As hordes of students gather in the library this week to write papers and study for exams… actually, let’s be real: None of us are studying for real tests. Some Emersonians are putting the finishing touches on video projects, some are editing photos, and some still are piecing together presentations. One small group, however, set up the Bright Family Screening Room for a music video festival on Wednesday evening.
Affiliated faculty Ryan Gibeau’s Music Video Production course wrapped up the semester with a showcase of 11 original music videos created by each student in the class. More than a hundred people gathered in the screening room for 90 minutes of creativity and joy.
“The whole course is designed to encourage you to explore your own voice, your own creative voice, your own intuition, your own taste in music,” said Gibeau, who graduated from Emerson College in 2005 and went on to found his own music video and commercial production company, ROCK*iT FiLMS.
Gibeau worked at the Equipment Distribution Center while at Emerson, and said he remembers watching music videos on the office computer during slow days.
“Regina Spektor’s music video for ‘Us’ came on. When I watched that video, I was just like, ‘That is a beautiful piece of art.’ I said one day, I want to make a piece of art as beautiful as this,” Gibeau said. “It inspired me, years later, to start my own production company and start approaching musicians and making music videos.”
In the three-and-a-half years he’s been teaching the course, Gibeau has created a list of local artists that students can work with to create an official video. He said that students are allowed to pick any song they want, but that the vast majority choose to pursue a one-on-one relationship with a local musician.
Kasey Armstrong, a senior visual and media arts major, whose favorite music video is “Telephone” by Lady Gaga and Beyoncé, partnered with a band from Berklee College of Music, Orange Blossom, to create a video for their song “Nature Girl.”
“Having the capability to create my own music video for the first time and have it be of a certain quality was really awesome, because I’ve never done that before,” she said. “I’ve directed shorts and stuff like that, but never have I directed a music video with an actual band — and mind you, it’s a local artist, so being able to do that was a really, really fun time.”
But next semester, Gibeau won’t be leading the class. Full time faculty are able to pick up classes that interest them, which overrules affiliated faculty, which is what will happen next year with Music Video Production.
“Ryan has just been a great professor, and in my opinion, he should continue to teach this class, but unfortunately, someone else was chosen … which is so screwed up to me,” Armstrong said.
Like with any professional relationship, the musicians have the option to not take the music videos, but based on the reception of the students’ work on Wednesday, they would be silly not to.
Isra Chongtaveetham, also a senior VMA major, said the class was a fulfilling way to finish off his Emerson experience. His favorite music video is “Nausea” by Jeff Rosenstock, because of its low-budget aesthetic.
“Everyone in the class has been giving so much good feedback, and everyone’s so willing to help with each other’s projects,” he said. “It’s weird because this is my last semester at Emerson, [but] it’s the first class where I’ve felt that sort of energy, at least to that level.”
This cooperation was on display at the showcase. The students collaborated on each other’s videos, and the tight-knit group cheered and whooped for each director as they introduced their video.
“It’s about the people you choose to surround yourself with, especially in class. You could choose to open up to the other students in your class, or you could choose to close down and not want to talk to these people,” Armstrong said. “It’s important now more than ever, and continuously now more than ever, to get to know people around you and in your community.”
Mallory Grothman, yet another senior VMA major, whose favorite music video is A$AP Rocky’s “Tailor Swif,” worked with Berklee musician Georgia Mintz. Her video follows Mintz on a road trip and ends at a concert, which Grothman said conveyed both the indie and rock aspects of the song. Through the class, she discovered more about her personal artistic process.
“Every music video starts out with a song. I’ve listened to the song maybe a million times,” she said. “I had really nobody on [set], but it made it so intimate and nice. We were just able to be two artists, just making art. It was just a really, really cool vibe.”
It’s a 400 level-class, so Gibeau said he makes a point of trying to prepare his students for the realities of the industry once they leave Emerson.
“I want them to confidently say, ‘I’ve made a music video with an artist. Here’s that music video,’” he said. “I want them to be proud enough of their work to be able to show that.”
Grothman said Gibeau was not only a professor, but also a “motivational speaker, lowkey.” She added that having a professor who has experience in “the real world” has been helpful, especially because he still has his foot in the industry.
“I [knew] I could trust him, so it makes the whole experience a lot more worthwhile,” she said.
Just as his students were grateful to learn from him, Gibeau reflected the compliment, saying that the students are what makes Emerson great.
“Something that I found very consistent was that Emerson brings in the right people,” he said. “As a student, you have your thoughts about the administration. You don’t really know how it works. You’re not really understanding what’s going on, but you look to your left and you look to your right, and you know you’re surrounded by people like you.”
