This is about contemporary popular music videos for television. I have worked in the industry. I find it necessary to begin raising some issues:
What is the relationship of sound to image?
Why do we assume music needs videos to exist? They are completely different forms. Is music too cheap on its own to be enjoyed? It’s as radical as if we all accepted that all books needed to be painted as visual compositions. If videos are so important, why aren’t band members themselves the music video creators?
You need a personal relationship with your music video creator who understands the corresponding design relationships between audio and visual elements, otherwise you might as well take anyone from the street and give them a camera. In fact, this is precisely what is happening, and people call the results “music videos” because they contain music and they are videos. Not only do they call it such, but the music artists and the fans, all think and say it IS the band that IS the music video. Very rarely do people figure out that there exists a whole industry of music video directors. These directors are rarely heard of (almost never) and the fans think the band did the music video.
Of course, there is nothing to be done because everyone also knows that the industry is fueled by selling images of near-sex, near-death, near-consciousness, etc… it makes money, everyone goes home to fuck, enjoy a beer and watch TV - and their rent is payed. Nobody cares. I am wasting my time with this blog, I know.
Regardless, how is it possible that people are hired by agencies to create images for musicians? How can such people call themselves artists? And why do music video directors need musicians to create for? If you are creating something, do it all the way!
Make your own music, make your own videos - the forms are now closer than ever, and easily accessible to all.
The band members from The Doors started out in film school.
Tags: artist, creative, design, director, elements, film, form, image, industry, music, relationship, sound, television, video
