I apologize if this comes off sounding terse. I am typing really fast because I have to get back to studying, but I wanted to say something.
#1: Nowhere on that post does it mention that 'the client' who needed the 30 people was X Japan. Many companies use large concerts and public events to promote themselves. They hire crowd walkers and 'profile' people to be seen with their logos.
#2: the end line regarding race, especially in an open call online like that, but even in an internal call, is something that any company with brains would know you can get your ass sued for.
#3: With their fame in Japan, and their wealth of pre-existent casting companies, (they have been at this for almost 30 years) do you REALLY think the band would have to advertise on line in a forum?! Yes the call may be legit for a smaller company calling for hirees, but I highly doubt it was posted by X or their agents.
I have spent a fair portion of my adult life on sets and in 'studio'. Buying beautiful people to seed a street crowd is not 'Yoshiki centric', nor is is some kind of hideous betrayal, anymore than a doctored photo by the agency/promoters/producers is. Both are common practice in the film industry. Many of the costumed people were paid to be in the interior night filming of the PV and simply hung around through the day for the rest of the shoot, most likely invited and well fed and partied. There is nothing unusual there. A head count would have been be taken for the glow sticks since they were to be given out to the first 1000 attendees. Because the streets weren't closed, some people walking by would have stopped to gawk, some will have chosen to stay, so it would be hard to take a proper head count and the crowd was constantly shifting. The shoot was many hours and few would have been comfortable to stand in one spot all that time. He or the producers post an open call for fans/extras, and Yoshiki gets faulted. If they/he had charged a fee, Yoshiki would be faulted. Frankly, I am glad he over looks the constant abuse from disgruntled and sometimes near postal 'fans' and remembers that there are real fans out there who actually appreciate his humanity and broad spectrum of talents.
As for the photo, IF the band was consulted at all, which may be unlikely, chances are they didn't blink about the change because doctoring photos is common practice in the film and publishing fields. What is sad about this particular photo is that it is so obvious. Someone on that blog said there had, in actuality, originally been camera cranes to the left of that shot, or at least nearby on the street. Most of us who have watched the videos have seen the camera cranes. They are not the prettiest things to look at and don't make for an aesthetic shot, so, photo editor erases cranes, clones crowd, et voila, pretty picture. If the photo was doctored to show a larger crowd for magazines exclusive to Japan, of course they would want to promote a larger crowd for their favourite sons. It would be confusing to see a small crowd attending an X promotion when the Japanese fans are used to seeing over 50,000 in attendance. So, changing the photo may very well have nothing to do with falsifying evidence and everything to do with simply making a good looking photo or it might be to ease the shock of reality for the Japanese fans who one doubts will travel to go to a Lollapalooza concert.
So, seeding the crowd was not some nefarious act to yet again betray the fans, it was simply business as usual, and every time someone pics up a magazine, 90% of all photographs are doctored to some degree. Instead of looking for reasons to hate someone, how about we start looking at everything that person has done to bring joy to our lives? Personally? I am not the one sitting on a fortune nor do I have an encyclopaedia worth of music sitting in faults in the US and Japan, so he must be doing something right. I wish him peace, health and happiness.
ETA: DOH! Welcome to the newbies!! Sorry, you posted while I was typing.
