"Eleven Minutes"
BEHIND THE SCENES
by Tim Nasson
February 10, 2009
Watch "Eleven Minutes" Trailer
Q&A with Co-Directors, Michael Selditch & Rob Tate*
First, a statement from "Eleven Minutes" codirectors Rob Tate and Michael Selditch:
"In 2006 we made a one-off TV special on Jay McCarroll for Bravo called “Project Jay.” ELEVEN MINUTES picks up where that story ends. The goal of this new documentary was to drop the pretenses of reality TV and focus on the work—the daily trials of designing a line of clothing, putting together a fashion show and selling the line to stores. All this is told in strict verité through the eyes of the articulate and entertaining Jay McCarroll, whose experience exposes us not only to the inner workings of the fashion industry and his love/hate relationship to it, but the creative process in general. The result is a down-and-dirty “Unzipped” with more work and less glamour."
Are you fans of TV’s “Project Runway” (and/or its spin-offs “Project Runway Canada” and “Project Catwalk”)?
Yes, we have been big fans of the series since season one, before we met Jay. Sadly, we’ve never seen Project Catwalk. Bravo should air the show from other countries!
How did you come to know “Project Runway” winner Jay McCarroll? Was it difficult to convince him to participate in the documentary after his experience on a hit show and all that goes along with that... was he wary of sharing his life with cameras again?
We met Jay after being hired by Bravo to make “Project Jay,” an hour special on their first winner. After directing quite a bit of non-scripted television, we found it refreshing to document a person who spoke his mind freely, regardless of whether the camera was rolling or not. Jay's blend of creativity and insecurity is not only compelling and entertaining, but very relatable to many struggling artists. The three of us became good friends, and when Jay told us his plans to show at Fashion Week and create his first independent line, it was a no-brainer to continue to document him on our own.
Was it difficult to convince him?
Hell no; Jay and the camera are good pals.
Do you think that the audience’s previous familiarity with Jay sets up a different expectation or atypical relationship between subject and audience?
Good question. We wanted this film to exist on its own, apart from “Project Runway”, and we hope to introduce Jay to a whole new audience. I think “Project Runway” fans will see this film in a certain light – perhaps as a sequel to “Project Jay” – but we purposefully dropped the pretences of a reality show (narration-driven scenes, staged scenes for camera, manufactured conflict) to help the audience see him in a decidedly different light. Arguably, people who are NOT familiar with Jay may enjoy the film more inasmuch as they will not have any pre-conceived notions as to who he is and how stories like his are usually told.
How do you respond to reality TV snobs, who might dismiss this film as fodder for a Project Runway extras DVD?
We hope the reality-TV snobs you speak of see this film! In some ways, they’re our perfect audience! This film is a social critique on the reality-show influence on popular culture. So many people treat Jay as if he were somehow created in the “Project Runway Laboratory” in the basement of Rockefeller Center. Just because the public was introduced to him on a particular TV show doesn’t mean he should be eternally shackled to it. He’s a fashion designer, and was one before any cameras ever rolled. This film is about his work.
Jay McCarroll – annoying or enigmatic? Can you explain Jay’s appeal?
Both. He is a walking contradiction. He is terribly talented, yet wonderfully insecure. He can be unsympathetic; he can be sensitive. Any artist can relate to his struggle of art vs. commerce. And all the while, he is fabulously funny. How could you not love him?
His main appeal comes from the fact that he refuses to play the game. Whether that helps or hurts him (or both) is the subject of this film.
ELEVEN MINUTES is a process-driven film: the behind-the-scenes process of creating a collection, the planning of a documentary film, the process of manufacturing clothes, of organizing a show, the process of “selling-out” etc. Was this always your intent -- to be self-reflexive and transformative, revealing processes rather than just results/outcomes?
Yes, this was exactly our intent and we are thrilled that many people recognize and appreciate this. All art forms rely on a process -- from acting to architecture, the journey is not apparent from seeing the end results; and how better to document the intensity of the process than with a documentary! Actually, we almost called the film The Process. Then we thought that might be a tad dry.
The film makes savvy use of the documentary genre, showing a reality star who takes control of his personae and reclaims agency over his image and his life. How much input did Jay have in the filming process?
Jay, Rob and I all agreed from the start that the focus of this film should be the process, and about Jay establishing himself in the fashion world [beyond “Project Runway”]. Therefore, Jay was involved in our decisions about when and what to shoot. To that end, he had little to do with what actually made it to the screen. We did not want this to be a feature-length commercial for Jay McCarroll Enterprises. It says a lot that a person feels comfortable having his deepest insecurities shown in such a public forum.
Is ELEVEN MINUTES a reaction to reality TV? What is your take on the role/relationship between documentary film and reality TV (kissing cousins, unfriendly neighbors)?
Yes, ELEVEN MINUTES is a reaction to reality TV and the challenge that so-called reality "stars" face after their series is over. “Project Runway” contestants are in a different category because they have a specific talent and career goal, unlike reality "stars" that are famous for eating bugs or winning a date with a millionaire.
For me, the BIG difference between reality TV and documentary is that reality TV is manufactured -- and I do not mean that in a bad way. The rules and circumstances of manipulation are acknowledged and embraced by the producers. No one claims that the events in these shows would actually happen in real life without the show's existence. With ELEVEN MINUTES, we were documenting actual events that were taking place anyway -- in spite of the presence of cameras, not for them.
Both documentary and reality TV can co-exist peacefully, but I do hope audiences can be discerning about the differences. A goal of ours was to have this film hold a mirror to reality TV. One of my favorite sequences is when we’re asking Jay if the foreboding sales agent said anything valid in his critique of Jay’s line, and Jay reluctantly replies, “Yes [he] had many valid things to say.” Then Jay turns right to the camera and says, “THAT’s the line you’re going to use.” And it was the line we used! A reality show would have left off that last comment. That’s Realty TV vs. Actuality.
* The directors sat together during the interview, so it is up to you to guess who said what during the interview.
