Texas Highway Shut Down by REM for Iconic Music Video Shoot
No one likes a traffic jam. Especially in Texas, where some of the highways are a nightmare to be stuck on. Back in 1992, the traffic was halted in San Antonio, not because of a car crash, but because of a rock band: R.E.M.
R.E.M. blocked off a highway? Which one?
Anyone who's driven on Interstate 10, aka I-10, knows how huge it is: Over 2000 miles that stretches between the southern part of the country. I-10 runs between California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama & ending in Florida. The stretch we're interested in, is the stretch in San Antonio; near the I-35 Interchange and the intersection of Fredericksburg Road & Woodlawn Avenue.
Why did they choose I-10 to shoot a music video?
According to the director, Jake Scott, the reason why they chose that stretch of I-10, was because they wanted to replicate the dream sequence used in the film, 8 1/2. They couldn't use the section in California because of the traffic, so they chose Texas. They got permission from the Texas Department of Transportation & the San Antonio City Council to shoot on the freeway (they used the bottom half, allowing the upper half for traffic to still use as normally). The shoot lasted about 3 days.
What song did REM film on I-10? & Why did they choose I-10?
If you remember the 1992 hit, "Everybody Hurts" from Automatic for the People, you might remember Michael Stipe & the band getting out of the car and holding up the traffic on the highway. THAT is the video they shot on I-10.
The video would go on to win many awards including Best Direction, Best Editing, Best Cinematography & Breakthrough Video at the MTV Awards in 1994.
Crazy thing is, there was ANOTHER film shoot happening around the same time
Not a music video, but for a Patrick Swayze film, Fatherhood. It wasn't on the same highway, but parts of the movie was filmed in San Antonio.
This wouldn't be the only time a music video was shot in Texas; you can see plenty shot in El Paso here.
