Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell

Colour, DIGIBETA
USA, 2008, 71 min
Section: 2008: A Musical Odyssey

Synopsis

Arthur Russell, cellist, Buddhist and head of The Kitchen, a cultural centre in New York, died of AIDS in 1992. He left behind him a collection of gentle songs combining disco, his own fragile style and new wave, but he was also influenced by club pop and avantgarde art. Yet it seemed that he was never to enjoy true success. Russell was a utopian who stifled himself with his own perfectionism. Today, sixteen years after his death, his work is finally finding a keen audience which perhaps only now understands the sense underlying his poetic sound. The film, which brings in Russell’s closest collaborators Philip Glass and Allen Ginsberg, explores the compelling cultural history of New York over the last few decades, the experience of being gay and confronting AIDS, and the cathartic process of creating art and pursuing popular success. The film also features members of the young generation of musicians (songwriter Jens Lekman) and music philosopher David Toop.

About the director

Matt Wolf is a New York filmmaker focusing on documentaries about contemporary art and culture. He creates feature-length films, documents for the Internet, promotional and educational videos, public commercials, complex podcasts and video programmes (e.g. for the New York-based Whitney Biennial art fest and the New York Times). The film profiling the late musician Arthur Russell is his debut on the international film distribution and festival scene. It was screened in its international premiere at the Berlin IFF in 2008.