Total Recut Interview on Buffy vs Edward

A couple weeks ago I was interviewed via skype by video mash-up artist ikat381 for the remixing website Total Recut. We discussed my Buffy vs Edward remix, the importance and influence of fannish vidding and the greater cultural value of remix video. I’m cross posting the full interview below – here is a link to the original post on Total Recut.

Total Recut: What did you want to accomplish with Buffy vs Edward?

Jonathan McIntosh: I wanted to create a remix dealing with the subtleties of gender and romance in mainstream media, not an easy task in mash-up form. I had seen the Twilight movie and I read the first couple of books and I was horrified by the fact that the Twilight series takes all the progress in gender roles and reverts it back at least 200 years. My goal was to show Edward Cullen’s controlling and overprotective behaviour for what it is, and to do that in a sort of funny way, and to have that done by a strong female character from a different series. I thought one of the best ways to do that would be to have Buffy the Vampire Slayer meet him. Juxtaposing these two characters highlights how backwards the Twilight series is in terms of gender, really how anti-feminist it is. That was the goal: to make it funny but also highlight the patriarchal nature and stalkeriness of Edward.

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We Are Creators Too – Video Interview

The organization Public Knowledge recently did a four part interview series entitled “We Are Creators Too” focusing on media artists who push the boundaries of copyright law in their work. I was one of those video interviews which you can see embedded below. Also featured in the project are filmmaker Nina Paley, fan vidder Francesca Coppa and fellow political remixer Elisa Kreisinger.

Screening and Panel at the Drake Underground

I just got word that my remix So You Think You Can Be President? will be shown before an advanced screening of my friend Brett Gaylor’s new film RiP: A Remix Manifesto. I will also be part of a Q&A panel discussion on remix afterward. The event is taking place at 7pm on Tuesday March 10th at the Drake Hotel Underground in Downtown Toronto. Check out www.firstweekendclub.ca for tickets and details.

Relaunched Political Remix Video Blog

I have just finished redesigning and reconfiguring my Political Remix Video collection blog. We have a new URL at politicalremixvideo.com as well as some new features including the expanded use of post tags for remix topics, a remix video submission form and a page of critical media literacy resources. Plus remix artist Elisa Kreisinger has joined the site as another blog editor. Special thanks to my brother Justin McIntosh for the redesigned graphics.

Mashup/Remix Conference Promo Trailer

Just saw that I’m briefly featured in this trailer promo for the 2009 Mashup/Remix conference (March 12-13th) at Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law and the Wexner Center for the Arts. Check out the new site for the event schedule, speakers and registration. I will be closing the event with a presentation on political remix video.

Notes on Remixing the Presidential Election and the Influence of Vidding

It has been a couple months now since I released my latest political remix “So You Think You Can be President?” (SYTYCBP). In that time it has been viewed around 20,000 times via various video-sharing sites and has been linked to and discussed on blogs about remix culture, politics and humor. Not bad for a politically transgressive and critical video, especially considering its nine minutes long and has a relatively slow narrative build which does not exactly follow the formula for political humor on YouTube. So a week before Obama’s inauguration I wanted to write this wrap-up post to share some of my creative process, motivations and influences for that project.

Over the past two years we saw a flood of remix videos on the topic of the 2008 US presidential elections. Some were creative, entertaining or down right hilarious but ultimately, for me, many ended up feeling a bit like amateur commercials eerily similar to the candidate’s own nationwide television-advertising campaigns. I had hoped this torrent of politically inspired mash-up activity would yield more videos critical of the election process, of the presidency as an institution or of the candidates’ strikingly similar policies on key issues. I had for the most part been avoiding participating in this remix frenzy but as November 4th drew closer I was still disappointed with most of the remixed messages created thus far. So I decided to throw my own remixed perspective into the ring.

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So You Think You Can Be President?

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Watch & share on YouTube – Read my post on why I made this remix

So You Think You Can Be President? is a re-imagined reality television show where candidates compete for American votes!

Presidential hopefuls must present their positions on major issues in front of a live studio audience then face hard-hitting critiques from our panel of judges. Viewers at home will delight in the spectacle as candidates are challenged in ways never before seen in mainstream media.

In this week’s episode, only two weeks before the election, Senator Obama and Senator McCain have their feet held to the fire over shockingly similar positions on energy and foreign policy.

Who will be this season’s champion and take home the grand prize? You’ll have to watch and decide for yourself, then participate in the show by casting a vote* for your favorite performer on November 4th!

*Some restrictions may apply. In certain areas these include, but are not limited to, faulty electronic voting systems, racist voter laws and/or voter roll purges. See your local polling place for details.

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