Lou Reed and his fans waited 33 years for the concert presented in this film. Following his glam hit Walk on the Wild Side, in 1973 Reed recorded Berlin an ambitious concept album. A lot has changed since 1973. The very title Berlin references a divided city that has since been reunited. Yet the passage of time makes these songs even more special and enduring. By the finale, Sweet Jane, it all feels very much worth the wait.
Since its Independence, Angola had never witnessed a cultural movement as dynamic and controversial as the Kuduro is. There’s no trace of another musical genre that went beyond the frontiers to become an international phenomenon so quickly. Kuduro, Fogo no Museke it’s the social and cultural portrait of a new generation, the one that above all wishes to be the new Angola’s voice.
A plunge into the philosophy and artistry of cult rocker Patti Smith, this portrait explores themes of spirituality, history and self expression: known as the godmother of punk, she emerged in the 1970’s, galvanizing the music scene. We follow this multitalented and private artist over 11 years of international travel, through her spoken words, performances, lyrics, interviews, paintings, and photographs.
A documentary feature about the reclusive musical genius and one of rock music’s most enigmatic figures, Scott Walker, exploring his music and career from his early days as a bass player on the Sunset Strip, to mega-stardom in Britain’s swinging 60’s pop scene as lead singer of The Walker Brothers, and to his evolution of the last decades. The film features exclusive footage as well as interviews.
At the request of Patti Smith, Jem Cohen made a short film for the release of her cover version of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit. Not a music video, but a short film: The film is a domestic portrait of Patti Smith and her son, Jackson. William Blake is present in the form of a plaster cast of his death mask. Kurt Cobain has been invited as an admirer of Leadbelly. It is about picking up guitars and doing dirty dishes.
What exciting musical developments are nurtured on both sides of the US-Canadian border, and where do their aesthetics converge and diverge? This curated Field Guide takes an irreverent look at the natural and synthetic aspects of life above and below the 49th parallel. From the electro-art experimentation of NY and Montreal to the indie spirit in Vancouver, Chicago or San Francisco, this collection celebrates two assertive and vast cultural landscapes.
Attitude is a small detail that makes a big difference. Here’s the time to talk about another side of Coimbra, an Portuguese university city. This is the story of one of the city’s most famous exports ‚ the Tedio Boys. The first of its kind with visibility and, more than any other label, a certain attitude. As a result, the city’s visual landscape changed ever since.
A rare and true icon of modern music, Herbie Hancock continues to bring audiences new and inventive visions of music. In August 2005, the Possibilities album was released, featuring the collaborative talents of a legendary lineup of artists. The film showcases this musical project in development and design, as Herbie interacts with such artists as Christina Aguilera, John Mayer, Paul Simon, Annie Lennox, Sting and others.
Revolution is a documentary musical about the 70’s generation’s fight for a better world. Socialism seemed like a real alternative. Songs played a central role in this revolution. Hundreds of song groups sprung up. The songs told stories of battles, solidarity, socialism, Vietnam, Chile. Now middle-aged former revolutionaries return to their combat songs, singing in the environments revealing their present status and work places. Music creates some distance and in many ways, depicts the experiences and spirit of the era. The music also symbolizes the pomposity and rhetoric often so blatantly and comically at odds with reality and everyday life. What has happened to the idealism of youth?
Kurt Cobain About A Son is a rock ’n’ roll film unlike any other. There are no cable-TV contrivances. No celebrity sound bites. No attempts to mine the grunge aesthetic. Instead, director AJ Schnack has created something quite close to an autobiography of Kurt Cobain. The documentary draws upon a series of audiotaped conversations between Cobain and music writer Michael Azerrad over 1992 and 1993, recorded for Azerrad’s book Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana. Just one year later, Cobain had killed himself.
Cova da Moura, Arrentela and Porto Salvo. The black rap from the surrounding area of Lisbon creates a circle around the city itself. It points a finger at racism, police violence and poverty. The life of black people. Hip Hop is intervention. I don’t want anyone dancing, I want them thinking, says Jorginho, one of the eight interviewed rappers.This documentary listens to the words, frees the voice.
This triptych takes as its subject iconic 1960s/1970s classic album covers by Simon and Garfunkel, Carole King and John Lennon and Yoko Ono. The iconic album cover moment is recreated and then reinserted into linear time and speculative narratives. Part nostalgia, part science fiction, The Album Project explores the margins of the known to discover what could have been.
This documentary film aims at telling about the social and musical destiny of the city of Detroit. Within the maze of the city – after the civil riots of 1967 – are still the marks of different periods of peak, decline and rebirth, from Blues, through Gospel, Rhythm and Blues, Jazz to the Techno Music. The question is: Why is it here that a counter-culture sprung and spread?
Film tracks the history of Harry Smith’s Anthology of America Folk Music from its initial compilation of 78rpm records from rural Americana to its release on Folkways Records in 1952. A set of interviewees reveal ist lasting impact and the remarkable personality of Harry Smith. The film includes rare archival footage, performances and interviews with Elvis Costello, Beck, Sonic Youth, Sonic Youth. Beth Orton, Philip Glass, David Johansen, John Cohen e Greil Marcus.
This Collaboration with Sonic Youth is an elegy for NYC’s legendary CBGB club and all the transcendent shows we’ve all ever been to.
Chris Hooson’s haunting past makes him pick up his guitar again and again and what emerges is as fragile as life itself. We see him recording piano fragments with his band Dakota Suite, and drum parts in Chris Hooson’s house. In Wintersong, the songwriter talks about his family, his musical work, and his day job as a social worker.
Snow does not fall to cover the hill, but for every beast to leave it’s trail. Eastern Bosnia, 1997. Six women, a grandfather, four girls and a young boy live in war ravaged and isolated village of Slavno. Their families and friends had been killed and their bodies had never been found. The first snow brings full isolation and risk for life in the village. Villagers face a dilemma: should they accept the offer that could save their lives, but destroy their souls. A sudden storm traps two businessmen in Slavno, forcing them to face a problem bigger than anything they expected ‚ the truth!
We go behind-the-scenes and meet a more intimate China, rocked by changes and the extremely complicated cultural and social realities that result. In the temporary harmony of the night, when the masks fall, we’re taken on a journey to the inside of a country and the secrets the men and women that inhabit it.