One of the great things about the popularity of DVD as a collector’s format is that we’re starting to see a lot of projects that would never have been released on VHS. One of the projects that I’m extremely glad to see is the Directors Label series. The Directors Label highlights the work of filmmakers who have pushed the boundaries of music videos and filmmaking. The first three editions of the series focuses on music video pioneers Spike Jonze, Chris Cunningham and Michel Gondry.

Each volume is jam-packed with music videos, short films, documentaries and other peripheral work. The packaging is outstanding, right up there with the Criterion Collection. Each disk is packaged in a thick case made of clear plastic. The cases are thick enough to indicate there are at least two discs inside. Instead of an extra disc, however, the label has made the wise (and very cool) decision of including a thick 52 page book. The books features interviews, sketches and storyboards from the directors.

The Work of Director: Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze is easily the most well-known of this initial bunch of directors. Looking at this work as a whole, it’s interesting to see how conceptual it is. It’s also surprising how much of it is shot on video rather than film. Spike stays true to his skateboarding roots and isn’t afraid to keep things lo-fi.

The music video highlights of Spikes disc include the selections from Fatboy Slim, the Beastie Boys “Sabotage” and the Pharcyde video “Drop.” Rounding out the videos are a slew of short films, rarities and documentaries. There are two great documentaries on this disc, Sunrise in Amarilla, about teenage bullriders and a mockumentary about the Torrance Community Dance troupe preparing for their performance on the MTV music video awards.

The Work of Director: Chris Cunningham
Chris Cunningham may not be a household name, but he is legendary among fans of weird and disturbing ***censored***. Cunningham began his career as a special effects artist before he got the itch to direct. He transferred is obsessive attention to detail and skill for bizarre imagery to the music video genre.

Of the three directors mentioned here, Cunningham has the smallest body of work. But it is totally understandable given the amazing level of quality and difficulty on display here. Cunninghan’s most famous video is probably the incredibly disturbing video for “Come to Daddy” by Aphex Twin. Most of his videos are dark and filled with subtle special effects and optical illusions. The production value and high quality imagery blows away big-budget Hollywood films. My particular favorite on this disc is the video for Bjork’s “All is Full of Love” which depicts a surprisingly erotic love scene between two robots.

The Work of Director: Michel Gondry
Michel Gondry has been at this a lot longer than Jonze or Cunningham and this results in the most jam-packed disc of the bunch. Gondry’s disc features 27 music videos, 13 short films, commercials and oddities and a brand new 75-minute documentary. The Gondry collection is all over the map, but he’s clearly some kind of genius.

Gondry has directed videos for everyone from Cibo Matto to the White Stripes to the Rolling Stones, but he is probably most famous for his collaborations with Bjork. Gondry’s videos are so complicated and elaborately choreographed that they would be headache-inducing if they weren’t so much fun to watch. The highlights of this disc are “Sugar Water” by Cibo Matto and “Bachelorette” by Bjork. The extra features range the gamut from Levis’ commercials with multi-million dollar budgets to improvised short films including one starring David Cross as a walking piece of poo.

In closing, I could go on and on about how glad I am to see these collections released on DVD. The fact that the price is so reasonable and the production values are so high is just an added bonus. Each one of these directors have done substantial and important work that truly has pushed the boundaries of music videos and motion pictures. Each of these discs (as with any anthology) have their highs and lows. But the highpoints are very high and even the worst selections are still interesting. If you are a film student, avid cinephile or serious music fan, each one of these is a must-own.

Buy the whole set!

Rent it on-line at Netflix!