MOFFOM Festival '08

Interview with John Caulkins
the founder of the festival MOFFOM
(Music On Film – Film On Music)
 
1. What are you planning for the jubilee of the festival?
“The city so nice they named it twice”- New York, New York is the special focus of the festival. There is a particular emphasis on the city in the late 70’s and early 80’s in films like “NY77 The Coolest Year in Hell”, “Style Wars” and “From Mambo to Hip Hop”. Also one of the funniest musicals of all time – Mel Brooks’ original 1968 “The Producers”.

2. What are the highlights of this year?
12 films in our competition on subjects ranging from the Berlin Philharmonic “Trip to Asia” to an Angolan music school “Escape From Luanda” to a Bosnian rapper “Edo Maajka”. Again we will have a lot of filmmakers from different countries presenting their films. 9 of the 12 films will have guests present at the screening so it will be a good chance for the audience to connect

3. What would you recommend not to miss?
“The Ship of Fools” (cine-concert ). Films from the Planet MOFFOM section like “What About Me?”. The Canadian metal band Anvil will be here for the screening of a wonderful documentary about them that premiered at Sundance. A really wild film about a Chinese punk band called “Wasted Orient”

MOFFOM 2008
(Music on Film – Film on Music)

MOFFOM, the international festival of music films, is returning to Prague. The fifth incarnation of the festival will be held from October 16th – 20th at Lucerna, Světozor and Evald cinemas. Since 2004, the festival has presented over 300 music films, including unique documentary, feature and experimental short films as well as music videos from more than 40 countries. Within the wide range of films, this year focuses particularly on documentaries. The festival will present 50 films about legendary and current bands, music styles and about music itself. The majority of these will be making their debut in Czech cinemas. Festival-goers will enjoy a unique, behind the scenes look at the world of musicians and music icons like Joy Division, Bob Dylan, Gogol Bordello, Sigur Rós, Pete Seeger, KISS, The Who, James Brown, Brian Wilson and many more. Viewers and a first-time professional jury will choose the best film. The selection appeals to all comers: fans of classical music and folk as well as rock and hip-hop, adults and families with children alike. The program includes a wide range of accompanying events: live performances, cine-concerts, multimedia projects and workshops. A special section this year will focus on New York City.  On this occasion, the festival will award Pete Seeger, the American folk songwriter, activist and key figure of the mid-20th century, with a life-time achievement award, which will also go to the prominent Czech singer Marta Kubišová. Films about the works of both artists will be screened: the biopic “Pete Seeger:The Power of Song”, testifies to his persistent faith in the power of music. The film “Mučedníci lásky“ (1966) will be shown in honor of Marta Kubišová. The film´s director and Kubišová‘s husband, Jan Němec, cast many famous personalities alongside his wife, including Karel Gott.

More information at www.moffom.org