A-ha! Mash-Up Master Gives Videos Literal Makeover

When the music video for "Take On Me" by Norwegian band a-ha was getting heavy rotation on MTV in the mid-'80s, its mix of animation and live action seemed like a breakthrough.

Today, most video breakthroughs arrive by way of the Internet - and a humorous reinvention of the "Take On Me" video has been getting a lot of clicks in recent months.

It is the first of three "Literal Videos" from Dustin McLean, a 28-year-old filmmaker and musician from Pasadena, Calif.

McLean, who works as assistant director for Current TV's animated comedy "SuperNews," has rescored clips by Tears for Fears and the Red Hot Chili Peppers as well. All three videos combine the original, unaltered footage with a karaoke backing track and new vocals that literally describe whatever is happening onscreen.

For example, when an animated version of a-ha's singer steps behind a "magic frame" to enter the world of live action, his original lyrics are replaced by the lines, "When I stand here, it makes me human; I'm handsome either way." Later, as helmeted thugs chase singer Morten Harket and his new love interest through a maze of animated hallways, they exchange threats about a looming "pipe wrench fight."

The idea for "Literal Videos" sprang from a workplace gag - when "SuperNews" writer Jonah Ray and lead animator Steve Olson started singing along with old videos on YouTube, inventing new lyrics to boost the silly factor.

"I'm always doing fun side video projects in my free time ... including a few parodies," McLean says, "so it just seemed like an obvious choice for me to try some out."

His first target, "Take on Me," was "both iconic and great, but a bit cheesy and dated as well, and it lent itself to the literal video treatment."

His follow-up, based on the video for "Head Over Heels" by Tears for Fears, took the concept to an even cheesier place. Set in a library, the 1985 video featured a levitating singer, a man in a gas mask, a rabbi and a chimpanzee. "Check out my cool new sweater," singer Roland Orzabal now belts out (with vocals supplied by McLean and friends). "Do you like my mullet? Business in front, party in back."

In the literal version of "Under the Bridge" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Anthony Kiedis seems to summarize his pop-culture image: "Sometimes I sing under lights that are purple; Sometimes I'm shirtless and I tilt my head."

McLean's videos have inspired plenty of imitators, which does not bother him in the slightest.

"I think it's fantastic," he says. "I especially like the video of this kid playing an acoustic guitar and singing my version of 'Take On Me'!"

Despite the popularity of McLean's video mash-ups, he has not heard from any of the artists he has skewered.

"I'd be interested to know what they think," he says. "Certainly, any publicity for a-ha could only be a good thing at this point, right? So hopefully they like it and know it was done all in fun."

To see McLean's "Literal Videos," along with his other short films and animations, go to www.dustfilms.com.