Post by Jonel on May 31, 2002 15:23:35 GMT -5
Movie salutes Motown musicians
Thursday, April 4, 2002
By Susan Whitall / The Detroit News
Motown's unsung heroes will finally be splashed across the movie screens of America as Artisan Pictures announced Wednesday that it will distribute a documentary film about Motown's studio band, the Funk Brothers.
Standing in the Shadows of Motown tells the heartbreaking but ultimately transcendent story so familiar to Detroiters of the world-class Motown band that was reunited 40 years after they made music history in Motown's Studio A on West Grand Boulevard.
The film is a combination of oral history by surviving Funks Richard "Pistol" Allen, Uriel Jones, Jack Ashford, Bob Babbitt, Joe Messina, Eddie Willis, Johnny Griffith and Joe Hunter; commentary from their peers; and live performances with singers such as Chaka Khan and Joan Osborne.
Produced by Allan Slutsky, Sandy Passman and Paul Justman, and directed by Justman, the film should be in theaters nationally by August.
Artisan Pictures distributed the stellar, Academy Award-winning Buena Vista Social Club, which dealt with a similar subject -- younger musicians paying homage to veteran Cuban musicians.
"So we're off to the races," says a clearly joyful Slutsky, the musician/author turned film maker who nursed the project along for years. "We had to cut the film a bit, but that just means we tightened up a few scenes a bit."
Sensitive to the fact that the musicians were often the last to be paid in years past, the film's producers set it up so the Funk Brothers will get a cut of the "back end," or a participation in profits after the movie is released.
Artisan Pictures is blooming with health after the success of The Blair Witch Project and of course, Buena Vista Social Club.
Artisan Entertainment CEO Amir J. Malin said in a statement Wednesday: "The manner in which the film brings to life the rousing sounds of Motown through the lives of the men who helped define the music of the era makes this an enjoyable film for any audience."
For their part, the film's producers were happy to ink with a company that understands music films.
Next to be decided by Artisan and the producers is the film's premier date, with Slutsky pitching hard for a premiere in Detroit, where it all happened.
You can reach Susan Whitall at (313) 222-2156 or swhitall@ detnews.com
Thursday, April 4, 2002
By Susan Whitall / The Detroit News
Motown's unsung heroes will finally be splashed across the movie screens of America as Artisan Pictures announced Wednesday that it will distribute a documentary film about Motown's studio band, the Funk Brothers.
Standing in the Shadows of Motown tells the heartbreaking but ultimately transcendent story so familiar to Detroiters of the world-class Motown band that was reunited 40 years after they made music history in Motown's Studio A on West Grand Boulevard.
The film is a combination of oral history by surviving Funks Richard "Pistol" Allen, Uriel Jones, Jack Ashford, Bob Babbitt, Joe Messina, Eddie Willis, Johnny Griffith and Joe Hunter; commentary from their peers; and live performances with singers such as Chaka Khan and Joan Osborne.
Produced by Allan Slutsky, Sandy Passman and Paul Justman, and directed by Justman, the film should be in theaters nationally by August.
Artisan Pictures distributed the stellar, Academy Award-winning Buena Vista Social Club, which dealt with a similar subject -- younger musicians paying homage to veteran Cuban musicians.
"So we're off to the races," says a clearly joyful Slutsky, the musician/author turned film maker who nursed the project along for years. "We had to cut the film a bit, but that just means we tightened up a few scenes a bit."
Sensitive to the fact that the musicians were often the last to be paid in years past, the film's producers set it up so the Funk Brothers will get a cut of the "back end," or a participation in profits after the movie is released.
Artisan Pictures is blooming with health after the success of The Blair Witch Project and of course, Buena Vista Social Club.
Artisan Entertainment CEO Amir J. Malin said in a statement Wednesday: "The manner in which the film brings to life the rousing sounds of Motown through the lives of the men who helped define the music of the era makes this an enjoyable film for any audience."
For their part, the film's producers were happy to ink with a company that understands music films.
Next to be decided by Artisan and the producers is the film's premier date, with Slutsky pitching hard for a premiere in Detroit, where it all happened.
You can reach Susan Whitall at (313) 222-2156 or swhitall@ detnews.com
