by Chaos Angel » Fri Nov 29, 2002 10:53 pm
The best way to see Kevin's videos is to search for them on P2P networks, to answer the question no one else has answered yet.
Now, for the rest of it.
I'm like you, I came into the AMV community and heard about Kevin Caldwell. I heard soooo much hype about how great, fanatastic, marvelous, incredbile, wonderful, majestic, abso-fucking-lutely GORGEOUS his talents and abilities are as an editor. I downloaded some of his videos for myself. I love Engel, Believe, and Caffiene Encomium (I think most people would agree that they are well-made videos), and I also managed to get Media Vita in Morte Sumus, Sleep Now, and Goldeneye (never did see Beautiful Life or Phantom of the Opera). Media and Sleep struck me as well-editted videos, but they did not hold my attention. Goldeneye, I LOATHED the song and i could not stand to watch more than 15 seconds of the video. It takes a lot to make me like a video if I can't STAND the song, and that didn't do it for me.
Over time, I began to analyze people's opinions on Kevin as I encountered them, and I've formed this opinion of him.
He was an editor. He was a person who made music videos as a hobby. He was an editor who knew how to create a solid concept and framework for his videos. He knew how to plan, he knew how to put it all together to achieve the affect he wanted, and most importantly, he was creative. He had good ideas and he realized them effectively. His ingenuity and abilities showed in the works he created. The reason he is so much of a legend is essentially the same reason people believe Elvis is still alive. Elvis was a man of talent who vanished into a life of hermitude. Similarly, Kevin Caldwell was an editor of both talent and ingenuity who apparently dropped off of the face of the earth. I would surmise that one of two possibilities is the reason he is no longer creating AMVs or even participating in panel discussions, etc.
(1) He simply got sick of it and decided to pursue something more meaningful and/or interesting to him. In which case, good for him. Why should he remain if he hates it? (I've never been a believer of the "You owe the fans" philosophy that states you should continue to make yourself miserable just to appease the people who enjoy your work. If you hate the hobby, don't do it anymore. Simple.)
(2) He wanted to leave on a high note rather than when people began to critique his work, saying it was inferior to his older ones, etc. He decided to leave on his own terms, and not when he felt like he just couldn't do it as well anymore. If so, great. Nothing wrong with leaving when it's still fun rather than when you are just so sick of it that you are forced to quit because you physically can't stand it anymore.
Whatever his reasons, it is his sudden dissappearence rather than his talents that make him such a legend. He was talented, damn good at what he did, but he is remembered as much for the air of mystery surrounding him as his talents. Hell, there are editors working today that are just as talented, if not more so, than Kevin Caldwell. KC just has an air of mystery around him because so many people know his name while not knowing him. Justin Emerson, Ian Roberts, William Milberry, Elizabeth "EK" Kirkendall, Hsien Lee, Meri Cantoni, Duane Johnson, and many more of the more well-known editors, they are just as talented as Kevin Caldwell is reputed to be, maybe more so, but they do not have that air of mystery around them. KC made a few showings, earned a rep, then dropped off of the face of the planet. Think about how many rock stars are remembered because their careers were cut short in their prime, for whatever reason, while the one's that stayed with it are, many times, remembered and revered for their older works while their newer ones are labeled inferior. Same principle. Most likely, he decided to leave before he got labeled a has-been. Nothing special or mysterious about it. He just quit.
I imagine it is very true that he refuses to come back because of the expectations that would be placed upon him. Hell, that may well be why he quit. No one likes having expectations and the pressure to one-up yourself thrust upon them. Hell, that's why William Milberry, the editor I consider my biggest inspiration and my role model, nearly quit. The pressure to constantly top your previous works got to him despite his love of what he does, and does so very well.
This is all pretty much just my own opinion and should be taken with a grain of salt.
BTW, xstylus, thanks for all of the info. Although, I must say, why Kevin would enter Believe as an action video, I dunno. It's a drama video if it's anything, in my book. It isn't an action video at all, I don't think. Oh, well.