Memory and Desire: 30 Years in the Wilderness with Stephen Duffy and The Lilac Time

Synopsis

Coming off the Robbie Williams tour, musical director eighties brit pop star Stephen 'Tin Tin' Duffy is fed up and completely disillusioned with the corporate music machine and decides to check out permanently and pursue his folk-political roots in the countryside.

Along the journey he reunites his critically acclaimed band The Lilac Time to play the Green Man Festival in Wales, and rediscovers what it was originally about. 'We used to do it for the love, didn't we. People have forgotten that.'

Duffy wanders as far as Cornwall before rediscovering meaningful poetic life. Sculptor Jon Edgar makes an appearance as he forms a terra cotta head of Duffy, who he believes will remain one of the key figures in arts and culture for future generations. It's a classic story of art versus commerce, disillusionment and rebirth told through one of the UK's most prolific recording artists, with archival super 8, stills, and historical footage from the 1960s through to the present. Much of the film is narrated by Duffy himself, the director Douglas Arrowsmith has poured over the archives and Duffy's own memoir to assemble an inspiring piece for any fan of music, poetry, and life's greater meaning.

Details

Year: 2010
Type of project: Features
Running time: 83 mins
Format: Digibeta
Director: Douglas Arrowsmith 1st Feature
Editor: Dominique Banoun
Screenwriter: Stephen Duffy, Douglas Arrowsmith
Director of Photography: Douglas Arrowsmith
Composer: Stephen Duffy, The Lilac Time
Principal cast: Stephen Duffy, The Lilac Time, Claire Worrall, Nick Rhodes, Jon Edgar