The Breakout Music Video of the Year Has a Message for Men. What Is It?
Damien Jalet, the choreographer behind the viral video for Gener8ion’s “Storm,” explains his process.
On April 18, the previously obscure collaboration between French electronic musician Surkin and French filmmaker Romain Gavras, "Storm," by Gener8ion, became a breakout music video of the year. The video features 30-year-old Swedish rapper Yung Lean, looking furious, as he takes the stage at the MTV Video Music Awards. The centerpiece of the video is a seven-and-a-half-minute dance sequence of 66 young men wearing ties, blazers, and blank looks on their faces.
The dance, choreographed by Damien Jalet, conveys male vulnerability and showcases the soft interiority of boys under pressure, with themes of bonding, hope, and being overwhelmed by things. Since the video's release, people worldwide have been trying to recapture its magic, with many performing their own versions of the dance, both in real life and using AI-generated templates.
Jalet, who has spent decades bridging contemporary dance with popular culture, feels both joy and horror at the AI versions, as he believes they represent a "laziest form of creativity" that undermines the power of human bodies.
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