Last month, we spent the day with Jason Ano on the set of Black Daves Muthafuck! My Enemies and we shared a few photos with you. Today, Dave premiered the video, and so were happy to premiere the behind the scene video that we shot while on set with him and Jason. We also talked to Jason about the video, being inspired by KIDS, and driving the shit out of his RED.
Doug: Where did the original idea of trying to remake the film KIDS come from?
Jason: KIDS was the authoritative film on urban youth. In almost every discussion I've had with my peers about which movies were the rawest depiction of adolescence, KIDS was always a top choice. Surpisingly, I haven't really seen any video work that paid homage to it. Black Dave is essentially the next generation of KIDS, being that hes a skater who works for Supreme and he even knows Leo Fitzpatrick, who stops by the store often. The film is now almost 20 years old and it's still relevant to the streets. Its in his destiny to pay homage and carry the torch.
Doug: How did you determine what scenes from the film you guys were going to recreate? I feel like that whole movie is just memorable image after memorable image.
Jason: We definitely wanted to do the first half of the film, since it focused on Telly and Casper's lifestyle. The second half had more to do with plot/theme and we could certainly do without it, considering the length of this music video. I also did a survey with my friends on which scenes were memorable. My only regret is not finding the guy with no legs.
Doug: Is it a risk to do a more narrative video with an artist like Black Dave who is just beginning his career, or were you pretty confident that Dave would be able to pull off the role?
Jason: For any director it would probably be a risk, but having been involved in street culture since my breakout hip hop video with A$AP Rocky, I knew that someone like Black Dave who skates and is also from Harlem is truly "about that lifestyle. I probably couldve have shadowed Dave and documented a day in his life with a hidden cam and produced the same video.
Doug: Was there a concern going in that Daves crew of skateboarders would be a little difficult to manager on set? How did the way they acted compare to your expectations?
Jason: Yes, there were plenty of concerns! There were lots of illegal activities going on and we had a very realistic replica gun on one of our actors. During the rooftop scene, two undercover detectives crashed our set and it was definitely the most intense moment for that day. At that point, I was preparing myself for the worst, which wasn't even going to jail. I was more afraid of the detectives bashing my equipment because that's how NYPD rolls in this town. Luck favored us that day and we all were cleared with just a non-verbal warning. Overall, Black Dave was a good leader of his crew and we were able to coordinate everybody with ease.
Doug: You take a lot of risks with your camera for this video, including letting one of the guys skateboard into oncoming traffic with it. What goes through your head when you do something like that? Is the risk usually worth the reward?
Jason: Risk is definitely worth the reward. A friend of mine alerted me to the fact that ever since I upgraded to a RED from my DSLR, I was getting too comfortable and "safe" with my shots. I want to go back to my renegade tour video-style and treat my RED like a small Canon camera. I don't let my tools control me, no matter how expensive they are. If I'm buying a Ferrari, I'm going to drive the shit out of it.
