Projects in genres: Music

Synopsis

Funk Queen Betty Davis changed the landscape for female artists in America. She “was the first…” as former husband Miles Davis said. “Madonna before Madonna, Prince before Prince”. An aspiring songwriter from a small steel town, Betty arrived on the '70s scene to break boundaries for women with her daring personality, iconic fashion and outrageous funk music. She befriended Jimi Hendrix and Sly Stone, wrote songs for the Chambers Brothers and the Commodores, and married Miles – startlingly turning him from jazz to funk on the album she named “Bitches Brew”. She then, despite being banned and boycotted, went on to become the first black woman to perform, write and manage herself. Betty was a feminist pioneer, inspiring and intimidating in a manner like no woman before. Then suddenly - she just vanished. Betty Mabry Davis is a global icon whose mysterious life story has until now, never been told. Creatively blending documentary, animation and nonfiction techniques, this movie traces the path of Betty’s life, after years of trying, the elusive Betty, forever the free-spirited Black Power Goddess, finally allowed the filmmakers to creatively tell her story based on their conversations. Official Selection IDFA 2017 - World premiere

Synopsis

Inspired by American touring blues acts like Muddy Waters and Sister Rosetta Tharpe and with the complicity of a 19-year old student from Teheran, in 1962 guitarist Alexis Korner and harmonica player Cyril Davies opened the Ealing Club, London's (and Britain's) first Rhythm and Blues venue. Soon young music fans from all over the country start attending Alexis and Cyril's shows and sit-in during their set. The list of youngsters who learn the blues at the Ealing Club includes: Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, Paul Jones, Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Dick Taylor and Eric Burdon (just to name a few). The Ealing Club, a.k.a. 'The Cradle of British Rock' (Mojo Magazine), a dingy and smokey concrete-floored basement barely mentioned in music history books will only last three years, but its pivotal role in nurturing the golden generation of Classic-rock musicians and kick-starting the British Blues movement remains undeniable.

Synopsis

When we started this journey several years ago, there was no expectation at all that Shirley would ever sing again. What initially attracted us to making the movie was Shirley’s deep commitment to English folk tradition, and her little-known involvement in arguably the most important field-recording trip of all time; back in 1959 with her then-lover, the iconic ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax. The film was going to be about the past, and about the 30 years she had spent living without the thing she loved most. It’s been an absolute privilege to be with Shirley on this long journey back to her singing again, and along the way, the film has evolved into something we never expected. Official Selection Rotterdam International Film Festival 2018 - International premiere

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An ensemble slice of life in a diner, where rap lyrics become part of the drama. Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - Create Strand - World premiere

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The Slits who formed in London in 1976 were the world's first all girl punk band. Contemporaries of bands such as The Clash and The Sex Pistols, they were the pioneering godmothers of the musical movement know as "Punky Reggae". This documentary tells the story of the band and the lives of the women involved, from the band's inception in 1976 to the bands end in 2010 at the death of lead vocalist Ari Up. Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - World premiere Official Selection Rotterdam International Film Festival 2018

Synopsis

A story of a young man who has lost his words, his thoughts, and his gender identity. Those eyes are always sharp as knives, yet the secret inside him is no longer hidden, waiting to be free by himself.

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Modern society is obsessed with social media. Online platforms provide us with a constant unwanted stream of other people’s opinions. What happens when it all gets too much? Cabaret superstars Bourgeois & Maurice offer us a solution in this comedy VR music video.

Synopsis

Shogun is an unsigned grime MC, with a determination to put Scottish rap on the map. When you think of Grime music, Scotland probably isn’t the first place that springs to mind, but one Paisley-based 19 year old, Joe Heron AKA Shogun, is working hard to expand the scope of the UK’s most exciting genre. He's already racked up over 2 million views on YouTube. Official Selection BFI London FIlm Festival 2017 - Create Strand

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Rudolf Nureyev was in every sense 'Made In Russia'. It would be hard to imagine a character of such conflicting passion, ego, obsession, talent, triumph and tragedy emerging from anywhere other than Russia.

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“CLAPTON IS GOD”. With these words graffitied across London, Eric Clapton became the ultimate guitar hero. He is the only ever three-time-inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, an 18-time Grammy Award-winner, and widely renowned as one of the greatest performers of all time. But behind the scenes lay restlessness and tragedy. The insatiable search to grow his artistic voice left fans surprised as he constantly quit successful bands, from the groundbreaking Yardbirds to 1960s super-group Cream. His isolated pursuit of his craft, and fear of selling out, served as a catalyst for his evolution as an artist. Stretching from his traumatic childhood living in a “house of secrets”, to his long and difficult struggle with drugs and alcohol, and the tragic loss of his son in a heart-breaking accident, Eric Clapton always found an inner strength and healing in music. Told through his own words and songs, as well as those of his family, friends, musical collaborators, contemporaries and many heroes – including BB King, Jimi Hendrix and George Harrison. Official Selection Toronto International Film Festival 2017 - TIFF Docs - World premiere

Synopsis

A vivid portrait of Tom Sietas, a world record in Static Apnea, the ability to hold one’s breath underwater. Combining underwater imagery with a contemporary dance sequence the film reveals what drives Tom to push his body to such physical extremes; for Tom to deny breath is to find life. Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - Experimenta Strand - World premiere

Synopsis

Run by Chris Smith, the Kluster Rooms was a recording space at Cable Street Studios - an old sweet factory in Limehouse. It was home to writers, filmmakers, musicians, and a record label.