Meet the 12-year-old boy who directed Aphex Twin’s first music video in 17 years
Earlier this year, a 12-year-old boy made for a bout of surprising headlines when he became the unlikely director for the first official Aphex Twin music video released in 17 years.
The boy, Ryan Wyer of Rush, Ireland, is both autistic and visually impaired and became an immediate sensation after the ‘CIRKLON3 [ Колхозная mix ]’ video began to make the rounds. In a candid interview with Brooklyn based publication Culture Creature, Ryan and his mom, Marie O’Toole Wyer, discussed the whirlwind series of events that lead to the video and Aphex’s lasting impact on the family.
The journey began when Richard D James took notice of Wyer’s fan videos on YouTube and contacted his family through Warp about creating the official visuals for the song. According to Marie: “Warp said that Ryan had been spoken about a lot and they loved his work.” So much so that filmmaker Chris Cunningham — a frequent Aphex video collaborator — and James had left supportive comments on Ryan’s YouTube channel. It’s high praise from Cunningham whose famously twisted videos for the prolific producer — including “Window Licker” and “Come to Daddy” — are considered masterworks of the the medium.
Marie says that Warp then sent Ryan the full EP and asked him to make a video for any track he chose. Says Ryan of the process: “Warp and Rich told me to do what I do best, that’s all.” The end result is an equally humorous and eerie effort from the young director as his cast of family and friends are adorned in Aphex Twin shirts and creepy masks of James’ face.
“Warp and Richard put Ryan under no pressure and were very supportive and helpful along the whole process,” says Marie. “As most people know, Richard likes to stay out of the limelight and is quite private and has a very quirky sense of humour – actually very like Ryan. Ryan loves his own space and doesn’t really care what others think of him. So they have very similar personalities.”
Marie details the family’s full realization of the exposure after seeing the video screened publicly on a massive digital display in Tokyo. Says Marie: “Ryan’s face just lit up with excitement, [the whole experience] has given Ryan a huge confidence boost.” Since the video, the new friends have even gone record shopping together.
Though Ryan is disabled, Marie notes that his story is an inspirational one and has the potential to touch other children with disabilities.
“We shed many tears of happiness for our very special, talented young man… Ryan has listened and loved music from a very young age,” Marie wrote, “and we always knew he would do something with music. He expresses how he feels through music…. We are hugely thankful to Richard and Warp for seeing Ryan’s talent and giving him this amazing opportunity. They made his dreams come true.”
According to Marie, Ryan has been a music lover since birth and aspires to be a “musician and director.” Thanks to James and Warp, he’s officially on his way.
Via: Culture Creature
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Categories: Music