version] of the film. I moved to Paris and I felt guilty that I didn't complete the film. But that's his type of film. Now he's a bit more serious in film taste, but at his previous age, he was dying for me to make that movie, only because it was a screenplay I was more involved in, and it was crazy..."
The script for the new version is by Rogen and "Superbad" co-writer Evan Goldberg — does Gondry wish that the project was closer to his original plan? "Sometimes [my son says] 'Oh, you should have done it the way you had it initially,' but there are still things I brought to it, personal things. So it will still have my imprint on it." What will it look like, the vision of Michel Gondry and Rogen/Goldberg? Some people can't picture what the combination will be on screen. "Me either!," Gondry exclaimed. "You will see when it's done. Like any movie, we're figuring the movie in the editing room, but I think when it's done it's going to be very spectacular." He also seems delighted with the cast, calling it a great "ensemble piece" and saying that "I feel very lucky to have got Christoph Waltz to play the villain." The now Academy-Award-anointed Austrian actor replaced Nicolas Cage at the eleventh hour.
Unfortunately, the news from another of Gondry's long-in-the-offing projects isn't so good. An adaptation of the Rudy Rucker sci-fi novel "The Master of Space and Time," with a script from "Megalomania" writer, and "Ghost World" graphic novelist Daniel Clowes, has been in the works for almost as long as "The Green Hornet," and had Jack Black attached to the lead role for some time. Disappointingly, the project seems to be dead now, "Unfortunately, that's not going to happen, but I'm going to do something similar with Daniel, another science fiction project... based on a comic book made by my son" (the aforementioned animated "Megalomania" project).
Also on the helmer's slate is "Return of the Ice Kids," about a group of teenagers who develop a form of water that makes you hear music when you drink it, which remains in active development, "It's still in the writing [phase]," Gondry said, noting that he himself won't write the project now. "I wrote two drafts, but then we hired someone else to write another draft. I don't think he's very well known." (Gondry did tell us the name of the writer, but between the thickness of the director's accent, and the unfamiliarity of the name, we didn't want to get it wrong...)
So, what's up next, after the completion of "The Green Hornet?" Interestingly, it seems to be a project that we weren't previously aware of, which was borne out of meetings with the publishers of "You'll Like This Film Because You're In It: The Be Kind Rewind Protocol," which is about community filmmaking, inspired by Gondry's last feature project. "When I wrote this book, I always wrote 'I did this,' or 'we did that,' and my publisher said 'we have to do something for the we and the I.'" Thus, the title for the project, "The We & The I," was born about kids on a school bus. Say what?
"It's about the group effect, how people in groups transform when the group is dislocated, because everyone jumps out of the bus at different times, there is a smaller group and how the relationships evolve." Is it another science-fiction project? "No, it's kids on a bus, it's more like a social thing. It's not [well-known] actors, it's going to be kids from a school in the Bronx. I love kids and just [regular] people too because they are not polluted by the medium. They come as they are and they have beautiful stories to tell, so I want to show that." It seems to demonstrate a return to the theme of community that has appeared in much of Gondry's recent work ("Dave Chappelle's Block Party," "Be Kind Rewind"), and is another gear-change for the director, going from super-hero tentpole to tiny indie drama.
This back-and-forth wasn't premeditated though. The film was originally intended to shoot last summer, "But then I got the "Green Hornet" project I couldn't let go. So I had to postpone it, and hopefully they won't be too old for the parts now." So "The We & The I" is next? "Hopefully, yes."
Stay tuned, we got a little more from Gondry including details on his secret project with Bjork.
Quote from: modage on March 15, 2010, 01:26:18 PM
Stay tuned, we got a little more from Gondry including details on his secret project with Bjork.
again, excited. but i hope he tries a little harder than he did in their last collabo.
i say as i continue to waste my life..
SXSW Interview: Michel Gondry's "Secret" Project With Björk To Be In IMAX 3D
Source: ThePlaylist
Michael Gondry and Icelandic musician Björk are certainly no strangers having collaborated together on no less than seven music videos since 1993, the last being 2007's "Declare Independence" off her album, Volta.
Earlier this year, however, it was revealed that the two were set to reunite for a mysterious, secret film project that was described by the director simply as something "very undefined, so it's hard to give more precision."
It was that secretive. However, In an interview with Gondry at the 2010 SXSW Film Festival promoting his new documentary, "A Thorn In The Heart," we managed to draw out a few details on the project which sounds more like an art project than a feature film, but fascinating nonetheless.
"We have a very ambitious project, a sort of scientific musical," Gondry explained. "[It's a movie], but maybe more for museums. Like a 40 minute IMAX project in 3D."
A 40 minute IMAX 3D scientific musical fit for museums? Did we expect anything less from a film project involving the musically adventurous Björk and visually creative Gondry? Not really.
Gondry has already evinced a belief in Björk's acting ability, originally wanting to cast her in his fantastical-love-story "The Science Of Sleep." The musician however, passed though, presumably still scarred from her award-winning experiences with Lars von Trier on "Dancer In The Dark." This new collaboration sounds exciting and we wouldn't expect anything less from the aspiring filmmaker and the always bold and creatively forward-thinking musician.
In case you missed it, here's more from our interview with Gondry including details on his new project, "The We & The I."
EXCLUSIVE: Michel Gondry Lays Out His Plans For A Kinko's Documentary
Source: MTV
One of the big names at South By Southwest last weekend was Michel Gondry. As the man responsible for one of the finest films in recent memory -- "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" -- people tend to sit up and take notice whenever he does something new. And while he'll next be trying his hand at a spectacle-driven blockbuster in "The Green Hornet," he was at the Austin entertainment conference to promote his new documentary, "The Thorn in the Heart."
The doc is an incredibly personal one for the filmmaker, as it takes an up-close look at the life of the Gondry family, specifically his mother, aunt and cousin. When MTV's Josh Horowitz spoke to Gondry over the weekend, he asked what the appeal of capturing non-fiction on film is.
"I want to do more documentaries to really learn to get people to tell us some things we don't know," he explained.
Gondry doesn't really know what he wants to do next in that realm, "but I've had some ideas for a long time." One can only imagine the weird, crazy things that percolate in his mind. Why imagine though? Gondry laid one possibility out. He'd like to do something... at Kinko's?
"When I moved to Hollywood, I remember going to a-- now maybe it's not so [timely], but I was going to a Kinko's... and you would see all these people with their projects and their hopes. I wanted to interview them; I would take the point of view of the copy machine, the Xerox machine, to see the document, and you would see somebody who is part of a cult of black magic, a Nazi, some people making passes for a U2 concert. And it was really interesting. So I had this idea, maybe I will do it or not, it depends."
For Gondry, it's less about who or what the subject is than it is about capturing the truth of that subject. "I really like to go somewhere with a camera not knowing what I'm going to find. Because you find it while you're shooting it, so you really find... the magic of the moment of discovery."
Who has more ideas down the pipeline? Gondry or :shock:?
At least Gondry's ideas are good. Is Kinko's even still around?
:ponder: ... i cant remember who :shock: is...
Quote from: 72teeth on March 23, 2010, 05:54:22 AM
:ponder: ... i cant remember who :shock: is...
Quote from: polkablues on February 27, 2010, 01:09:46 AM
That story managed to confirm every preconception I ever held about Eli Roth (whom I'll refer to simply as :shock: from now on).
that makes sense i guess
It kind of needs the context of the rest of that thread.
Gabrielle Bell made a web comic of her ComicCon experience. She's Gondry's ex-girlfriend and he stopped by her hotel suite. Here (http://gabriellebell.com/2010/08/30/sdcc-comicumentary-part-five/) and here (http://gabriellebell.com/2010/09/06/san-diego-comiccon-comicumentary-part-six/).
Woo bush!
He's dating Becky Stark now?
Michel Gondry To Direct 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!'
Source: Slashfilm
Academy Award winning director Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Be Kind Rewind, The Science of Sleep) will direct the January 13th episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! in an attempt to promote his upcoming film The Green Hornet. Star of the film, Seth Rogen, will appear as Kimmel's big guest during the episode, alongside young actress Elle Fanning (Somewhere) and a musical performance by The Damned Things. I'd love to see what kind of unquie angle Gondry will take with a late night talk show, because if you ask me, that tv genre is in need of reinvention. Quentin Tarantino and J.J. Abrams have directed previous episodes of the late night talk show. Read the full press release after the jump.
"THE GREEN HORNET" DIRECTOR MICHEL GONDRY BRINGS HIS VISION TO A SPECIAL EPISODE OF "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!" FEATURING THE FILM'S STAR SETH ROGEN THURSDAY, JANUARY 13 ON ABC
Academy Award® winner Michel Gondry takes over the director's chair at "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" THURSDAY, JANUARY 13 at 12:05 A.M. ET/PT in an episode featuring an interview with the film's star Seth Rogen. Rogen returns to "Jimmy Kimmel Live" for the first time since June 21, 2010 when Kimmel's studio lost power and the host grabbed his laptop shooting the entire show from his computer's webcam.
Known for directing such films as "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "The Science of Sleep," as well as music videos for artists such as Bjork, Paul McCartney and The White Stripes, Gondry brings his talent to "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" one day before the much anticipated comic book classic, "The Green Hornet" hits theaters. Gondry joins Quentin Tarantino and J.J. Abrams as part of the esteemed group of directors who have taken the guest-directorial reigns at "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"
Kimmel also welcomes actress Elle Fanning and a musical performance by The Damned Things to this unique episode.
Quote from: modage on January 12, 2011, 01:25:38 PM
Michel Gondry To Direct 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!'
Watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/user/jimmykimmellive?blend=1&ob=4
björk: crystalline (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZhkfwrxNOc)
First from both that I've been into in a while.
Gondry commercial for Sunshine Sakae here (http://youtu.be/C07ANhJ-1FQ).
Michel Gondry: A Cinephile's Labyrinth - Video (http://www.nowness.com/day/2013/3/5/2863/michel-gondry-a-cinephiles-labyrinth)
Quote from: wilderesque on March 06, 2013, 08:28:08 PM
Michel Gondry: A Cinephile's Labyrinth - Video (http://www.nowness.com/day/2013/3/5/2863/michel-gondry-a-cinephiles-labyrinth)
that's cool. he's not very good at remembering movies. he thought clerks was set in a video store.
we should all be bigger fans of his. if only his movies were as good as his music videos.
Hey look, Michel Gondry drew a picture of me.
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm8.staticflickr.com%2F7415%2F9935699585_6eca0cf6a4.jpg&hash=e49a838ad1cf7607d04406beaad1353cf9c28377)