Epic EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Christopher Dane Owens!!!

See other posts in the "Chris Dane Owens" series.

Chris Dane Owens was kind enough to answer some of our questions. SHINE ON!!!

-Epic Mail (EM) In your interview with the L.A. Times, you hint at an imagined world that goes far beyond what is actually shown in the video. Is this a world of your imagining, and if not, from where does this universe come from?

-CDO It is very inspired by some of the amazing films we have seen in the last decade or so "Braveheart", LOTR, "Last Of The Mohicans" Also, I love Anime, and that factored in as well. When Bob Short and I got together early on for the project, we both knew what we wanted the video to look like, and Bob was fantastic at taking us through the steps to get to our end result. We had an amazing team also. My editor/producer Jennifer Barlowe has incredible talent at story, colorizing, and over all pacing. We are all very impressed with her..


-EM We did some research, and found that you actually are an accomplished film maker. With your film career, I'm sure you made many connections. The video for "Shine On Me" is itself, visually stunning. Can you explore your connections with the film industry and how you have used those connections to benefit your music career?

-CDO Yeah, I sort of grew up in and around production in Hollywood. My dad and brother are some of the hardest working people I know. Also, lots of my friends produce, write, direct, or work in some capacity in entertainment. So my rolodex is pretty full of wildly talented people. As I assembled my team, all of our various Dept Heads for the shoot really came together well. No egos, just really cool people having fun running around the forest shooting this crazy music video.

-EM The days of the classic MTV Music Video appear to be in the past. With traditional music videos not having the same impact as they did 10 years ago, what was your motivation to make a truly epic music video?

-CDO I think because I am a producer as well, this was the only way I wanted to do a music video. The idea of me doing a conventional performance video really didn't interest me. I wanted to take risks and jump into something I had never done before. Also, it is very important to me that the audience to see how much I care about this story and how important it is that it come off a certain way. I spent literally months on this one… It's my baby…

-EM Can you say something about the cast of "Shine"? Did you cast friends and acquaintances, or people you know from the film industry?

-CDO We actually had open casting for the female roles and I feel so blessed that we found the talented ladies that we did. For my sense of it, they fit perfectly with the vision I had in mind. I had met my Co-star Ciel Post in a casting session for some Scandinavian commercials that fellow Shine producer Jay Schulz was doing and I thought her look and charisma were perfect to play Arra..

-EM What films/books informed the "Shine" video? Where did you get your conceptual inspiration?

-CDO I went through a period of buying really obscure Russian fairy tales on DVD, like The Snow Queen for example. And even though they are older and the production value is not at today's standards, they had a charm that was undeniable to me. But modern projects like Final Fantasy/ Advent Children, Howl's Moving Castle, and Nausica, all played a part in putting together the puzzle.

-EM Why do you think the "Shine" video has proved to be such a major internet sensation?

-CDO G4 did a fun piece on it and the LA Times writer by Charlie Amter was great too. It seems to be on quite a few sites right now, with lots of doors opening in the last week alone, so it gives me good hope about the future of our saga.. I think the video itself is fun to watch. Perhaps people find it engaging because of the romance, the action, and the spiritual elements.. It's hard for me to say why people like it.

There will be quite a bit more action in the next one.. I promise…

-EM Why the "Shine on Me" song with the "Shine on Me" video?

-CDO I think it was the story within the lyrics of that song that really made me want to do SHINE as the video. Lots of my other tracks are more aggressive musically and might have fit better. But I like the honesty of the song we chose, and it completely fits with the accompanying imagery..

-EM What are your touring plans?

-CDO For now, I am finishing the album. Then I will shift into the next mode. I suspect it will be all about Asia first.. I think the "Shine On Me" song and video will be up on Itunes in a few weeks, and then shortly after the CD will be available. We will also have a High res letterboxed version of the video included on the record. Lots of people have been requesting this so we are happy that we can get it out there.

-EM Can we expect more videos in the future?

-CDO YES!!! With some luck there will be lots of adventures ahead… Stay tuned, we'll have more swords, more danger, more love, and more fireworks!!!