Archive of films Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars / Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars

USA
1973, 100 min

Section: Forum of Independents - Competition
Year: 2006

David Bowie’s final electrifying performance as Ziggy Stardust in 1973 at London’s Hammersmith Odeon Theatre. The feature-length documentary captures the aura surrounding one of the most unusual stars of the contemporary music scene.

Synopsis

David Bowie’s final electrifying performance as Ziggy Stardust in 1973 at London’s Hammersmith Odeon Theatre. The feature-length film captures the aura surrounding one of the most unusual stars of the contemporary music scene. Framed by a smattering of behind-the-scenes footage, the bulk of the film concerns the actual concert, notable as the final time that Bowie would perform under the Ziggy Stardust persona, an announcement that, back then, led many fans to mistakenly believe Bowie was retiring altogether. The film features numerous songs from Ziggy Stardust, Hunky Dory, Aladdin Sane and other Bowie albums, including Ziggy Stardust, Moonage Daydream, Changes, and Space Oddity, as well as a cover of the Velvet Underground’s White Light/White Heat. While a shortened version of the film was broadcast on television in 1974, the film did not receive a full theatrical release until 1983.

About the director

D. A. Pennebaker (b. 1925, Evanston, Illinois, USA) director, cinematographer, editor and producer, is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of cinéma-vérité filmmaking. Daybreak Express (1953), Brussels Loops (1957), Lambert, Hendricks&Co. (1964), Hier Strauss (1965), Don’t Look Back (1967), Monterey Pop (1968), Little Richard: Keep On Rockin’ (1969), Original Cast Album-Company (1970), One P. M. (1972), Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1973), Energy War (1977), Town Bloody Hall (1979), DeLorean (1981), Rockaby (1983), Jimi Plays Monterey (1986), Shake!: Otis at Monterey (1987), 101 (1989), Jimi Hendrix Live (1989), The Music Tells You (1992), The War Room (1993), Keine Zeit (1996), Moon Over Broadway (1997), Down from the Mountain (2000), Only the Strong Survive (2002).

Contacts

Pennebaker Hegedus Films
, , New York
United States of America
Tel: +1 212 496 9195
Fax: +1 212 496 8195
E-mail: [email protected]

Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars

About the film

Color, 35 mm

Section:	Forum of Independents - Competition

Director:	D.A. Pennebaker
Screenplay:	D. A. Pennebaker
Dir. of Photography:	Nick Doob, Randy Franken
Music:	David Bowie, Lou Reed, Jacques Brel, Mick Jagger
Editor:	Lorry Whitehead
Producer:	Tony Defries, Edith Van Slyck
Production:	Pennebaker Associates Inc.
Cast:	David Bowie, Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder, Mick Woodmansy, Angela Bowie, Ringo Starr
Contact:	Pennebaker Hegedus Films

Guests

Tanja Meding

Producer

D.A. Pennebaker

Film Director