Lookbook: Paul Sahre on the making of 'Tesla'

The director of They Might Be Giants' latest music video tells us about the making of the epic piece in this gallery showing outtakes from his work process.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
"This time the band asked if we could work the song titled 'Tesla.' The song is about the miraculous inventor and thinker Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) and is another in their series of 'biography' songs they have done over the years (others have included James K. Polk and James Ensor)," says Sahre.
"This time the band asked if we could work the song titled 'Tesla.' The song is about the miraculous inventor and thinker Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) and is another in their series of 'biography' songs they have done over the years (others have included James K. Polk and James Ensor)," says Sahre.
"We floated freely from old 8mm cameras we bought on eBay to editing and adding effects in after-effects, then reshooting the edited footage off a computer screen in some cases.
"We floated freely from old 8mm cameras we bought on eBay to editing and adding effects in after-effects, then reshooting the edited footage off a computer screen in some cases," says Sahre.
Paul Sahre testing a Bell and Howell camera on the streets of Manhattan.
Paul Sahre testing a Bell and Howell camera on the streets of Manhattan. This is his second music video for They Might Be Giants.
"Tesla credited static electricity generated while petting his cat as the beginning of his interest in electricity," Sahre says.
"Tesla credited static electricity generated while petting his cat as the beginning of his interest in electricity," Sahre says.
"The song touches on a number of Tesla's inventions as well as his ultimate death: 'The Hotel New Yorker
 / he's dead on the floor.
 / The body of Nikola lies.
 / With just his papers / 
no family to tell. / 
Out of the windows birds fly."
Storyboarding for the video, which included footage of an actor dressed up as Tesla skateboarding down the avenues of Manhattan. "The song touches on a number of Tesla's inventions as well as his ultimate death: 'The Hotel New Yorker
 / he's dead on the floor.
 / The body of Nikola lies.
 / With just his papers / 
no family to tell. / 
Out of the windows birds fly," he says.
"We decided to shoot everything on 8mm black-and-white film to help capture the feel of the grainy footage of Tesla's time. But at the same time, I really wanted to create something new that would at once feel old," notes Sahre.
"We decided to shoot everything on 8mm black-and-white film to help capture the feel of the grainy footage of Tesla's time. But at the same time, I really wanted to create something new that would at once feel old," notes Sahre.
Sahre wanted the video to reference real moments from Tesla's life, such as his obsession with birds late in life.
 "Other references include the destruction of the Wardenclyffe Tower [an early wireless transmission tower designed by Tesla in Shoreham, New York], which was supposed to provide free wireless electricity and 
Tesla's feud with Thomas Edison – specifically Edison's campaign to discredit Tesla's Alternating Current by electrocuting live animals."
Sahre wanted the video to reference real moments from Tesla's life, such as his obsession with birds late in life.
 The song and Tesla's life and career offered so many visual possibilities."The destruction of the Wardenclyffe Tower [an early wireless transmission tower designed by Tesla in Shoreham, New York], which was supposed to provide free wireless electricity and 
Tesla's feud with Thomas Edison – specifically Edison's campaign to discredit Tesla's Alternating Current by electrocuting live animals."
Previous Pause Next

Related Profile

Paul Sahre
Paul Sahre (born 1964) is an American graphic designer perhaps best known for his book cover designs and illustrations for the New York Times.
More on Paul Sahre
"It was time for another music video for our favorite alt-rock band They Might Be Giants," says graphic designer Paul Sahre, a frequent visual contributor to The New York Times whose print posters are in the permanent collection at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. Here he takes us through his process, which included collaborating with the band to ultimately create a much larger, richer body of work that allows the viewer to determine which of the nine videos they want to watch.
 
"You may remember our last music video for the band: 'When Will You Die", in which we documented the construction and recycling (demolition) of a life-size monster truck hearse that was made entirely of cardboard epson prints and hot glue," he recalls.  
 
"I again recruited some of my design students at the School of Visual Arts, along with my design assistant Erik Carter and videographer Joe Hollier (both of whom were heavily involved in the monster hearse project) and we started thinking about what we could do with the song. There were so many good ideas we decided to do nine of them and convinced the band to create a different remix of the song for each video," adds Sahre. 

Flip through our gallery of images above to learn more of Sahre's vision.

 

Watch the Talk with Paul Sahre

Paul Sahre on designing what you want
Talks • Duration: 00:38:23 • 5 Oct 12
“Nothing interesting happens when you know where you’re going with something”, Paul Sahre believes. >