Michel Gondry plagiarized?
If you watch Norah Jones' new video of her song "Thinking About You," it strangely looks familiar. This cardboard universe, the subway, the giant heart, the dreams and the giant alarm-clock, you've seen it before! And you know where: in the Michel Gondry's videoclips. Except that "Thinking About You" was not made by Michel Gondry but by Ace Norton. Norton
also did some videos for Death Cab For Cutie, Sébastien Tellier, Tahiti 80 and The Faint notably, if you believe his MySpace page. The guy is not bad by the way, and if you also believe the same MySpace page, he's 24, which is young to be good, and he logs in everyday, which leads to me not liking him since I don't like MySpace (which explains I didn't put a link to the page. I don't like Facebook either, this is absolutely not the place to say it, but I can't help it: I hate Facebook with a passion.)
So Ace Norton likes cardboard and Play-Doh but Ace Norton is also largely inspired by Michel Gondry. The thing is, Ace, Michel is better than you. He's French.
I don't think Norton's MySpace is very useful. I just found his film production company's website though: Commondeer.
11 comments:
Myspace must be subverted at all costs...here is a noteworthy mission: let’s create a series of subvertisements versus those manipulative muthas! They want to know how many "friends" we have, and what their names and emails and feeding habits are, let’s flood them with a torrential deluge of fakeries...bury them under an avalanche of fraudulent members and interests…
Regarding Ace Norton, I think there’s more a matter of paying homage to than actual plagiarism, but that means probably just a bit of both...
I get a mild yet definite kick watching Norton’s videos, particularly his stop motion work…it isn’t brilliant, but there’s definitely a playfulness that makes it more fun to watch than some of the more sombre crap out there. Plus it makes me feel a bit nostalgic – like watching classic episodes of Sesame Street or something.
-vpflm
The debate between being inspired by or stealing from another artist is a long debate. This video not only uses blatant images from Michele Gondry's career, but also uses his style. This is also interesting because even Gondry is reduing his stuff as seen in his last film La Science des rêves. I think my problem with this video is that when i first saw it I was willing to bet anything that is was Gondry and to find out it wasn't, seemed like false advertising. Because Gondry like Jones can now be considered a brand that is selling their name/image with whatever new project they do. So to mimic them so closely may jeopardize the integrity they have worked so hard to maintain.
I think it is time for credits to be added to music videos (atleast directors).
- greg
p.s. Give myspace a break. It's an easy way for bands to advertise themselves.
correction by Jones I meant Spike Jonze
- greg
I wasn't sure that the video could have been made by Gondry. I think Gondry puts a lot more of himself in his videos, whereas Norton's are more superficial.
I watched Norton's other videos and they also made me think of Regina Spektor's video for "Us" (I don't know who made it.) He likes to make objects move by themselves (frame by frame shooting,) which makes me think the guy is definitely not original.
In the same time how can you brand a director's work? Gondry's videos also use concepts that have already been used by others but he has something better, and I don't think you can define or delimit that.
So how could anyone prove that Norton went too far with "Thinking About You?"
"How can you brand a director's work?" People have a certain style and image and it becomes a question of trying to do something in earnest or to try and use someone else's thing to give yourself credibility. For instance in "No Logo" Klein discusses an add campaign with Dennis Hopper, but the Gap who hired Hopper didn't want him to act or to be a model only to be an association. Gap khakies = Easy Rider = cool. So with this particular music video I did an association. Ohh is this Gondry, Gondry is cool, therefore Norah must be cooler than i thought. But back to how an artist can be branded I turn to Don Hertzfeldt. In this story, http://www.bitterfilms.com/atruestory.html he speaks of how an add campaign tried to use him, and how the association the company made has jeapordized his image.
Norah Jones' video IS referencing Gondry. I do not feel this is in question, and if it was to make an association to Gondry without his consent makes the video not not cool, and Gondry has a right to be angry because he has worked hard to create a fantastic body of work and if people like me can confuse Jones' video to be his, it may cause people to think something else other than what Gondry intended.
I know what you mean...Greg, right? It's like, y'know, I wore this, like, TOTALLY ORIGINAL t-shirt with a picture of this really cool guy with a beard and a beret with like a star on it, to a party the other day, and like, I couldn't believe it! When I got there, there were like, five other guys with like, the same kinda t-shirt! All I could think of was lile, LOL or something. Y'know?
You're a fool cryptisemita
I tried to e-mail Ace using the address given on Commondeer's website, but it seems it's not valid anymore. I'd really like to ask him what he thinks about all that but the only way I found to contact him is through MySpace. I am NOT signing up in MySpace just to contact the guy.
Wow, I got to your site trying to find out if Gondry had, in fact, directed that video. I was almost sure!
And I can't believe you hate MySpace and Facebook! I do too!!!!! Specially Facebook, with passion.
Anyway, how cool, now I know I'm not alone in the world.
Greetings from Buenos Aires, Argentina!
Totally Paula, that is why I am here a year and a half later. I had half an eye on the telly and next thing I know Norah Jones comes on with this rad Gondry video. I find myself here belatedly and find out it is just a poseur?
In regards to artistic license, such as, I don't think Norton is breaking laws. I just think he is a douche for blatantly ripping MG off. I love the intertubes.
démentis assortis de révélations...Mais le destin s’acharne contre Mel Gibson. Alors qu’il essaye de se racheter une crédibilité auprès du public et des robes de demoiselle dhonneur producteurs, de vieilles histoires refont surface. On apprend ainsi qu’en 2007, le héros de l’Arme Fatale, aurait profité de sa notoriété et de sa force de robes de demoiselle dhonneur persuasion musclée pour arnaquer un homme d’affaires, Nader Sherif. Mel Gibson aurait insisté pour que cet homme investisse dans une économie de pneus robes de demoiselle dhonneur
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