Thirty Seconds to Mars just came out with a star-studded documentary video for the most personal song "City of Angels," the second single off the rock band's fourth album, "Love Lust Faith + Dreams." Directed by frontman Jared Leto, who is known for his epic short films-come-music-videos, but this one is a bit more restrained when it comes to special effects and visuals. Instead, it relies on interviews with stars, L.A. residents and celebrity impersonators to provide the story, intercut with sweeping images of Leto and Co. singing on California rooftops against a setting sun.
Though the song title references the nickname of Los Angeles, Leto explained that it focuses on the two brothers' dreams of making it in Los Angeles. The pair also discussed the video itself, as well as the band's relationship with their devoted supporters. "It could refer to any place where you go to fulfill your dreams, he added, "That was a very personal song, obviously, about a specific place: Los Angeles. But it could be... well, when I was a younger kid, it was New York City. That was the place where I went to make my dreams come true, at that time to be a painter, an artist. But it could be Paris, it could be Shanghai, it could be San Francisco, Palo Alto, anywhere. A place where you go to realize yourself and your dreams."
It was christened "The City of Angels," but Los Angeles, for the thousands of stars and would-be stars who arrive there every year is also a place of dreams, broken dreams, and plenty of nightmares. In total the mini-movie spans more than 11 minutes, Leto evokes some pretty dramatic statements from these celebrities who getting emotional while recounting their experience. The video is billed as a "Bartholomew Cubbins Film" but, and he borrowed the name from a Dr. Seuss book so people would not picture him when they read the name.
Helmed by Leto himself, who told Rolling Stone, "I made up the story that he's some insanely obnoxious Danish albino," under his Bartholomew Cubbins alter ego, the clip combines footage of the band performing the song and shots of the impactful Hollywood icons, as they speak to the camera about their thoughts, experiences and address very mixed emotions about the entertainment capital in candid interviews and recall their own journeys to the storied city.
Though the song title references the nickname of Los Angeles, Leto explained that it focuses on the two brothers' dreams of making it in Los Angeles. The pair also discussed the video itself, as well as the band's relationship with their devoted supporters. "It could refer to any place where you go to fulfill your dreams, he added, "That was a very personal song, obviously, about a specific place: Los Angeles. But it could be... well, when I was a younger kid, it was New York City. That was the place where I went to make my dreams come true, at that time to be a painter, an artist. But it could be Paris, it could be Shanghai, it could be San Francisco, Palo Alto, anywhere. A place where you go to realize yourself and your dreams."
It was christened "The City of Angels," but Los Angeles, for the thousands of stars and would-be stars who arrive there every year is also a place of dreams, broken dreams, and plenty of nightmares. In total the mini-movie spans more than 11 minutes, Leto evokes some pretty dramatic statements from these celebrities who getting emotional while recounting their experience. The video is billed as a "Bartholomew Cubbins Film" but, and he borrowed the name from a Dr. Seuss book so people would not picture him when they read the name.
Helmed by Leto himself, who told Rolling Stone, "I made up the story that he's some insanely obnoxious Danish albino," under his Bartholomew Cubbins alter ego, the clip combines footage of the band performing the song and shots of the impactful Hollywood icons, as they speak to the camera about their thoughts, experiences and address very mixed emotions about the entertainment capital in candid interviews and recall their own journeys to the storied city.
