In a studio at the Academy of Movement and Music in Oak Park, Illinois, Jim Gill is producing his first-ever music video for his song “Foot Notes.” Standing on a vast green screen that hangs from the ceiling and sprawls over the floor, he coaches Erika and Layla, a mother and daughter, on their parts. “This one’s called ‘hot foot,’ so I need you to hop from one foot to the other, like you’re on burning hot coals.”
Gill warms up the crowd with a game of Follow the Leader before filming begins. |
Layla smiles widely to let him know she gets it.
Jim nods to his director, Mike Dutka, and steps off set to watch the monitor beside his wife, Sue.
Mike quiets the set and calls out, “Hot foot, take one. Music, go.”
In the back of the studio, a young audio technician cues up the song. Erika and Layla hop across the set, mock-wincing all the way, their toes barely making contact with the floor. At the other side they stop and high-five.
When the music cuts, Jim looks at Sue and takes a deep breath. “Rock. On!”
The other parents and children waiting for their scenes break off playing and applaud. The day is off to a good start. In short order the camera is rolling again as Erika and Layla make their way back across the set, this time trudging through imaginary snow.
Sue Gill, director Mike Dutka, and Jim Gill discuss their next scene. |
And so they go, from “hot foot” to “cold feet” to “snow shoes” to “hoof beat.” With each pass they interpret the rhyming, stream-of-conscious lyrics into movements. For “sleepwalk” they shuffle, arms outstretched and eyes closed. For other words, like “gum shoe,” there are multiple possibilities. Erika and Layla strain to lift their feet off a sticky floor. Later, another mother and daughter will turn that phrase into a hot-on-the-trail search for clues.
This word play and, more importantly, parent/child interaction, are the heart of Jim Gill’s popular music—music that emerged from more than 20 years experience in running playgroups for special needs children.
