INTERVIEW WITH ROB TYLER,
DIRECTOR OF "MAGIC HOSTESS"

By Rooftop Films on 12/11/2008

MAGIC HOSTESS (Rob Tyler | 3:50 | Experimental)


Rob Tyler's playful tribute to the wonders of 20th-century technology (and vintage can labels). www.archmotion.com and www.vcr100.com

Q&A

Rooftop Films: Tell us about your film.

Rob Tyler: Well, Magic Hostess: The Electric Can Opener is a short movie about one of the most powerful and commanding kitchen appliances around - the can opener. Basically its a highly stylized portrait of domesticated technology.

RF: What was your inspiration?

RT: Unsure really. One part boredom and one part interest in industrial design. It is part of a video series I created called Novice Robots, which started out as a photography exercise for me but really ended up as an obsession with kitchen appliances.

RF: Is there anything you'd like to share about the film that might not be immediately apparent (your conception of the film, backstory, production methods, etc.)?

RT: Well, interesting enough the music/sounds design was composed at the exact same moment the movie was being shot. My roommate at the time composed the music by sampled some of the electric can opener sounds. It was quite strange shooting the movie all the while weird sounds were being experimented with in the next room over.

RF: Any interesting stories about the production? Any particular difficulties or serendipitous events or pleasant/unpleasant surprises?

RT: Funny you mention this, to take advantage of space this movie was shot in a bedroom of my other roommate, and well, there was a bit of a mishap with the can of cod liver - I find myself fairly clumsy and ended up spilling cod liver juice all over his floor. You wouldn't believe how hard that stuff is to clean up. The roommate wasn't happy as the cod liver smell lasted about a week.

RF: The film has an eerie, uneasy quality. There seems to be a certain mistrust of the machine. Did you mean for the Magic Hostess to be slightly sinister in its representation in the film?

RT: Yes. I did.

RF: There is a chili can with Mr. T's picture on it in the film. Is this for real? If so, where did you find it and the other cans featured in the film?

RT: Heh, people ask me that all the time and I hate to say that the Mr. T chili is not real. The can of Mr. T Chili was a prop for an Oregon Lottery commercial and it was actually held in Mr. T's hands as he was the star of the commercial. I bet Mr. T would make a killing though if he got into the chili business, he should think about that as he kind of looked sad in the new Flavorwave Oven infomercial I just saw him in late last night on TV.

But ... the other can's were purchased at Russian, Korean and Mexican markets in Portland. I like cans to have peoples heads and faces on them yet I didn't want to be too brand specific. I thought about opening a can of Campbell's tomato soup as a tip of the hat to Andy Warhol, but then I changed my mind and thought that was kind of dumb.

RF: The film seems to meditate upon the complex relationship between humans and technology, our interdependence so to speak. What can you say about this? How do you think this relationship functions?

RT: Well its all very complex. I don't know where to start. What did Aldous Huxley say? "Technological progress has merely provided us with more efficient means for going backwards." The electric can opener can be used as a metaphor for this larger "backwardness." In the case of the electric can opener - here you have this bulky device that numerous engineers, designers and laborers had to spend a bunch of time and resources to create and manufacture. The can opener then had to be packaged and shipped and marketed and sold, transported home, plugged into the wall to suck electricity just to open a can of food for a human to eat and receive nourishment. It is a strange spiral that we humans are traveling down. I dunno. I do rather enjoy the technology of the 21st century though, so its a tough one.

RF: Are you a full-time filmmaker? If not, what else are you up to?

RT: Well yes, but really my personal artistic work has been lacking this past year. Mostly I have been painting and drawing on 16mm film lately, working on a follow up to my Color + Modulation DVD which came out in 2006 (basically video art stuff). I do make a living as a freelance director and editor in Portland creating local commercials, web videos and such. Other than that I don't really do much, pretty boring life, I need to go outside more often.

RF: What is your current/next project?

RT: Oscillating fans. Its going to be a quiet symphony of circulating air.

RF: If you've been to a Rooftop show, how was the experience?

RT: I have never been to Rooftop, but its definitely on the list of things to do. The last time I was in NY was 1985 on a family vacation, I was rather young and my mother made me keep my hands in my pockets at all times so not to pick up any germs. I think I need to take my hands out of my pockets and return to NY soon.

RF: What excites you about having your short film on Rooftop Films at IFC.com?

RT: Oh, you know, just the excitement in general. IFC and Rooftop, wow that's like eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich - such a winning combination! It is great to be a small part of that.

RF: Do you have any questions for the viewers? We hope they'll post comments!

RT: Umm, why do you press harder on the remote-control when you know the battery is dead?