Playlist: Gilbert Trejo

What’s the best music video you’ve seen recently and why?

There are two. Meels - Willow Song, directed by Fred Joseph, because I’ve always wanted to do Hee Haw but I don’t think I have the restraint to execute it as well as they did. The raccoon’s harp playing at 2:22 makes me feel warm and fuzzy even when I know it’s coming.

And... Florence and the Machine - Buckle, directed by Autumn de Wilde because it’s just like, yeah that’s all a world class director and world class performer need to keep you fully enthralled for almost five minutes.

What’s the first music video you remember being impressed by?

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers - Don’t Come Around Here No More and The Beastie Boys - Sabotage were definitely the first ones I really remember loving. 

But I’ll never forget the MTV premiere of The White Stripes - Fell in Love With a Girl, it stopped me dead in my tracks and I sat at home until they played it again. It was the first time I really paused and thought - whoever made this video is a genius. I needed to know about the person behind the images, not just the musician.

And what’s your all-time favourite music video?

The White Stripes - Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground. It fully encapsulates an emotion. From the beginning you know exactly what kind of heartbreak he’s feeling. I knew it when I was 12 years old. It’s simple, visceral, and painful. Michel Gondry’s technique is modern day magic.

What other directors/artists do you look to for inspiration?

It changes constantly, but right now it’s Luis Buñuel, Masaaki Yuasa, Buster Keaton, Charles Chaplin, James Whale, Spike Jonze, Carl Theodor Dreyer, Bob Fosse, and Hiro Murai.

What are you listening to at the moment?

Lately it’s been a lot of sad but hopeful stuff. (See Spotify playlist)

As I’m writing this it’s Алюминиевые огурцы by Kino.

What’s your favourite bit of tech, whether for professional or personal use?

My Sekonic 758 light meter with the wheel, I’d had the updated 858 with touch screen and always pined for that last generation.

What artist(s) would you most like to work with and why?

I’ve always been a huge fan of Iggy Pop. He’s a god.

Kneecap I think are the coolest artists on the planet, and I haven’t believed in anyone like I believe in them since I was a kid.

I recently saw Nicola Benedetti perform a piece Wynton Marsalis composed for her, I think her playing and ferver would be so cool to capture through a cinematic lens

And I’d like to shoot something that looks like Murnau, Dreyer, or Lang directed it for Playboi Carti

How do you feel the promo industry has changed since you started in it?

People are seeming to gravitate toward simpler ideas and older tech, which I’m totally here for. You’re seeing some of the biggest artists shot on 16mm or DV and it’s cool as hell.