We’ve thoroughly combed through every Staff Pick video from February and one film that really stood out was that of Grammy-award-winning director Joseph Kahn. Rarely does a fan film outshine its source material, but Joseph’s “Power/Rangers” does just that. In adapting a television series geared for kids, and re-imagining it for an adult audience, the short film explores the aftermath of being a mighty morphin power ranger, and it is oh so fun to watch.
Growing up in the MTV TRL era, where it felt like every music video I saw was directed by Joseph, the opportunity to reach out and ask him a few questions seemed too great to pass by. As luck would have it, Joseph is a totally gracious guy and was happy to chat.
What kind of research into the source material did you have to do in order to pull off a fan film like “Power/Rangers?” Did you grow up with the show or did you instead have to sit down with the show’s DVD box set and take notes?
I was too old for the show when it came out in 1993. I was already shooting gangster rap videos in Texas, trying not to get stabbed. I never watched an episode yet, on a freaky level, I kind of knew a lot about it, and I have no idea how I knew. Somehow through cultural osmosis I knew all the basic characters and plot details. If you think about it, that’s really, really weird. I wasn’t a fan but I wasn’t unfamiliar, and when it came to writing the short, it was just a matter of watching snippets of episodes, cross-referencing various fan websites, and picking the brains of some of my younger friends to turn myself into the man-child standing before you today.
As someone who is already established and who has worked on massive projects, what attracted you to work in the short-film format and release work for free online?
I spend most of my career being very patient, very political, and working with clients to achieve their needs to the best of my ability. For that, I am compensated very well. Then I have all this money and what am I going to do with it? Buy a yacht? Screw that. What am I in the business for? To buy yachts? I just want to make cool shit, and I want to make things I want to see. You know how someone just shoots something for fun and puts it on Vimeo for shits and giggles? Well I do the same thing, just with the advantage of my day job. And this is not only my job, it’s also my hobby, and I love it. As for the give-it-out-for-free aspect of it, whatever. I just wanted to make it, watch it, and share it.
When it comes to making films and distributing them for free, what is your take on the sci-fi proof-of-concept genre and their effectiveness as feature-film pitches?
I don’t know about their effectiveness; I’m not a producer. I’m as outside as anyone from the studio system at this point in my life, but I love short films and there’s a lot of cool stuff out there. I’m always impressed by some girl who spent a year just working by herself on a project slaving away on Maya and After Effects just because she had to complete her vision. And if she shows true skill and craft, I think that short is a great way to prove to someone to give her a shot at something bigger. Take a shot. Put your sweat and tears out there. I respect that.
Describe the rollercoaster ride of being the toast of the Internet. Did you think this film would make the impact that it did?
Hell no. It was done for fun. I am honored you people stopped watching cat videos for a minute to see what we did. Meow.
”Power/Rangers” came across as a realistic depiction of the original show, without the violence and and consequences whitewashed out. What is your stance on shows that are violent in nature being packaged and targeted toward kids?
I’m all for cartoon violence because kids think on a slapstick level. It’s the human version of when puppies bite each other but not too hard in order to gauge the acceptable pressure of their jaws. Child laughter at violence is the collective tribal learning process of finding the limitations to physicality. When they laugh at something getting hurt, that’s code for kids acknowledging the irony of the event. Puppy bites. However, when you make adult content that should be an R and then tone it down for a PG-13 rating by hacking the system, then I have a problem with it. For instance, they take the blood out of gunshots to retain a PG-13, which just seems dangerous to me.
As most know, “Power/Rangers” ran into copyright issues shortly after it was released. Were you prepared for it? How were you able to resolve the issues?
We did it under parody and fair use. We figured we were protected and the law would support us. Also, Adi’s fearless, maybe a bit insane (OK, a lot insane). He was ready to go to court. Both Adi and I are immigrants to America. We love American values like free speech, especially when you have strict Asian parents who don’t.
Anyway we didn’t resolve it. The Internet did.
That’s awesome. The fact that big-name directors such as yourself upload videos alongside aspiring filmmakers on open platforms like Vimeo is another amazing part of the Internet. Can you think of any Vimeo videos you enjoyed recently? Are there any directors that release work online that you admire?
I dropped out of film school after a year because I couldn’t afford it, but a place like Vimeo feels like we are all collectively going to film school together for free. I learn more from short-form work than I do from mainstream movies these days. There are actual ideas at play and people trying to push things. It definitely inspired me to make “Power/Rangers.”
I’m going to refrain from singling out specific works or people I like on Vimeo as a courtesy to filmmakers, because I know what it feels like as a younger filmmaker when someone professional lists a bunch of work they admire but doesn’t list mine. It feels like I got snubbed and it would discourage me. I got bummed so many times when I was younger that a list would happen by a respected professional and I wasn’t part of it. Filmmakers are neurotic. I will just assure you I watch A LOT of stuff, love much of it, and I think the Vimeo community is the greatest thing to happen to filmmakers in a long time. Especially with all the nudity. Add more nudity, kids.
And even with that political answer, I know I'm still going to be called a dick.
To conclude, are there other properties that you think would be fun to give the “Power/Rangers” treatment to?
Justin Bieber.
