There’s a new concert film out! It’s called David Byrne’s American Utopia, directed by none other than Spike Lee and shot by none other than Ellen Kuras. It documents David Byrne’s most recent tour-turned Broadway show, and it’s drawn much discussion: in particular, to David Byrne’s previous high-profile concert film, Stop Making Sense. We took this release as an opportunity to delve into the entire genre of concert cinema, and the difficulties that arise when one must turn a stage-bound show intended for a live audience into a film object, and various directors and cinematographers have sought to bridge that gap.
In this episode, we discuss:
Why do we film concerts? Documentation, or to create a distinct cinematic object?
The ways in which American Utopia succeeds and fails as a cinematic experience.
The methods which various filmmakers employ to impose visual structures upon live concerts.
Jordan Cronenweth, Ellen Kuras, Albert Maysles, and the ways in which each has impacted concert cinematography.
Devan’s downright unhealthy affinity for Neil Young’s Trunk Show
Why the heck do they keep interviewing the bands in these things, especially when that band is U2.
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Additional Resources:
Films discussed during this episode:
David Byrne’s American Utopia (Spike Lee, 2020)
Stop Making Sense (Jonathan Demme, 1984)
Jazz on a Summer’s Day (Bert Stern, Aram Avakian, 1959)
Monterey Pop (D.A. Pennebaker, 1967)
Gimme Shelter (Chartlotte Zwerin, Albert & David Maysles, 1970)
Woodstock (Michael Wadleigh, 1970)
The Last Waltz (Martin Scorsese, 1978)
U2: Rattle and Hum (Phil Joanou, 1988)
Bjork: Biophilia (Peter Strickland & Nick Fenton, 2014)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (Adam Yauch, 2006)
Berlin: Live at St. Ann's Warehouse (Julian Schnabel, 2008)
Heart of Gold (2006), Trunk Show (2009), Journeys (2011) (Jonathan Demme)
Shine a Light (Martin Scorsese, 2008)