Michael Jackson's Thriller (music video)

E409065

Michael Jackson's "Thriller" is a landmark 1983 short film–style music video, renowned for its groundbreaking special effects, elaborate choreography, and enduring influence on pop culture and the music video medium.

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Statements (84)

Predicate Object
instanceOf music video
short film
associatedDance Thriller dance
surface form: Thriller line dance
awardReceived Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video
surface form: Grammy Award for Best Video Album

MTV Video Music Award-related honors
basedOn Thriller (song)
behindTheScenesDirector Jerry Kramer
John Landis
choreographer Michael Jackson
Michael Peters
cinematographyBy Robert Paynter
closingDevice Vincent Price evil laugh
commonlyScreenedOn Halloween
costumeDesigner Deborah Nadoolman Landis
countryOfOrigin United States of America
surface form: United States
culturalImpact frequently referenced and parodied in popular culture
helped break racial barriers on MTV
widely regarded as one of the greatest music videos of all time
director John Landis
distributor MTV
editor Malcolm Campbell
featuresCharacter Girlfriend (played by Ola Ray)
Michael (played by Michael Jackson)
featuresGenreElementsOf werewolf film
zombie film
featuresIconicCostume red leather jacket worn by Michael Jackson
featuresSpokenWord Vincent Price rap
filmingLocation East Los Angeles
Los Angeles
genre horror
music video
short film
hasBehindTheScenesFilm Making Michael Jackson's Thriller
hasDanceSequence Thriller dance
hasGlobalEventsInspiredBy mass Thriller dance performances worldwide
hasIconicShot Michael Jackson turning to camera with yellow werecat eyes
synchronized zombie dance in the street
zombies rising from graves
hasParody Weird Al Yankovic
surface form: Weird Al" Yankovic's "Eat It" (indirectly inspired era of parodies)
hasScene cinema date sequence
werecat transformation sequence
zombie dance sequence
hasStyle cinematic music video
narrative short film
hasTagline The ultimate horror music video
influenced dance choreography in pop music
horror-themed music videos
later narrative music videos
language English
makeupEffectsBy Rick Baker
musicBy Michael Jackson
Rod Temperton
narrator Vincent Price
notableFor elaborate group choreography
groundbreaking special effects
iconic zombie dance
integration of film narrative with music video format
long-form music video format
major impact on MTV era pop culture
originalNetwork MTV
partOf Thriller (album) promotion
performerOfSong Michael Jackson
producer George Folsey Jr.
Michael Jackson
productionCompany Optimum Productions
reasonForSelection cultural, historical, and aesthetic significance
recognizedBy Guinness World Records
recordHeld most successful music video at the time
releaseDate 1983-12-02
releaseYear 1983
runtimeMinutes 13
selectedFor National Film Registry
selectedForBy Library of Congress
setIn urban street at night
starring Michael Jackson
Ola Ray
theme blurring of reality and horror film fantasy
title Thriller
usesSpecialEffectsType animatronics
practical makeup effects
prosthetics
writer John Landis
Michael Jackson
yearAddedToNationalFilmRegistry 2009

Referenced by (5)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Rick Baker notableWork Michael Jackson's Thriller (music video)
Vincent Price voiceRoleIn Michael Jackson's Thriller (music video)
this entity surface form: Michael Jackson song "Thriller" (spoken-word sequence)
Grammy Award for Best Music Video notableWinnerExample Michael Jackson's Thriller (music video)
this entity surface form: "Thriller" – Michael Jackson
John Landis directed Michael Jackson's Thriller (music video)
this entity surface form: Michael Jackson: Thriller
1984 MTV Video Music Awards notableWinner Michael Jackson's Thriller (music video)
this entity surface form: Michael Jackson – "Thriller" (Viewer's Choice)