Sydney Film Festival (6-17 June) has returned to Sydney with an incredible program of cinema to suit all movie buffs! Being music AND movie fans ourselves, we thought we would give you the lowdown on what music documentaries we’ll be checking out this year.
GIVEAWAY!!! We have 1 x double pass to Sing Me The Songs and 1 x double pass to Marley to giveaway to our community members! Just tell us in 25 words or less why YOU deserve to go to {insert movie of your choice}. Email your response to scarlett@musicnsw.com by 5pm Thursday June 7th, 2012.
Not a MusicNSW community member? Find out how to sign up for free by heading here.
 Musicologist Dr. Ahmad Sarmast returns to Kabul after 15 years in exile to reopen an old music school, closed down by Muslim extremists in 1992. His dream is to revitalise Afghanistan’s musical traditions – devastated by years of war and Taliban rule… MORE >
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 The Algerian Casbah, with its narrow alleys and equally narrow houses, is the birthplace of chaabi – an intoxicating mix of traditional Berber songs, religious chants and Andalusian melodies. The ‘music of the people’ (chaab means folk or people), popular… MORE >
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 Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine, There Will Be Blood) delivers a perfect performance as hapless Joby Taylor, a wannabe rock star who finally agrees to divorce his estranged wife. However he has deep regrets when he discovers by surprise that he is about… MORE >
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 Marley is the definitive documentary on the legendary king of reggae from the Academy Award®-winning director of Touching the Void and The Last King of Scotland. Incorporating interviews with Marley’s fellow musicians, friends and family – including… MORE >
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 Set in Sydney’s trendy Inner West, this sexy Aussie comedy follows a trio of housemates enjoying their hedonistic twenties. Throwing weekly house parties, Jonah (Ryan Kwanten), Stevie (Sarah Snook) and Gus (Ryan Corr) muddle through life, unimpeded by… MORE >
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 Winner of the World Cinema Audience Award at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, this engaging documentary follows the improbable-but-true story of US soul dude Rodriguez. In early-’70s Detroit, the somewhat reclusive singer-songwriter was touted as… MORE >
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 Sydney Film Festival Hub at Lower Town Hall throws open its doors to all with FREE exhibitions, screenings, talks, parties, live music, performances and DJs from 5-10pm. Discount tickets for some SFF sessions are also available for $10 each between 5pm… MORE >
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 This rousing tribute to Canadian singer-songwriter Kate McGarrigle was recorded at New York City’s Town Hall in May 2011 and features her famously musical family – children Rufus and Martha Wainwright, older sisters Anna and Jane – and equally gifted… MORE >
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 The Comedy is a savage swipe at a group of Williamsburg hipsters who engage in acts of recreational cruelty amidst revelry and extreme boredom. Swanson (comic star Tim Heidecker) comes from a wealthy family but shows no interest in his inheritance. Instead… MORE >
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 This doco is a fascinating glimpse behind the scenes with icon Tony Bennett as he records his Duets II album, a multiple Grammy winner released on his 85th birthday. Tony’s meticulous approach has been honed over 50 years in the business; it’s clear… MORE >
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 Paul Simon returns to South Africa to reunite with the musicians, including Ladysmith Black Mambazo, who collaborated on his mega-hit Graceland. The album’s 1986 release put Simon in the eye of a storm of controversy for breaking the UN cultural boycott… MORE >
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 Writer/director/star Nadine Labaki follows her debut Caramel with this wonderful film, a hit both at home and overseas (it won the audience award at Toronto) on the strength of a clever mix of melodrama, musical and daring social satire. Labaki has been… MORE >
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Film screenshots and synopsis excerpt source here.