Interiors is an online film and architecture journal, published by Mehruss Jon Ahi and Armen Karaoghlanian. Interiors runs an exclusive column for ArchDaily, analyzing and diagramming films in terms of space.
The rise of the director in music videos came in the early 1990s, when MTV started crediting directors alongside artists and song titles. The influx of visionary directors such as Michel Gondry, Spike Jonze and David Fincher emphasized that music videos were becoming an auteur’s medium, much in the same way as film. The shift from stylized and performance-based music videos into narrative-based works, however, came much later, as the medium became more “cinematic” in its look and narrative structure.
Justin Timberlake’s music videos similarly parallel this evolution. His earlier works have always focused on locations and space, his choreography and the physicality of his performances. In “Cry Me a River,” we follow his movements through various rooms in a house. In “Rock Your Body,” his choreography and performance is the center of attention as he is surrounded by lights in an enclosed space. In “My Love,” we see the contrast of black and white while focusing on the vastness of empty space. However, the narrative-based music video for “Mirrors,” from his long-awaited album, The 20/20 Experience, marks a departure for the artist.
