Jake Gyllenhaal: In Deep With Video Artist Bill Viola

W MAGAZINE
By Lynn Hirschberg

PUBLISHING---No playing it safe for the Hollywood darling. Jake Gyllenhaal is plunging into uncharted territory—starting with this collaboration with the video artist Bill Viola. Viola is also interested in extremes: His medium is video, and he creates scenarios that have biblical undercurrents, usually involving fire or water. Viola, who is an enthusiastic man, explained his process to Gyllenhaal: The actor would lie down in a tank of warm water—which resembled a rectangular bathtub made of clear Plexiglas—and hold his breath in darkness as the lights slowly came up. There was a death-to-life feel to the idea, but Viola rejected the notion of his art having a narrative. [link]