Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Taylor Swift Video Director Recalls Kanye West's 2009 VMA Rant

'It was almost like watching someone kick a kitten,' Roman White tells MTV News.By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Matt Elias





Kanye West and Taylor Swift at the 2009 VMAs

Photo: Jeff Kravitz/ FilmMagic




It's the moment that still has everyone talking a year later. Who could forget when Kanye West stormed the stage during Taylor Swift's VMA acceptance speech to say Beyoncé should have won the Moonman for Best Female Video? Of course, since then, both West and Swift have moved on, releasing new music this summer to excited fans.
As the 2010 Video Music Awards roll around — where West is set to perform and Swift is nominated for Best Female Video yet again — her "You Belong With Me" director recalled how he felt during that defining moment.

"I was literally sitting in a dark hole in front of a computer working on [the 2010 VMA-nominated vide for] 'Fifteen,' and then people started calling me, and my thought was, 'This has got to be some kind of joke,' " Roman White told MTV News. "But then I saw her and saw how she was reacting, and then I knew it wasn't a joke. She's very poised, but she's also very sweet. It was almost like watching someone kick a kitten. I felt really bad for her, I really did, but at the end, it was really insanely cool what Beyoncé did [bringing Swift back onstage when she won Video of the Year]. I went and watched it and was just shocked."
This time around, Swift and White are being recognized for their effects-heavy clip for "Fifteen." White said having the chance to win another Moonman this year is awesome.
"A lot of work goes into every video, but this video especially," he said. "I mean, if you watch just the offline edit of this video, it's just green. It's just Taylor walking around a giant green screen. And to think that every single thing in that video was created is amazing, 'cause a lot of people worked really hard on it.
"We'd literally be locked in a room for days straight without going home, without anything, trying to get this perfect," he said of the video. "It's really nice that it got nominated, and I'm extremely happy for Taylor. I think the video is way different from the others in the category. I think they're all amazing videos, but this one looks completely different."
Swift and White will go up against Lady Gaga for "Bad Romance" and her collaboration with Beyoncé "Video Phone," Ke$ha for "Tik Tok" and Katy Perry's "California Gurls."
"We literally just finished shooting 'Mine,' " White said of when he and Swift found out about their latest nomination. "And we exchanged texts and stuff like that. So, what's not to be excited about?"
Do you think Swift will upset the competition and win Best Female Video again? Let us know in the comments!
The 27th annual MTV Video Music Awards will be broadcast live from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, September 12, at 9 p.m. ET. Fans can go to VMA.MTV.com (or text VMA to 97979 if they are Verizon subscribers) to vote for the winners in general categories, including Best New Artist, from now through September 12.



Related Artists


Taylor Swift


Kanye West

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