While we’re on influences, I get Floria Sigismondi and that Matt Mahurin phase from the early 90s? It’s like you picked up a forgotten thread and followed it to new places.
JUSTIN: I can’t speak for the group, but I try not to look to other music video directors for influences. I’d prefer to look at films, photos, artwork, etc. I try not to watch MTV, because I don’t want our videos to look like other peoples’ videos. That being said, it’s hard not to find inspiration from Cunningham, Gondry, Hype Williams, etc.

ADAM: Maybe. I don’t have any perspective on what we do. I’m the last one to touch these videos (they are assembled after the green screen rough cut on my machine), and I loath and have completely lost perspective until I watch them again weeks or months later. Those comparisons are probably about right, but I couldn’t tell you—I think it’s a little too like looking into a mirror. We basically hand build these videos, and watch them over and over and over. I still am shocked when we get praised or a video goes #1. I think I’m too close to them and too critical. The craziest thing about this process is that it’s so complicated and fast that 90% of the gold happens intuitively and when we’re exhausted and on autopilot. It’s a strange ride.

JAKE: We all have some different tastes in movies and music videos, and I think all of our influences sort of come together in the Saline Project. We get most of our influences from outside the music video world, and they’re not always that apparent. Personally, I feel influenced by tons of different sources it’s almost silly to try to peg them down. Charles Schultz and Mercer Mayer made me want to be an artist, Terry Gilliam’s films (especially “Time Bandits”) would be another big one, the animation from Monty Python, the collages of Max Ernst, the Pixar movies, “Samurai Jack” and “Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends” on Cartoon Network have really excited me lately, the attention to detail and story in HBO’s “Deadwood.”

JESSE: Yes, more like Vince Carter in 2001.

BRENT: This is all before my time.

The pitch process for videos, is it demanding? Do you burn a lot of resources on pitches that don’t come through?
ADAM: We listen to the song, throw ideas around and write a treatment and put together a 15-20 second rough moving test (we have a few on our site). We often (always) star in these tests and have a ball doing them. Lately, we haven’t had time to do the tests because we’ll have to hand over our ideas in often under 24 hours. When we do get to do these tests everything seems to go much smoother as the artist and management have a very clear idea of what we intend to do. I’m still blown away by the fact that most directors just write written treatments. We really do our homework and prepare. We’re good. Now we run off of treatments and our past work. I think it’s good to present visuals and really show the artist what you want to do. it’s less painful and more fun for everyone if you have that visual communication to lock into and trust (for us and them). There’s also a lot of business stuff with the reps, and producers and executives, etc., but the work has to be good. Remember, if you’re an aspiring music video director—make tons of work and hone your craft, because all the hype and reps, and production companies, and record companies, and stars, don’t mean crap if you can’t make something cool. That is the job and you have to do it. Don’t get into this for the glamor/power aspect of it, become a pop star if you like that stuff, you have to love making videos because after working for weeks and weeks and being smelly and your girlfriend is mad because your always gone and your friends don’t call and you hate your co-workers and are getting sick and running out of money—you’d better still love it and make something cool. I sound like such a penis but it’s pretty true. It gets a little painful.

JUSTIN: 1) You get a song. 2) You do research on the artist or the song. 3) You write. 4) If you’re smart you submit some sort of visual reference. 5) You keep your fingers crossed and hope your idea doesn’t come out with someone else’s name on it.
It does take time to write treatments and create visual references for these projects. It takes a lot of work, but we’re usually invested in the song the minute it comes through the door–otherwise we try not to write on it. There are some exceptions to this and some songs you have to write on for political reasons (label, artist, favor), but we try to only work on the music we love.

JESSE: Yes, no, obsessive hard work all the time.

BRENT: A lot of people would not love the reality. For most of the things we’ve been awarded, one or more of us has had to become the singer/band for an animatic. We’re not rock stars, well, not all of us, and we can only do so much. At the end of the day, we’ve given all we can. Jake’s a really good singer, though. Actually, sometimes we’re a better band than the actual band is.

next