MONEY FOR NOTHING - A History of the Music Video

REMEMBER WHEN MTV SHOWED MUSIC VIDEOS? A NEW DOCUMENTARY, MONEY FOR NOTHING, RECALLS THE RISE OF THE ART FORM AND WHAT HAPPENED TO IT

MONEY FOR NOTHING

A History of the Music Video

Songs by Top Artists Help Tell This Story of the Music-and-Film Marriage That Changed Everything Available on DVD and Digital Download on OCTOBER 7th.

"Who would want to look at music all day?" skeptics asked when a new cable channel called MTV was about to launch. The answer became immediately clear that summer of 1981: just about everyone. The enjoyable and informative new documentary

MONEY FOR NOTHING: A HISTORY OF THE MUSIC VIDEO tells the story, from the musical short's days as pure advertising to its maturity as an art form. The music-filled film based on the book of the same title by Saul Austerlitz will be available on DVD and digital platforms starting October 7, 2014. 

Money for Nothing

is a rip roaring look at the past, present and future of the music video. From The Beatles, Elvis, Michael Jackson, Guns N' Roses, 2Pac, Madonna, Bruce, U2, R.E.M., Nirvana, Jay Z, Lady Gaga and everyone in between Money for Nothing is the most comprehensive film of its kind and a refresher course on the last 60 years of popular music and the unforgettable images that accompanied them.

While the music video became a staple of entertainment with the birth of MTV in 1981, the art form existed for many years before that, from musical shorts shown between features in movie theaters, to "event" pieces created by the Beatles and others to unveil and promote their new songs. But with the rise of MTV, what was originally considered an ad for a product became the product itself, with artists like Madonna, the Police, Michael Jackson, Dire Straits, David Bowie, R.E.M. and many others creating elaborate little films that not only accompanied their music, but were a parallel creative expression. If the music video was still ultimately a commercial, it was an ad campaign so brilliant, slick and subtle that it occasionally made its consumers forget what they were being sold.

The "MTV style" of fast editing and other techniques was adopted by Hollywood in the 1980s and transformed the way films were and are made and perceived by audiences. In their documentary, director Jamin Bricker and writer Saul Austerlitz present a wide-ranging look at this unique art/advertising hybrid that has become a permanent part of our film and music culture.

RYO'S NOTE: I will try to have a full review of this documentary up in the very near future. 

Music Videos Rock!