We Love You So has a nice little interview with Ray Tintori, who directed the sadistic 80's horror-themed music video for MGMT's hit "Kids" [and whose name, I just realized, I'd mistyped as Ryan.]
Tintori's young, and clearly a talented guy, and he's aware of at least a few of his blind spots. I can't harsh on him too hard for being utterly clueless about the kid in "Kids," though; seriously, hipster filmmaker or not, what kid-free, 25-year-old guy gives a second's thought to the emotional and developmental nuances of a pre-verbal, 18-month-old toddler?
Yeah, I was wondering--whose child is that in the video? Did you cast for the role, or was that a friend's kid?Tintori touches on the larger issues, too. On whether the kid was actually freaked out or whatever during shooting, the answer is pretty obviously no, "it was just crankiness."
We put out a casting call in New Orleans. I actually didn't get to meet any of the kids before the shoot, so they just told me that was the kid that responded to direction the best. But when I got to the set he was completely non-verbal and afraid to shake my hand. I had picked him because I thought this was the kid I would be able to sit down with and have a conversation with, but he was just 18 months old. I think it worked out in the end, but it definitely surprised me on the day.
On the visceral reaction to the video, though, it turns out the boys are actually interested in exploring the fine line between, "Duuuude! That is sick!" and "Duuuude! That is sick! Play it again!" So it should be no great revelation that parents are likely to fall on one side of that line, and people who perceive kids in the abstract will cluster on the other. So go ahead and hate the video if you want; they can take it.
WLYS Exclusive Interview: Ray Tintori [weloveyouso.com]
