Rock & Reel Teams Local Music and Film
Rock & Reel is a grassroots art project starting in Providence, Rhode Island, that pairs independent filmmakers with local bands and challenges them to make a narrative music video in just nine days.
Filmmakers gather teams, locations, actors, props, etc. Musicians pick appropriate tracks of music. On October 4th they get randomly matched, and the filmmakers are off to make narrative shorts insprired by the music.
At the end, all completed work is shown on the big screen at CinemaWorld, in Lincoln, where audience members and a panel of judges vote on their favorites. The winning pairs will have a special screening of their video before the winning bands perform live in a “Best of” concert at The Met Café in Pawtucket.
“The project is all about narrative video – so each short will tell a story of some kind,” says co-Producer Emily Olson. “Don’t imagine a typical “concert footage” video – think more like ‘Thriller’ (but with a lower budget)”.
The proceeds go to help the non-profit Rhode Island Film Collaborative, which helps independent filmmakers make independent films.
2012 is Rock and Reel’s inaugural year. Says Co-Producer Mike Ryan, “As the project grows, we’re excited to spread to other cities and help artists support and promote each other through the contest.”
All kinds of music are welcome – musicians and filmmakers can sign up at www.rockandreel.org
History: Cinematic music performance is as old as the talkies. Al Johlson’s performance in The Jazz Singer in 1927 kicked off the tradition. But filmed performances changed for good at 12:01 a.m. on August 1, 1981, when MTV flickered to life with its first music video – “Video Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles.
Since then, the music video has gone in many directions – animation, literal imagery, metaphoric imagery, performance and narrative – and its only limitation is the imagination of musicians and directors. In 2012, Rock and Reel joins this robust history with its contest debut in Providence, Rhode Island, a city known for its vibrant music scene and lively film community.
