ARTIFACT (2012) DOC NYC 2012
I’ve never seen a record company not screw an artist. Screwing the artist is in the business model- an attorney for 30 Seconds to Mars
There were two Opening Night films at DOC NYC this year. One was Venus and Serena, which I had no interest in . The other was Artifact, the story of Jared Leto’s band 30 Seconds From Mars making their third album—- or would have been had they not been hit with a 30 million dollar lawsuit from EMI just as they went into the studio. Instead what we get is a film record of the band trying to create as their record company tries to litigate them into compliance with their wishes.
Before seeing the film I had no idea what 30 Seconds to Mars was, I did know who Jared Leto is and I was curious about the battle for artist rights so I bit the bullet and bought a ticket for the film (but not the gala) completely blindly.
There were two Opening Night films at DOC NYC this year. One was Venus and Serena, which I had no interest in . The other was Artifact, the story of Jared Leto’s band 30 Seconds From Mars making their third album—- or would have been had they not been hit with a 30 million dollar lawsuit from EMI just as they went into the studio. Instead what we get is a film record of the band trying to create as their record company tries to litigate them into compliance with their wishes.
Before seeing the film I had no idea what 30 Seconds to Mars was, I did know who Jared Leto is and I was curious about the battle for artist rights so I bit the bullet and bought a ticket for the film (but not the gala) completely blindly.
Standing on the line to get in I realized I was in the minority. Everyone knew who the band was, even to the extent of flying in for the American premiere.
After introductory remarks by the founders and programmers for the festival, Jared Leto went on stage to talk about the making of the film and how it was a hard fought process.
Hard fought is an understatement.
Laying out how EMI tried to screw over Leto and his band the film is a cautionary tale for anyone who wants to make it big in the music industry. If you think you’re going to hit pay dirt and live the high life, forget it, all the deals are stacked against you and even if you think you’ve made millions you’re probably going to owe the record company twice that. Sadly things are even worse now with the record company wanting you to sign over a piece of everything like merchandising and tour revenue in god awful 360 deals. A great many people are interviewed who tell us flat out its a rigged game.
At the same time the film is a portrait of a rock group making a record and we watch as the new album comes together. Its a wonderful thing to see since we get to know the members of the band and hear how their music comes together. (I’m going to pick up the album soon)
As a film it’s very good. Its a troubling look at how creativity is strangled and slowly killed by degrees by big business. Its a wonderful look at what a band goes through to make an album. Its also a look at how one deals when one has an insane lawsuit thrown at them. But thats the trouble with the film is it’s really three films put together, two are great, one is good.
The great ones are the band makes an album film and the primer on recording industry. The good one is the band gets sued story. Yes I know the law suit is the backbone of the film, but at the same time about an hour into the film I was growing very tired of Jared Leto saying the same things over and over again about the law suit. Not a great deal happens other than they try to make a deal - or rather their attorneys do and they weigh in by saying “what do do? Lets fight”.
On the other hand the band pulling the album together story and the whole explanation of the record industry is so good one kind of wishes both had their own two hour films to really stretch out. Actually the history of record company rip offs is so good that anyone ever thinking about recording an album should see this film before they sign any contract. Anyone who signs a contract after seeing this should be locked away for their own good.
Over all the film is a really good one, one that approaches true greatness in the final moments when talk about how how having five million people hear what you do means you’ve touched five million lives.The cut that follows, placing us on stage with the band as the audience goes crazy is one of the most transcendent moments of the year.Why make music? Why fight the record company? For the chance to make people go happily crazy for a moment or two…
The film is definitely worth seeing when the film gets a release down the road (the DOC NYC screenings are done). Its a film I look forward to seeing several more times down the road because not only does the music touch my heart, the weird notions of raping our artists has made me think.
A must see for anyone who does anything in the arts.
After introductory remarks by the founders and programmers for the festival, Jared Leto went on stage to talk about the making of the film and how it was a hard fought process.
Hard fought is an understatement.
Laying out how EMI tried to screw over Leto and his band the film is a cautionary tale for anyone who wants to make it big in the music industry. If you think you’re going to hit pay dirt and live the high life, forget it, all the deals are stacked against you and even if you think you’ve made millions you’re probably going to owe the record company twice that. Sadly things are even worse now with the record company wanting you to sign over a piece of everything like merchandising and tour revenue in god awful 360 deals. A great many people are interviewed who tell us flat out its a rigged game.
At the same time the film is a portrait of a rock group making a record and we watch as the new album comes together. Its a wonderful thing to see since we get to know the members of the band and hear how their music comes together. (I’m going to pick up the album soon)
As a film it’s very good. Its a troubling look at how creativity is strangled and slowly killed by degrees by big business. Its a wonderful look at what a band goes through to make an album. Its also a look at how one deals when one has an insane lawsuit thrown at them. But thats the trouble with the film is it’s really three films put together, two are great, one is good.
The great ones are the band makes an album film and the primer on recording industry. The good one is the band gets sued story. Yes I know the law suit is the backbone of the film, but at the same time about an hour into the film I was growing very tired of Jared Leto saying the same things over and over again about the law suit. Not a great deal happens other than they try to make a deal - or rather their attorneys do and they weigh in by saying “what do do? Lets fight”.
On the other hand the band pulling the album together story and the whole explanation of the record industry is so good one kind of wishes both had their own two hour films to really stretch out. Actually the history of record company rip offs is so good that anyone ever thinking about recording an album should see this film before they sign any contract. Anyone who signs a contract after seeing this should be locked away for their own good.
Over all the film is a really good one, one that approaches true greatness in the final moments when talk about how how having five million people hear what you do means you’ve touched five million lives.The cut that follows, placing us on stage with the band as the audience goes crazy is one of the most transcendent moments of the year.Why make music? Why fight the record company? For the chance to make people go happily crazy for a moment or two…
The film is definitely worth seeing when the film gets a release down the road (the DOC NYC screenings are done). Its a film I look forward to seeing several more times down the road because not only does the music touch my heart, the weird notions of raping our artists has made me think.
A must see for anyone who does anything in the arts.
November 9, 2012
Artifact, a fascinating new documentary directed by actor and 30 Seconds to Mars front man Jared Leto (under the pseudonym Bartholomew Cubbins) made its US premiere at the Doc NYC Fest last night in Chelsea. Focusing on 30 Seconds to Mars’ desire to leave its label, corporate behemoth EMI, the film reveals how the band discovered the seven-year contract termination choice loophole in its contract and the record label’s plans to sue them—for thirty million dollars.
What was meant to be a documentary about the creative process of recording their next album turned into something else entirely: a David-and-Goliath toe-to-toe with Terra Firma, a huge conglomerate owned by billionaire Guy Hands, who had recently taken over EMI with plans to revive the label’s legendary, but crumbling, debt-ridden legacy. It’s also a fascinating look into what is now a very soon–to-be-defunct platform—the record label—and includes commentary from some of the music industry’s leading corporate players and insiders.
Aside from being a gifted actor and musician, Leto also seems to have a definitive career ahead of him as a filmmaker. The film itself is beautifully shot and full of very clean, tender moments between band mates Leto, his brother, drummer Shannon Leto, and guitarist TomoMiličević. Chronicling the recording process with legendary producer Flood as the band hastily hacks a studio in Leto’s spare Hollywood Hills home, the film is filled with insane antic moments and bolts of inspiration as they struggle to create their next album (the aptly named This Is War) amidst raging financial and legal pressures.
Kindly granting me time before introducing the film last night, the charming and utterly sincere Leto told me a bit about where he thinks the record industry is going, his advice to the young musician, and making Artifact, which won the audience award for Best Documentary at the Toronto International Film Festival this year.
“Artifact is a really special, DIY project,” Leto said. “It was made by just a handful of people. And we made it because we believed in telling this story. We believe it’ s important for artists and for audiences around the world to know the way things works, so that they can be better informed, and make decisions about how [they] interact with and support artists.”
When I told him my niece and nephew are already clamoring for guitar lessons, I asked him what his advice would be for the aspiring rock star. “I’d tell them to wait as long as possible before they would ever sign a deal,” he admitted. “They’re so many tools now to share your music. You don’t have to be reliant on your record company to share your music. You can make an album, an album that sounds very good, and you can do it very cheaply. Times have changed since I signed our record deal in 1998. But I would tell a young person to wait as long as they can, organically as long as possible, and focus on your craft, your art, and your dreams. The deal will come. But I wouldn’t rush it.”
Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem For A Dream made Leto not only an indie film icon; it also proved what extreme levels he would go to for his art. (He lost nearly 30 pounds for the role.) It seems that he was really born, though, to make music. “Well, I haven’t made a movie in five years, so, the answer is probably right there,” he says. “But I think the main reason that I haven’t made a film is that I’ve probably been too busy. Part of the success with 30 Seconds to Mars is that you have less time to do some of the other things in life, even the good things.” Leto seems particularly happy with his busy life. “None of us ever expected that it would turn out the way that it has,” he explained. “We’re about to finish our fourth album right now, and that’ll be out sometime next year.”
Asked if he would start his own label, but revealed that he owns and operates an Internet platform that is worthy of a burgeoning media mogul. “I probably wouldn’t [start a label],” he admitted, and revealed he finds it more important for artists to share their work directed with their audiences. “I actually have done this, with three companies that I started on the tech side, to impart solutions for artists,” he explained. “One is a company that does social media management for marketing and commerce, another is a ticketing company, and the third is a social theatre where people can create live experiences and share them with audiences without advertising or sponsorships. These are solutions we’ve developed so artists can really share their work.”
Artifactalso highlights the creative challenges of making art in a way that many documentaries often aspire to, but rarely achieve: “We all shared a part of our lives that we’ve never shared on-screen before, a very intimate and personal part of our lives,” he said. “We take you inside the laboratory! Inside the studio, and in our hearts, and in our minds, to share how difficult this point is in our lives—just battling this massive corporation, and fighting for what we believe in. The record company [guys] are not bad people. They just happen to work in a business that has a lot of challenges.”
NOVEMBER 9, 2012
Fans of Jared Leto's band Thirty Seconds to Mars like to refer to themselves as family, but 'apostles' might be a better term. Thanks to their fervent support, Artifact, the Leto-directed (under the pseudonym Bartholomew Cubbins) film about the band's lengthy legal battle with its record label EMI, is making some noise on the indie circuit. In September, Artifact won the Toronto International Film Festival's People's Choice Documentary Award in September, and earlier this month it was nominated for an IFP Gotham Audience Award even though the film didn't premiere in the U.S. until Thursday night at the DOC NYC festival in New York City. The Echelon — the name that Leto has bestowed upon his band's fan base — were out in force there, too, braving frigid temperatures and a Nor'Easter-snarled New York to gather by the dozens at the School of Visual Arts in Chelsea for the screening and a glimpse of their idol. A spokeswoman for DOC NYC says that more than 500 people attended the two screenings of the documentary that were held on Thursday. Instead of the screaming hordes you might battle at a Justin Bieber appearance, however, the mostly female and surprisingly middle-aged crowd that gathered at the 6 p.m. screening of Artifact was well behaved and fairly quiet when it came to their reverence. (Somehow, they'd even organized a canned-food drive with local charity City Harvest to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy.) Photographer Jolene McMeans had traveled from Eugene, Ore. to see the film. "I barely made it last night," she told Movieline. Johana Ruano, who sat next to her and carried a bouquet of flowers, said that she had made it in from Miami despite having her first flight canceled Wednesday night due to the storm. DOC NYC Artistic Director Thom Powers told the crowd that Leto's initial flight to New York had been canceled, too, but he had also found a way to the city and the Echelon gave him an enthusiastic welcome as he walked to the front of the theater dressed in black and wearing a hipster trapper's hat. "I know half the people in this room," he said, after which a male voice in the crowd shouted, "I love you." "I love you, too!" Leto replied. The Thirty Seconds to Mars frontman was in the process of explaining that Artifact was a "really personal" film and a "labor of love" when he was interrupted by a mewling sound from the audience. "Is that a cat?" he asked. (Actually, it was a young child that one of the audience members had brought with her.) The actor and musical artist returned to describing Artifact: "It's a film about a battle. It's a film about an album. It's a film about our lives," Leto said. Artifact is also a film in need of an editor, but it does shine a sobering light on the vagaries of the major-label music business, which, the film's participants point out, for instance, continues to charge bands de-rigeur breakage fees for records that are digitally downloaded. And that's just one of the minor details. Although the band decided to stay with EMI after the lawsuit was dropped and the band was given a more favorable contract, the film claims that, despite selling millions of albums, Thirty Seconds to Mars has not made any money on the sale of those recordings. And what did the Echelon think? Though Leto did not return at the end of the screening, they stood to give the movie an extended standing ovation. On my way out of the theater, I asked Johana and Jolene why they were so loyal to Leto and Thirty Seconds to Mars. "He involves you. He answers your tweets," said McMeans. "He makes us part of the band as well," said Ruano.
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