The post-70’s explosion of independent music in America has many traceable roots, each with a compelling story. One of its most significant has never been told until now. Drawing on never-before-seen archival footage, in-depth-interviews with musicians and producers, and a mighty soundtrack, THE SMART STUDIOS STORY reveals the pivotal Midwest link to the global rise of 1990's Alternative Rock and the unassuming Madison, Wisconsin recording studio at its center. If you’ve ever been touched by the music of Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Garbage, L7 or their peers, you’ve been touched by the music created at Smart Studios, the legendary recording facility founded by Butch Vig and Steve Marker.
01 Mar 2001
Meet The Plastic People of the Universe, the avant-garde, jazz-rock, Sun Ra meets Velvet Underground, Czech revolutionaries. A tribute to the band that against all odds used the power of their music to help topple their oppressive government.
01 Jan 1997
A powerful story of an ultra-violent world and the courage of one young woman against all odds.
15 Nov 2005
Bullet in a Bible documents one of the two biggest shows that Green Day have performed in their career. They played in front of a crowd of over 130,000 people at the Milton Keynes National Bowl in United Kingdom on June 18–19, 2005. The band was supported by Jimmy Eat World, Taking Back Sunday, and Hard-Fi during their American Idiot world tour. Fourteen of the twenty songs performed at these shows were included on the disc; missing out "Jaded", "Knowledge", "She", "Maria", "Homecoming" and "We Are The Champions". Bullet in a Bible was released as a double-LP set on November 10, 2009, as part of the band's 2009 vinyl re-release campaign.
11 Feb 2023
Discover the untold story of Pinball and Arcade in Australia in this heart-warming, and at times heart-breaking, nostalgic journey through the golden era of gaming.
09 Jul 2004
A stunningly-photographed, thought-provoking road trip into the heart of the poor white American South. Singer Jim White takes his 1970 Chevy Impala through a gritty terrain of churches, prisons, truckstops, biker bars and coalmines. Along the way are roadside encounters with present-day musical mavericks the Handsome Family, David Johansen, David Eugene Edwards of 16 Horsepower and old-time banjo player Lee Sexton, and grisly stories from the cult Southern novelist Harry Crews.
10 Nov 2017
This documentary film examines the transformative power of lyrics in the world of hip-hop music. Through dynamic archival footage, in-depth interviews and excursions with artists like Nas, Tech9, J Cole, Rapsody and Anderson. Paak, the film explores the many dimensions that hip-hop poetics occupy.
20 Nov 2017
89 tells the incredible story of one of football’s greatest triumphs: when against all odds Arsenal snatched the Championship title from Liverpool at Anfield in the last minute of the last game of the 1988/89 season. It’s a universal tale of a band of brothers who, led by a charismatic and deeply respected manager, came together to defy the odds and create history.
16 Nov 2017
An aspiring songwriter from a small steel town, Betty Mabry Davis arrived on the scene to break boundaries for women with her daring personality, iconic fashion style and outrageous funk. She befriended Jimi Hendrix and Sly Stone, wrote songs for the Chambers Brothers and The Commodores and married Miles Davis, turning him from jazz to funk and then went on to ignite stages in the 70s with her sassy sexed up mix of hard rock and bluesy funk, inspiring artists from Prince to Erykah Badu to Karen 0 and Peaches. Then she vanished…
08 Jul 2014
In the mid-1990s reports emerged that Prince had fallen into dispute with his record company. Having signed what was ostensibly a new, 100 million dollar contract just a couple of years before, Prince was now demanding - not unreasonably to most commentators - control of his masters and the freedom to release what he wanted when he wanted. After a bitter war of words, during which the star scrawled Slave across his cheek whenever he appeared in public and routinely dissed his label, the parties finally settled and Prince henceforth was free to take full control of his music and the way it was sold to consumers. Prince approached this task with devastating foresight as he routinely created new marketing concepts which, with time, became the norm across the music world.
29 Mar 2000
Julien Temple's second documentary profiling punk rock pioneers the Sex Pistols is an enlightening, entertaining trip back to a time when the punk movement was just discovering itself. Featuring archival footage, never-before-seen performances, rehearsals, and recording sessions as well as interviews with group members who lived to tell the tale--including the one and only John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten).
09 Feb 2016
A century ago, from February to December 1916, the French and Germans provided a superhuman effort to control a few hills in eastern France, located in front of Verdun . A frontal confrontation, conducted without the help of their allies, army against army, nation against nation. Today, this battle seems absurd to us. Because it has caused almost as many casualties in each camp and its strategic utility has never really been demonstrated. But in 1916, soldiers on both sides did not consider it absurd: they agreed to fight. Why ? By reliving the rare Herculean confrontation of our ancestors, using reconstructions made in the 1920s, using a large number of animated computer-generated images that recreate the topography of the battlefield, this documentary returns, with the help of the historical adviser Paul Jankowski , on the last great victory won alone by France against Germany.
15 Nov 2015
In the winter of 2012, Certified Master Chef Rich Rosendale and Corey Siegel earned the opportunity to represent the United States in the prestigious cooking competition known as the Bocuse d'Or. Held every two years in Lyon, France, the Bocuse d'Or represents the pinnacle of competition cooking. With the United States determined to make the podium for the first time ever, Rich and Corey embark on an intense one-year training regimen that includes the construction of a secret test kitchen inside of a decommissioned cold war bunker. Together with some of America's greatest chefs, they will vie for culinary glory at the Bocuse d'Or in Lyon, France.
14 Oct 2016
The professional life of Roxanne Lowit, one of the greatest fashion photographers and a pioneer of backstage photography, covering her career from 1977 and the Studio 54 until now.
25 Jul 1980
Rude Boy is a semi-documentary, part character study, part 'rockumentary', featuring a British punk band, The Clash. The script includes the story of a fictional fan juxtposed with actual public events of the day, including political demonstrations and Clash concerts.
01 Jan 1992
A compilation of film clips and trailers showing the evolution of vampires in films.
A documentary film honoring the King of Pop showcasing how Michael Jackson's groundbreaking musical legacy has influenced performers of the past, present and future.
16 Sep 2008
Documentary on the making of Gigi
28 May 2004
The classic board game, Scrabble, has been popular for decades. In addition, there are fanatics who devote heart and soul to this game to the expense of everything else. This film profiles a group of these enthusiasts as they converge for a Scrabble convention where the word game is almost a bloodsport.
19 Jul 1999
Blind blues musician Paul Pena is perhaps best known for his song "Jet Airliner". In 1993, Pena heard Tuvan throat singing over his shortwave radio and subsequently taught himself how to reproduce these extraordinary sounds. This documentary follows him to Tuva, where he takes part in a throat singing competition. Languages featured in the film include English, Russian and Tuvan.
28 Oct 2009
A compilation of interviews, rehearsals and backstage footage of Michael Jackson as he prepared for his series of sold-out shows in London.