Category: NPP2024

Presented in association with the Oh Yeah Centre as part of the Women’s Work festival.

Indigo Girls were one of only a handful of acts to emerge in the 80s and 90s who somehow found success in the music industry purely on their own terms.

Blending 40 years of home movies, incredible raw film archive, and intimate present-day verité, the award-nominated It’s Only Life After All is a poignant reflection of the iconic folk rock duo.

Even at their commercial peak, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers were routinely mocked for being too earnest, too poetic, too folky, too lesbian. Back then, being labelled a female, gay singer-songwriter was an artistic and commercial curse, as Ray recalls in vivid detail in one of the film’s most powerful scenes.

There’s been something of an Indigo Girls renaissance in the offing since Margot Robbie’s Barbie belted out Closer to Fine across thousands of multiplexes last summer. It’s Only Life After Allis a timely look into the obstacles, activism, and life lessons of two queer friends who never expected to make it big.

“Smart and compelling…Existing fans will be mesmerized, but non-fans like me should also get a kick out of “It’s Only Life After All.” Elisabeth Vincentelli – Critic’s Pick, New York Times

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

 

https://womensworkni.co.uk

 

The year is 1960, the Voice of America Jazz Hour broadcasts the likes of Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie behind the Iron Curtain, while a wave of decolonization movements tear through the African continent and the struggle for civil rights marches on stateside.

Beat by beat, Grimonprez traces Lumumba’s rise from 36-year-old independence leader to Congo’s first democratically elected prime minister—and how corporate and colonial interests, along with machinations at the United Nations, conspired in his assassination.

Deeply researched, the film interweaves archival records, home movies, newly unearthed speeches by Lumumba, and published memoirs by Congolese activists and writers with the story of the Black jazz legends who defined the era in more ways than one. Pulsating with the energy of the period,Soundtrack to a Coup d’État’s chilling indictment of colonial power roars on in the present day.

“The rumble of jazz and politics in the global south…a stunning screed against colonial racism and state sanctioned violence.”Slant Magazine

 

IN ASSOCIATION WITH MOVING ON MUSIC

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.’

 

Join us for a special screening of “I Think We’re Alone Now,” an award-winning documentary exploring the lives of two fans whose deep connection to 80s pop star Tiffany goes beyond ordinary admiration.

Meet Jeff Turner and Kelly McCormick, two devoted fans whose admiration for Tiffany has transformed into something much deeper.

As their stories unfold, the film takes you on a journey through the blurred lines of love, obsession, and the human need for connection.

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

Join us for a double screening of Afrobeat excellence.

Music is the Weapon (1 Hour)

Directed in 1982 by Stephane Tchai-Gadjieff and Jean-Jacques Flori, Music is the Weapon is the definitive documentary on FELA. An essential film for all who wish to know more about an artist at the heart of African musical history.

Shot in Lagos, this documentary carries us from the ‘Kalakuta Republic’ to the mythical ‘Shrine’ nightclub. At the height of his popularity in a chaotic Nigeria, Fela wanted to stand for president.

The Army responded by attacking and ransacking his community, raping his wives and throwing his mother from a window, who was later to die from her injuries. Coming from yet another time in prison, more determined than ever and surrounded by his wives, Fela transmits to the camera his thoughts on politics, Pan-Africanism, music and religion.

William Onyeabor: Fantastic Man (30 mins)

“We were looking for a group of individuals that had something otherworldly about them,” says musician and filmmaker Adam Bainbridge aka Kindness on the stars of today’s video for “Fantastic Man” by near-mythical psychedelic funk artist William Onyeabor.

“I then remembered the energy, the sense of camaraderie and above all, the love of music of the Central Park skaters.”

Co-directed with Camilla Wasserman, the joyous short spotlights the cosmic funk of the artist from Enugu, Nigeria, whose backstory is virtually unknown. After a prolific musical output in the 1980s, Onyeabor became a born-again Christian, refusing to talk about his past; one that may or may not have included a period studying film in the Soviet Union and setting up a recording studio, pressing plant and record label when he returned to Africa.

“I found out that Damon Albarn was one of the few guys who was familiar with his music,” says Eric Welles-Nyström from Luaka Bop, the label founded by David Byrne and Yale Evelev that released last year’s critically lauded compilation, Who is William Onyeabor?. “It wasn’t until we spoke with Damon that it hit me how funny Onyeabor’s music can be.

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

Now Press Play takes you to the outer reaches of music and film that is The “Norn Iron” pop video. Do you know your Johnny Loughrey from your Mama’s Boys? Where were you when Willie Drennan’s Lambeg Boogie dropped? Have you ever truly experienced Lisburn until you’ve seen hip-hopper Jordan Castle’s videographic love letter (surprisingly  entitled “Lisburn”)?  Just who are the children referred to in the Rev William McCrae’s comeback hit “Where are the Children?”, and where are those children now?

All these questions and more will be answered by Joe Nawaz – your host for this personal odyssey. One question though remains naggingly elusive… Was Joe himself plucked from obscurity at the age of 13 to star in a Dana video? Join us for this celebration of the wayward history history of the NI music video, with a little intrigue thrown in for good measure…

 

We’re pretty damn delighted to announce that Now Press Play – our mini festival of all things music-in-film is back from 23-27 October!

And what better way to trail volume 2 of Now Press Play than by dropping a couple of hotly anticipated NI Premieres?

Teaches of Peaches is the sh*t hot new film about one of the most iconic (and iconoclastic) music artists of recent decades.

Blending footage from the 2022 Teaches of Peaches Anniversary Tour with Super-8 film of self-directed music videos, archival interviews, backstage antics and anecdotes from collaborators Feist, Chilly Gonzales and Shirley Manson, ToP captures the transformative journey of Canadian Merrill Nisker into the internationally acclaimed cultural powerhouse Peaches.

As a feminist musician, producer, director, and performance artist, Peaches fearless originality has challenged social norms, dismantled stereotypes, and confronted patriarchal power structures. The Teaches of Peaches is a celebration of the woman, the work and the world around her.

In the words of the almighty P herself: “It’s fine all the time. Like sex on the beaches…the teaches of Peaches”. Amen to that.

Dir: Philipp Fussenegger, Judy Landkammer (2022)

“Anyone who gets to spend two hours with Peaches (and this documentary) should consider themselves lucky to be taught such teaches.” Cineuropa

“At 56…she defies age and ageism, using her show & expanding its gender-fuck fluidity, to connect with audiences who embrace everything from the underground to the ballroom scene. Like the album that gives Teaches of Peaches its name, this documentary is a refreshing alternative to ho-hum convention.” POV Magazine

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

 

Ciaran Lavery and Re-act Productions present a premiere screening of their short film ‘Light Entertainment’.

Ciaran Lavery invites you to enter the world of “Light” Entertainment. Follow Lavery as he battles against crippling creative self-doubt and the allure of procrastination-inducing distractions in a last-ditch attempt to create his next hit record.

Following the screening, we will show a series of other Re-act production’s music videos, including their brilliant music videos for Daniel O’Donnell ‘Down at the Lah De Dah and the horror comedy; ‘Night of the Daniels’.

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

This is the incredible story of Don Lewis – one of electronic music’s forgotten pioneers, whose musical genius and technological vision spanned a dizzying range of styles.

With fearless creative freedom that defied the conforming forces of the music industry of the 1970s and 80s, Don Lewis took music to places that opened the doors for myriad others (Prince and Kraftwerk to name but two) to walk through.

Over a 54-year career in music, Lewis designed sounds and instrument voices for Hammond, Yamaha, and ARP, helped develop the Roland TR-808 drum machine and developed a unique live rig – The Live Electronic Orchestra – a precursor to MIDI— that was light years ahead of its time. He gave performances at the Sydney Opera House, Carnegie Hall, and the Apollo Theatre and collaborated with the likes of Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, and the Beach Boys.

Don Lewis and The Live Electronic Orchestra delves into the life and times of a uniquely brilliant African American artist who was unwilling to sacrifice his own curiosity in his pursuit to change the world’s musical landscape.

Dir. Ned Augustenborg (2023)

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

 

 

We were gutted to learn of the untimely death earlier this year of Martin Phillips – the legendary frontman of The Chills.

Not only were The Chills New Zealand’s best band, they were also true musical pioneers, bringing their “Dunedin Sound” from New Zealand to these shores with a string of seminal albums and singles.“Heavenly Pop Hit,” may have been the group’s (and Martin’s) most transcendent moment, but their back catalogue is glutted with classics – “Pink Frost,” “I Love My Leather Jacket,” and “Kaleidoscope World” to name but a handful of finely wrought beauties.

Phillips valiantly led the line through thick and thin – there were 21 different line ups of The Chills in total. As “The Triumph and Tragedy of Martin Phillips” demonstrates, the indomitable Phillips was working right up to the end, in spite of a recent Hepatitis C diagnosis and a warning that he had a 31% chance of dying within the year.

“The Triumph and Tragedy…” is an inspiring and retrospectively moving document of a true original, a troubled but brilliant soul endlessly driven on by his singular creative urge. We can’t think of a better way to celebrate the life of one of pop music’s unsung heroes.

“As a fan, I wanted to punch the air. And of course, Chills fans will absolutely devour this documentary. But if you’ve not yet had the distinctive pleasure of hearing his band, the triumph and tragedy of Phillipps’ story will make you one for life.”  Andrew Stafford, The Guardian

 

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

NPP has the very great pleasure of pressing “play” on the northern Irish premiere of Devo – the long-awaited documentary film on everyone’s favourite American art-punk-dada nerds.

Few groups embraced sci-fi, satire and surrealism with the gusto that Devo did, as this epic, energetic portrait reveals.

Formed by Ohio twins Mark and Bob Mothersbaugh, and Gerald and Bob Casale, along with Bob Lewis, in 1973, the band took their name from the word ‘de-evolution’, believing than humankind had reached a point of regression in its development.

They looked like they had stepped out of a sci-fi movie, sounded like a melange of emerging music styles (embracing punk, rock, the emerging electronica scene and, later, pop) and playfully critiqued the direction their country – and the world – was heading.

“Wham!” director Chris Smith’s immensely entertaining and insightful film presents this eclectic band’s storied past and present, from their work with Brian Eno and the success of the single “Whip It” to more recent incarnations of the group.

All together now: “Are we Not Men? We are DEVO!”

Dir: Chris Smith (2024)

“Chris Smith’s film about the jump-suited robo-rock avatars of De-evolution is as much fun as its subject” Variety

“…packaged in a dizzying barrage of incredible visuals and music that’s almost overwhelming, Devo joins a string of standout recent films like The Sparks Brothers, Summer of Soul and The Velvet Underground that demonstrate that we’re living in a golden age of music documentaries.” Hollywood Reporter

 

Hearts of Fire is a 1987 American musical drama film starring and loosely based on Bob Dylan’s success as a rock musician. It received universally poor reviews, a limited theatrical release, and was later written off by Dylan himself.

Also though, Hearts of Fire is an unintentionally hilarious car crash of a movie, featuring a perpetually bemused-looking, mumbling Bob Dylan as an reclusive ageing rock star, with the heroically mulleted Rupert Everett as the “young punk” usurper. And Fiona…

Sadly, director Richard Marquand – of “Return of the Jedi” fame – died not long after Hearts of Fire came out. But not, as some wags opined at the time, out of embarrassment.

Co-writer Joe Estherhaus went on to plumb further depths with “Basic Instinct” and “Showgirls”. But nothing of either men’s output prepares the viewer for Hearts of Fire, which amongst other delights features the most rubbish punch ever thrown on celluloid. No seriously…

Join your host Joe Nawaz as  Now Press Play celebrates one of the most notorious forays into that most slippery of genres. The rock and roll biopic.

“Dear lord. A really bad movie,” DVDLaser

“An incredibly blunt instrument of 80s vacuity” Channel 4

“Where’s my cheque, man?” B. Dylan

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

Phantom of the Paradise (50th anniversary screening)

Forget The Rocky Horror Picture Show, THIS is the original camp rock n roll horror extravaganza!

Directed by Oscar-winner Brian De Palma, Phantom of the Paradise is a day-glo 70s pop opera which also manages to be a searing critique of the soulless corporatization of art and artists.

Evil impresario, Swan (played by diminutive, baby-faced genius composer Paul Williams) steals a pretentious rock cantata from naïve songwriter Winslow Leach, and then frames him on drugs charge.

After he’s been disfigured by a record-pressing machine, Winslow returns to seek revenge by haunting Swan’s theatre, the Paradise. The rest is musical cinematic gold…

Filmed with giddying kaleidoscopic flair and backed by a stack of absolute banging tunes – written by Paul Williams himself – Phantom of the Paradise has become a stone-cold cult classic over the years, whose many fans include Tomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk fame.

So join us down at The Paradise Club (The Sunflower) as The Juicy Fruits are about to take to the stage, and prepare to have your mind blown…

“It’s not hard to see how Phantom of the Paradise has inspired Daft Punk over the years—from their helmets à la the Phantom’s metal cowl to their collaboration with Paul Williams himself—or why a film like this might resonate deeply with pop  musicians…” Pitchfork

Featuring Big Old Goofy World (doc) plus John Prine on Film.

Join us for a Prine ole Time at the Ulster Sports Club, where we’ll be celebrating the late, great John Prine in film.

First off, we present a collection of some of the best moments captured on film of one of the most influential songwriters of his, or any generation.

Big Old Goofy World: The Story of Oh Boy Records is a documentary about the little record label that could, founded by John Prine. This film traces the 40-year history of Oh Boy, from its origins as a mail order business to a thriving family operated label in Nashville, Tennessee.

This is the inspiring story of an inspiring artist who believed in himself and his fans and helped to reinvent the music industry and create a path for today’s artists to stay independent. The film features previously unseen footage and untold stories from a cast of fascinating characters including the great man himself.

Dir: Joshua Britt & Neilson Hubbard (2022)

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.

 

Since Yesterday is a revealing, hilarious and at times enraging documentary tracking the history of Scottish pop from the 1960s to the present via the visionary women who so often have been brushed out of that history.

You’ll hear from artists like The McKinleys, the Edinburgh sisters who opened for The Beatles and were the first girl band to play Wembley, Glasgow’s 80s pop duo Strawberry Switchblade (whose biggest hit gave the film its title), and TheHedrons, the noughties rock band who have a delightful story about pissing off Mick Jagger, to name but a handful…

Narrated by award-winning musician Carla J. Easton, a former member of the girl band Teen Canteen,Since Yesterdaytakes a critical look at the barriers women have faced making music in the past, and still face today. It asks how we can inspire young women to make music, if those who do so are continuously erased from our cultural history.

Dir: Blair Young, Carla J Easton (2024)

“Since Yesterday is a celebration of music, a celebration of women, and a fist-raising call for change. It’s an inspiring piece of filmmaking that demands to be seen by everyone, not just lovers of a good music documentary.” Snackmag

“Depending on your vintage, this gorgeous film may stir memories of ballsy punk trio The Ettes, or the sublime soul of Sunset Gun, or the grrrrl riot of Lungleg. (Filmmakers) Carla J Easton & Blair Young have captured these thrilling tales of DIY gigs and handbag roadies, TV appearances and stadium shows, scuppered opportunities and squandered potential.”The Scotsman

 

Supported by Film Hub NI, part of the BFI Film Audience Network, awarding funds from National Lottery.