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"Closing Time" became one of the defining music videos of the late 1990s because it paired an emotionally resonant song with an inventive visual concept that rewarded repeat viewing. Written by Semisonic’s Dan Wilson and directed by Chris Applebaum for MCA Records, the video helped propel the band’s breakout hit into heavy rotation on MTV while reinforcing the song's themes of timing, missed connections, endings, and new beginnings.
In this episode, I sit down with Dan and Chris to talk about the conversations and conditions under which the two met and how Dan’s reaction to the idea piqued his interest in working with Chris. We also reveal a little-known secret to the listener -including Dan - as to why the record label ultimately chose Chris- instead one of 4 or 5 other directors - to make it. We then do a deep dive. Chris talks about how what was supposed to a one-night shoot evolved into two and how the record label tried to prevent the crew from shooting a second day. Dan elaborates on how he became vested in the execution of the idea on the set. Among other stories revealed in the episode, is how Dan Wilson, Semisonic, Chris Applebaum and the entire crew in the early morning hours in a rundown neighborhood in downtown LA, found out…as everyone watched…whether the one-take idea worked. It’s a great story…we hope you join us to find out too.
At first glance, the video appears to tell a simple story: Dan Wilson performs with Semisonic shot by Chris in an empty business space in downtown LA transformed into a rehearsal studio. while a young woman finishes her shift at a café before both head toward the same nightclub. They spend the entire video in real time, trying to connect, only to narrowly miss each other at the end.
Dan and Chris talk about the video's real innovation…the screen divided vertically into two synchronized continuous shots as the two featured characters appear to cross from one side of the frame to the other. Dan explains what it took to work with the timing…moving from one world to the other and back and the choreography needed to film in an uninterrupted single take..