By Travis Johnson
What was the genesis of “Get What You Want”?
“Get What You Want” came out of reading The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory by John Seabrook, an extended account of how record labels pick, polish and promote recording artists. There aren’t many circumstances when you get to hear about the behind-the-scenes of the music industry – you just get the music – but this book is quite revealing. Initially I wondered if the “Get What You Want” program could focus on the very competitive and quite exclusive world of pop production and marketing, but I couldn’t find enough good material to warrant a season. That original impulse was possibly a little contained, too.
“Then I asked myself ‘what do all the artists, audiences and apparatus in between them have in common?’ I thought it’s an area of activity marked by determination and impulse. It’s a bunch of people doing whatever they can to get what they want from the scene – that passion and/or lowered inhibition can make for compelling viewing.”
How did you select the films for the program? What criteria did you apply?
“I started out trying to watch just about everything feature length music related that I could. The role here allows me to take the time to map out all sorts of cultural activities in order to familiarise myself and others with what is out there. But to fit a calendar slot and make the program coherent there is a process of filtering. I was conscious to represent a breadth of music styles and make “Get What You Want” a de facto comparative study of the different musical scenes. But there are also stories of success and tragedy, innovation and imitation, individualism and community bonds. There was also some attempt to balance recent releases among a few classics and to think about a balance of filmmaking styles: documentary, docudrama, fictional narratives and even animated musicals!”
Were there any films that you wanted to include but were unable to secure?
“Actually we got most of the initial list. If the schedule allowed I might have included a few more masterworks such as Jean-Jacques Beineix’s Diva, the Jamaican classic Rockers, Whit Stillman’s The Last Days of Disco and the like. I could have pushed into some more experimental corners such as Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels and some colour-music compositions too. That said I am happy with the final program as the selection is very tight and the films are in tune with one another as they say.”
What’s the audience for a program like this?
“The cinephiles out there might look at this program and think without those classics I just mentioned that “Get What You Want” is a general access program that isn’t quite for the dedicated viewer. But I think it’s a smart program that offers a bridge to different audiences that we might not reach out to very often. There are a lot more surprises in the line-up than first appearance perhaps. The hard thing about appealing to an audience through music is that tastes can be quite fixed and people might be reluctant to come to a film couched in a style of music they might not usually listen to, but to me a program like this is a great opportunity to go beyond your regular comfort zone.”
What would you say are the unmissable films in the program?
“Amy and Marley are both incredibly well researched and very finely constructed insights into Amy Winehouse and Bob Marley respectively. You don’t have to have a passion for the music to appreciate their stories and great humanity. Charles Bradley: Soul Of America is a sort of antidote for the live hard die young theme. He is such a beautiful character who endured incredible hardship to break through with his first album at 62 years old and his voice is electrifying.
“Dig!, Anvil: The Story Of Anvil and Ladies And Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains hold up incredibly well today – each of these films has such incredible atmosphere and ambience. Awesome; I Fuckin’ Shot That! the Beastie Boys concert film was really a very innovative and playful reinvention of the staid concert film genre from 2006.
“Inside Llewyn Davis by the Coen Brothers went a bit under the radar in Australia but I’ve always got a lot of time to contemplate their observations on life and art. Rock the Bells is also quite riveting but stressful – anyone who has tried to put on some kind of public event will know what I mean. Similarly The Carter is a powerful re-envisioning of what rags to riches means today and shows just how hard many musicians work to hone their craft and stay on their game – it’s an incredibly uncompromising insight into the music industry. All these films eclipse the music genre and say something so much more about the creative impulse, the life of the artist and the cultural moment.”
“Get What You Want: Music Cinema” is on now. For info, session times and tickets, go to the GOMA website.
