Calendar 2011

There is no doubt that nowadays dancehall represents more than just a music genre that has been popular in Jamaica for the past three decades. Dancehall is a lifestyle that most of Jamaican society  identifies with and the island’s youths are personally involved in. Dancehall also implicitly underlines controversial and much criticized aspect of Jamaican cultural aversions, like racism, sexism or homophobia.

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6.00pm WORKSHOP THE HISTORY OF REGGAE with David Rodigan. Presented by Red Bull Music Academy

8.00pm FILM THE STORY OF LOVERS ROCK (2011, UK) by Menelik Shabazz

Through live performances from the leading exponents of the genre along with humorous reflections and interviews the film brings back to life the era of the late 70s and 80s when the music was at a highpoint. Lovers Rock was British, the first UK ‘girl power’ music that gave a voice to many first generation black British young people but not exclusively. Along with the music came a unique fashion style and ‘scrubbing’ an intimate dance between male and female that defined the Lovers Rock brand.

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2.00am FILM rerun THE STORY OF LOVERS ROCK 

4.00pm FILM HIT ME WITH MUSIC by Fernando Garcia Guereta, Nice Time Prod. Presented by ACR, with the participation of the producer and Zenny|closed 

30 years after Bob Marley, Jamaica continues to be on top of the world-wide music scene. Reggae has evolved to produce a new genre, Dancehall. Anywhere, at any time, tunes created by artists from the ghetto fill the island’s soundscape. They tell the story of a society whose reality is marked by violence and poverty.

Through the protagonists of this documentary we’ll get to know Dancehall and what it is about. A diverse group of individuals, including Yellowman, the original King of Dancehall, talk of the context in which these songs are born and what the phenomena represents in their life and the lives of many supporters.

The film presents and represents the urban street culture and lifestyle that fuels and is born out of the new music of young Jamaicans and captures the elements of dance which form an integral part of nightlife in Kingston.

The Dancehall phenomena is unstoppable in Jamaica and the rest of the world, and continues to highlight the realities of life for poor Jamaicans, in spite of the efforts of the Jamaican government to attract tourists by hiding this reality behind its “Jamaica No Problem” image.

Artistes, dancers, music producers, schoolchildren and the youths on the street explain the content of the polemic Dancehall lyrics and the lifestyle created by the music. The Gully – Gaza clash between supporters of Vybz Kartel and Mavado, the controversial subject of “Daggering” and the reasons why people bleach their skin, are all explored in this documentary.

We’ll also get to know about the dreams and hopes of the majority of the poor and underprivileged in Jamaica.

18.00 REGGAE UNIVERSITY MAN VIBES. MASCULINITIES IN THE DANCEHALL with Dr. Donna P. Hope (University of the West Indies, Kingston)

It is common knowledge that Dancehall is dominated by men. At the same time, many have spoken about the marginalization of men in Jamaican society, due to unemployment and a lack of education and opportunity, as well as many other factors that fracture the self-image of males from financially disadvantaged backgrounds, ultimately driving a wedge between them and the wider society. So it seems that Dancehall has served as a mouthpiece that speaks to and for these men—men that don’t have many other options to make themselves heard in public.

            In her book Man Vibes: Masculinities in the Jamaican Dancehall, Dr. Donna P. Hope, Senior Lecturer at the University of the West Indies in Kingston, explores the expressions of Jamaican masculinities within the Dancehall, and highlights five prominent masculine archetypes prominent within contemporary Dancehall culture, such as the embodiment of a hyper-heterosexuality that stresses promiscuity and sexual prowess (Ole Dawg), which is also evidenced in the aggression articulated through ‘gun talk’ lyrics as exemplified in the ‘Badman’ or ‘Shotta’ representations of gun violence (Bad Man), and via the vigorous policing of the hegemonic heterosexual consensus in Jamaica, which condemns male homosexuality through an extreme, graphic and violence-laden discourse (Chi Chi Man); conspicuous consumption and excessive male posing is another site of male identity (Bling Bling), as well as the softened and feminized masculinity evident in the refined aesthetic physicality and the choreographic impulses and colourful and flamboyant styles exhibited by some male artistes and dancers in the dancehall (Fashion Ova Style).

            Following a reading from her book, Dr Hope will discuss these images of masculinity with one or two ‘name brand’ artists, whose participation has yet to be confirmed.

20.00 PELÍCULA WHY JAMAICANS RUN SO FAST de Fernando Garcia Guereta, Nice Time Prod. (2010, España)

Jamaica. The island is at a standstill as people’s eyes are glued to television. Lead by the fastest man alive, Usain Bolt, Jamaican athletes are winning the sprinting competitions at the Bejing Olympics. They break world records and challenge all logic. No world super-power can contest the victory of this small Caribbean nation. This is the story of the six gold medals that put Jamaica at the center-stage of every country’s world map.

“A story that reveals how music and athletics have become ways to escape from poverty and violence in Jamaica. This documentary allows us to get closer to the harsh reality that shapes these young athletes.”

2.00am FILM rerun. HIT ME WITH MUSIC

16.00 DISCO FORUM JAMAICAN MUSIC with Lorenzo "Lalo" Flores (ACR)|closed

The multimedia presentation that Lalo - reggae-activist and founder of ACR (Asociación Cultural Reggae ) - will be presenting, will provide a stimulating visual and music review of the engaging musical and cultural history of Jamaica, from the diaspora’s African tradition heritage (burru, mento, kumina) to the latest music trends (dancehall, soca, new roots), as well as ska, rocksteady and reggae.

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18.00 WORKSHOP THE HISTORY OF ON-U SOUND with Adrian Sherwood. Presented by Red Bull Music Academy

8.00pm FILM BOB MARLEY. THE MAKING OF A LEGEND by Esther Anderson and Gian Godoy. With the directors. Introduced by Ivan Serra (Bon Marley Magazine) and David Katz (Reggae University)

Director’s name: Esther Anderson & Gian Godoy

Country of production: United Kingdom

Year of completion: 2011

Running time: 90 mins

Screening Format: 4:3

Language: English & Jamaican Patois

Subtitles: Spanish TBC

Based on footage shot in the early seventies and lost for more than thirty years, "Bob Marley: The Making of a Legend" takes us on a journey to the Caribbean islands, to Jamaica and into 56 Hope Road, Kingston, to see and hear the young Bob Marley before he was famous. While exploring the powerful relationship between Esther and Marley, the film shows us the Wailers' first rehearsal, when the idea of a Jamaican supergroup like the Beatles or the Stones was still just a dream, and sits in on the launch of their international career with "Get up Stand up", "I Shot the Sheriff", and the "Burnin'" and "Catch a Fire" albums that brought to the world Reggae music and Rasta consciousness together as one, starting a revolution that would change rock music and contemporary culture.

2.00am FILM rerun BOB MARLEY. THE MAKING OF A LEGEND

4.00pm DEBATE SOUND SYSTEM: PILLAR OF DIFFUSION with David Vilches, Iñigo Rootikaly, Leones Humildes and Puppa Fran. Presented by ACR|closed

The main diffusion means for music genres such as rock, pop and funk is the band itself. In Jamaica, on the contrary, the pillar of music diffusion have always been sound systems, which are a sort of street disco, equipped with loudspeakers. Dubplates and vinyls are played in the open air and this is the way singers, deejays, North-American, but later also local productions in general have been presented for 6 decades.

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6.20pm READING BOB MARLEY. THE UNTOLD STORY by Chris Salewicz

From the book Bob Marley – The Untold Story, Chris Salewicz (Harper Collins, London 2009)

Chris Salewicz has written a insiders look into the life, music, and era of Bob Marley. He not only interviewed Marley (in 1979), but has interviewed many people who knew Marley well during various stages of his life. This book has many details that are missing from other books on Marley. What makes it interesting is the day-to-day detail Salewicz inserts throughout. The background on Marley's early life (walking to school in his uniform for instance) is in juxtaposition to the later Bob Marley recognized for his music and his politics.

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6.40pm READING THE BOOK OF EXODUS by Vivien Goldman 

The Book of Exodus – the Making & Meaning of Bob Marley and the Wailers' Album of the Century, Vivien Goldman (Three Rivers Press, New York, 2006)

Described as "vivid and intimate" by Rolling Stone, The Book of Exodus: the Making and Meaning of Bob Marley and the Wailers' Album of the Century (Three Rivers Press/Random House,)  reveals a hidden yet crucial period in Marley's life and music. Exodus focusses in great detail on the arc of Marley's story between the politically motivated attack on his life in 1976, the Smile Jamaica concert, Marley's exile in London while making Exodus, the Punky Reggae Party which Marley named, and his triumphant return home to Jamaica in 1978 for the One Love Peace Concert.

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19.00 REGGAE UNIVERSITY EXODUS, ALBUM OF THE CENTURY with Vivien Goldman (univ. NY) and Chris Salewicz (writer, UK)

Vivien Goldman and Chris Salewicz have both written important books about Bob Marley. But unlike some of the other Marley scribes, each has the advantage of having known the man personally.

Vivien Goldman, Bob’s personal chronicler, worked as a press officer at Island Records for seven months and contributed—as she says, “in a humble way”—to Bob’s breakthrough at a time when most of the press was still ignoring the uprising rude boy. In the winter of 1976, after the Jamaican government declared a State of Emergency, in which anyone caught with an unlicensed firearm (or even a spent bullet) immediately found themselves slapped with “indefinite detention” at the infamous Gun Court, and Kingston was under a state of siege, Goldman found herself at Marley’s Kingston headquarters, 56 Hope Road. In the midst of all the chaos, Bob had created a safe spot, a refuge where his “bredrin” from both political camps, which were fighting pitched battles with their respective gangs in the streets, could meet and discuss the many obstacles of the time. Vivien stayed at Bob’s Rasta camp for a couple of days shortly before the terrible assassination attempt on the reggae singer.

Three years later, in 1979, the writer Chris Salewicz also visited 56 Hope Road to meet with the man, journeying with him to the aforementioned Gun Court in the hopes of releasing a detainee—a most memorable experience, which the writer recounted in his Marley biography, The Untold Story, and which he also related in a special issue of RIDDIM magazine “livicated” to Bob Marley.

Goldman and Salewicz have more in common than simply knowing Marley personally and spending time with him at 56 Hope Road. Both worked for Chris Blackwell’s Island Records at a time when reggae was still striving for acceptance, and both shared a deep love for punk and reggae music alike; indeed, both were famous for their feature articles on these revolutionary musical styles, published in important British newspapers of the era (including Melody Maker, Sounds and New Musical Express), and both witnessed and partook of a time when London was enjoying its “punky reggae party.” In this session, they will talk about their personal experiences with Bob Marley and about their work at Island, focussing on a time that was very exciting, but also very dangerous.

2.00am FILM LONDON TOWN by Tommaso D'Elia 

Prod: Rototom

The documentary intends to retrace the original trail to perceive and feel Africa’s roots within London’s Reggae music. We cover topical subjects such as the 1948, ‘Windrush’ massive immigration from the Caribbean Islands to London, the Notting Hill riots in 1976, the New Cross massacre in Brixton during the late 80ies and we explore Reggae Music today, stressing its strong influence on both punk and pop music . After the recent film ‘Jamaica mon amour’ , this new production offers in-depth analyses aiming at further understanding the significance of ‘peace, love, respect and unity’.

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4.00pm DEBATE ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS IN MUSIC EDITION with Swan Fyahbwoy (singer), Toni Face (producer), Puppa Fran (producer), Dr.Jau (musician and producer). Presented by ACR|closed

It is apparently undeniable that the current global crisis has had a repercussion on the music industry and contributed to a renewal of the business in general: the sales of the actual products, be them CD, DVD or K7, has decreased notably; at the same time, we have seen an increasing proliferation of alternative forms of music diffusion, ranging from free download, to Creative Commons digital distribution licensing (iTunes) to limited editions produces by small labels.

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18.00 REGGAE UNIVERSITY IMAGES OF AFRICA with prof. Louis Chude-Sokei (Washington Univ.) and Luciano (artist, Jamaica)

In Jamaican reggae, we can find myriad songs about Africa, partly because the history of slavery is still too painful to be forgotten, no matter how many years have passed by since the gruesome and traumatizing experience. Having been brutally robbed of your own roots, identity, family, habitat, self-confidence, and yes, your own life as such, and then being transplanted to another environment and degraded to an animal-like status still has very real repercussions on the life of so many Jamaicans. However, with the passing of several generations, images of Africa have become terribly blurred, and may also collide with the negative representations of the worldwide news, which reduces the continent to one riven by poverty and war. And whilst slogans such as “Africa for the Africans”, “Back to Africa”, and “Repatriation is a Must” were very common in Jamaica’s past, as well as in many early reggae songs, over time, the meaning of these demands/claims have shifted. And since Jamaican reggae has also become very popular in various African countries in more recent times, how do these countries respond to the notions of Africa presented in Jamaican songs? Do these presentations maybe also collide with African realities, as do those provided via television, or these days, via Internet-transported images?

In his work, US-based academic Louis Chude-Sokei, who was born to a Jamaican mother and a Nigerian father, discusses the tensions and contradictions that emerge when Jamaicans began to invent and popularize notions of identity, culture, and politics, which they refer to as “African”, and he takes a closer look at what happens when those ideas get imported “Back to Africa” via sound.

Similarly, if we examine the catalogue of the successful reggae singer Luciano, we come across many songs dealing with Africa in one way or another. There are some obvious ones, in which he refers to the continent in the title (“Forward To Africa”, “African Skies”, “Africa Sweat”, “I Pray For Mama Africa”, “African Woman”, “Back To Africa”, “African Liberty”, etc), and there are many others in which he talks about various aspects of the Motherland. One of his latest albums was even titled United States Of Africa. Luciano has also travelled and performed across the continent.

In this session Louis Chude-Sokei will give a short summary of his essay “When Echoes Return: Roots, Diaspora and Possible Africas,” which will be part of his forthcoming book The Sound Of Culture. He and Luciano will then go on to discusses various aspects of the images of Africa, as represented through reggae music

7.15pm READING CHANT DOWN BABYLON by Carolyn Cooper

19.30 REGGAE UNIVERSITY NO WOMAN NO CRY Rita Marley and Professor Carolyn Cooper (University of Kingston) in Conversation

Rita Marley’s controversial autobiography, No Woman No Cry: My Life With Bob Marley, was exactly what her critics had been waiting for. Instead of viewing it as an account of the man by someone who knew him best, everyone jumped on a casual remark in the work that suggested her husband, the “King of Reggae,” obviously wasn’t only concerned with “One Love” when it came to his private life—as though it was big news that Mr Marley had been chasing after every skirt that came his way during his lifetime.

However, one of Jamaica’s leading academics and top cultural critics, Professor Carolyn Cooper, gave the book a more careful critical analysis, whilst also questioning the common marketing strategies it had been subject to (such as selling the book as a Bob Marley biography, rather than the life history of his widow), and thus came to the conclusion that the book is actually a documentary of a strong woman that transformed herself from “Blackie Tootus” (a racially derisive term referring to her dark complexion) to an independent woman that was able to live a “life without Bob Marley.” Ultimately, Cooper reads Rita Marley’s autobiography as a black feminist fable, an allegoric narrative about the determination to overcome the narrow confines that were conceded to a poor black woman of 1940s Jamaica. As we all know, Rita has certainly succeeded in many concrete ways; she is a strong and powerful woman that can serve as a role model for black women, and indeed, oppressed women all over the world.

It will be exciting and fascinating to witness two such strong women, Carolyn Cooper and Rita Marley, discussing a life journey that many believe they already know so many things about, when in reality, most hardly have a clue.

8.30pm FILM PULL IT UP. AN ITALIAN STORY (2011, Italia) by Giovanni de Gaetano. Prod. Nine Lives Films 

Produced by: NINE LIVES Films

Directed by: Giovanni De Gaetano

Authors: Giovanni De Gaetano, Paolo De Cecco, Chiara Nacchia Executive producers: Giovanni De Gaetano, Paolo De Cecco Started on: july 2009

Ended on: september 2010

Project closure: november 2010

“Pull it up” project grows from the desire of a group of friends to describe the musical scene of which they take part from various years.

The documentary wants to make a retrospective on the reggae sounsystem’s scene in Italy that boasts a twenty-years history by  now and, according to  many insiders, it  represents one of the most thriving scenario in Europe.

“Pull it up” is developed through the stories of the people that have taken part to this adventure such as One Love Hi Powa, Vito War, Don Ciccio, Godzilla, Mad Kid, I-Shence, Northern Lights and many more. As it happened in Jamaica, in Italy as well the soundsystems have contribute to make a widespread coverage of the reggae and dancehall music on the entire country.

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2.00am FILM rerun  PULL IT UP. AN ITALIAN STORY 

4.00pm DEBATE JOURNALISM AND INVESTIGATION IN JAMAICAN MUSIC with Gonzalo Fernández (researcher), Carlos Monty (journalist), Ragna (journalist/manager). Presented by ACR|closed 

Some artists openly admit it, some do so reluctantly, some simply deny it: the work of songwriting and of creating a music project is just as important as the media promotion that is needed for it to reach the general public through radio, press, tv and internet.

Both sides, musicians and journalists, contribute to give a meaning to each others work.

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6.00pm to be announced

coming soon

7.00pm  MULTIMEDIA THE LIFE OF BOB MARLEY by Roger Steffens

La presentación multimedia de Steffens “The Life of Bob Marley” ha sido aclamada como “la historia definitiva del rey de Reggae” y denominada por el New York Times, “La mejor cosa siguiente a ver a Bob Marley en vivo”.

“Cada vez que veo su presentación aprendo algo nuevo acerca de mi hijo!” dijo Cedella Marley Booker,  la madre de Bob que la vio cinco veces

 “Cada presentación que hago es diferente de la anterior” dice Steffens, “Estoy constantemente aprendiendo más acerca de este hombre extraordinario, que considero ser el Artista del siglo XX”.

El programa de Steffens consiste en dos horas de peliculas y videos inéditos – videos caseros, ensayos, un documental del intento de asesinato de Bob, programas en vivo y entrevistas nunca vistos . Entre los clips, nos cuenta la historia de vida de Bob Marley, basada, en parte, en las 64 horas de entrevistas a lo largo de cuatro décadas, con el Wailer sobreviviente, Bunny Livingston, y muchas otras entrevistas con su banda, familia y amigos.

Mientras habla, un conjunto de fotos se proyectan detrás de él, muchas de ellas tomadas por Steffens cuando pasó dos semanas en la gira “Survival” con los Wailers en 1979.  Muchas de estas están entre las más conocidas imágenes de Marley, reproducidas innumerables veces en todo el mundo (a menudo sin permiso oficial) como pasta de libros y discos, carteles, banners y vestuario. Impresionantes fotos inéditas, además inéditas actuaciones en vivo y entrevistas, incluyendo el ensayo final  de Bob .

ROGER STEFFENS 


Nacido en Nueva York y residente desde hace cuatro décadas en California, Roger Steffens es un hombre con muchas caras: actor, autor, conferencista, archivista, fotógrafo, disc jockey, editor, curador, director y productor.

Su carrera profesional de radiodifusión empezó en Nueva York en 1961. A lo largo de la década de los 80, presentó cinco programas diferentes en la National Public Radio en Los Ángeles, KCRW, incluyendo el múlti- premiado “Reggae Beat,” que fue transmitido a 130 estaciones en todo el mundo durante cuatro años.

Como actor de teatro, de cine y narrador participó en muchas películas como “Forrest Gump,” “Wag the Dog,” “The American President,” “Can’t Hardly Wait,” y la ganadora de Oscar “Flight of the Gossamer Condor” la cual narró. Durante seis años, fue la voz corporativa de Time Warner Audiolibros , y recibió una prestigiosa nominación para el premio Audie por su narración en el audiolibro de Bill Gates’ “Business at Speed of Thought.” Su voz se escucha en las exposiciones en el Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, en el Museum of Tolerance, en el Getty Museum y en muchos otros.

Actualmente trabaja como productor asociado en el documental de Jonathan Demme “Marley”

También es famoso por ser uno de los mayores entusiastas del reggae en todo el mundo, aclamado en 2008 por el Jamaica Observer como “Una de las Diez personas más influyentes en la Música Reggae”.

Es el antiguo Director de Promoción Nacional de Island Records, y ha sido presidente del Reggae Grammy Committee desde su fundación en 1984. Su extenso archivo de Reggae contiene la mayor colección del mundo de material de Bob Marley, así como la historia de la música de Jamaica, llenando seis habitaciones de su casa en Los Ángeles.

En 2001, fue curador de una exposición a lo largo de ocho meses de sus Archivos en el Queen Mary, en Long Beach, California, llenando dos edificios adyacentes a los muelles con más de  6,000 artículos, y autor de un espléndido catálogo con más de 1,600 ilustraciones.

Sus  internacionalmente aclamadas presentaciones multimedia “The Life of Bob Marley” han sido presentadas nueve veces en el Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (donde fue el primero orador); en el Smithsonian Institute ; en el EMP en Seattle; en el Grammy Museum; y más de 400 lugares en todo el mundo.

Es co-autor de los libros premiados “Bob Marley and the Wailers: The Definitive Discography” y el actual “Roger Steffens and Peter Simon’s Reggae Scrapbook” además de “Bob Marley: Spirit Dancer” y “One Love: My Life with Bob Marley and the Wailers.”  Es el editor fundador, y editor de 27 ediciones anuales Marley Collectors Editions de la revista The Beat , que se desarrolló entre 1982-2009. 


-  Steffens ha sido entrevistado, como especialista en Reggae para la realización de documentales de televisión para la BBC, VHI, MTV, BET y PBS. Su propio programa de televisión por cable, “L.A. Reggae” duró 23 años.

Steffens entrevistó Robert Moog para el proyecto de la Recording Academy “Living Legends” y nunca se olvidó de sus palabras: 


“Trabaja como si no necesitaras dinero . Ama como si nunca hubieses sido herido. Danza como nadie te estuviera mirando” 

2.00am FILM JAMAICA MON AMOUR (2009, Italia) by Tommaso D'Elia. Prod: Rototom

Jamaica 2008. Jamaica mon amour is an “on the road” film, which brings us in contact with the places and persons linked to reggae music, with the beauty and contradictions of this Caribbean Island. Filmed during the tour organized by the European reggae festival Rototom Sunsplash to celebrate its 15th anniversary, this documentary depicts some of the most important places that marked the history of reggae music: Nine Miles, Bob Marley’s Mausoleum, and Tuff Gong, the studio where Bob Marley recorded his greatest hits and which now belongs to his wife Rita. Here we filmed a historical moment, i.e. the very last time the press was used to manufacture vinyl records.

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3.00pm READING 30 ANNI IN LEVARE. STORIA DELLA STORIA DI AFRICA UNITE by Bunna and Madaski|closed

"TRENT'ANNI IN LEVARE". The history of the story of Africa Unite

by Bunna and Madaski. Chinaski Edizioni

In 1981, immediately after the premature death of Bob Marley, Bunna and Madaski form Africa Unite and start the project that has lead them to become a benchmark for reggae in Italy. After 12 studio albums, 2 live albums and an anthology, they are now presenting an official biography, “Trent’anni in Levare” (thirty years upbeat) written by Bunna and Madaski with F.T. Sandman and Episch Porzioni. In one year they have collected and revised memories and anecdotes to reconstruct the long career of the band.

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4.00pm DEBATE THE MARLEY LEGACY with Josetxo Mintegi (researcher), Carlos Monty (journalist), David Vilches (journalist), Sergio Monleón (musician). Presented by ACR 

Robert Nesta Marley is not only a benchmark for reggae and Jamaican culture. He is also the author of a number of beautiful hymns, whose message is filled with rebellion, spirituality, love and non conformity and has not lost its power in decades. He his an icon that represents the third world emergency and the need to face deceivers and shams through music, channel of expression and agitation.

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6.00pm FILM THE NIGHT OF THE LION (2002, Italia) by Giorgio Carella

by Paolo Cognetti

Capatosta production

minidv and super 8- 59’ – color and b/w - Italia 2002

June 27th, 1980, Milan. Bob Marley played at San Siro Stadium which opened its doors to music concerts for the first time. It was the most important concert in his life, 100000 people, just a year before he started another tour, away from this world. Italy, the cursed country that had deposed his God on earth, the Lion of Judah, Ras Tafari, Haile Selassie emperor of Ethiopia in 1936, finally escaped the 70s rough years and four seasons of musical silence.  

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7.00pm READING I DREAMED OF BOB MARLEY by Alberto Castelli. Musical selection by Mercy Far I. Special guest: Bunna (Africa Unite) 

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2.00am FILM rerun. THE NIGHT OF THE LION 

6.00pm FILM THE NIGHT OF THE LION (2002, Italia) by Giorgio Carella+ info

4.00pm FILM RICO. THE LEGACY (2006, España) by Jep Jorba y Marc Almodóvar. Special guest: Rico Rodriguez. Presented by ACR|closed

Meeting with directors

Screening: 25 August, 4:00pm

Speakers: Marc Almodóvar, Jep Jorba (director) and Rico Rodríguez (musician)

Duration: 24’ 38”


Català 

The phonograph starts to spin. The stylus falls softly over the vinyl record and life starts to play again that notes full of memories, difficulties, faith, travels and experiences.

The life of Rico Rodriguez and the life of jamaican music are two faces of the same coin. They are like two parallel lines that passed through the time and the place.

In the documentary “Rico Rodriguez – The Legacy” the time is 2006 and the place is Barcelona. The old caribbean melodies of the 60’s are performed by young musicians of the millenium, that take with pride the musical and spiritual legacy of this great trombonist.

These beatiful melodies become the perfect soundtrack to review the biography of one of the most humble and compromised legends of jamaican music.

6.20pm LECTURE STEPPING RAZOR by John Masouri

Steppin' Razor, The Life of Peter Tosh, John Masouri (Omnibus Press, London, forthcoming)

Here’s is the very first biography of Peter Tosh, rude boy, founding member of The Wailers and a compelling recording artist in his own right.

Tosh’s committed, and at times abrasive personality was forged in the same Trenchtown ghetto as his close friends Bob Marley and Bunny Livingstone. Together they formed the Wailers, the ultimate rude boy band from Jamaica, whose music would be increasingly fuelled by the twin influences of Rastafari and black power. Always the most outspoken of the group, Tosh contributed songs and vocals to their first two Island Records albums Catch A Fire and Burning before launching his solo career with Legalise It - the title track of which was promptly banned in Jamaica amidst a storm of controversy.

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6.40pm READING I&I NATURAL MYSTIC by Colin Grant 

I & I: The Natural Mystics examines for the first time the story of the Wailers, arguing that these musicians offered a model for black men in the second half of the twentieth century: accommodate and succeed (Marley), fight and die (Tosh) or retreat and live (Wailer). It charts their complex relationship, their fluctuating fortunes, musical peak, and the politics and ideologies that provoked their split.

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7.00pm MULTIMEDIA THE LIFE OF PETER TOSH by Roger Steffens 

The Life of Peter Tosh was originally presented at the University of the West Indies for Peter's birthday in October of 2001, and shown at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the next year. This will be its first full presentation in Europe.

It consists of ten segments that cover his entire touring career interspersed with interviews and prophecies and personal tales of the friendship between Peter and Roger Steffens.

7.00pm FILM EXODUS - FINDING SHELTER (2011, España) by Tommaso D'Elia 

The adventures surrounding Rototom Sunsplash’s move from Italy to Spain have been made into a film: “Exodus – Finding Shelter.” This 55 minute documentary, filmed by the Roman director Tommaso D’Elia, will be presented in Udine on March 11th and Rome on March 14th.

The film, produced by the cultural associations “Exodus” and “Paneikon,” tells the story of an Italian cultural event envied by the whole world, which was forced to relocate due to political obstinacy that reduced it to a mere “promotion of drug use.” The resulting "exodus" uprooted a valuable cultural experience that was capable of teaching so much from an organizational and philosophical point of view, as championed by UNESCO as promoters of a “peaceful and non-violent culture.”

4.00pm FILM UTOPIA ETHIOPIA by Sergio Monleón and Alberto Tarín. With the directors and Ragna (journalist and manager). Presented by ACR|closed 

Duración de la proyección: 29´

Duration: 29´

"Utopia Ethiopia" is the spontaneous account of the events that were celebrated around the person of Bob Marley in Addis Abeba in February 2005. Filmed and produced by musicians Alberto Tarín and Sergio Monleón, it explores the concept of “African unity” marked by the event Africa Unite.

It is a unique experience that serves as a starting point to consider the figure of Bob Marley in general and more specifically its relationship with Ethiopia. The 30 minute documentary goes far beyond being a mere informative work. Music and images are originals of a unrepeatable event.

Unicef, Oxfam, Bob Marley Foundation, Rita Marley Foundation, Africa Unite Organization, Sheratton Hotel Addis, Ethiopian Airlines, Coca-Cola, the city of Addis, the Ethiopian government and the orthodox church, musicians and artists, speakers, actors, personalities, the Marley family all together on stage…all the ingredients for an attractive combination. 

18.00 REGGAE UNIVERSITY RASTAMAN VIBRATION with Colin Grant (escritor, Uk) and Brigadier Jerry (artista, Jam)

Open to endless forms of interpretation, the Rastafari faith means many different things to many different people. First emerging in the turbulent era of the 1930s, when Jamaica was gripped by labour strikes and societal struggles relating to skin tone, the faith was partly inspired by the fiery speeches of Marcus Garvey, one of Jamaica’s heroes of black self-determination, whose campaigns to ‘uplift the mighty race’ inspired African freedom fighters such as Kwame Nkrumah, as well as Dr. Martin Luther King in the USA.

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7.00pm FILM THE FIRST RASTA (2011, Francia) by Hélène Lee. Prod. Kidam

The First Rasta - SYNOPSIS

at the beginning of the last century, the young Leonard Percival Howell (1893 – 1981) left Jamaica, became a sailor and travelled the world. on his way, he chanced upon all the ideas that stirred his time. From Bolshevism to New Thought, from Gandhi to anarchism, from Garveyism to psychoanalysis, he sought to find his promised land. with this cocktail of ideas leonard “Gong” howell returned to Jamaica and founded pinnacle, the first rasta community in 1939.

Thereafter, a way of living and thinking was developed which nourished the reggae culture that Bob Marley would spread worldwide.

It is high time to pay tribute to Leonard Percival Howell, the First Rasta, whose revolutionary, political and social discourse resonates with the altermondialist movement of today.

2.00am FILM rerun THE FIRST RASTA 

7.00pm FILM THE FIRST RASTA (2011, Francia) by Hélène Lee. Prod. Kidam+ info

4.00pm FILM INTENSIFIED. COME FORWARD (2010, España) by Marc Almodóvar and Jep Jorba. With the directos. Presented by ACR|closed 

December 20th 1990. Bottoms Club, Folkestone, England. A group of fans of genuine Jamaican rhythms is about to offer their first concert in a dirty and claustrophobic club, located in a small city of the British south-west. The entry is 2,50£ and it seems too expensive for the kids waiting outside and they are not willing to pay more than 50 pennies to watch the show. What the kids at the door don’t know (and even the musicians in the changing rooms are unaware of) is that in this precise moment, one of the most important and influencing bands in the Jamaican European scene is about to be born. During the last 20 years, Intensified has reached the heart of thousands of upbeat lovers, filling them with pure Ska, Rocksteady and Reggae. The band has performed on the most important stages in Europe and they opened shows for the most prestigious Jamaican singers: Dave Barker, Alton Ellis, Winston Francis or Pat Kelly. This documentary will let you discover the secrets and stories that explain the origin and development of this legendary band. 

18.00 REGGAE UNIVERSITY EVOLUTION IN THE REGGAE FOUNDATION with John Masouri and Bunny “Striker” Lee

Invited artists: Johnny Clarke (Jam) and Michael Prophet (Uk)

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8.00pm FILM ROCKMAN (2011, Italia) by Mattia Epifani and Tommaso Manfredi. Prod. Ritmo Radicale 

Piero Longo, better known as MilitantP, class of 1966, born in Salento and based in Bari, has created a bridge between the city of Bari in the 80s and the rising Salentinian reggae scene of the 90s. Founder of the legendary Sud Sound System, he left the bad in 1992, due to the worsening of his mental condition. The story of Rockman follows 2 parallel tracks: on one side the complex, turbulent and fascinating artistic and personal story of MilitantP; on the other side, the interviews to the lead figures of Apulian reggae, supported by an audio and visual archive that was collected during one year of field research.

The resistance, the ideas of political and social change, the collective management initiatives, the first reggae parties, the “La Giungla” social centre in Bari and the pirate parties on the Adriatic coast are some of the ingredients that make this production an important document both for reggae fans and in general, especially for those who belong to the generation that found in alternative music a way to react to the cultural alienation that followed the 70s.

Rockman is the first documentary entirely dedicated to the origins of Apulian reggae and it adds an important value to international video productions on the subject, together with movies such as “The harder they come”, “Rockers” or “Babylon”. All these films have explained the essence and the meaning of Jamaican and British reggae, becoming necessary material for those who are willing to learn about a music genre that is both rebel sound, positive and non-violent vibration, voice of the people and medicine for the soul.

2.00am FILM rerun ROCKMAN

8.00pm FILM ROCKMAN (2011, Italia) by Mattia Epifani and Tommaso Manfredi. Prod. Ritmo Radicale+ info