The Year Of Punk [1977]

London Weekend interviews Siouxsie [1977]. From the documentary film 'The Year Of Punk'.

AGNES VARDA: LOS ANGELS GRAFFITI & GANGLIFE 1981

A note on IMDB explains:

"The French director Agnes Varda spent a couple of different years in Los Angeles, and this particular year produced her documentary "Murs, murs" and her fiction film "Documenteur". The title means "Walls, walls", but also puns with the word "murmurs." Varda located dozens of murals around LA and filmed them. Many of these are gone today, so this is a true documentary, documenting a wonderful aspect of southern Californian visual culture. She interviews the artists, a truly multicultural and multicolored group--and shows the paintings in their urban contexts. One memorable scene shows a mural at Venice Beach with young people dancing in front of it (probably near where their sons and daughters are roller skating or skateboarding now). An enjoyable movie by a European with deep aesthetic appreciation for marvelous, imaginative, colorful imagery that was considered throwaway pop culture at the time. "

See more videos by/ about Agnes Varda at YouTube.com.

GUMMO vs ADAM FREELAND

Harmony Korrine's 'Gummo' vs Adam Freeland's 'We Want Your Soul'

ADAM FREELAND: WE WANT YOUR SOUL from konec japonec on Vimeo.

UNTIL THE LIGHT TAKES US: A NORWEGIAN BLACK METAL DOCUMENTARY

2008, Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell, USA, 93 min.
http://www.blackmetalmovie.com

“As richly compelling and artfully shot as rock docs get.”--Aaron Hillis, LA Weekly

This riveting documentary is not a music movie but a clear-sighted investigation into the murky subculture of Norwegian black metal music, whose history, though distorted and sensationalized by the press, is still pretty sensational even in the undistorted version, strewn with the ashes of torched churches and the blood of murder and suicide victims. As the filmmakers note, black metal “blurs the line between music, art, activism and terror...there’s really no other art or music or ideological movement like it.” Focusing on three figures--self-destructive pioneer Dead (of the group Mayhem), convicted murderer Varg Vikernes (of Burzum), and the relatively moderate Gylve Nagell (of Darkthrone)--UNTIL THE LIGHT draws a deeply, disturbingly ambivalent portrait of a contradictory movement that is too complex either to endorse or to dismiss. In English and Norwegian with English subtitles. DigiBeta video. (MR)

Additional info can be found at:
http://www.myspace.com/blackmetalmovie and http://www.blackmetalmovie.com

HIGH TECH SOUL: THE CREATION OF TECHNO MUSIC

Plexifilm is an independent DVD label and film production company founded in Brooklyn, New York, in September 2001. Plexifilm produces original films, releases films theatrically, and produces, distributes and markets DVDs.

HIGH TECH SOUL is the first documentary to tackle the deep roots of techno music alongside the cultural history of Detroit, its birthplace. From the race riots of 1967 to the underground party scene of the late 1980s, Detroit's economic downturn didn't stop the invention of a new kind of music that brought international attention to its producers and their hometown.

Featuring in-depth interviews with many of the world's best exponents of the artform, High Tech Soul focuses on the creators of the genre -- Juan Atkins, Derrick May, and Kevin Saunderson -- and looks at the relationships and personal struggles behind the music. Artists like Richie Hawtin, Jeff Mills, Carl Craig, Eddie Fowlkes and a host of others explain why techno, with its abrasive tones and resonating basslines, could not have come from anywhere but Detroit.

With classic anthems such as Rhythim Is Rhythim's "Strings of Life" and Inner City's "Good Life," High Tech Soul celebrates the pioneers, the promoters and the city that spawned a global phenomenon.

The film features: Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, Eddie (Flashin) Fowlkes, Richie Hawtin, Jeff Mills, John Acquaviva, Carl Cox, Carl Craig, Blake Baxter, Stacey Pullen, Thomas Barnett, Matthew Dear, Anthony "Shake" Shakir, Keith Tucker, Delano Smith, Mike Archer, Derrick Thompson, Mike Clark, Alan Oldham, Laura Gavoor, Himawari, Scan 7, Kenny Larkin, Stacey "Hotwax" Hale, Claus Bachor, Electrifying Mojo, Niko Marks, Barbara Deyo, Dan Sordyl, Sam Valenti, Ron Murphy, George Baker, and Kwame Kilpatrick.

The film's soundtrack includes: Aux 88, Cybotron, Inner City, Juan Atkins, Mayday, Model 500, Plastikman, Rhythim Is Rhythim, and more.

"Bredow's cast of alumni -- the holy trinity of Atkins, May & Saunderson at the front -- fill out this tale with passion, pride and, oddly for music of the future, nostalgia too."
- Dazed and Confused

"An enjoyable education into the music, the city and the main players past, present and future."
-DJ Magazine

"Defines the myths and the magic of Detroit techno from its beginnings right up to how it has evolved to become High Tech Soul."
-Derrick May

High Tech Soul: The Creation of Techno Music from Plexifilm on Vimeo.

JIM JARMUSCH: THE LIMITS OF CONTROL

The Limits of Control is the new movie from filmmaker Jim Jarmusch (Broken Flowers, Down by Law). The film is set in the striking and varied landscapes of contemporary Spain (both urban and otherwise). The location shoot there united the writer/director with acclaimed cinematographer Christopher Doyle (In the Mood for Love, Paranoid Park).

Isaach De Bankolé stars in the lead role for Mr. Jarmusch; this marks the duo’s fourth collaboration over nearly two decades, following Night on Earth, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, and Coffee and Cigarettes. The Limits of Control also features several other actors with whom Mr. Jarmusch has previously worked, including Alex Descas, John Hurt, Youki Kudoh, Bill Murray, and Tilda Swinton; and actors new to his films, including Hiam Abbass, Gael García Bernal, Paz De La Huerta, Jean-François Stévenin, and Luis Tosar.

The Limits of Control is the story of a mysterious loner (played by Mr. De Bankolé), a stranger, whose activities remain meticulously outside the law. He is in the process of completing a job, yet he trusts no one, and his objectives are not initially divulged.

His journey, paradoxically both intently focused and dreamlike, takes him not only across Spain but also through his own consciousness.

A Focus Features presentation in association with Entertainment Farm of a PointBlank production of a Film by Jim Jarmusch. The Limits of Control. Isaach De Bankolé, Alex Descas, Jean-François Stévenin, Luis Tosar, Paz De La Huerta, Tilda Swinton, Youki Kudoh, John Hurt, Gael García Bernal, Hiam Abbass, Bill Murray. Casting, Ellen Lewis. Costume Designer, Bina Daigeler. Sound Designer, Robert Hein. With Music by Boris. Production Designer, Eugenio Caballero. Editor, Jay Rabinowitz, A.C.E. Director of Photography, Christopher Doyle, H.K.S.C. Executive Producer, Jon Kilik. Produced by Stacey Smith, Gretchen McGowan. Written and Directed by Jim Jarmusch. A Focus Features Release.