Start your New Year off in a fierce way by watching the inspiring documentary The Punk Singer about Bikini Kill and Le Tigre feminist lead singer Kathleen Hanna.
Directed by Sini Anderson, this great music documentary shows the rise of Bikini Kill among a Pacific Northwest grunge/punk scene mostly populated by all-male bands and mosh pits. Hanna was an instrumental figure in the riot grrrl feminist movement within music during the ‘90s.
The documentary’s found footage shows Hanna’s incredible energy and intelligence during shows. In one of the clips, she champions having the girls and women move to the front—something never done at shows before. As Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon, Joan Jett, Carrie Brownstein, and Ad-Rock from the Beastie Boys attest in interviews, Hanna left an indelible mark on music and influenced countless others, such as Kurt Cobain.
Anderson does a good job of showing Hanna’s evolution through the years as Bikini Kill dissolves and she becomes a member of the seminal electronic band Le Tigre in the late ’90s. The film is propelled by the question of what happened to Hanna after the break-up of Le Tigre and her withdrawal from the public eye in 2005. The answer is unexpected and heartbreaking.
The Punk Singer is playing in theaters in New York and can be found on iTunes and Amazon Instant.
nywift
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Jade Dressler
Welcome to NYWIFT, Jade Dressler! Jade has imagined, designed and created for mass and niche pop-culture and luxury lifestyle clients for over 30 years. From nature-inspired body jewelry on major couture runways to award-winning landscape art spanning acres in Brazil, she is known for producing touchpoints of meaning that connect and energize all our lives. The Jade Dressler Agency is NYC-based with global partners. The agency is known for lifting the dreams of personalities, brands and businesses clients with creative services that deliver compelling design, messaging, events, and experiences that thrill. Jade spoke to us about daring to be a disruptor, amazing moments with Karl Lagerfield, and her brand new screenplay!
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Candece Tarpley
Welcome to NYWIFT, Candece Tarpley! Candece Tarpley, of Sissipahaw/Tuscarora/Tsalagi descent, is a World Champion Powwow dancer, an actress and a poet-storyteller-playwright who has been writing since childhood. Holding her heritage close, she's been a featured performer nationwide, weaving her crafts with the patrons of the Public Library of Boulder Colorado; Middlebury College in Vermont; Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts; the Pequot Museum in Connecticut; the Brooklyn Museum and the Museum of Natural History in New York City, as well as other creative venues. Candece spoke to us about how her Indigenous heritage influences her work, the response to her television series, and her next major projects.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Melissa Morales
New York based filmmaker Melissa Morales is a first-generation Puerto Rican Latina alum from CUNY Brooklyn College with a BA in Film Production, holding a magna cum laude GPA. Melissa is an aspiring writer, director, producer and production designer, and multimedia content creator. She has written, directed, & produced four short films in 2022, with her thesis "Bigger" winning a NYWIFT Emerging Female Filmmaker Award at Brookly College and a NYIFA Best Student Director Award both in 2023! Melissa tells us about receiving the NYWIFT Emerging Female Filmmaker Award, her role as a writer, director, and producer, and more!
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Hyonok Kim
Welcome to NYWIFT, Hyonok Kim! Hyonok is an award-winning filmmaker and choreographer who creates innovative and experimental film. Hyonok was born in South Korea, then studied film and dance in Paris and New York. Rather than dialogue, her films use dance to express interactions, bringing the emotional experience to the viewer. She choreographed and directed 15 dance films including Weeping Water, For Sunrise, Dance with Horses, Ode on a Korean Urn, Isle of Waiting Souls, Passion & Rebirth, South Sea to Isang Yun and L’Heure de Coq. Her films were shown at international film festivals and broadcasted in France, Germany, Australia, China, Korea, the Netherlands, and the USA. Now, she lives and works in the Bronx. Hyonok shares her inspirations in nature, as a choreographer and as a storyteller here!
READ MORE
