On my journey to complete our feature-length anti-trafficking documentary Sisters For Sale, I’ve been absorbing some of the world’s finest documentaries.
Late last year I presented a series of blog posts introducing you to a few of my favourites.
Several of you have written to say how much you’ve enjoyed them, and today I have a few more to share with you.
Here are three very different documentaries which all share the same theme: music.
Whatever your feelings about Nirvana’s early-90s grunge rock, its global impact cannot be denied.
Brett Morgen’s Kurt Cobain: Montage Of Heck is a surprisingly intimate portrait of Nirvana’s frontman, including unparalled access to Cobain’s personal tapes and journals, and revealing interviews with his immediate family members and wife, Courtney Love.
Ultimately, it is the tragic story of a fragile mind torn apart by the trappings of success, and easily the most powerful rock documentary I’ve ever seen.
Morgan Neville’s 20 Feet From Stardom, on the other hand, is a delightful introduction to the women on the edge of the spotlight: the largely unknown back-up singers of some of the world’s most famous bands.
Some of these incredible women choose to remain in the background, while others have long struggled to take centre stage, poised between poverty and stardom.
Their stories are touching, their passion admirable, and their talent undeniable.
Tony Gatlif’s Latcho Drom is a world away from the stage and spotlight.
Tracing the historical peregrinations of the Roma people from the deserts of India into Europe and northern Africa, it is a tale of resilience against hardship, persecution and genocide.
An utterly immersive and ever-surprising experience without narration or explanation, the story is told entirely through songs and dances drawn from the various Roma traditions.
Sisters For Sale is the incredible true story of the attempted search and rescue of two friends who were kidnapped from their remote mountain villages and sold as teenaged brides in the world’s most populous country.
Finishing funds are now required to complete the post-production of Sisters For Sale: to be sure of seeing the film, and to help me expose the complex realities of the human trafficking crisis, pre-order it now here on the website.
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