Comments on: I just don't know WHAT to call it!

Question: I just don't know WHAT to call it!

matty — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:59:13 -0800

What is the visual 'style' of this video called?

It's a youtube video of Tori Amos's "Tear in Your Hand" by some place called Chalkmark studios and someone called Symmetrian.

While I've always been a big Tori fan, this rendition of her song for some reason captivates me.

Is it Goth meets Steampunk?

Can someone tell me if this is a genre, or an art form, or just someone's disturbed mind? I find it compelling, and would like to explore the genre (if it indeed exists) further.

Here's the vid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ81Snm45I8

By: moxiedoll

moxiedoll — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:18:20 -0800

Well, it's not so much a music video as it's a *fan* video made entirely of footage from Mirrormask. There might be a fancier way to put it (genre-wise), but the film is directed by Dave McKean, and it's based on the graphic novel he designed for Neil Gaiman. (And if you're a Tori Amos fan, you've heard plenty about him already - he's the "Neil" she often references). If you want too see more of what you saw in that video, you'll be glad to know that there's a website.

By: so_necessary

so_necessary — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:46:30 -0800

It reminds me of films like Big Fish, Pan's Labyrinth, Lemony Snicket's Series Of Unfortunate Events, and so on. I think key words are: gothic, expressionism, and magical realism.

By: neckro23

neckro23 — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:06:36 -0800

The visual style is very much McKean, but Mirrormask was his directoral debut, so there isn't much else in terms of video that he's done.

You may enjoy some of the comic books he's done with Gaiman (off the top of my head: Violent Cases, Signal to Noise, and the children's books The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish and The Wolves in the Walls).

By: jjg

jjg — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:23:44 -0800

Also, see if you can track down a copy of the collection of his Sandman covers, which surprisingly appears to be out of print.