Take a sufÂfiÂcientÂly long road trip across AmerÂiÂca, and you’re bound to encounter someÂthing or someÂone LynchiÂan. Whether or not that idea lay behind InterÂview Project, the underÂtakÂing had the endorseÂment of David Lynch himÂself. Not coinÂciÂdenÂtalÂly, it was conÂceived by his son Austin, who along with filmÂmakÂer Jason S. (known for the docÂuÂmenÂtary David Lynch: The Art Life), drove 20,000 miles through the U.S. in search of what it’s temptÂing to call the real AmerÂiÂca, a nation popÂuÂlatÂed by colÂorÂful, someÂtimes desÂperÂate, often unconÂvenÂtionÂalÂly eloÂquent charÂacÂters, 121 of whom InterÂview Project finds passÂing the day in bars, workÂing at stores, or just sitÂting on the roadÂside.
ProÂfilÂing David Lynch in the nineties, David FosÂter WalÂlace observed that “a good 65 perÂcent of the peoÂple in metÂroÂpolÂiÂtan bus terÂmiÂnals between the hours of midÂnight and 6 A.M. tend to qualÂiÂfy as LynchiÂan figÂures — grotesque, enfeeÂbled, flamÂboyÂantÂly unapÂpealÂing, freightÂed with a woe out of all proÂporÂtion to eviÂdent cirÂcumÂstances.”
InterÂview Project sticks to small-town or rurÂal setÂtings — Camp Hill, PennÂsylÂvaÂnia; Pigeon Forge, TenÂnessee; Tuba City, AriÂzona — but still encounÂters peoÂple who may at first glance strike viewÂers as disÂturbÂing, menÂacÂing, sadÂdenÂing, forÂbidÂding, or some comÂbiÂnaÂtion thereÂof. But they all have comÂpelling stoÂries to tell, and can do so withÂin five minÂutes.
Being the subÂject of an InterÂview Project video requires a degree of forthÂright openÂness that those who’ve spent their lives in the U.S. may not recÂogÂnize as charÂacÂterÂisÂtiÂcalÂly AmerÂiÂcan. Though often beset by a host of crises, ailÂments, and grievÂances (imposed from withÂout or withÂin), they don’t hesÂiÂtate to assert themÂselves and their worldÂviews. Though there’s obviÂous curiosÂiÂty valÂue in all these eccenÂtric conÂvicÂtions, regionÂal twangs, and someÂtimes harÂrowÂing misÂforÂtunes, what emerges above all from these interÂviews is an impresÂsive resilience. Young or old, coherÂent or othÂerÂwise, with or withÂout a place to live, these peoÂple all come off as surÂvivors.
When InterÂview Project first went online in 2009, it wasÂn’t viewÂable on Youtube. Now, for its fifÂteenth anniverÂsary, all of its videos have been uploaded to that platÂform, and in high defÂiÂnÂiÂtion at that. Seen in this new conÂtext, InterÂview Project looks like an antecedent to cerÂtain Youtube chanÂnels that have risen to popÂuÂlarÂiÂty in the decade and a half since: Soft White UnderÂbelÂly, for instance, which devotes itself to interÂvieÂwees at the extreme marÂgins of sociÂety. ExtremÂiÂty isn’t the sigÂnal charÂacÂterÂisÂtic of InterÂview Project’s subÂjects, depart draÂmatÂiÂcalÂly though their expeÂriÂences may from the modÂern midÂdle-class temÂplate. One could pity how short their lives fall of the “AmerÂiÂcan Dream” — or one could conÂsidÂer the posÂsiÂbilÂiÂty that they’re all livÂing that dream in their own way.
RelatÂed ConÂtent:
A Brief HisÂtoÂry of the Great AmerÂiÂcan Road Trip
Real InterÂviews with PeoÂple Who Lived in the 1800s
What Makes a David Lynch Film LynchiÂan: A Video Essay
David Lynch TeachÂes You to Cook His Quinoa Recipe in a Strange, SurÂreÂalÂist Video
Based in Seoul, ColÂin Marshall writes and broadÂcasts on cities, lanÂguage, and culÂture. His projects include the SubÂstack newsletÂter Books on Cities and the book The StateÂless City: a Walk through 21st-CenÂtuÂry Los AngeÂles. FolÂlow him on TwitÂter at @colinmarshall or on FaceÂbook.
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