Dive into the world of visionary filmmaker Mikhail Mehra! From Mumbai to San Francisco, Mehra's journey has been a whirlwind of creativity and innovation. Discover how he went from being expelled from a boarding school in Mumbai to producing DJ Snake and Major Lazer's iconic "Lean On" music video, which has garnered over 3.5 billion views! uncover what it was like working with Major Lazer, Diplo, Soulja Boy, Skrillex and more. Plus, learn about his upcoming movie collaboration with Diplo. Don't miss this exclusive behind-the-scenes look at one of the most dynamic talents in the industry!
Subscribe to Curiosity’s Storyteller Studio on YouTube for more fascinating conversations with the world's greatest storytellers.
Join us in our mission to discover "where the best stories come from" by exploring the minds and crafts of storytellers from diverse backgrounds.
Don't miss out on the inspiration behind the world’s most beloved stories!
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Love this episode? Share it with your story loving friends and leave us a comment or review! Let’s spread the word about the stories behind the stories!
This episode was powered in part by Little Black Tux - Tuxedos for Women!
Cinematography: Phil Sakanashi
Produced by: Chas Allen & Adhrucia Apana
Post Production: PJ Donahoe
Associate Producer: Amar
Bedi Music: Jimi Cravity
Make-up by: Gayane Hunanyan
Subscribe to Curiosity’s Storyteller Studio on YouTube for more fascinating conversations with the world's greatest storytellers.
Join us in our mission to discover "where the best stories come from" by exploring the minds and crafts of storytellers from diverse backgrounds.
Don't miss out on the inspiration behind the world’s most beloved stories!
And follow us on socials! www.instagram.com/curiositystorytellerstudio www.facebook.com/curiositystorytellerstudio
www.TikTok.com/curiosity_storyteller
Love this episode? Share it with your story loving friends and leave us a comment or review! Let’s spread the word about the stories behind the stories!
This episode was powered in part by Little Black Tux - Tuxedos for Women!
Cinematography: Phil Sakanashi
Produced by: Chas Allen & Adhrucia Apana
Post Production: PJ Donahoe
Associate Producer: Amar
Bedi Music: Jimi Cravity
Make-up by: Gayane Hunanyan
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is a Drusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Mikhale Hi.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Hello, take me back to this moment. It's twenty fourteen.
You're in India. You just booked and produced one of
the top artists, Major Laser, on a national headline tour.
It's ten days before the concert's supposed to kick off.
You get a call from Diplow and he says.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
What, Yeah, let's shot a music video. Bro. Yeah, while
we're in India. He's like, can we get a castle?
Can we get elephants? Can we get this? Can we
get that?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
How old are you at this point?
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Twenty three?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Twenty three?
Speaker 4 (00:41):
Sometimes I look back at that person and I'm like,
how did you not die?
Speaker 2 (00:46):
I know that feeling.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Welcome to Curiosity Entertainment's Storyteller Studio. My name is a
Drusha and I create and write movies, music and television.
Each week, join me and my tea as we talk
to the world's greatest storytellers in pursuit of the answer
to the question where do the best stories come from? Now,
(01:08):
let me introduce you to today's guest. How do some
stories go viral? Captivating billions of viewers globally today on
Curiosity Storyteller Studio, we explored that phenomenon with Mikaale Mahera.
Mikale has directed and produced dozens of music videos, commercials,
and most recently has ventured into feature films. In this episode,
(01:29):
McHale shares stories from his filmmaking journey from Mumbai, where
he studied astrophysics before his passion for storytelling propelled them
to film school in San Francisco. We covered the EDM
movement's beginnings, the story of how he brought the first
concert experiences to ever fuse live music innovative video content
to the world, and also Michail wrote a culturally inspired
(01:50):
screenplay that our company, Curiosity Entertainment, helped develop that is being.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
Executive produced by dip Blow.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
Get the story behind our story join us as we
delve into how McHale continues to push the boundaries of
storytelling in music videos, commercials and his upcoming feature films.
Discover the secrets behind his visionary work, and how he
crafts stories that continue to captivate million on Curiosities Storyteller Studio.
(02:16):
This episode was brought to you in partnership with Little
Black Tucks. Little Black Tucks is my go to when
I need a timeless look, whether I'm speaking on a
film panel, walking a red carpet, or need a bold,
sophisticated look.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
For a photoshoot.
Speaker 1 (02:31):
Little Black Tucks has me covered. Little Black Tucks isn't
just a clothing company. They're a company with a story,
a strong why, and you know I love a good story.
They're breaking boundaries and creating clothing that empowers women with versatile,
upscale options. I love my Little Black Tucks and I
know you will too, So what's that feeling? Then you
(02:52):
get a call. You've had some experience, you've done some
music videos that we're going to get into and share
with everyone. But in that moment, you get this call
from Diplo. He's like, I want elephants, I want dancers,
I want a music video in ten days. And you say,
no problem.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
Yeah. I mean, first of all, I'm like, let's go right.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
I think that's how I kind of get myself in
a little bit of trouble is because I'm getting better
at it. But obviously this is not something I could
say no to. But I also want to make everything happen. Sure,
you know, I want everything to happen in the best
possible way. And then so I'll often and some people
say yes, and then they fuck up and then they're like, oh,
by the way, connect cursor.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
Yeah you can curse tremendous.
Speaker 4 (03:35):
And uh, you know, some people fuck up and I'm
just like, I'll die before I do that, Like the
mission must be complete.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, me too.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
So he says, let's go, you film this video. Let's
talk specifically about this video, because what happened next was
a viral sensation. You hit almost two point seven billion excuse.
Speaker 3 (03:59):
Me, three point five sorry.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Three point five billion views with this music video, and
it catapulted you onto a completely different level than you
had been before.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
So you're there. You put together this beautiful music video.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
It's full of culture, it's got the mixed the mixing
of just you know, traditional dance with these crazy beats,
and it's out of the box of what anybody's done.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Tell me how you.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
Put this together, what your visualization of the process was,
how you you conceptualized it as a twenty three year
old who's just been given the chance of a lifetime.
Speaker 4 (04:39):
Yeah, I mean it's interesting because first of all, I
was in the eye of the storm, already producing three
music like massive ten thousand person concerts in three different
cities in one weekend with like Major Laser, who come
with twenty people from America. So I'm dealing with like immigration, government,
taxis permits. There's no infrastructure that them in India for concerts,
(05:02):
so you literally have an empty field and then you
build everything from scratch.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
So it's like I'm dealing with all this.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
I have Viacom, who's like very tense with me at
all times because.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
Like we gave you money right and and they're like.
Speaker 4 (05:16):
A full fledged strategic investor slash partner, and I'm like,
all your content sucks. I'm making everything, so I'm also
making the commercials, the digital content like and and also
I'm like I'm actually sitting there like editing it, directing it.
So all this is going on, and then uh, you know,
Wes is like, yo, let's do a music video.
Speaker 3 (05:36):
And I'm like, for all of.
Speaker 1 (05:37):
You listening, Wes is Diplo's Diplo's.
Speaker 4 (05:40):
Name, I know Wes and uh yeah, So when he
hits me, I'm like, dude, I've been waiting for this,
you know.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
I'm like, yeah, I'm ready, let's go.
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Okay, so let's let's bring everybody back before the three
point five billion views. Yeah, you're talking about a mentality
and a pro to life that's just it has no
fear in it, and you are taking chances of a
very young adult who is now in this world. So
(06:14):
let's lay some foundation for everyone. You were born in Mumbai,
You're born in India? And when do you move or
to the United States?
Speaker 2 (06:23):
How old are you.
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Right after I turn eighteen two thousand and nine. I'm
in San Francisco. Never been to America before.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
Okay, so let's take a step back to India because
I know, like I spent part of my childhood in
India too. For you, what was that influence.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
And what was it like? How many siblings do you have?
Speaker 3 (06:42):
I'm an only child.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
You're an only child, So you're an only child growing
up in Mumbai. What are the things that are affecting
your desire to eventually grow into storytelling?
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Well?
Speaker 4 (06:58):
I remember always just having completely outlandish schemes and plans
for my life. Like I think when I was a kid,
I was obsessed with wrestling WWF, which is not cool apparently,
but whatever, you know, shout out stone cold Steve Austin,
and I wanted.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
To be a wrestler. Yeah, that's great, you know.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
And then I wanted to be an Olympic ice skater.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
I think you could have done it.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
I could have done it.
Speaker 3 (07:26):
I've seen your move very precise, you know.
Speaker 4 (07:31):
Then you know, I had a small stint where I
was about to become a professional snooker player.
Speaker 3 (07:36):
Oh wow, age was nine to twelve. Yeah, I was
really good.
Speaker 4 (07:40):
You know, I was like eleven years old, beating like
fifty year old dudes.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
You have snooker?
Speaker 3 (07:44):
Snooker?
Speaker 2 (07:45):
Can you for those do those who didn't grow up
in India? Can you explain snooker?
Speaker 4 (07:50):
It's like a pool table, but it's three times the size.
It's far more difficult. It's called like a point system.
You have to wear slacks and a vest, and the
only people who play are like old dudes.
Speaker 2 (08:02):
Gambler, you're your a nine year old snooker player.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
I'm nine years old.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
Oh it's great.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
Yeah, because my dad used to play when he was
young and he had real potential, but then he went
down the gambling path and you know, the screwing around path,
and he wanted to start me young.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
And I remember there was a club we used to
go to.
Speaker 4 (08:19):
All the clubs in the city had an age limit
under eighty and you can't get in.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
But our club had a height limit. And my dad's like, put.
Speaker 4 (08:26):
On some shoes, standing on your tippy toes, we're going in.
And I just like stood up and like barely made
the line, and then I was in.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
You're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio on Ruckus Avenue Radio.
We'll be back after these messages with more from music
video director, writer and screenwriter Mikhail Mahara.
Speaker 5 (08:49):
You're listening to Ruckus Avenue Radio, available now on the
free iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
My name's Andrusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio
and Ruckus Avenue Radio. Now more from our guests, music
video director, screenwriter and writer Michail Mehera. So, I'm sure
being around so many adults as a kid, and just
you know, watching your dad take these chances, learning how
(09:19):
to win, that had something to do with kind of
this mentality.
Speaker 4 (09:23):
Yeah, I would say, Actually, my mom is brazen. I've
seen her operate my whole life, like she can just
bend rooms and people in.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Worlds to her will. She's fearless. And then my dad
is very like professional and smooth and like just a
smooth operator. Like every time he walks into any establishment,
everybody's like, you know, everybody's like, oh, what's you know?
Speaker 4 (09:46):
You know what I mean, Oh, here's your table. It's
a little good fella's vibe. So and he's so professional
and so buttoned up that actually when I like, I
would email in back in the day and I would
write like how I learned from observing my dad, right,
And then people would meet me and be like, oh,
you're not forty, dude, I'm just like some twenty two
(10:07):
year old kid, but like I am, I kind of
by osmosis, you know, kind of got that kind of professionalized,
button up aspect from my dad, and then I kind
of got the fearlessness from my mom.
Speaker 2 (10:21):
I actually relate to that a lot.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
Coming from the product of Indian parents who are very
highly educated, you just kind of learn early on how
to stand on your own feet and how to communicate
with others. You say that you fell in love with
this idea of filmmaking and then that brought you to
film school in San Francisco. So what is this moment
(10:46):
where because tell us a little bit you were going
to be an astrophysicist or study astrophysics, which I'm sure
was well, tell us what that was about. And then
where this moment where you were like, actually I'm going
to go to film school.
Speaker 4 (11:01):
Well it's actually I can pinpoint the moment. Well, growing
up in India, you either did commerce or science. Sure
there was no third thing.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Art class was a free period where we just fucked around. Yeah,
art was like for.
Speaker 4 (11:13):
The losers or excuse me for you know, as as
they say in India, the gone cases. You know, so
it wasn't even a consideration. I even still like people
call me an artist or something. I still find it
more technical and crafty than like artistry. And but yeah,
(11:34):
so I don't know. I ended up after scheme five.
I'm like, all right, I'm gonna be an astrophysicist, purely
because I think I was going through a lot of
existential angst about like trying to understand the universe. And
you know, my family is fairly philosophical, and I just
you know, had the basic existential questions about why, you know,
(11:56):
where did we come from?
Speaker 3 (11:57):
What is humanity?
Speaker 2 (11:58):
Curiosity?
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Yuriosity? Maybe that's why I were such good friends. And yeah,
I remember I'm like, all right, I'm gonna do astrophysics,
and everybody was like, we're not saying you're dumb, but astrophysics.
Speaker 2 (12:13):
Like maybe be a chef, that's funny.
Speaker 4 (12:18):
And I remember, like I had a tutor and I
was trying to learn like these abstract, insane, mathematically laced
physics stuff and I was bored out of my mind.
I couldn't even grasp it, to be frank, and I
would escape by watching films.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Movies.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
Yeah, for me, movies became a way to kind of
also understand the cultural the two different cultures that I
was growing up in. And you know, that world of
storytelling was something that transported me and I also really
resonate with Like as a kid, I wanted to be
an Olympic ice skater. Then I wanted to be an
Olympic gymnast, and then I wanted to be an astronaut,
(12:55):
and then I wanted to be And it was that
curiosity about how all these different vantage points and views
and lives would be to lead that led me into storytelling.
Speaker 3 (13:07):
Yeah, and I.
Speaker 4 (13:08):
Think you I think you grew up partly in America,
mainly your formative views.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
Yeah, I went to school in India twice, so when
I was in nine years old, I ended up going
to school in India and then again as a teenager.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
So I went.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
But we spent every summer, every winter, every other summer,
every other winter there, So I spent a lot of
time there. And it did Watching how so many people
grow up without anything and still managed to be happy
really helped me understand imagination and the fact that you know,
everything is not.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
Material interesting because so you had I don't want to
say the luxury, but you had these like dialectical or
switching vantage points.
Speaker 5 (13:51):
Yes.
Speaker 4 (13:52):
So then you also had questions of identity, yes, which
I guess you started reconciling through art and cinema.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Yes, yes, So you tell me now the moment that
you were like I'm going to go to film.
Speaker 4 (14:04):
School, I had been expelled from boarding school.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (14:09):
I went to a lot of different schools. I got
expelled from boarding school. My parents were just like, you're done.
You're just garbage. You're a garbage person. And I was
to be I mean, listen, I was mischievous. I wasn't
like bad or maybe I was arguable, but I was
not doing anything. I remember I used to go play
poker at friends' houses and just play home games.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
And you know, just floating through life.
Speaker 4 (14:36):
And I had had this desire to do filmmaking, but
I wasn't really acting on it.
Speaker 3 (14:41):
And it's so funny.
Speaker 4 (14:42):
My parents tell me now that they like reverse psychology
tricked me to going to America where they're like.
Speaker 3 (14:48):
We're not sending you. You're like, you're just gonna waste money.
Speaker 4 (14:52):
And then I'm like, no, wait, I'm gonna go, and
to that I'm not an idiot, and like they kind
of reverse engineered me and say we're not You're not
even we're not even sending you anywhere, you know, like
just be here. It's fine, like go get a job
or something like you can't just sit here, like go
get a job. And then it's funny, I'm like, no,
I'm going, And then yeah, that was there. That was
(15:15):
the moment where I just started looking up schools on
the internet and I found like a trade school and
an art school in San Francisco.
Speaker 3 (15:21):
That I wanted to go to. USC I wanted to
go to U c.
Speaker 5 (15:25):
L A.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
But I didn't have the grades.
Speaker 4 (15:26):
I didn't have the transcripts I'd been expelled, like they
weren't going to take me.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
So you end up in San Francisco and now you
fall into the underground like rave scene. In terms of
how that built your worldview when you when you started
telling stories and you picked up a camera, what is
it about that rave scene and the family and the
(15:53):
visuals and et cetera. How has that affected the way
that you direct and the way that you see visuals
and the way you appro which to your first music videos.
Speaker 4 (16:02):
I mean it had a huge influence. One was because
you know, first of all, I didn't have a camera.
I had a buddy shout out George Quist, who was
a skateboarder.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
And he would.
Speaker 4 (16:16):
His camera to take into like sketchy Oakland warehouse Draves.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
That's a good friend, great.
Speaker 3 (16:22):
Great friend.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
He let me, he let you know, he lent that
to me, and I would just film like crazy, like
I would.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
You know.
Speaker 4 (16:35):
It's funny because when I was in art school, I
had an editing teacher, Bars Zubov. He was a great guy,
and he taught us like really classical language of editing
and how to do things in like a very classic Hollywood,
you know, studio style of editing. Like this is how
you organize your bins and your footage and like da
da da da. So I was really applying concepts that
(16:56):
I was learning from Boris in like a sweaty Oakland
rave where there was a thirty chance I'd get stabbed.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
I'm sure that gought you how to think on your
feet and and let's talk a little bit about the
work that came after that. You're listening to Curiosity Storyteller
Studio on ukis Abnu Radio. We'll be back after these
messages with more from music video director, writer and screenwriter
(17:24):
Michale Mahara.
Speaker 6 (17:26):
You're listening to Ruckus Avenue Radio.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
My Name's and Drusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller
Studio and ruck Ass Avenue Radio. Now more from our guests,
music video director, screenwriter and writer Michale Mahera. Right, So
you've made music videos with of course Major Laser and
with Diplo, but also you did a great piece with
(17:55):
I think It's Otnus who ah that for her for
the Hercules video for Disney when they did the big
theme song. Yeah, you've done work with Soulja Boy, Oregon City,
Delaney James Speechless or Milwaukee. You just got back from
Africa from shooting a video with them and another one
with Diplo. So this body of work that you've kind
(18:16):
of created artists like Scrillis and Benga major laser, what
is for you when you're working on collaborations with all
these different artists. How do you make room for whatever
their stylist. I've watched all your music videos and they're
(18:36):
very different from piece to piece. You're obviously taking in
a lot from those artists. How do you understand them
better as an artist? And then how does that play
into the way you create visuals.
Speaker 4 (18:48):
Very early on, I made a decision because I edited
all my own shit, so I'm an editor, so I
have to listen to the song like a million times.
So very early I made this decision with myself that
I'm only going to work with music and people that
I actually like. I'm not going to just chase stuff
for the sake of it. And I had got this
guidance also from just being around these artists, you know,
(19:11):
that was how they moved. I was always learning from
just being around them via osmosis. So so already I'm
already only working with people who I look up to
who or who whose work.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
I really enjoy.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
That's beautiful.
Speaker 4 (19:25):
Yeah, and I've been kind of lucky in that sense
that I've I've got the opportunity to keep doing this.
It's very rare that I, you know, I'm doing something
that I don't like.
Speaker 2 (19:35):
M So when you're you're okay.
Speaker 1 (19:37):
So now you're going on to do a video with
Soljia boy, what is your prep? Can you walk us
through that? Like? Because each of these artists are very different,
So how are you getting into their mind frame to
create something for them?
Speaker 3 (19:50):
Well, it's interesting.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
The Soldier The Soldier Boy one is is U is
a claimation music video.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
Yeah, I was gonna ask you about it.
Speaker 4 (19:58):
So it actually I started off this collaboration with a
gentleman named Sam Barnett. So a few years prior, a
good friend of mine, Grand Theft, who's a great producer,
a musician, DJ H he's a good friend of mine,
and he sent me his song you know, and and
he sent me the album art and the album art
(20:19):
was him in.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
Made of sushi, Made of sushi. So there's this artist
on the.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
Internet who takes like famous people and remakes them in sushi.
So he sent me this album art and he's like, dude,
let's do a music like let's finally do a music video, right,
And I'm like, hell, let's go, let's go. And I
see that sushi and I'm like, that's the video. We
have to remake the Sushi Guy.
Speaker 3 (20:45):
We don't.
Speaker 4 (20:45):
I don't want to do anything else. I want to
remake Sushi Guy. And I want him to go on
an adventure. And Aaron grand Theft was like, how you know,
like how like what? Like how do we even do this?
And I've been a fan of Claymation since I was
watching Wallace and Grommett.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
Do you ever watch Waason Grammt?
Speaker 1 (21:03):
By the way, like how beautiful and nerdy? I watched
all your clamation stuff. I have so many questions about it,
but finish your story.
Speaker 4 (21:10):
Yeah, But like I grew up watching Wallace and Grommt. Yeah,
and I loved Wallace and Grommitt so much. And it's
even looking back, it feels they were like one hundred episodes,
but they were like three, you know. And so I'm like,
all right, this is going to be my homage to
Wallace and Grommit. And that's kind of my process before
every music video is like, I think about what's best
(21:31):
for the piece. And also I don't like doing the
same thing.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
Again, you know.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
I very that very apparent.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Yeah, I'm very like, I don't like doing the same
thing again at all. It has to be I have
to be in some way progressing, you know. And so
I'm like, all right, Clamation don't know anything about Clamation
terrible with my hands, you know. I can't really do
anything with my hands except play snooker, and Dennis can't draw. Uh,
(22:02):
So I'm like, all right, So then the the idea
is Wallace and grammet Clamation Sushi Adventure.
Speaker 3 (22:09):
And then I had found this guy on Reddit who
had made like an on reddit.
Speaker 4 (22:13):
On Reddit, there was just a post on Reddit about
this guy who made a sci fi clamation show, and
I'm like, please be in lie please. And then I've
tracked down his email and I could tell he's like
a very intellectual, artistic guy.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
You know. And I'm like, he might look at me
and be like, who's this asshole? You know?
Speaker 4 (22:32):
So I wrote him like a very nice note and
I said I would love to work with you da
da da da, and like he agreed to meet me
for coffee, and then we met for coffee and then
I think he's like, all right, this guy's not an asshole,
so you know.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
So I as la meetings go.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
Yeah, you know, I'm sure you thought the same, so
you know.
Speaker 4 (22:53):
And then and then I made a treatment about the
Stu Sushi that go on adventures, fall in love and
then they die because my aim was to make people
cry at the end of the video. And yeah, that's
kind of how that project, the Clamation project, came about.
Speaker 1 (23:10):
Okay, So I want to ask you some specific questions
about clamation and animation some of the modems that you are,
modes that you used to tell your storytelling with.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
But before I do that, I just.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Want for everyone listening, I'm sure your story. You're a
boy from Mumbai, you move out here for college, you
end up in San Francisco, you fall in love with
rave music. Okay, but I just named a bunch of
really big artists. Can you bridge that gap for us?
How did you end up with all these artists and
working for them at such a young age.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
So, I mean I dropped out of college very quickly
because I started working. I think it was also a
consequence of electronic music was still in the underground and
it was a very small community, small community community, but
it was like a very small world.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
And there were only like three of us making videos.
You know.
Speaker 4 (24:04):
There was me, there was this guy called Iwax. There
were like there were like three people making videos. And
because you know, there was no Instagram. Yeah, also there
was no Instagram, you know, and and there were three
of us making these videos. And and I guess I
just you know, you become friends, you see each other around,
and then we're all kind of rising the together.
Speaker 5 (24:27):
This.
Speaker 4 (24:27):
Yeah, the music started getting kind of this global acclaim.
First of course West Coast. Then we saw it kind
of start moved to New York and so the thing
was just rising. And I think I just happened to
be there.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
Hmm.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
Okay, so let's go specifically then, actually have one more question.
Growing up with Indian parents, My parents were actually very
supportive of my pursuent arts, but there was a double
entendre of like and also have a back plan. And
I think that's very common in first generation kids, children
(25:06):
of immigrants, immigrants themselves, et cetera, especially from that region.
You're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio on ruck As Avenue Radio.
We'll be back after these messages with more from music
video director, writer and screenwriter Michale Mahera.
Speaker 5 (25:26):
Check out Ruckus Avenue Radio dot com for our full
schedule and listen to past episodes available on all major
podcast platforms.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
My name's Adrusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio
and Ruckus Avenue Radio. Now more from our guests, music
video director, screenwriter and writer Michael Mahera.
Speaker 2 (25:52):
Who was or.
Speaker 1 (25:55):
Was anyone standing next to you being like this is
a great idea, Migil go to Indian Film Media like
over they worried is this? Like did you have a
support system as you were building this storytelling life.
Speaker 4 (26:10):
I think my parents were always very supportive in that
they were like, just do what you love, what makes
you happy. And I also think the bar for me
was so low, like there was no expectations for me
to do anything that once they saw, like, you know,
once they saw that I started getting some traction, and
(26:35):
you know, they were like, okay, he's at least doing something,
you know, And and I told them, listen, I'm gonna
drop out of college. I'm already working. I've got like
a book of clients. You know, people are actually paying
me money to do this.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
I've got a plan.
Speaker 4 (26:52):
Yeah, I've got a plan. Well, I sold it as
a gap year, a year. I sold it as a
gap year, like a year off.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
But my parents were like, yeah it go like go
do it.
Speaker 2 (27:01):
That's great.
Speaker 4 (27:02):
But everybody else was like backup land, Beta, backup land.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
That degree, that idea.
Speaker 3 (27:08):
Yeah, everybody else was like, this is absurd.
Speaker 1 (27:11):
My mom's backup plans stopped when she saw my name
on my first movie. Then I had never heard about backup.
Speaker 3 (27:17):
Yeah. Once again, it's funny.
Speaker 4 (27:19):
I was similar experience. It took a very long time
for that to happen. I think when I did a
video at Shara Khan, my parents were like, okay, okay,
you're not dumb.
Speaker 1 (27:28):
I actually was going to ask you about the video
with Shara Khan. So specifically, you coming from a very
international background, bridged a lot of cultures, and a lot
of your work your bridging cultures, and you've got you
just got back from doing a music video in Africa
zerb Milwaukee, and I watched it and it's full of
(27:50):
African dancers, African culture. The ones that you did shot
in India were full of Indian culture. Shara Khan of
course is a legend in Bollywood, and this music collaboration
comes up where you can do a music video with
him and Diplo, How did that come about? And tell
me more importantly, I think because we want to be
(28:10):
very very we want to be very inquisitive on how
it informed, you know, the way you shape those stories.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
You got this music video where.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
The two of them are in Spain and they're doing
their thing. When you're looking across cultural collaborations, like how.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
I guess how native is that to you?
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Just to naturally do that and what goes into really
understanding how these two cultures should be represented.
Speaker 4 (28:43):
Yeah, I think I have like a very strong internal
instrument or you know, I have ideas, very strong ideas
about how something should be.
Speaker 3 (28:55):
Now, whether they're.
Speaker 4 (28:56):
Good ideas or bad ideas, the world will often me
very quickly that's a terrible idea. But you know, so
I already have like a I want to do this
right because because I think taste is very important. Sure,
but I also had friends, like I had an old
college friend Ian then even like Wes Diplo, like I
(29:19):
actually learned. I think he's kind of the king of
like building cultural Bridges, you know. And I remember when
he came to India or even when we're discussing like
creative stuff. I knew him much before he came to India,
you know, because I was like, I'm gonna take.
Speaker 3 (29:33):
You to India one day and he's like, ha okay,
we'll see you know.
Speaker 4 (29:38):
It's funny I met him because I was interviewing him
in twenty ten. I saw that interview, yeah, and it
was supposed to be like five fifteen minutes and it
was like an hour, you know, and the magazine gave
me like questions ask and I threw him in the bin.
Speaker 3 (29:51):
I'm like, who killed JFK. Let's go, you know.
Speaker 4 (29:55):
But so when he he would just point at things
in India and be like.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
Dude, that's so sick. Look at that. That's so sick.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
And I'll be like, you saw it with new eyes.
Speaker 3 (30:04):
I saw it with new eyes.
Speaker 4 (30:05):
I'm like, wait, that's that's so cool. Wait what and
he's like, dude, look at that. And I remember, like
my friend Ian would also point at things and be like, dude,
that's so you know, look how cool that is. And
he'd point at like, you know, Indian cultural elements which
I had completely tuned out, you know, so I kind.
Speaker 3 (30:22):
Of learned from them.
Speaker 4 (30:24):
I'm like, oh, wait a minute, this is actually all
really cool.
Speaker 3 (30:29):
And then you know, that's where it kind of started
for me.
Speaker 1 (30:31):
It's a brand new perspective looking through someone else's eyes.
I'm sure that really changed the way that you shaped.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
A lot of your stories. Yeah, I would love to know.
Speaker 1 (30:39):
Let's go back into animation and claymation. You know, I
have some familiarity because I work in the industry, but
I think that for listeners just understanding what the differences
directing something that's live action versus animation and claimation, which
is done frame by frame. What is the difference in process?
(31:01):
Are you literally you're taping stopping tape?
Speaker 2 (31:04):
Tell us?
Speaker 4 (31:05):
So I give you an example, like we do something
like a Milwaukee music video in one day, lean On
in two days. That clamation video was forty seven days.
Speaker 3 (31:14):
You know, so.
Speaker 4 (31:15):
Already, already you're in a completely different world. I would say,
it's just a logistical challenge. It's always logistics, you know.
I feel like eighty percent. I think it was an
Aronofsky quote where he said, like ninety percent of my
job is navigating bureaucracy, like the ten percent is actually
the creative. So with the Clamation, it was really about like,
(31:39):
all right, we have a budget. Clamation shit is usually
like a bazillion dollars, so we're working within constraints to
like create a story that doesn't feel like it's been constrained.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
And yeah, is it shot by shot? Like tell me?
Speaker 4 (31:54):
Yeah, so Sam, actually we came up with the story
together and then Sam actually built everything in his house.
You know, he's not using clay, he's using silicone, So
he's actually all those they're called puppets, they're all real
and they all exist, and it is frame by frame
(32:14):
by frame select.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
So you're shooting, you're stopping, he's moving the puppet, you're
shooting again. And then and you edited those so then
in editing process you were stringing them all together. And
same with animation, right, same with the I know you
did add animation for for Catalina the Whale Mixer, the
Web three project that came out. I watched that animation.
Same with animation, it's each each shot. And then storyboarding
(32:39):
for that is that you're because you're not you're a
self proclaimed non artist. Are you storyboard storyboarding?
Speaker 4 (32:46):
When you did the enemy Oh absolutely so so shooting
ratiow basically, let's just say you usually shoot more than
you need and then you edit it down. So let's
just say you shoot double of what you need. Your
shooting race was wanted to do for the Grand Theft video.
Our shooting ratio was one is to one, so we
had zero margin for error. So everything that we filmed
(33:08):
had to go in the video. So it was like
storyboarded mega precise, and then I always try to insert mechanism,
buffer mechanism, so I put like a couple of clips in.
Speaker 3 (33:21):
There that I knew could like buy me some room.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
Why why clamation? Just because of Wallace and Gromit.
Speaker 4 (33:27):
I looked at the sushi and I'm like, this has
this has to be clamation.
Speaker 3 (33:33):
What was your animation thing?
Speaker 1 (33:35):
Oh, I haven't done animation. I just am aware of
how animation is shot. I've actually never worked in clamation,
never worked in animation. That's why I wanted to ask
the question, because when I look at your body of work,
that's the first thing that hits my storytelling min. I'm like,
oh man, that looks like it was a million hours
of editing. It looks painful. I don't know how he
did it.
Speaker 3 (33:54):
It really was. It took like forever.
Speaker 4 (33:57):
But honestly, sometimes people ask me, that's like my favorite
thing I think I've made. Yeah, I think that acclamation videos.
Speaker 1 (34:04):
Well, it shows your real talent, both as an editor
and as a director. There's a lot of work that
goes into it. Not a lot of people, not a
lot of people take it on. You're listening to Curiosity
Storyteller Studio on Ruckus Avenue Radio. We'll be back after
these messages with more from music video director, writer and
screenwriter Mikail Mahara.
Speaker 6 (34:26):
Check out Ruckus Avenue Radio dot com for our full
schedule and listen to our past episodes available on all
major podcast platforms.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
My name is Andrusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller
Studio and Ruckuss Avenue Radio.
Speaker 2 (34:46):
Now more from our.
Speaker 1 (34:47):
Guests, music video director, screenwriter and writer Michail Mahera. I've
noticed a lot of your music videos and I want
to talk a little bit about your film work. That
you have these really big dance segments. What is it
about dance as a storyteller that you always seem to incorporate,
(35:09):
like really great ethnic dancers from all around the world
doing these great cross cultural pieces, and I love those moments.
You have these like epic moments in your film, in
your music videos, and that not everyone does, by the way,
because they're hard to coordinate, they're hard to choreograph, they're
hard to you got to get all those dancers there.
Speaker 2 (35:27):
So what is it about dance and your storytelling that
you feel is so important?
Speaker 3 (35:31):
Well, I think it's again it's a product of the material. Right.
Speaker 4 (35:34):
For lead On, Wes was like, I want to do
a big like homage to Bollywood, right, So it was
what the material called for. With Wacky, it was kind
of the same thing. We wanted to go to Kenya.
We wanted scale. And also I think I've done music
videos where I've tried to do narrative story because you know,
(35:54):
we're all directors, we all want to make movies. Yeah,
so a lot of times, you know, in my when
I was younger, I always trying to inject narrative, Like
I'm like, oh, I have a movie idea, how do
I squeeze it into this music video? And I realize
after a point to stop doing that and just make
it what's best for the material, you know, because if
(36:16):
someone wants to watch a story. They can go on
Netflix or HBO and watch like a one of your
one of your TV shows where it's like long form
and it's narrative.
Speaker 3 (36:25):
When I'm on YouTube, I don't want to focus. I
just want like a like a visual treat.
Speaker 1 (36:30):
Sure, let's talk a little bit about that, because you're
moving now, and you have moved both in the writing
capacity but also as a filmmaker from short form.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
And the thing about.
Speaker 1 (36:41):
Music videos is that they like they have to be
so succinct and keep your attention and you're really making
a lot happen in a very little amount of time.
So what's that muscle like changing now to creating these
full scripts. We have a script together, so we've helped
develop together called Black Gold, and you know that is
(37:01):
a big action comedy and it's a full movie. Right,
So for you as a creative that muscle, what is
the difference and what is that transition and what are
the difficult parts or easy parts? Tell us a little
bit about that process of the creative.
Speaker 4 (37:19):
Well, I always feel like it all comes from the
same place, you know, even when I did the music festivals,
I'm like, I can run a set, I can produce
a festival, like you know what I mean, It's like
also it felt congruent.
Speaker 3 (37:34):
So it's always coming.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
Even when I like redline a contract, it's the same
space that all that is coming from, you know, which
is probably why I shouldn't be redlining my contract. But
it all kind of comes from the same source inside,
so it's just then it just becomes about mechanically executing
the formatting. Yeah, it's the formatting. It's like, what are
(37:56):
the parameters? So I will say writing though, it took
me a good thing to four years like of that draft.
I mean, you've been there with me for you know,
a substantial part of the journey. But like that, my
first draft was unreadable. It was complete nonsense, you know,
because I had never written a script before.
Speaker 3 (38:16):
And I'm like, I.
Speaker 4 (38:16):
Watched a lot of movies. I'm kind of smart, like
I can just write a movie. And it was like, no,
you can't, Like you know, it's like I had to
get the reps in and it took me a good
three to four years of like like thirty drafts of
that script before someone like a diplo was like, Okay,
this is fire, I'll make this.
Speaker 1 (38:36):
So when you're going through draft after draft or draft?
Were the tricks that you use to keep that storytelling
fresh and to not get you know, I write scriptcreen
plays as well, and I know sometimes we'll get to
a point me and my writing partner where we just
get stuck and then it's frustrating and like the idea
of going back to page one and refixing stuff is
(38:59):
just untenable because now we're gonna have to go through
and fix the whole thing from beginning to end. So
what is uh like for people who are listening who
need to craft their story, have a story in them
that needs to get out? What what trips or to
our trips that tips or tricks have you found to
just kind of tackling that so that the best version
(39:21):
comes out of you.
Speaker 3 (39:22):
You know, it's it's funny and and because.
Speaker 4 (39:25):
What you outlined is but it's outlined what you outlined is.
You know, it's a common problem like where a good
idea turns into a curse.
Speaker 3 (39:35):
Where you're like, right, yeah, we know halfway through actually
you're like, but what if this happened?
Speaker 4 (39:41):
And then you're like, oh, I have that idea, Now
I have to go rerrite the whole thing.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
From the day for page one.
Speaker 3 (39:47):
Yeah, you know what was really? You know what was really?
Speaker 4 (39:52):
What's the word I'm looking for, not validating, but like
comforting for me? Was I read a lot of biographies
and autobiographies of writers, directors, right, And I remember I
read Steven Soderbergh's autobiography and he's literally like it's like
his diary, and he's like, I'm in San Francisco, I'm
in a hotel room. I'm supposed to stem the studio
(40:14):
nine pages of this script by tomorrow. I should really
do that. Let me go check my emails for three hours,
you know. So I'm like, yo, Steven is still doing
this after, you know, being a legendary filmmaker and making
so many great films. I'm like, oh, wait a minute,
It's normal to feel that way, you know where He's like,
(40:35):
He's like, I don't want to, you know, and we
all have we all are there.
Speaker 2 (40:39):
None of us have it figured all the way out.
Speaker 4 (40:41):
Yeah, And it's like, you know, listen, some writers wake
up at like eight am and they write to like
five and then they like go for a jog, and and.
Speaker 3 (40:50):
I wish I could do that.
Speaker 4 (40:51):
Maybe I can do that, Like it's always validating to
hear the stories of like Steven Soderbergh or you know,
I remember watching some interview with Tailor share In where
he's like, he couldn't figure something out and he just
drove for six hours. You know, so when you watched,
when you hear of these giants also deal with these
same frustrations and issues and self doubt, and then you're like, oh,
(41:13):
they're human, They're just kind of you know, it's like, Okay,
this is normal. It's supposed to suck, it's supposed to
be difficult.
Speaker 1 (41:21):
Yeah, and you're writing, you know, I just want to
tap back into this worldview because I love that artists
both write, and we have the freedom to write the
things we've experienced but also things that we haven't experienced.
And when you've written characters, you've written characters that are
South Asian but are out of the box like you are.
(41:44):
And I would love to like how important in where
we are in film and television right now is that
to you being being part of that voice and that
voice that you and I are in many ways trying
to make sure is represented.
Speaker 3 (42:00):
I mean, to be very frank, I'm quite agnostic to it.
Speaker 4 (42:05):
I just you know, I liked that story and there
was lots of me in that story, and it just
all came about naturally. And I think when you just
do that, like it automatically, all that good stuff happens.
I get that, you know, So I didn't start out
going like I also thought like I also you know,
(42:26):
you also have to think a little bit from a
sales perspective also, and I was like, ooh, a story
like this about these characters that go here would be
so fucking cool.
Speaker 3 (42:36):
You know, when have you seen this happen?
Speaker 4 (42:38):
And you know, like when Waki happened in Africa, I
wasn't like thinking about, you know, trying to elevate X
or elevate elevate why because I don't think it's my
job to do that. But once the project came about,
I was like, okay, this has to be done in
a certain manner.
Speaker 1 (42:56):
By the way, like the visuals in the Walkie video,
you just can after such beautiful, beautiful parts of Africa.
What a like weird blessing to have such an incredible
natural landscape for some of these things. I know how
limiting music video budgets can be, and you really, I
(43:17):
mean that thing looks so expensive just because how beautiful
Africa is.
Speaker 3 (43:20):
It really is, and I was processed.
Speaker 4 (43:23):
I was going through that same thought process of when
Wes landed in India with me and he was like,
look at that.
Speaker 3 (43:28):
Look how sick that is?
Speaker 4 (43:30):
Like look, and he had been to India before and
like spend a lot of time. But when I got
to Africa, I was like.
Speaker 3 (43:36):
Wait, look at that. That's one of the most beautiful
things I've ever seen in my life. Let's go there.
Speaker 4 (43:42):
And you know, luckily, Jake Udell, who believed in me
to do the project, trusted me. Him and his brother
Alec were like, we trust you.
Speaker 2 (43:50):
That's great.
Speaker 3 (43:51):
Yeah, so I'm at least lucky people usually trust me.
Speaker 2 (43:55):
I don't know if that's luck.
Speaker 1 (43:56):
I think that's a combination of who you are as
what your favorite drink was before we started this episode,
and you you answered black Label Rocks with a touch
of water. What does that drink.
Speaker 2 (44:09):
Mean to you?
Speaker 3 (44:11):
It's a classic Indian Uncle drink.
Speaker 4 (44:13):
Yeah, you know, and I've been having this drink since
I don't know for like, I don't know as far
back as I can remember.
Speaker 2 (44:22):
And you ungles love that black Label rocks.
Speaker 3 (44:26):
Excuse me and what's your good name? What's your sname?
Speaker 2 (44:31):
My father drinks it all the time. My surname.
Speaker 3 (44:34):
Don't get into this, okay, okay, Oh, so good people.
Speaker 1 (44:40):
I would love to talk to you a little bit
more about some of your other favorite things. This is
a section where we go through a rapid fire that
kind of defines you as a character. It's our look
into who Mikael is as a character, and it starts
with that black label on the rocks. Okay, first thing
that comes to mind? Ready, when I say the word
at home?
Speaker 3 (45:00):
What do you think of Los Angeles?
Speaker 2 (45:02):
When I say the word heaven?
Speaker 3 (45:03):
What do you think of family?
Speaker 2 (45:05):
When I say the word hell? What do you think
of fire?
Speaker 3 (45:08):
Fire?
Speaker 2 (45:10):
That's a visual storyteller, are you? What is the food
that you find most comforting?
Speaker 3 (45:15):
Butter chicken with cheese nons?
Speaker 2 (45:17):
What's that about?
Speaker 4 (45:18):
It's just a Mumbai dish, butter chicken. It's it's just
a classic and it's so comforting.
Speaker 1 (45:24):
You're making me so hungry. What sound makes you smile?
Speaker 3 (45:28):
Laughter?
Speaker 2 (45:29):
How do you define love?
Speaker 3 (45:32):
Understanding?
Speaker 2 (45:33):
How do you define success?
Speaker 3 (45:35):
Lots of money? Now, I think just being able to
do what you want to do?
Speaker 2 (45:41):
How do you define failure.
Speaker 3 (45:44):
Lots of money. No, failure is relative.
Speaker 2 (45:49):
Michael. Do you believe in magic?
Speaker 3 (45:51):
Absolutely not.
Speaker 2 (45:54):
That's about right. Second chances.
Speaker 3 (45:56):
Oh, so many people have given me so many second
and third chances. How can I not?
Speaker 2 (46:01):
How about love at first sight?
Speaker 3 (46:03):
Being burned before?
Speaker 1 (46:05):
So that's a yes, without considering time, ability or money
as an obstacle. If you could do anything or experience
anything in the world, what would it be, learn anything,
do anything, experience anything.
Speaker 3 (46:21):
I feel like I'm lucky. I'm kind of doing what
I want to do.
Speaker 2 (46:24):
That's a beautiful answer.
Speaker 1 (46:27):
Who or what would you like to create a story
for or about in the future?
Speaker 3 (46:33):
Grandparents, grandparents?
Speaker 6 (46:35):
That's beautiful.
Speaker 2 (46:36):
What word best describes you as a storyteller?
Speaker 3 (46:40):
Unique?
Speaker 2 (46:41):
Hmm?
Speaker 3 (46:41):
What inspires I also shop at uniclo send me jackets.
Speaker 1 (46:48):
What inspires or drives you?
Speaker 3 (46:53):
What inspires me? The fear of failure?
Speaker 2 (46:55):
Hmmm, Michael, what is your favorite story?
Speaker 4 (47:03):
My favorite story is the story that you and I
are writing about our lives right now.
Speaker 2 (47:08):
Ah.
Speaker 1 (47:10):
I love that the story of our lives. Michael, thank
you so much for being with us on Storyteller Studio today.
Speaker 3 (47:15):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (47:17):
We love you.
Speaker 3 (47:18):
I love you.
Speaker 1 (47:19):
You've been listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio, brought to you
by Curiosity Entertainment, where we believe all great stories begin
with Curiosity. If you enjoy today's show, make sure you
hit subscribe on whatever platform you're listening to us on
and check out our YouTube at Curiosity Storyteller Studio for
(47:39):
behind the scenes and extra clips and tricks from all
our different guests. We want to make sure that we
get to know who you are, so make sure to
say a quick hello so we can keep growing with
this community. Thank you for tuning in. We look forward
to sharing our next story with you.
Speaker 5 (47:58):
Check out radio dot com for our full schedule and
listen to past episodes, available on all major podcast platforms.
This is a Drusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Mikhale Hi.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Hello, take me back to this moment. It's twenty fourteen.
You're in India. You just booked and produced one of
the top artists, Major Laser, on a national headline tour.
It's ten days before the concert's supposed to kick off.
You get a call from Diplow and he says.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
What, Yeah, let's shot a music video. Bro. Yeah, while
we're in India. He's like, can we get a castle?
Can we get elephants? Can we get this? Can we
get that?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
How old are you at this point?
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Twenty three?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Twenty three?
Speaker 4 (00:41):
Sometimes I look back at that person and I'm like,
how did you not die?
Speaker 2 (00:46):
I know that feeling.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Welcome to Curiosity Entertainment's Storyteller Studio. My name is a
Drusha and I create and write movies, music and television.
Each week, join me and my tea as we talk
to the world's greatest storytellers in pursuit of the answer
to the question where do the best stories come from? Now,
(01:08):
let me introduce you to today's guest. How do some
stories go viral? Captivating billions of viewers globally today on
Curiosity Storyteller Studio, we explored that phenomenon with Mikaale Mahera.
Mikale has directed and produced dozens of music videos, commercials,
and most recently has ventured into feature films. In this episode,
(01:29):
McHale shares stories from his filmmaking journey from Mumbai, where
he studied astrophysics before his passion for storytelling propelled them
to film school in San Francisco. We covered the EDM
movement's beginnings, the story of how he brought the first
concert experiences to ever fuse live music innovative video content
to the world, and also Michail wrote a culturally inspired
(01:50):
screenplay that our company, Curiosity Entertainment, helped develop that is being.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
Executive produced by dip Blow.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
Get the story behind our story join us as we
delve into how McHale continues to push the boundaries of
storytelling in music videos, commercials and his upcoming feature films.
Discover the secrets behind his visionary work, and how he
crafts stories that continue to captivate million on Curiosities Storyteller Studio.
(02:16):
This episode was brought to you in partnership with Little
Black Tucks. Little Black Tucks is my go to when
I need a timeless look, whether I'm speaking on a
film panel, walking a red carpet, or need a bold,
sophisticated look.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
For a photoshoot.
Speaker 1 (02:31):
Little Black Tucks has me covered. Little Black Tucks isn't
just a clothing company. They're a company with a story,
a strong why, and you know I love a good story.
They're breaking boundaries and creating clothing that empowers women with versatile,
upscale options. I love my Little Black Tucks and I
know you will too, So what's that feeling? Then you
(02:52):
get a call. You've had some experience, you've done some
music videos that we're going to get into and share
with everyone. But in that moment, you get this call
from Diplo. He's like, I want elephants, I want dancers,
I want a music video in ten days. And you say,
no problem.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
Yeah. I mean, first of all, I'm like, let's go right.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
I think that's how I kind of get myself in
a little bit of trouble is because I'm getting better
at it. But obviously this is not something I could
say no to. But I also want to make everything happen. Sure,
you know, I want everything to happen in the best
possible way. And then so I'll often and some people
say yes, and then they fuck up and then they're like, oh,
by the way, connect cursor.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
Yeah you can curse tremendous.
Speaker 4 (03:35):
And uh, you know, some people fuck up and I'm
just like, I'll die before I do that, Like the
mission must be complete.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, me too.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
So he says, let's go, you film this video. Let's
talk specifically about this video, because what happened next was
a viral sensation. You hit almost two point seven billion excuse.
Speaker 3 (03:59):
Me, three point five sorry.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Three point five billion views with this music video, and
it catapulted you onto a completely different level than you
had been before.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
So you're there. You put together this beautiful music video.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
It's full of culture, it's got the mixed the mixing
of just you know, traditional dance with these crazy beats,
and it's out of the box of what anybody's done.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Tell me how you.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
Put this together, what your visualization of the process was,
how you you conceptualized it as a twenty three year
old who's just been given the chance of a lifetime.
Speaker 4 (04:39):
Yeah, I mean it's interesting because first of all, I
was in the eye of the storm, already producing three
music like massive ten thousand person concerts in three different
cities in one weekend with like Major Laser, who come
with twenty people from America. So I'm dealing with like immigration, government,
taxis permits. There's no infrastructure that them in India for concerts,
(05:02):
so you literally have an empty field and then you
build everything from scratch.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
So it's like I'm dealing with all this.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
I have Viacom, who's like very tense with me at
all times because.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
Like we gave you money right and and they're like.
Speaker 4 (05:16):
A full fledged strategic investor slash partner, and I'm like,
all your content sucks. I'm making everything, so I'm also
making the commercials, the digital content like and and also
I'm like I'm actually sitting there like editing it, directing it.
So all this is going on, and then uh, you know,
Wes is like, yo, let's do a music video.
Speaker 3 (05:36):
And I'm like, for all of.
Speaker 1 (05:37):
You listening, Wes is Diplo's Diplo's.
Speaker 4 (05:40):
Name, I know Wes and uh yeah, So when he
hits me, I'm like, dude, I've been waiting for this,
you know.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
I'm like, yeah, I'm ready, let's go.
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Okay, so let's let's bring everybody back before the three
point five billion views. Yeah, you're talking about a mentality
and a pro to life that's just it has no
fear in it, and you are taking chances of a
very young adult who is now in this world. So
(06:14):
let's lay some foundation for everyone. You were born in Mumbai,
You're born in India? And when do you move or
to the United States?
Speaker 2 (06:23):
How old are you.
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Right after I turn eighteen two thousand and nine. I'm
in San Francisco. Never been to America before.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
Okay, so let's take a step back to India because
I know, like I spent part of my childhood in
India too. For you, what was that influence.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
And what was it like? How many siblings do you have?
Speaker 3 (06:42):
I'm an only child.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
You're an only child, So you're an only child growing
up in Mumbai. What are the things that are affecting
your desire to eventually grow into storytelling?
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Well?
Speaker 4 (06:58):
I remember always just having completely outlandish schemes and plans
for my life. Like I think when I was a kid,
I was obsessed with wrestling WWF, which is not cool apparently,
but whatever, you know, shout out stone cold Steve Austin,
and I wanted.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
To be a wrestler. Yeah, that's great, you know.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
And then I wanted to be an Olympic ice skater.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
I think you could have done it.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
I could have done it.
Speaker 3 (07:26):
I've seen your move very precise, you know.
Speaker 4 (07:31):
Then you know, I had a small stint where I
was about to become a professional snooker player.
Speaker 3 (07:36):
Oh wow, age was nine to twelve. Yeah, I was
really good.
Speaker 4 (07:40):
You know, I was like eleven years old, beating like
fifty year old dudes.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
You have snooker?
Speaker 3 (07:44):
Snooker?
Speaker 2 (07:45):
Can you for those do those who didn't grow up
in India? Can you explain snooker?
Speaker 4 (07:50):
It's like a pool table, but it's three times the size.
It's far more difficult. It's called like a point system.
You have to wear slacks and a vest, and the
only people who play are like old dudes.
Speaker 2 (08:02):
Gambler, you're your a nine year old snooker player.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
I'm nine years old.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
Oh it's great.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
Yeah, because my dad used to play when he was
young and he had real potential, but then he went
down the gambling path and you know, the screwing around path,
and he wanted to start me young.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
And I remember there was a club we used to
go to.
Speaker 4 (08:19):
All the clubs in the city had an age limit
under eighty and you can't get in.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
But our club had a height limit. And my dad's like, put.
Speaker 4 (08:26):
On some shoes, standing on your tippy toes, we're going in.
And I just like stood up and like barely made
the line, and then I was in.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
You're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio on Ruckus Avenue Radio.
We'll be back after these messages with more from music
video director, writer and screenwriter Mikhail Mahara.
Speaker 5 (08:49):
You're listening to Ruckus Avenue Radio, available now on the
free iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
My name's Andrusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio
and Ruckus Avenue Radio. Now more from our guests, music
video director, screenwriter and writer Michail Mehera. So, I'm sure
being around so many adults as a kid, and just
you know, watching your dad take these chances, learning how
(09:19):
to win, that had something to do with kind of
this mentality.
Speaker 4 (09:23):
Yeah, I would say, Actually, my mom is brazen. I've
seen her operate my whole life, like she can just
bend rooms and people in.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Worlds to her will. She's fearless. And then my dad
is very like professional and smooth and like just a
smooth operator. Like every time he walks into any establishment,
everybody's like, you know, everybody's like, oh, what's you know?
Speaker 4 (09:46):
You know what I mean, Oh, here's your table. It's
a little good fella's vibe. So and he's so professional
and so buttoned up that actually when I like, I
would email in back in the day and I would
write like how I learned from observing my dad, right,
And then people would meet me and be like, oh,
you're not forty, dude, I'm just like some twenty two
(10:07):
year old kid, but like I am, I kind of
by osmosis, you know, kind of got that kind of professionalized,
button up aspect from my dad, and then I kind
of got the fearlessness from my mom.
Speaker 2 (10:21):
I actually relate to that a lot.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
Coming from the product of Indian parents who are very
highly educated, you just kind of learn early on how
to stand on your own feet and how to communicate
with others. You say that you fell in love with
this idea of filmmaking and then that brought you to
film school in San Francisco. So what is this moment
(10:46):
where because tell us a little bit you were going
to be an astrophysicist or study astrophysics, which I'm sure
was well, tell us what that was about. And then
where this moment where you were like, actually I'm going
to go to film school.
Speaker 4 (11:01):
Well it's actually I can pinpoint the moment. Well, growing
up in India, you either did commerce or science. Sure
there was no third thing.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Art class was a free period where we just fucked around. Yeah,
art was like for.
Speaker 4 (11:13):
The losers or excuse me for you know, as as
they say in India, the gone cases. You know, so
it wasn't even a consideration. I even still like people
call me an artist or something. I still find it
more technical and crafty than like artistry. And but yeah,
(11:34):
so I don't know. I ended up after scheme five.
I'm like, all right, I'm gonna be an astrophysicist, purely
because I think I was going through a lot of
existential angst about like trying to understand the universe. And
you know, my family is fairly philosophical, and I just
you know, had the basic existential questions about why, you know,
(11:56):
where did we come from?
Speaker 3 (11:57):
What is humanity?
Speaker 2 (11:58):
Curiosity?
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Yuriosity? Maybe that's why I were such good friends. And yeah,
I remember I'm like, all right, I'm gonna do astrophysics,
and everybody was like, we're not saying you're dumb, but astrophysics.
Speaker 2 (12:13):
Like maybe be a chef, that's funny.
Speaker 4 (12:18):
And I remember, like I had a tutor and I
was trying to learn like these abstract, insane, mathematically laced
physics stuff and I was bored out of my mind.
I couldn't even grasp it, to be frank, and I
would escape by watching films.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Movies.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
Yeah, for me, movies became a way to kind of
also understand the cultural the two different cultures that I
was growing up in. And you know, that world of
storytelling was something that transported me and I also really
resonate with Like as a kid, I wanted to be
an Olympic ice skater. Then I wanted to be an
Olympic gymnast, and then I wanted to be an astronaut,
(12:55):
and then I wanted to be And it was that
curiosity about how all these different vantage points and views
and lives would be to lead that led me into storytelling.
Speaker 3 (13:07):
Yeah, and I.
Speaker 4 (13:08):
Think you I think you grew up partly in America,
mainly your formative views.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
Yeah, I went to school in India twice, so when
I was in nine years old, I ended up going
to school in India and then again as a teenager.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
So I went.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
But we spent every summer, every winter, every other summer,
every other winter there, So I spent a lot of
time there. And it did Watching how so many people
grow up without anything and still managed to be happy
really helped me understand imagination and the fact that you know,
everything is not.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
Material interesting because so you had I don't want to
say the luxury, but you had these like dialectical or
switching vantage points.
Speaker 5 (13:51):
Yes.
Speaker 4 (13:52):
So then you also had questions of identity, yes, which
I guess you started reconciling through art and cinema.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Yes, yes, So you tell me now the moment that
you were like I'm going to go to film.
Speaker 4 (14:04):
School, I had been expelled from boarding school.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (14:09):
I went to a lot of different schools. I got
expelled from boarding school. My parents were just like, you're done.
You're just garbage. You're a garbage person. And I was
to be I mean, listen, I was mischievous. I wasn't
like bad or maybe I was arguable, but I was
not doing anything. I remember I used to go play
poker at friends' houses and just play home games.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
And you know, just floating through life.
Speaker 4 (14:36):
And I had had this desire to do filmmaking, but
I wasn't really acting on it.
Speaker 3 (14:41):
And it's so funny.
Speaker 4 (14:42):
My parents tell me now that they like reverse psychology
tricked me to going to America where they're like.
Speaker 3 (14:48):
We're not sending you. You're like, you're just gonna waste money.
Speaker 4 (14:52):
And then I'm like, no, wait, I'm gonna go, and
to that I'm not an idiot, and like they kind
of reverse engineered me and say we're not You're not
even we're not even sending you anywhere, you know, like
just be here. It's fine, like go get a job
or something like you can't just sit here, like go
get a job. And then it's funny, I'm like, no,
I'm going, And then yeah, that was there. That was
(15:15):
the moment where I just started looking up schools on
the internet and I found like a trade school and
an art school in San Francisco.
Speaker 3 (15:21):
That I wanted to go to. USC I wanted to
go to U c.
Speaker 5 (15:25):
L A.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
But I didn't have the grades.
Speaker 4 (15:26):
I didn't have the transcripts I'd been expelled, like they
weren't going to take me.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
So you end up in San Francisco and now you
fall into the underground like rave scene. In terms of
how that built your worldview when you when you started
telling stories and you picked up a camera, what is
it about that rave scene and the family and the
(15:53):
visuals and et cetera. How has that affected the way
that you direct and the way that you see visuals
and the way you appro which to your first music videos.
Speaker 4 (16:02):
I mean it had a huge influence. One was because
you know, first of all, I didn't have a camera.
I had a buddy shout out George Quist, who was
a skateboarder.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
And he would.
Speaker 4 (16:16):
His camera to take into like sketchy Oakland warehouse Draves.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
That's a good friend, great.
Speaker 3 (16:22):
Great friend.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
He let me, he let you know, he lent that
to me, and I would just film like crazy, like
I would.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
You know.
Speaker 4 (16:35):
It's funny because when I was in art school, I
had an editing teacher, Bars Zubov. He was a great guy,
and he taught us like really classical language of editing
and how to do things in like a very classic Hollywood,
you know, studio style of editing. Like this is how
you organize your bins and your footage and like da
da da da. So I was really applying concepts that
(16:56):
I was learning from Boris in like a sweaty Oakland
rave where there was a thirty chance I'd get stabbed.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
I'm sure that gought you how to think on your
feet and and let's talk a little bit about the
work that came after that. You're listening to Curiosity Storyteller
Studio on ukis Abnu Radio. We'll be back after these
messages with more from music video director, writer and screenwriter
(17:24):
Michale Mahara.
Speaker 6 (17:26):
You're listening to Ruckus Avenue Radio.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
My Name's and Drusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller
Studio and ruck Ass Avenue Radio. Now more from our guests,
music video director, screenwriter and writer Michale Mahera. Right, So
you've made music videos with of course Major Laser and
with Diplo, but also you did a great piece with
(17:55):
I think It's Otnus who ah that for her for
the Hercules video for Disney when they did the big
theme song. Yeah, you've done work with Soulja Boy, Oregon City,
Delaney James Speechless or Milwaukee. You just got back from
Africa from shooting a video with them and another one
with Diplo. So this body of work that you've kind
(18:16):
of created artists like Scrillis and Benga major laser, what
is for you when you're working on collaborations with all
these different artists. How do you make room for whatever
their stylist. I've watched all your music videos and they're
(18:36):
very different from piece to piece. You're obviously taking in
a lot from those artists. How do you understand them
better as an artist? And then how does that play
into the way you create visuals.
Speaker 4 (18:48):
Very early on, I made a decision because I edited
all my own shit, so I'm an editor, so I
have to listen to the song like a million times.
So very early I made this decision with myself that
I'm only going to work with music and people that
I actually like. I'm not going to just chase stuff
for the sake of it. And I had got this
guidance also from just being around these artists, you know,
(19:11):
that was how they moved. I was always learning from
just being around them via osmosis. So so already I'm
already only working with people who I look up to
who or who whose work.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
I really enjoy.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
That's beautiful.
Speaker 4 (19:25):
Yeah, and I've been kind of lucky in that sense
that I've I've got the opportunity to keep doing this.
It's very rare that I, you know, I'm doing something
that I don't like.
Speaker 2 (19:35):
M So when you're you're okay.
Speaker 1 (19:37):
So now you're going on to do a video with
Soljia boy, what is your prep? Can you walk us
through that? Like? Because each of these artists are very different,
So how are you getting into their mind frame to
create something for them?
Speaker 3 (19:50):
Well, it's interesting.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
The Soldier The Soldier Boy one is is U is
a claimation music video.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
Yeah, I was gonna ask you about it.
Speaker 4 (19:58):
So it actually I started off this collaboration with a
gentleman named Sam Barnett. So a few years prior, a
good friend of mine, Grand Theft, who's a great producer,
a musician, DJ H he's a good friend of mine,
and he sent me his song you know, and and
he sent me the album art and the album art
(20:19):
was him in.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
Made of sushi, Made of sushi. So there's this artist
on the.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
Internet who takes like famous people and remakes them in sushi.
So he sent me this album art and he's like, dude,
let's do a music like let's finally do a music video, right,
And I'm like, hell, let's go, let's go. And I
see that sushi and I'm like, that's the video. We
have to remake the Sushi Guy.
Speaker 3 (20:45):
We don't.
Speaker 4 (20:45):
I don't want to do anything else. I want to
remake Sushi Guy. And I want him to go on
an adventure. And Aaron grand Theft was like, how you know,
like how like what? Like how do we even do this?
And I've been a fan of Claymation since I was
watching Wallace and Grommett.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
Do you ever watch Waason Grammt?
Speaker 1 (21:03):
By the way, like how beautiful and nerdy? I watched
all your clamation stuff. I have so many questions about it,
but finish your story.
Speaker 4 (21:10):
Yeah, But like I grew up watching Wallace and Grommt. Yeah,
and I loved Wallace and Grommitt so much. And it's
even looking back, it feels they were like one hundred episodes,
but they were like three, you know. And so I'm like,
all right, this is going to be my homage to
Wallace and Grommit. And that's kind of my process before
every music video is like, I think about what's best
(21:31):
for the piece. And also I don't like doing the
same thing.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
Again, you know.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
I very that very apparent.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Yeah, I'm very like, I don't like doing the same
thing again at all. It has to be I have
to be in some way progressing, you know. And so
I'm like, all right, Clamation don't know anything about Clamation
terrible with my hands, you know. I can't really do
anything with my hands except play snooker, and Dennis can't draw. Uh,
(22:02):
So I'm like, all right, So then the the idea
is Wallace and grammet Clamation Sushi Adventure.
Speaker 3 (22:09):
And then I had found this guy on Reddit who
had made like an on reddit.
Speaker 4 (22:13):
On Reddit, there was just a post on Reddit about
this guy who made a sci fi clamation show, and
I'm like, please be in lie please. And then I've
tracked down his email and I could tell he's like
a very intellectual, artistic guy.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
You know. And I'm like, he might look at me
and be like, who's this asshole? You know?
Speaker 4 (22:32):
So I wrote him like a very nice note and
I said I would love to work with you da
da da da, and like he agreed to meet me
for coffee, and then we met for coffee and then
I think he's like, all right, this guy's not an asshole,
so you know.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
So I as la meetings go.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
Yeah, you know, I'm sure you thought the same, so
you know.
Speaker 4 (22:53):
And then and then I made a treatment about the
Stu Sushi that go on adventures, fall in love and
then they die because my aim was to make people
cry at the end of the video. And yeah, that's
kind of how that project, the Clamation project, came about.
Speaker 1 (23:10):
Okay, So I want to ask you some specific questions
about clamation and animation some of the modems that you are,
modes that you used to tell your storytelling with.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
But before I do that, I just.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Want for everyone listening, I'm sure your story. You're a
boy from Mumbai, you move out here for college, you
end up in San Francisco, you fall in love with
rave music. Okay, but I just named a bunch of
really big artists. Can you bridge that gap for us?
How did you end up with all these artists and
working for them at such a young age.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
So, I mean I dropped out of college very quickly
because I started working. I think it was also a
consequence of electronic music was still in the underground and
it was a very small community, small community community, but
it was like a very small world.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
And there were only like three of us making videos.
You know.
Speaker 4 (24:04):
There was me, there was this guy called Iwax. There
were like there were like three people making videos. And
because you know, there was no Instagram. Yeah, also there
was no Instagram, you know, and and there were three
of us making these videos. And and I guess I
just you know, you become friends, you see each other around,
and then we're all kind of rising the together.
Speaker 5 (24:27):
This.
Speaker 4 (24:27):
Yeah, the music started getting kind of this global acclaim.
First of course West Coast. Then we saw it kind
of start moved to New York and so the thing
was just rising. And I think I just happened to
be there.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
Hmm.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
Okay, so let's go specifically then, actually have one more question.
Growing up with Indian parents, My parents were actually very
supportive of my pursuent arts, but there was a double
entendre of like and also have a back plan. And
I think that's very common in first generation kids, children
(25:06):
of immigrants, immigrants themselves, et cetera, especially from that region.
You're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio on ruck As Avenue Radio.
We'll be back after these messages with more from music
video director, writer and screenwriter Michale Mahera.
Speaker 5 (25:26):
Check out Ruckus Avenue Radio dot com for our full
schedule and listen to past episodes available on all major
podcast platforms.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
My name's Adrusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio
and Ruckus Avenue Radio. Now more from our guests, music
video director, screenwriter and writer Michael Mahera.
Speaker 2 (25:52):
Who was or.
Speaker 1 (25:55):
Was anyone standing next to you being like this is
a great idea, Migil go to Indian Film Media like
over they worried is this? Like did you have a
support system as you were building this storytelling life.
Speaker 4 (26:10):
I think my parents were always very supportive in that
they were like, just do what you love, what makes
you happy. And I also think the bar for me
was so low, like there was no expectations for me
to do anything that once they saw, like, you know,
once they saw that I started getting some traction, and
(26:35):
you know, they were like, okay, he's at least doing something,
you know, And and I told them, listen, I'm gonna
drop out of college. I'm already working. I've got like
a book of clients. You know, people are actually paying
me money to do this.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
I've got a plan.
Speaker 4 (26:52):
Yeah, I've got a plan. Well, I sold it as
a gap year, a year. I sold it as a
gap year, like a year off.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
But my parents were like, yeah it go like go
do it.
Speaker 2 (27:01):
That's great.
Speaker 4 (27:02):
But everybody else was like backup land, Beta, backup land.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
That degree, that idea.
Speaker 3 (27:08):
Yeah, everybody else was like, this is absurd.
Speaker 1 (27:11):
My mom's backup plans stopped when she saw my name
on my first movie. Then I had never heard about backup.
Speaker 3 (27:17):
Yeah. Once again, it's funny.
Speaker 4 (27:19):
I was similar experience. It took a very long time
for that to happen. I think when I did a
video at Shara Khan, my parents were like, okay, okay,
you're not dumb.
Speaker 1 (27:28):
I actually was going to ask you about the video
with Shara Khan. So specifically, you coming from a very
international background, bridged a lot of cultures, and a lot
of your work your bridging cultures, and you've got you
just got back from doing a music video in Africa
zerb Milwaukee, and I watched it and it's full of
(27:50):
African dancers, African culture. The ones that you did shot
in India were full of Indian culture. Shara Khan of
course is a legend in Bollywood, and this music collaboration
comes up where you can do a music video with
him and Diplo, How did that come about? And tell
me more importantly, I think because we want to be
(28:10):
very very we want to be very inquisitive on how
it informed, you know, the way you shape those stories.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
You got this music video where.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
The two of them are in Spain and they're doing
their thing. When you're looking across cultural collaborations, like how.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
I guess how native is that to you?
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Just to naturally do that and what goes into really
understanding how these two cultures should be represented.
Speaker 4 (28:43):
Yeah, I think I have like a very strong internal
instrument or you know, I have ideas, very strong ideas
about how something should be.
Speaker 3 (28:55):
Now, whether they're.
Speaker 4 (28:56):
Good ideas or bad ideas, the world will often me
very quickly that's a terrible idea. But you know, so
I already have like a I want to do this
right because because I think taste is very important. Sure,
but I also had friends, like I had an old
college friend Ian then even like Wes Diplo, like I
(29:19):
actually learned. I think he's kind of the king of
like building cultural Bridges, you know. And I remember when
he came to India or even when we're discussing like
creative stuff. I knew him much before he came to India,
you know, because I was like, I'm gonna take.
Speaker 3 (29:33):
You to India one day and he's like, ha okay,
we'll see you know.
Speaker 4 (29:38):
It's funny I met him because I was interviewing him
in twenty ten. I saw that interview, yeah, and it
was supposed to be like five fifteen minutes and it
was like an hour, you know, and the magazine gave
me like questions ask and I threw him in the bin.
Speaker 3 (29:51):
I'm like, who killed JFK. Let's go, you know.
Speaker 4 (29:55):
But so when he he would just point at things
in India and be like.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
Dude, that's so sick. Look at that. That's so sick.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
And I'll be like, you saw it with new eyes.
Speaker 3 (30:04):
I saw it with new eyes.
Speaker 4 (30:05):
I'm like, wait, that's that's so cool. Wait what and
he's like, dude, look at that. And I remember, like
my friend Ian would also point at things and be like, dude,
that's so you know, look how cool that is. And
he'd point at like, you know, Indian cultural elements which
I had completely tuned out, you know, so I kind.
Speaker 3 (30:22):
Of learned from them.
Speaker 4 (30:24):
I'm like, oh, wait a minute, this is actually all
really cool.
Speaker 3 (30:29):
And then you know, that's where it kind of started
for me.
Speaker 1 (30:31):
It's a brand new perspective looking through someone else's eyes.
I'm sure that really changed the way that you shaped.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
A lot of your stories. Yeah, I would love to know.
Speaker 1 (30:39):
Let's go back into animation and claymation. You know, I
have some familiarity because I work in the industry, but
I think that for listeners just understanding what the differences
directing something that's live action versus animation and claimation, which
is done frame by frame. What is the difference in process?
(31:01):
Are you literally you're taping stopping tape?
Speaker 2 (31:04):
Tell us?
Speaker 4 (31:05):
So I give you an example, like we do something
like a Milwaukee music video in one day, lean On
in two days. That clamation video was forty seven days.
Speaker 3 (31:14):
You know, so.
Speaker 4 (31:15):
Already, already you're in a completely different world. I would say,
it's just a logistical challenge. It's always logistics, you know.
I feel like eighty percent. I think it was an
Aronofsky quote where he said, like ninety percent of my
job is navigating bureaucracy, like the ten percent is actually
the creative. So with the Clamation, it was really about like,
(31:39):
all right, we have a budget. Clamation shit is usually
like a bazillion dollars, so we're working within constraints to
like create a story that doesn't feel like it's been constrained.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
And yeah, is it shot by shot? Like tell me?
Speaker 4 (31:54):
Yeah, so Sam, actually we came up with the story
together and then Sam actually built everything in his house.
You know, he's not using clay, he's using silicone, So
he's actually all those they're called puppets, they're all real
and they all exist, and it is frame by frame
(32:14):
by frame select.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
So you're shooting, you're stopping, he's moving the puppet, you're
shooting again. And then and you edited those so then
in editing process you were stringing them all together. And
same with animation, right, same with the I know you
did add animation for for Catalina the Whale Mixer, the
Web three project that came out. I watched that animation.
Same with animation, it's each each shot. And then storyboarding
(32:39):
for that is that you're because you're not you're a
self proclaimed non artist. Are you storyboard storyboarding?
Speaker 4 (32:46):
When you did the enemy Oh absolutely so so shooting
ratiow basically, let's just say you usually shoot more than
you need and then you edit it down. So let's
just say you shoot double of what you need. Your
shooting race was wanted to do for the Grand Theft video.
Our shooting ratio was one is to one, so we
had zero margin for error. So everything that we filmed
(33:08):
had to go in the video. So it was like
storyboarded mega precise, and then I always try to insert mechanism,
buffer mechanism, so I put like a couple of clips in.
Speaker 3 (33:21):
There that I knew could like buy me some room.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
Why why clamation? Just because of Wallace and Gromit.
Speaker 4 (33:27):
I looked at the sushi and I'm like, this has
this has to be clamation.
Speaker 3 (33:33):
What was your animation thing?
Speaker 1 (33:35):
Oh, I haven't done animation. I just am aware of
how animation is shot. I've actually never worked in clamation,
never worked in animation. That's why I wanted to ask
the question, because when I look at your body of work,
that's the first thing that hits my storytelling min. I'm like,
oh man, that looks like it was a million hours
of editing. It looks painful. I don't know how he
did it.
Speaker 3 (33:54):
It really was. It took like forever.
Speaker 4 (33:57):
But honestly, sometimes people ask me, that's like my favorite
thing I think I've made. Yeah, I think that acclamation videos.
Speaker 1 (34:04):
Well, it shows your real talent, both as an editor
and as a director. There's a lot of work that
goes into it. Not a lot of people, not a
lot of people take it on. You're listening to Curiosity
Storyteller Studio on Ruckus Avenue Radio. We'll be back after
these messages with more from music video director, writer and
screenwriter Mikail Mahara.
Speaker 6 (34:26):
Check out Ruckus Avenue Radio dot com for our full
schedule and listen to our past episodes available on all
major podcast platforms.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
My name is Andrusha and you're listening to Curiosity Storyteller
Studio and Ruckuss Avenue Radio.
Speaker 2 (34:46):
Now more from our.
Speaker 1 (34:47):
Guests, music video director, screenwriter and writer Michail Mahera. I've
noticed a lot of your music videos and I want
to talk a little bit about your film work. That
you have these really big dance segments. What is it
about dance as a storyteller that you always seem to incorporate,
(35:09):
like really great ethnic dancers from all around the world
doing these great cross cultural pieces, and I love those moments.
You have these like epic moments in your film, in
your music videos, and that not everyone does, by the way,
because they're hard to coordinate, they're hard to choreograph, they're
hard to you got to get all those dancers there.
Speaker 2 (35:27):
So what is it about dance and your storytelling that
you feel is so important?
Speaker 3 (35:31):
Well, I think it's again it's a product of the material. Right.
Speaker 4 (35:34):
For lead On, Wes was like, I want to do
a big like homage to Bollywood, right, So it was
what the material called for. With Wacky, it was kind
of the same thing. We wanted to go to Kenya.
We wanted scale. And also I think I've done music
videos where I've tried to do narrative story because you know,
(35:54):
we're all directors, we all want to make movies. Yeah,
so a lot of times, you know, in my when
I was younger, I always trying to inject narrative, Like
I'm like, oh, I have a movie idea, how do
I squeeze it into this music video? And I realize
after a point to stop doing that and just make
it what's best for the material, you know, because if
(36:16):
someone wants to watch a story. They can go on
Netflix or HBO and watch like a one of your
one of your TV shows where it's like long form
and it's narrative.
Speaker 3 (36:25):
When I'm on YouTube, I don't want to focus. I
just want like a like a visual treat.
Speaker 1 (36:30):
Sure, let's talk a little bit about that, because you're
moving now, and you have moved both in the writing
capacity but also as a filmmaker from short form.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
And the thing about.
Speaker 1 (36:41):
Music videos is that they like they have to be
so succinct and keep your attention and you're really making
a lot happen in a very little amount of time.
So what's that muscle like changing now to creating these
full scripts. We have a script together, so we've helped
develop together called Black Gold, and you know that is
(37:01):
a big action comedy and it's a full movie. Right,
So for you as a creative that muscle, what is
the difference and what is that transition and what are
the difficult parts or easy parts? Tell us a little
bit about that process of the creative.
Speaker 4 (37:19):
Well, I always feel like it all comes from the
same place, you know, even when I did the music festivals,
I'm like, I can run a set, I can produce
a festival, like you know what I mean, It's like
also it felt congruent.
Speaker 3 (37:34):
So it's always coming.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
Even when I like redline a contract, it's the same
space that all that is coming from, you know, which
is probably why I shouldn't be redlining my contract. But
it all kind of comes from the same source inside,
so it's just then it just becomes about mechanically executing
the formatting. Yeah, it's the formatting. It's like, what are
(37:56):
the parameters? So I will say writing though, it took
me a good thing to four years like of that draft.
I mean, you've been there with me for you know,
a substantial part of the journey. But like that, my
first draft was unreadable. It was complete nonsense, you know,
because I had never written a script before.
Speaker 3 (38:16):
And I'm like, I.
Speaker 4 (38:16):
Watched a lot of movies. I'm kind of smart, like
I can just write a movie. And it was like, no,
you can't, Like you know, it's like I had to
get the reps in and it took me a good
three to four years of like like thirty drafts of
that script before someone like a diplo was like, Okay,
this is fire, I'll make this.
Speaker 1 (38:36):
So when you're going through draft after draft or draft?
Were the tricks that you use to keep that storytelling
fresh and to not get you know, I write scriptcreen
plays as well, and I know sometimes we'll get to
a point me and my writing partner where we just
get stuck and then it's frustrating and like the idea
of going back to page one and refixing stuff is
(38:59):
just untenable because now we're gonna have to go through
and fix the whole thing from beginning to end. So
what is uh like for people who are listening who
need to craft their story, have a story in them
that needs to get out? What what trips or to
our trips that tips or tricks have you found to
just kind of tackling that so that the best version
(39:21):
comes out of you.
Speaker 3 (39:22):
You know, it's it's funny and and because.
Speaker 4 (39:25):
What you outlined is but it's outlined what you outlined is.
You know, it's a common problem like where a good
idea turns into a curse.
Speaker 3 (39:35):
Where you're like, right, yeah, we know halfway through actually
you're like, but what if this happened?
Speaker 4 (39:41):
And then you're like, oh, I have that idea, Now
I have to go rerrite the whole thing.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
From the day for page one.
Speaker 3 (39:47):
Yeah, you know what was really? You know what was really?
Speaker 4 (39:52):
What's the word I'm looking for, not validating, but like
comforting for me? Was I read a lot of biographies
and autobiographies of writers, directors, right, And I remember I
read Steven Soderbergh's autobiography and he's literally like it's like
his diary, and he's like, I'm in San Francisco, I'm
in a hotel room. I'm supposed to stem the studio
(40:14):
nine pages of this script by tomorrow. I should really
do that. Let me go check my emails for three hours,
you know. So I'm like, yo, Steven is still doing
this after, you know, being a legendary filmmaker and making
so many great films. I'm like, oh, wait a minute,
It's normal to feel that way, you know where He's like,
(40:35):
He's like, I don't want to, you know, and we
all have we all are there.
Speaker 2 (40:39):
None of us have it figured all the way out.
Speaker 4 (40:41):
Yeah, And it's like, you know, listen, some writers wake
up at like eight am and they write to like
five and then they like go for a jog, and and.
Speaker 3 (40:50):
I wish I could do that.
Speaker 4 (40:51):
Maybe I can do that, Like it's always validating to
hear the stories of like Steven Soderbergh or you know,
I remember watching some interview with Tailor share In where
he's like, he couldn't figure something out and he just
drove for six hours. You know, so when you watched,
when you hear of these giants also deal with these
same frustrations and issues and self doubt, and then you're like, oh,
(41:13):
they're human, They're just kind of you know, it's like, Okay,
this is normal. It's supposed to suck, it's supposed to
be difficult.
Speaker 1 (41:21):
Yeah, and you're writing, you know, I just want to
tap back into this worldview because I love that artists
both write, and we have the freedom to write the
things we've experienced but also things that we haven't experienced.
And when you've written characters, you've written characters that are
South Asian but are out of the box like you are.
(41:44):
And I would love to like how important in where
we are in film and television right now is that
to you being being part of that voice and that
voice that you and I are in many ways trying
to make sure is represented.
Speaker 3 (42:00):
I mean, to be very frank, I'm quite agnostic to it.
Speaker 4 (42:05):
I just you know, I liked that story and there
was lots of me in that story, and it just
all came about naturally. And I think when you just
do that, like it automatically, all that good stuff happens.
I get that, you know, So I didn't start out
going like I also thought like I also you know,
(42:26):
you also have to think a little bit from a
sales perspective also, and I was like, ooh, a story
like this about these characters that go here would be
so fucking cool.
Speaker 3 (42:36):
You know, when have you seen this happen?
Speaker 4 (42:38):
And you know, like when Waki happened in Africa, I
wasn't like thinking about, you know, trying to elevate X
or elevate elevate why because I don't think it's my
job to do that. But once the project came about,
I was like, okay, this has to be done in
a certain manner.
Speaker 1 (42:56):
By the way, like the visuals in the Walkie video,
you just can after such beautiful, beautiful parts of Africa.
What a like weird blessing to have such an incredible
natural landscape for some of these things. I know how
limiting music video budgets can be, and you really, I
(43:17):
mean that thing looks so expensive just because how beautiful
Africa is.
Speaker 3 (43:20):
It really is, and I was processed.
Speaker 4 (43:23):
I was going through that same thought process of when
Wes landed in India with me and he was like,
look at that.
Speaker 3 (43:28):
Look how sick that is?
Speaker 4 (43:30):
Like look, and he had been to India before and
like spend a lot of time. But when I got
to Africa, I was like.
Speaker 3 (43:36):
Wait, look at that. That's one of the most beautiful
things I've ever seen in my life. Let's go there.
Speaker 4 (43:42):
And you know, luckily, Jake Udell, who believed in me
to do the project, trusted me. Him and his brother
Alec were like, we trust you.
Speaker 2 (43:50):
That's great.
Speaker 3 (43:51):
Yeah, so I'm at least lucky people usually trust me.
Speaker 2 (43:55):
I don't know if that's luck.
Speaker 1 (43:56):
I think that's a combination of who you are as
what your favorite drink was before we started this episode,
and you you answered black Label Rocks with a touch
of water. What does that drink.
Speaker 2 (44:09):
Mean to you?
Speaker 3 (44:11):
It's a classic Indian Uncle drink.
Speaker 4 (44:13):
Yeah, you know, and I've been having this drink since
I don't know for like, I don't know as far
back as I can remember.
Speaker 2 (44:22):
And you ungles love that black Label rocks.
Speaker 3 (44:26):
Excuse me and what's your good name? What's your sname?
Speaker 2 (44:31):
My father drinks it all the time. My surname.
Speaker 3 (44:34):
Don't get into this, okay, okay, Oh, so good people.
Speaker 1 (44:40):
I would love to talk to you a little bit
more about some of your other favorite things. This is
a section where we go through a rapid fire that
kind of defines you as a character. It's our look
into who Mikael is as a character, and it starts
with that black label on the rocks. Okay, first thing
that comes to mind? Ready, when I say the word
at home?
Speaker 3 (45:00):
What do you think of Los Angeles?
Speaker 2 (45:02):
When I say the word heaven?
Speaker 3 (45:03):
What do you think of family?
Speaker 2 (45:05):
When I say the word hell? What do you think
of fire?
Speaker 3 (45:08):
Fire?
Speaker 2 (45:10):
That's a visual storyteller, are you? What is the food
that you find most comforting?
Speaker 3 (45:15):
Butter chicken with cheese nons?
Speaker 2 (45:17):
What's that about?
Speaker 4 (45:18):
It's just a Mumbai dish, butter chicken. It's it's just
a classic and it's so comforting.
Speaker 1 (45:24):
You're making me so hungry. What sound makes you smile?
Speaker 3 (45:28):
Laughter?
Speaker 2 (45:29):
How do you define love?
Speaker 3 (45:32):
Understanding?
Speaker 2 (45:33):
How do you define success?
Speaker 3 (45:35):
Lots of money? Now, I think just being able to
do what you want to do?
Speaker 2 (45:41):
How do you define failure.
Speaker 3 (45:44):
Lots of money. No, failure is relative.
Speaker 2 (45:49):
Michael. Do you believe in magic?
Speaker 3 (45:51):
Absolutely not.
Speaker 2 (45:54):
That's about right. Second chances.
Speaker 3 (45:56):
Oh, so many people have given me so many second
and third chances. How can I not?
Speaker 2 (46:01):
How about love at first sight?
Speaker 3 (46:03):
Being burned before?
Speaker 1 (46:05):
So that's a yes, without considering time, ability or money
as an obstacle. If you could do anything or experience
anything in the world, what would it be, learn anything,
do anything, experience anything.
Speaker 3 (46:21):
I feel like I'm lucky. I'm kind of doing what
I want to do.
Speaker 2 (46:24):
That's a beautiful answer.
Speaker 1 (46:27):
Who or what would you like to create a story
for or about in the future?
Speaker 3 (46:33):
Grandparents, grandparents?
Speaker 6 (46:35):
That's beautiful.
Speaker 2 (46:36):
What word best describes you as a storyteller?
Speaker 3 (46:40):
Unique?
Speaker 2 (46:41):
Hmm?
Speaker 3 (46:41):
What inspires I also shop at uniclo send me jackets.
Speaker 1 (46:48):
What inspires or drives you?
Speaker 3 (46:53):
What inspires me? The fear of failure?
Speaker 2 (46:55):
Hmmm, Michael, what is your favorite story?
Speaker 4 (47:03):
My favorite story is the story that you and I
are writing about our lives right now.
Speaker 2 (47:08):
Ah.
Speaker 1 (47:10):
I love that the story of our lives. Michael, thank
you so much for being with us on Storyteller Studio today.
Speaker 3 (47:15):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (47:17):
We love you.
Speaker 3 (47:18):
I love you.
Speaker 1 (47:19):
You've been listening to Curiosity Storyteller Studio, brought to you
by Curiosity Entertainment, where we believe all great stories begin
with Curiosity. If you enjoy today's show, make sure you
hit subscribe on whatever platform you're listening to us on
and check out our YouTube at Curiosity Storyteller Studio for
(47:39):
behind the scenes and extra clips and tricks from all
our different guests. We want to make sure that we
get to know who you are, so make sure to
say a quick hello so we can keep growing with
this community. Thank you for tuning in. We look forward
to sharing our next story with you.
Speaker 5 (47:58):
Check out radio dot com for our full schedule and
listen to past episodes, available on all major podcast platforms.
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