The ordinary-looking man bustling about in front of the camera could be mistaken as slightly mad. He is Bill Drummond, malady a former music industry star known for eccentric performances. First and foremost, however, Drummond is a man with his own completely unique vision of the world.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Drummond worked at an international record label, founded an independent record label, performed solo and in various bands, and managed the group Echo & the Bunnymen. In 1992, Drummond’s orchestra, The KLF, was chosen as the best British music group of the year at the BRIT Awards. During the award ceremony, the band shocked the audience with fake bombs and a dead lamb, and later burned a million British pounds in cash as a performance art piece, thus retiring from the music business.
The same holistic approach to art and the destruction of one’s own accomplishments returns in Drummond’s current project, The17. The idea is to record performances, assemble the parts into one piece, listen to the end result, and then finally to destroy the artwork. The17 is a choir that includes many more than just 17 members, and none of them are permanent. Singing is recorded in streets, in homes, and at workplaces. The benevolent documentary depicts encounters with numerous colorful people who are inspired to create something novel together, with no predictions as to how it will end.
Eira Heinämies / Translation: Sanna Parikka
Language: English
No subtitles
- Director: Stefan Schwietert
- Country: Switzerland, Germany
- Year: 2015
- Length: 86 min
- Age limit: S
- Format: DCP
- Cinematography: Adrian Stähli
- Editing: Frank Brummundt, Florian Miosge
- Audio: Dieter Meyer, Jean-Pierre Gerth, Oswald Schwander
- Production: Cornelia Seitler, Brigitte Hofer/maximage GmbH Filmproduktion, Helge Albers/Flying Moon Filmproduktion
Showtimes:
- Cinema Sõprus: Thursday 28.01 - 21:00