Sound Unseen’s summer programming is all set. Three different films over the next three months, Sound Unseen continues its monthly film screenings, at the Trylon microcinema, Wednesday, June 13, Monday July 9 through Wed. July 11 and Wed. August 15.
-Starting Weds. June 13 will be the MN premiere of singer/songwriter Paul Williams documentary “Paul Williams Still Alive,” which premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival and had it’s US premiere at SXSW.
-Followed by the Twin Cities premiere of SXSW 2011 hit and jury runner-up at Sound Unseen International Duluth 2011, “Last Days Here” about musician Bobby Liebling and his band, Pentagram. “Last Days Here” will be screening for three consecutive days in partnership with the Trylon’s Premieres series.
-On Wednesday August 15 will be the Midwest premiere of “What Did You Expect?” a concert/documentary film on the North Carolina band, The Archers of Loaf, directed by Gorman Bechard (“Color Me Obsessed”). Bechard and producer, Jan Radder, will be present at the screening.
All three films will screen at the Trylon microcinema in Minneapolis. This is an intimate venue and a limited number of tickets available. Thanks to 89.3 the Current and Take-Up Productions for their support and co-sponsorship with Sound Unseen.
Dates: Wed. June 13, 2012, Monday July 9 – Wed. July 11, 2012 and Wed. August 15, 2012
Showtime: 7 p.m. (and 9 p.m. only for “Last Days Here”)
Venue: Trylon microcinema
Location: 3258 Minnehaha Ave S, MN, 55406
Tickets: $8
Event Websites: http://soundunseen.com & http://take-up.org/series/8/ &
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/radio/services/the_current/
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Wed. June 13 at 7 p.m.
Paul Williams Still Alive (dir. Stephen Kessler, 2011, 84 min., Blu-Ray)
At one point in the 1970’s, Paul Williams was everywhere. He wrote hit songs like Three Dog Night’s “An Old Fashioned Love Song”; The Carpenters’ “We’ve Only Just Begun” and “The Rainbow Connection,” from The Muppet Movie. He won every award there was, including an Oscar® for “Evergreen” with Barbra Streisand. He starred as Little Enos in Smokey and the Bandit, and appeared over 50 times on Johnny Carson’s couch. And then, he quickly faded from the spotlight.
With songs about loneliness and his outsider persona, Williams struck a chord with many, including director Stephen Kessler (Vegas Vacation, The Independent). Kessler was surprised to learn that Williams is still very much alive, and set out to make a documentary. Williams begrudgingly allows Kessler to accompany him on his travels, and despite Kessler’s initial plan to stay behind the camera, Williams coaxes him out, and Kessler becomes part of the story. Their strained relationship helps shape a candid examination of an artist who fought against his own drug-fuelled ego run amok and then became more in love with the attention than the music. Paul Williams Still Alive is both a rollicking pop-culture flashback filled with great clips, and the humorous journey of an awkward documentarian and his reluctant subject. Yet, it ultimately evolves into the touching tale of a man who has made peace with the beast that fame and celebrity awoke.
Film Trailer: http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/independent/paulwilliamsstillalive/
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Mon. July 9 through Wed. July 11 at 7 p.m. & 9 p.m. (In Conjunction w/ Trylon Premieres)
Last Days Here (dir. Don Argott & Demian Fenton, 2011, 91 min., Blu-Ray)
Last Days Here, the new documentary from Don Argott and Demian Fenton (“The Art of the Steal” and “Rock School”), is a raw, yet unexpectedly touching chronicle of cult metal legend Bobby Liebling’s bid to resurrect his life and career after decades wasting away in his parents’ basement.
Bobby Liebling made his mark in the ‘70s as the outrageous frontman of Pentagram, a “street” Black Sabbath whose heavy metal riffs once blew audiences’ minds. But various acts of self-destruction, multiple band break-ups and botched record deals eventually condemned his music to obscurity. Now in his 50's, wasted by hardcore drug use and living on the charity of his ever-patient mother and father (a former Nixon advisor), Bobby's music is finally discovered by the heavy metal underground. With the help of fan-turned-manager Sean "Pellet" Pelletier, Bobby struggles to overcome years of addiction, loneliness and broken dreams to get back on stage again. For over three years filmmakers (and metal musicians) Argott and Fenton are witnesses to his unbelievable journey, following the triumphs and downfalls of this underground icon at the crossroads of life and death.
Film Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwaYcp2uYLU
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Wed. August 15 at 7 p.m.
What Did You Expect? The Archers of Loaf (dir. Gorman Bechard, 2012, 88 min., Blu-Ray)
Indie rock icons the Archers of Loaf reunited in 2011, and during the course of their reunion tour played two legendary concerts at Cat's Cradle in Chapel Hill, NC. Combining in-your-face concert footage along with rare interviews of the band, director Gorman Bechard (Color Me Obsessed and the forthcoming Grant Hart documentary, Every Everything) documents those concerts, and captures the excitement and explosive energy of what its like to see this extraordinary band perform live.
Film Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_lzHSkypbg
Director Gorman Bechard and producer Jan Radder will be present at the screening.
Presented by 89.3 the Current & Take-Up Productions
