Director Drawn to MIT
Academy Award-winning filmmaker Michel Gondry visits campus
By Katharine Dunn

When french film director Michel Gondry was a child, his father told him that great art comes from inspiration, not effort. He later decided that his father was wrong, and he began to work hard, very hard, at his craft.

"I always try to go in an area where I feel unsafe. I make difficulties that I have to overcome," Gondry said in a public talk at MIT in April, the first of several appearances scheduled during a residency supported by the Ida Ely Rubin Artists-in-Residence Fund. Gondry won an Oscar for cowriting the 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which he also directed. He was, however, nominated for the residency on the basis of the innovative music videos he's made for such artists as Björk and Kylie Minogue.

Gondry comes from a techie family--his dad was a programmer, and his grandfather invented an early synthesizer--but arguably his best work involves few camera tricks or computer effects. In a recent video for the alternative-rock band Steriogram, Gondry presents a world made almost completely out of yarn. He says he liked the "contrast of violent music and the sweetness of knitting."

While on campus, Gondry attended a class on media and theatrical performance, met with film students, and visited groups in the Media Lab, including the Physical Language Workshop and the Robotic Life and Smart Cities groups. He plans to return to campus this fall, when his latest film project permits, for the balance of the residency.