andPOP » Documentary

Skrillex Collaborates with The Doors on ‘Break a Sweat’

Natalia Buia — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 22:46:40 +0000

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Two different artists, from two different generations, making two different genres of music have banded together for a special documentary.

“ReGENERATION” is a documentary about remixing and collaborating artists from different times and styles. It’s co-produced by the Grammys and Amir Bar Lev (“My Child Could Paint That”). Oh, and it’s strategically narrated by Ryan Gosling.

Featured in the film are Mark Ronson paired with Erykah Badu, rapper Nas and the Berklee School of Music Orchestra and DJ Skrillex with the remaining members of the Doors.

Ray Manzarek spoke to Rolling Stone a few months back, explaining of the musical connection he had with the young dubstep dynamo.

“Basically, it’s a variation on ‘Milestones,’ by Miles Davis, and if I do say so myself, sounds fucking great, hot as hell,” he says.

You either love dubstep or completely despise it, but you have to admit this pairing is so offbeat, it compels you to watch the entire doc and listen to the whole song (if you can stomach the heavy bass and disarray synth.

You can watch the mini-doc of their collaborative “Breakin’ a Sweat” below. NOTE: it’s not safe for those with epilepsy.

Oh No – A Soulja Boy Documentary

andPOP Staff — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 19:45:41 +0000

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Oh no – a Soulja Boy documentary?? Yes, unfortunately Soulja has his very own documentary coming out, telling the story about his rise to fame as an Internet star.

The movie release is timely considering he dropped a mixtape last week called “Skateboy.” Soulja Boy: The Movie, hit shelves in just a few weeks.

Soulja Boy told XXL what the movie is all about:

“Yeah man, it covers just so much! It goes from the first single, to the “Crank Dat” dance craze, to the YouTube views, to the third album not doing good, to the robberies, to the sold out concerts; tours across the world, Brazil Amsterdam, London, Paris, Tokyo, Japan, the whole United States. It’s just gonna give all the fans just that insight that they lookin’ for. They wanna know as much as they can about they favorite rapper, and that’s what this movie [is] here for.”

Do you think anybody is actually going to pay money to buy this movie?

Hunter Hayes Documentary Airing November 1

andPOP Staff — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 19:29:02 +0000

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Hunter Hayes is getting his own special on Great American Country which will chronicle his life. Hunter is only 20 years old, but he has been playing since he was 17.

“When I was young my parents noticed me taking a liking to music, “ Hunter said. “Music was my soccer game, it was just what I did. I think I started so young, I didn’t know what nervous was.” By the time he was six years old, he was regularly sitting in with bands and gaining a following.

“As I started to grow up I started to take in a lot of different music, primarily country,” he said. “I was playing music long before I was writing it. I think I started writing it because I got tired of playing everybody else’s stuff and wanted to say my own thing.”

Introducing: Hunter Hayes premieres November 1 at 10/9 CT on GAC.

Lil’ Wayne Admits He Had A Sizzurp Addiction

andPOP Staff — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 12:59:19 +0000

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A documentary is currently being made by one of his Lil’ Wayne’s friends where Wayne admits he had an addiction to Sizzurp. Sizzurp is a codeine-based drink.

Wayne says he started drinking it because his idol Pimp C would rap about it. However, as Wayne became more famous he became dependent on the drink to deal with the pressure.

In the video, Wayne says he doesn’t use the stuff anymore because,”I’m not sick anymore.”

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A Soulja Boy Documentary Coming Out

andPOP Staff — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 19:17:19 +0000

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If you dislike Soulja Boy, perhaps you just don’t fully understand him. Well, you are in luck! There is a new Soulja Boy documentary coming out which should clear up misconceptions about the rapper.

Soulja Boy – The Movie will take an in-depth look at the artist, and discuss his power of social media and his musical talent. The film is directed by Peter Spirer, who has made films about Tupac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G. and the Beefseries.

Spirer says, “Soulja Boy is undoubtedly one of the most creative, entrepreneurial hip-hop artists I have ever dealt with. His ability to monetize the internet and his grasp of social media is unparalleled. I think sometimes the press, the public and his peers dismiss him due to lack of understanding or jealousy, and that’s where I hope my film comes in — a straight forward intimate look at a talented young man.”

Will you go see it?

Lady Gaga Debuts A Cappella ‘Born This Way’

Christian Allaire — Mon, 09 May 2011 19:46:53 +0000

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As we all know, HBO debuted the concert event “Lady Gaga Presents the Monster Ball Tour: At Madison Square Garden” this weekend, delivering 2 hours of musical and visual brilliance from Gaga’s ‘Monster Ball’ tour.

Sure, everyone is buzzing about the documentary. But one of the most talked-about moments of the special was Gaga’s soulful backstage A Cappella rendition of “Born This Way,” which kept everyone screaming for more during the closing credits.

Take a listen below. If you have, at any moment, ever doubted Gaga’s singing capabilities, you can take that back right about now. Such power, such soul!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84Gp5Dr4p7E

Lady Gaga shoots Monster Ball Documentary in NYC

Megan MacKay — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 08:17:36 +0000

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Gaga’s much anticipated HBO special began shooting today according to Radar Online.

Paparazzi caught the pop sensation in between takes sporting torn fishnets, a huge hair poof, and spiked fingerless gloves.

Gaga tweeted excitedly about the event, exclaiming “What a dream come true! Filming my HBO special of the Monsterball today.”

She also spilled some new info about the video for her new hit, “Born This Way,” which has apparently finished post-production and could be release any time now. “Announcement soon! X” the chanteuse added coyly.

Looks like it’s gonna be a busy year for Gaga! Are you excited about her upcoming announcement?

Canada Loses Out on Michael Jackson Documentary

andPOP Staff — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 16:18:28 +0000

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Canadian audiences missed out on a piece of Michael Jackson history by not being able to see the documentary “Gone Too Soon.” Now the owners of the film are going after the distributor who did not live up to his contractual obligation.

TMZ reports Objective Films, LLC has filed a lawsuit against a company headed by Pierre Turgeon. In the lawsuit Objective claims they sold the French and Canadian distribution rights to Pierre’s company in exchange for $100k back in 2009.

Objective claims they received $50,000 but Pierre reneged on the other half. Objective was able to get the flick distributed in France … Canada wasn’t so lucky. Objective further claims Turgeon never really wanted to do legitimate business with Objective, however he just wanted the MJ affiliation to inflate his stock price.

Turgeon tells a different story to TMZ — saying, “The movie was bad … so we applied the clause (in our contract) that enabled us to not pick up the rights to the movie.”

He adds, “We paid in advance in good faith $50,000 for the project … We plan to get back our $50,000.”

Oksana Uses Mel’s Cameo in Documentary to Get Her Way

Megan MacKay — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 21:49:58 +0000

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Mel Gibson’s crazy famewhoring ex, Oksana Grigorieva, is reportedly using a cameo he made to prove his emotional instability and incompetence.

TMZ reports that the documentary, a film about Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art entitled “Acting Class of 1977,” includes some footage of Mel talking about his emotional and mental issues.

Mel reportedly says “I had really good highs but some very low lows. I found out recently I’m manic depressive.” Oksana’s lawyers plan to use the statement to paint Gibson as too unstable to care for the couple’s child, Lucia.

Hmmm, it could be strong evidence in their case…We’ll have to see how the chips fall on this one.

Casey Affleck Reveals the Truth about Joaquin Phoenix

Jacob Morris — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 15:22:48 +0000

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You probably remember the appearance that Joaquin Phoenix made on the Late Show with David Letterman last year. Phoenix came on the show wearing dark sunglasses and rocking a shaggy beard. His weird look was then only emphasized by how he acted—and apparently it was an act. The uninterested answers and the declaration he made about entering the hip-hop music industry were completely fake.

Casey Affleck, who directed the film I’m Still Here, which supposedly documents Joaquin Phoenix’s life for the past two years, says that almost every part of it was an act. “It’s a terrific performance, it’s the performance of his career,” Affleck told the New York Times.

The film was released last week and faced some big criticism and its credibility was attacked, prompting Affleck to speak out about the film.

“I never intended to trick anybody,” he said. “The idea of a quote, hoax, unquote, never entered my mind.”

I’m Still Here definitely has the elements of a hoax though—a lot of significant scenes in the “documentary” include actors playing different parts, including Phoenix’s family and prostitutes.

What do you think about the film? Is it a true piece of art or a huge piece of trickery?

Movie Review: ‘The Tillman Story’

Megan MacKay — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 02:13:30 +0000

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If there are three things in the movie world I tend to avoid like the plague, they’d probably be sports stories, war flicks, and movies where an endearing and lovable primary character dies (I’m looking at you, Disney’s Bambi). Which is why I was so pleasantly surprised by Amir Bar-Lev’s newest Sundance supported documentary, The Tillman Story. Sure, there’s some football and some war and somebody really nice dies, but there’s a fourth element that got me totally invested in the story. Think of it this way: have you ever thought that the government was, well, maybe totally making stuff up and/or strategically hiding the truth to get you and the people you love to do something like, say, go to war? Yes? What a coincidence! The Tillman Story totally exposes the Bush administration doing exactly that.

Very few men would give up a career in professional football to enlist in the armed forces. To most of us, trading in a cushy seven-figure job and hordes of adoring fans for camouflage jumpsuits and a scary gun seems like a pretty insane thing to do. Enter Pat Tillman, a promising young twenty something who meteorically rose to become the apple of the NFL’s eye in the early 2000s. Concerned by the shaky political climate of post-9/11 America, Tillman gave up his contract with the Arizona Cardinals in 2002 to join the army with his brother Kevin. The men are quickly shipped off to Afghanistan, where Pat becomes disenchanted with the operational practices of the United States Army. Though his heart isn’t in it anymore, Pat decides to complete his full three-year tour with his brother. Tillman remains in Afghanistan until April 22, 2004, with just over a year left on his contract, he is tragically killed by what is reported to be an errant enemy bullet during an ambush. Pat is awarded the Silver Star, an award of valor, and painted as a true American hero who sacrificed himself to save his peers. But when it becomes apparent that his death was almost definitely caused by friendly fire at the hands of the soldiers he was allegedly trying to save, the Tillman family find themselves at the centre of one of the most high-profile government cover-ups of the twenty-first century.

The thrill of Bar-Lev’s film definitely comes from the awe-inspiring depth of the Tillman conspiracy. The paper trail leads straight to the very tippy top of the Bush administration – yes, to George Jr. himself. If you’re looking for another reason to hate the 43rd president, you’ll find it here. Nothing makes you question the integrity of your government quite like falsified political propaganda, am I right?

Though the movie is really well organized and coherent, there are times when the military lingo is laid on so thick that the personal accounts of the soldiers in Tillman’s unit can become difficult to follow. Understandable, since they’re soldiers and not professional actors pretending to be soldiers.

Recommended? I think so, but you’d have to be in a specific mood to watch Tillman. The movie is best appreciated when you’re in the mood to analyze and think about what’s being presented to you. It’s definitely not a work of escapism. If you have any interest in politics, governance, and totally insane conspiracies, it’s definitely worth the lineup.

Jay-Z Debuts New York Documentary Online called ‘NY-Z’

andPOP Staff — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:27:54 +0000

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Many would agree that Jay-Z is the official ambassador of New York City. As one of the World’s greatest entertainers, Jay-Z feels most at home in New York’s Madison Square Gardens. To honor this relationship, MTV News is reporting that Absolut Vodka has teamed up with Jay-Z to produce a documentary about his bond with the arena. The film titled “NY-Z” has landed online and is directed by Danny Clinch.

“New York, New York, is my foundation, it’s the center of my growth, it’s the muse for my art,” Jay-Z says in the clip. “It’s where I grew up. It’s the thing that I have a lot of pride in.”

The film follows the rapper as he prepares for the release of Blueprint 3 and his September 11 benefit show. The film also has an amazing group of guests including John Mayer, Mary J. Blige and Diddy.

“NY-Z” features the rapper reminiscing about his upbringing in Brooklyn’s Marcy Projects and his mother’s record collection, which included albums by the Isley Brothers, the Jackson 5 and the Commodores, which Jay said inspired his original Blueprint album. Jay said his mom had “great musical taste.”

Movie Review: No Distance Left To Run

Ilan Mester — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:54:05 +0000

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Most North American fans of Blur weren’t able to catch the British rockers during their 2009 summer tour. If that’s the case, you’ll probably have to settle for the next best thing: the small screen.

“No Distance Left to Run” is a feature length roockumentary that follows the band throughout their summer tour. It was the first time in years that Blur rejoined forces to play together — and you can bet enough happened in between that time to fill up notebooks worth of song lyrics.

However, the movie also focuses on their successful, yet rocky past as brothers; brothers in the sense of their bond as opposed to their blood. You see, the band members all have sisters but no biological brothers. The film starts off with Blur explaining how close they are. But they’re also distant to each other in a way only brothers can be.

Blur fans will be happy to know the movie doesn’t go more than five or 10 minutes without some music. This makes perfect sense judging by the number of hits Blur produced between the late ‘80s and early 2000’s.

The documentary also features exclusive interviews with all four band members along with unseen archival material. Directors Dylan Southern and Will Lovelace don’t shy away from asking lead singer Damon Albarn and the band about his highly publicized romance and brake-up with singer Justine Frischmann, the complicated dynamics between Albarn and Blur guitarist Graham Coxon and of course, their chart battles with Oasis.

“No Distance Left to Run” isn’t necessarily a raw documentary. It’s clear the directors put some thought, both visually and narratively, into how they wanted to tell Blur’s story. In fact, the storytellers are the band members themselves. For this documentary, the lack of outside narration is a plus. Having band members interviewed individually allows the less outspoken Blur members to share the spotlight that belongs to them.

While the movie may be just a tad too long (aside from having multiple ending points), it will undoubtedly strike a chord with Blur fans. And who knows, maybe it’ll bring in a new generation of fans — ones who recognize other Blur songs aside from Song 2.

Dr. Conrad Murray Gets His Own TV Special

andPOP Staff — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 15:00:43 +0000

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Isn’t America a great country? Be investigated for the death of the World’s biggest pop star and get your own TV special. According to TMZ, Dr. Conrad Murray has landed a deal with a British documentary producer to film the Doctor’s first day back at work in Houston. A spokesman for Dr. Murray told to TMZ that the production company was “interested in the reaction of patients to his return.” The footage has actually already been shot, but will not air until the investigation of Jackson’s death is completed.

I guess we will all have to wait patiently for this riveting documentary.

Want To See a Twenty-Two Second Interview With Chris Rock?

@jordans_life — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:19:27 +0000

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At andPOP we are all about creating efficient interviews that get straight to the point. In that spirit here is our interview with Chris Rock after the Toronto premiere of Good Hair.

Michael Moore’s New Documentary Coming This Fall

Eva Lam — Sun, 24 May 2009 23:40:00 +0000

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Michael Moore’s documentary about the collapse of the global economy will hit theatres Oct. 2, the film’s distributors announced Thursday.

According to Overture and Paramount Vintage, the still-untitled documentary will explore the “root causes of the economic meltdown,” as well as “take a comical look at the corporate and political shenanigans” that resulted in the financial meltdown.

“The wealthy, at some point, decided they didn’t have enough wealth,” Moore said in a statement. “So they systematically set out to fleece the American people.”

The distributors noted that the movie will hit theatres almost a year to the day that U.S. Congress passed the country’s first economic stimulus package.

Moore is known for making provocative documentaries, from his 1989 breakout film “Roger and Me” to the Academy Award-winning “Bowling For Columbine” and the controversial “Fahrenheit 9/11.” His most recent film, 2007′s “Sicko,” took a critical look at the U.S. health-care industry.

An Amy Winehouse Documentary

Ilan Mester — Thu, 21 May 2009 16:43:06 +0000

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A documentary with the tentative title of “Saving Amy” focusing on singer Amy Winehouse is currently in the works according to MTV News.

Israeli-American interviewer Daphne Barak is profiling Winehouse for the project that will likely be released later this year according to the singer’s MySpace page.

“Amy and her family will be the subject of a new documentary later this year,” reads the MySpace blog. “[Barak's] subjects over the years have included celebrities, royalty, world leaders and international personalities. The journalist spent time with Amy and her family recently on St. Lucia, and in true honest to goodness Amy style, the doc will be a truthful and revealing look at her complicated life.”

The interviewer’s website features an exclusive photo of her with the singer and in an interview with the U.K.’s Sunday Times, Barak said she questions whether Winehouse has conquered all of her troubles, noting that the singer’s hands shake whenever she does something.

Britney’s Setting The Record Straight

andPOP Staff — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:42:47 +0000

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Since the start of her career, Britney Spears has gone from beloved to bizarre – and possibly back again.

She’s tried her hand at reality television once with her former husband Kevin Federline, in a strange mini-series called “Chaotic”, but this time, Britney is partnering with MTV for a 90-minute documentary, tentatively titled “For the Record”. The doc will cover her return to the music and media spotlight, and Spears said in a statement that it will provide an opportunity to set the record straight about what she has been through, and what she plans to do.

The documentary is set to air on MTV November 30 at 10 p.m.

TIFF Docs Revealed

andPOP Staff — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:02:26 +0000

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Documentaries exploring the Nigerian film industry, India’s first female police officer and the Dungeons and Dragons universe are just some of the films that will make their debut at the Toronto International Film Festival.

TIFF organizers announced the 26 non-fiction films on Tuesday.

Among the films are A Time To Stir, a four-hour documentary examining the 1968 Columbia University student strike, a biographical film called I Bring What I Love about Senegalese singer Ndour and Food Inc., which draws upon the writings of Eric Schlosser’s best-selling novel, Fast Food Nation.

The Toronto International Film Festival takes place Sept. 4-13.