By: Zachary Corsa<\/p>\n
From the earliest days of cinema, music has enjoyed a close symbiotic relationship with the filmic arts, and it\u2019s no surprise to find that many (if not most) musicians are also film buffs, their favorite movies a necessary companion to the usual piles of dusty LPs and frayed paperback classics. In a city such as ours, where so many fortunes have been tied to several genres of popular song for over a century, any independent film festival is all but mandated to seek out innovative ways of uniting the two creative forms, so it\u2019s a blessing that the Bluff City\u2019s own independent film fest, Indie Memphis, has offered reliably compelling independent cinema every year since 1998.<\/p>\n
As the festival\u2019s Music Coordinator, John Miller is tasked with the oversight of such cross-media connections. It\u2019s a position that makes perfect horse sense, as few Memphis are connected to the city\u2019s scene(s) as profoundly as Miller, who co-owns the beloved Shangri-La Records and sits on the board of Music Export Memphis. John was kind enough to take time out of hectic preparations for this year\u2019s fest to answer our a few of our burning questions about the musical\/film collaborations in store for 2021, and also to offer a glimpse of where Indie Memphis might take such a fusion in future years.<\/p>\n
Hey Zach, thanks for reaching out. I always love talking about Indie Memphis! I\u2019ve been working with the festival for a decade now, which has flown by. I first began working on a project for Indie Memphis in my role with an old music development nonprofit called the Memphis Music Foundation. A colleague of mine there, Pat Mitchell, sat on the board of Indie Memphis and knew how much I was interested in the intersection of music and film, so she introduced me and we began working to weave local music into the fabric of the festival.<\/p>\n
I have always been impressed with the way the festival focused on local and regional storytellers, and diving deeper into that same relationship with local music creators has felt like a natural process through the years, no matter who is helming Indie Memphis. Indie Memphis launched a special screening competition for music videos, with a local only showcase slot, highlighting both the artist and visual creators of those videos. That kind of synergy extends to bringing music documentaries to town that might not otherwise be seen, and when possible, featuring live concert performances by the featured artist(s). We\u2019ve also continued to strive to reach out to new and diverse musicians each year, whose music reflects the vibe of each film shown throughout the festival. That is something I know that out of town festival attendees always point to as a perfect gateway for them to discover more about Memphis and its many divergent
\nmusic scenes.<\/p>\n
Ours is unlike any other film festival I\u2019m aware of because its identity so closely reflects the place in which it takes place. Inarguably, music is a cultural pillar of our city and has been for over a century. Indie Memphis has always recognized the value of our artists (visual and musical) in telling our story, so presenting that as one of the first things anyone experiences when they attend says a lot about the priority we give to joining music and film. Discovering a new film and a new artist simultaneously is a joy that we hear many of the attendees, journalists, and staff talk about every year.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s always hard to narrow that down because the festival has music docs, horror films, moving dramatic and social justice stories, and on and on. I will say that over the last few years the festival has had a number of films telling particular stories centered around a variety of African experiences, with particularly fascinating musical elements in each. This year there is a film showing on Sunday, October 24, called \u201cElder\u2019s Corner\u201d that tells the story of many of the pioneering Nigerian musicians who created Juju and Afrobeat. It\u2019s a great film and the Obruni Dance Band will be performing beforehand, so I think it\u2019s a particularly great marriage of film and music.<\/p>\n
Knowing that the only way to present the festival would be to prioritize the safety of attendees and staff guided a lot of the early decisions. The free public block party, among the musical highlights of the festival, had to be canceled, as did the filmmaker lounges where so many people would get to make meaningful connections throughout the festival. All attendees are required to show vaccine cards and masks are required for all indoor screenings (though not for the films showing at the Drive In on Summer).<\/p>\n
I recall the first time I saw \u201cYellow Submarine\u201d as a kid and realized that artists could devise expanded representations around ideas that weren\u2019t fully realized by the music alone. Each could potentially stand on its own, but it was all about the synergy. That
\nsort of set the tone for me in terms of valuing the creative multiplication that happens when you combine such dynamic art forms into a singular vision.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a certain \u201cdevil-may-care\u201d attitude that I adore about Memphis creatives of all types. It\u2019s not that they don\u2019t care about the result, it\u2019s that there are no rules to the process. That\u2019s a commonality that I would say absolutely runs through both artistic communities.<\/p>\n
Absolutely! Obviously, with physical sales currently placing somewhat distantly behind downloads and streams in the overall compensation structure, it\u2019s imperative to find other ways to monetize music for artists. Licensing remains a strong option for potentially both initial and back end payments, and working to that end can be both financially and creatively advantageous for musicians interested in working with filmmakers.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m very excited about the directions that the festival continues to explore. This year they have welcomed a new executive director in Knox Shelton, who used to lead Literacy Mid-South. Knox understands the value of storytelling in a very broad sense and wants to see growth for Indie Memphis on a number of levels. I can\u2019t wait to see what he and Miriam Bale, the Artistic Director, have in store for the future!<\/p>\n
I mentioned the intersection of music and film earlier, both as a creative and financial boost for musicians, and I hope those links can be expanded and deepened in the future. I think continuing to foster relationships before, during, and following the festival remains a priority, and I look forward to working to that end more extensively when health and safety restrictions allow for a more robust and physically connected experience during the festival and beyond.<\/p>\n