By PHILIP PALIOS
The music that once reigned supreme on MTV has been missing for many years; those that still watch the channel are victim to all sorts of reality dramas and enough ads to fill Times Square in less than an hour. According to MTV exec. David Gale, this is not the path the network plans to continue down. When he spoke at the screening of “$5 Cover: Seattle” he stressed how this series reflects MTV’s interest in putting the focus back on music.
To accomplish this goal, MTV doesn’t plan on going back to how things used to be; instead, they will be introducing new programs like “$5 Cover” that focus on music while providing more content than traditional music videos. The first season of “$5 Cover” was based in Memphis and featured local bands, but still had the bikini-clad drama-addicts most people are used to seeing on MTV. This is why, when Seattle-based Lynn Shelton was approached by MTV she was reluctant to sign on to the glossy, corporate media machine’s new project.
What changed Lynn’s mind? The question should really be phrased: Who changed Lynn’s mind? The answer: David Gale, a beacon of hope for music fans across the world who is on a mission to bring quality, music-inspired film-making to MTV. As Lynn puts it: “I did it for him. The guy is fantastic, a dream boat producer.” After seeing Shelton’s festival-hit “Humpday”, one of the few films that premiered and sold during the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, Gale demanded that if MTV was going to do a “$5 Cover” series in Seattle, it would have to be directed by Lynn Shelton.
Being in-demand is quite a good position for any film-maker, but after hearing about how MTV had moved to focus on compost reality content she was reluctant to be involved with a project that wouldn’t allow her the creative freedom she had with her past films. Once David Gale had convinced her that “$5 Cover: Seattle” would be within her control and not follow the aesthetic or style of past series produced by MTV, Shelton started to listen and eventually agreed to move forward with the production.
If you’ve seen Shelton’s film “Humpday”, there is a clear aesthetic style that defines Lynn Shelton: Most shots are hand-held, the lighting is indirect and realistic; but more than anything visual, it’s the organic, personal performances she extracts from actors that makes her films have a real, and often hilarious, dynamic. Getting an organic performance from actors who are accustomed to working on a film set is one thing, but with “$5 Cover: Seattle” Lynn was faced with musicians who have (for the most part) never set foot on a film set. Shelton is able to conquer the pressure a musician might feel on set and bring out a quality performance by following the “Dogma ’95 film movement”, a filming style she describes as “Providing as natural an environment as possible for the actors.” Shelton continues, “We would try to pre-light everything, then banish everyone. Only me and my camera people and the sound guy, that’s it.” This approach eased the musicians by removing the dozens of crew members and extra equipment that typically plague a film set.
There’s one more key ingredient to making “$5 Cover: Seattle” a successful film starring non-actors: There’s no script. That’s right, no lines to memorize; everything is improvised. But, this is not a reality show. There are several concrete story lines within the series and each scene is intentional. This new style of docu-drama-reality-music-show is created by a well-defined, scene by scene outline. Then, by having two cameras rolling for each scene, Lynn tells the musicians to be themselves as they let the story unfold. No lines ever had to be repeated, this is one of the benefits of always having multiple cameras rolling. As Lynn puts it: “They’re hanging out with their actual friends, in places they would actually hang out in.”
So what’s this show all about? “$5 Cover: Seattle” is a series of 7-minute featurettes that follow a weekend of the indie music scene in Seattle. According to Shelton: “The insider’s vision of the city. If you were just going to hang out with people really in the know for a weekend, this is what it would feel like. These are the kind of places you would go.” The 12-part series begins on a Friday night and continues through Sunday, tracking 13 real, local, Seattle bands through their work, performances, hanging out, and recording.
When selecting bands for the series, Shelton took a very strategic approach. She describes it best:
“I really, really didn’t want to go and sit down with 50 different bands and then cut it down and have to say ‘Oh sorry, I can only have 13 of you.’ I really wanted, as much as possible, to go up to people, approach people, from the very beginning. If I ever sent an e-mail out or I made a phone call, I wanted to be 99% sure I was going to invite this [band] into the project.”
It was also crucial to Lynn’s storytelling that, in addition to musical talent, each band have a real-life connection to each other. This requirement was surprisingly easy for her to fulfill, reflecting Seattle’s tight-knit music community. Bands in the series span all genres and include: “The Lights”, “THEESatisfaction”, “Whiskey Tango”, “Corespondents”, “The Moondoggies”, “Sean Nelson”, “Champagne, Champagne”, “The Long Winters”, “Tea Cozies”, and “Harvey Danger.” As the series introduces each band it includes live performances from each as well as insights into what a typical weekend for the band members might be like.
“$5 Cover: Seattle” is enhanced by several entertaining story lines. Two of my favorites were The Moondoggie’s struggle to fix their broke-down van for a tour to Montana and the repeated attempts of a very drunk young lady, played by actor Davie-Blue, to befriend the bands. Each episode has its own story and tracks over-arching story lines as well. The series progresses by showing the connections among more and more Seattle bands.
Every band in the series reflects very strong musicianship without having to rely on any already-established Seattle-based bands. As somewhat of an outsider to the Seattle music scene, I was thrilled to learn of such great local musicians. When I left the screening at SIFF Cinema, I had many new songs stuck in my head and quickly sought out more music and performances from the stars of the show. No soundtrack for the series has been announced, but Lynn mentioned that the idea is being discussed.
“$5 Cover: Seattle” is a victory both for Seattle music and Seattle film. The production, led by Seattle-native Lynn Shelton, consisted of an entirely Seattle-based crew and creative team. Seattle has a vibrant film community and the screening was packed with local musicians, actors, crew members, lawyers, editors, producers, and executives who helped create the series. In fact, I’m pretty sure I was the only person at the screening who wasn’t involved with creating the series, and it was a full house.
So if you’re ready to check out the series, you only have to wait until June for the premier on MTV.com. As the series unfolds online there will also be a plethora of documentaries released. Two types of documentaries have been created to accompany “$5 Cover: Seattle”; the “B-Side” documentaries reflect Seattle culture as it follows local musicians and will satisfy fans of the bands as well as reality TV junkies. The second type of documentary, referred to as “Amplified Docs” will dig into the personal lives and stories of each band. After seeing the first of the “Amplified Docs” at the screening, I was thoroughly impressed. The documentaries provide a deep, intimate portrait of each band that allows the viewer to really get to know the people behind the music.
What’s next for Seattle’s super-hero film-maker, Lynn Shelton? She’s already in the pre-production stages of a new film that will be based on the novel “Then We Came to the End” by Joshua Ferris. This modern-day story of a successful Chicago ad agency’s demise is expected to start filming soon. But don’t expect Shelton to leave Seattle in the dark, she has a deep connection with the city and has no plans to leave our wonderful city behind as her career takes off.
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