Austin, TX – The Foo Fighters have a documentary coming along which will coincide with the bands seventh studio album release this spring.
FOO FIGHTERS: BACK AND FORTH, chronicles 16 years of the Foo Fighters history, the formation, good times and rocky times for the band.
The film had its premiere here at the SXSW Film festival.
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PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EXCLUSIVE MEDIA GROUP’S SPITFIRE PICTURES AND RCA/JIVE ANNOUNCE FOO FIGHTERS FEATURE-LENGTH DOCUMENTARY
FILM THEATRICAL RELEASE SLATED FOR SPRING 2011Directed by Academy Award winner James Moll
Produced By Spitfire Pictures
Co-Financed by Exclusive Media Group and RCA Records
To Have World Premiere at 2011 SXSW Film Festival in Austin, TX
Los Angeles, CA (February 1, 2011) – Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear a/k/a the Foo Fighters and Nigel Sinclair, Co-Chairman of Exclusive Media Group, announced today that Exclusive’s documentary film division Spitfire Pictures are producing a feature documentary film about the Foo Fighters to be directed by Oscar and Emmy winner James Moll. The film, which will be co-financed by Exclusive Media Group and RCA Records and produced by Spitfire Pictures in association with Allentown Productions will be released theatrically this Spring, coinciding with the Foo Fighters’ seventh full length studio album. Vh1 and Sony International Entertainment Group acquired domestic and international television rights respectively.
Moll’s documentary film will chronicle the 16 year history of the Foo Fighters: From the band’s very first songs created as cassette demos Grohl recorded during his tenure as Nirvana’s drummer through its ascent to their Grammy-winning, multi-platinum, arena and stadium headlining status as one of the biggest rock bands on the planet. This chronicling of the Foo Fighters’ triumphs and tragedies will culminate in an in-depth behind the scenes perspective on the making of the new album: A process in which the band pushed itself forward by going fully back to basics and recording in Grohl’s garage completely on analog tape. No computers, no software – just a band recording an album to tape in a garage. The new record also marks the Foos’ first full-length effort with legendary producer Butch Vig, with whom Grohl worked on Nirvana’s classic album Nevermind. Former Nirvana member Krist Novoselic will also return along with other surprise guest artists.
Nigel Sinclair and Alex Brunner will serve as Producers for Exclusive Media Group. Glen Zipper and Michele Farinola of Spitfire Pictures, and Jeanne Elfant Festa of Piper Cub Productions join the project as Executive Producers.
Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl says, “In October of 1994, I walked into Robert Lang’s Seattle studio with a guitar, a drum set, a bass, and 14 songs I thought nobody would ever hear. 5 days later I walked out with the first Foo Fighters record. 16 years and 7 studio albums later, with the help of Academy Award winning director James Moll, we’re finally able to tell the story of how that one demo cassette turned into the band that we are today. This is our side of the story. From the first rehearsal, to the completion of our new album, it’s all there. Through hours of interviews with all members of the band past and present, we tell you the truth and nothing but the truth. So help us Lemmy. Giving James mountains of never seen before footage, and unlimited access to the recording of the new record, the film presents an insight to the band never seen before (even to some band members!) and shows the process of making our new album, in my garage, totally analog, to 24 track tape machines. No computers. No auto-tune. No drum machines. Just real rock and roll. For me, it’s like watching my life flash in front of my eyes. Except with a mouth full of popcorn and Hot Tamales. Hope you dig it. It’s been a wild 16 years…here’s to 16 more.”
Exclusive’s Nigel Sinclair adds, “In Christmas 2009, I watched James Moll’s stunning film Inheritance and was so moved by the journey that he took us on in that movie that I sought him out for a meeting. James’ exploration of real life characters – in the case of Inheritance under extreme duress – was powerful beyond imagination. Shortly afterwards, we were approached at Spitfire Pictures by Dave Grohl, the Foo Fighters and their manager, John Silva, to explore the possibility of making a film set around the Foo Fighters recording a new album – in this case, under artistically challenging circumstances – specifically, in Dave’s garage in analog format. Somehow it seemed to me that James Moll and Dave Grohl should meet and talk about this. From that piece of wonderful serendipity, this film was born and we cannot wait to show it to the world.”
ABOUT THE FOO FIGHTERS
Dave Grohl has gone on record that he never had youthful aspirations to be lead singer of a rock n roll band. So as a cassette demo became Foo Fighters’ platinum 1995 debut, Grohl was tasked with the career of a bonafide rock n roll frontman—one whose sophomore release The Colour & The Shape in 1997 went double platinum and yielded the hits Everlong, My Hero and Monkey Wrench. Borne by the hit learn To Fly, 1999’s platinum There Is Nothing Left To Lose netted the Foos their first Best Rock Album Grammy and 2002’s One By One (took out the core lineup line) resulted in another Best Rock Grammy and a fourth platinum plaque. For 2005’s In Your Honor, the band faced the self-imposed challenge of creating a double album opus, each disc showcasing a polar opposite of the Foo Fighters’ trademark sound—and triumphing with the biggest first week sales of the Foos’ career to date. The monster arena tour and subsequent intimate acoustic theater tour (documented on 2006’s Skin+Bones) inspired the enlisting of the expanded eight-piece Foo Fighters lineup on 2007’s Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, whose Grammy-winning run was capped by an intimidating two-night booking at Wembley Stadium for which all 170,000+ tickets sold out.The forthcoming Foo Fighters record, due out spring 2011, poses the band with possibly the ultimate challenge: Taking the band from the stadiums of the world—such as the July 2 & 3 Milton Keynes Bowl shows for which all 130,000 tickets blew out within hours of on-sale–back into Dave’s garage. For a group of world class musicians who have recorded everywhere from Abbey Road to their own state of the art 606 complex in Southern California, the gauntlet begs the question: Can they still rock a garage? Can they still bash out a dozen or so barn burners (no ballads this time, thank you very much) that rock as hard as the formative years that yielded the rough hewn melodies of “Monkey Wrench,” “This Is A Call,” “Everlong” “Learn To Fly” and “My Hero?” With Butch Vig at the helm and guests ranging from Grohl’s former Nirvana bandmate Krist Novoselic to Bob Mould, this is precisely what they aim to do. As to whether they’ll rise to that challenge? Given that this band’s career has been 15 years of decimating one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after another, come spring 2011, the smart money is on the Foo Fighters.
ABOUT EXCLUSIVE MEDIA GROUP (“EXCLUSIVE”)
Exclusive Media Group is a vertically integrated independent film studio which was founded by strategic investment group, Cyrte Investments, in May 2008. Exclusive comprises:
- Three development & production labels –
- Exclusive Films, whose maiden production is Peter Weir’s THE WAY BACK and who will also co-finance and co-produce George Clooney’s THE IDES OF MARCH, and fully finance and produce the Miley Cyrus action comedy SO UNDERCOVER.
- Hammer Films, the iconic brand which has THE WOMAN IN BLACK starring Daniel Radcliffe in post-production, LET ME IN in release and THE RESIDENT being readied for release.
- Spitfire Pictures, which has become the specialist documentary film production house.
- US theatrical distributor – Newmarket Films.
3. International Sales & Marketing Operation for in-house and third party product – Exclusive Films International.
4. Exclusive Films International also monetizes a significant film library of over 550 film titles.
Exclusive is run by Co-Chairmen Nigel Sinclair and Guy East. Sinclair also serves as Group CEO and President of Newmarket Films, East as Chairman of Exclusive Films International. Simon Oakes serves as Vice-Chairman of the Group Board as well as President and CEO of Hammer. Marc Schipper and Andy Mayson serve on the Executive Board, as COO and Managing Director/CFO respectively, overseeing the operations, finance and strategic development of the worldwide group Exclusive’s strategy is to build a vertically integrated global film entertainment group which develops and controls its own intellectual property and exploits it on a cross-media basis in the digitally converged era. Exclusive has an active development slate and produces, finances and markets 3-5 high-quality commercial feature films and documentaries per year under its three production labels. Exclusive actively acquires further feature films for international distribution through Exclusive Films International, and for US theatrical distribution through Newmarket Films. The Group also develops and produces projects for television and digital platforms.
Exclusive continues to actively explore strategic expansion through M&A transactions and joint ventures – specific focus is on the acquisition of further high-quality film libraries and local territory distribution.
www.exclusivemedia.comABOUT SPITFIRE PICTURES (“SPITFIRE”)
Spitfire, Exclusive’s dedicated documentary feature film unit, has a mandate to develop and produce films chronicling iconic figures and events in popular culture from a fresh and innovative perspective.
Spitfire is currently in post-production on “THE UNTITLED FORMULA 1 DOCUMENTARY” — the definitive Formula 1 racing documentary film, produced in cooperation with Bernie Ecclestone and Formula One Management, directed by Paul Crowder (“AMAZING JOURNEY: THE STORY OF THE WHO“) and written by Mark Monroe (writer of the Academy Award Winning documentary film “THE COVE”), as well as “THE UNTITLED GEORGE HARRISON PROJECT” directed by Academy Award winning director Martin Scorsese and co-produced by the Harrison family. Spitfire is also currently wrapping “UNDEFEATED” – an emotionally charged documentary film in the vein of HOOP DREAMS produced in collaboration with Ed Cunningham and Seth Gordon (“KING OF KONG: A FISTFULL OF QUARTERS”)
Spitfire recently delivered “THE LAST PLAY AT SHEA” (“Shea”) for Billy Joel’s Maritime Pictures, which premiered at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival to rave reviews. This film, also directed by Paul Crowder, chronicles Billy Joel’s final concerts at Shea Stadium, the venue’s storied history and the magical connection between the stadium and its blue-collar inhabitants. Shea will be released by Lionsgate Films on DVD February 8, 2011.
Spitfire is also known for producing Martin Scorsese’s Grammy, Peabody and DuPont Award winning documentary film, “NO DIRECTION HOME: BOB DYLAN” in 2005, the Grammy nominated “AMAZING JOURNEY: THE STORY OF THE WHO” in 2007 and “THE WHO: AT KILBURN” in 2009, as well as “GUYS N’ DIVAS: BATTLE OF THE HIGH SCHOOL MUSICALS” in 2009 for Showtime and Lionsgate Films.
Spitfire is run by Exclusive Co-Chairman Nigel Sinclair and Spitfire President Chris Miller. Glen Zipper and Michele Farinola serve as Co-Heads of Documentary Features for Spitfire.
ABOUT RCA/JIVE GROUP
RCA/JIVE Label Group is comprised of RCA Music Group (J Records, Arista Records, RCA Records, Polo Grounds) and JIVE Label Group (Jive Records, LaFace Records, Volcano Entertainment, Hitz Committee Entertainment, Battery Records, Verity Gospel Music Group). RCA/JIVE Label Group consists of a diverse roster of internationally renowned artists including Justin Timberlake, Alicia Keys, Britney Spears, Ke$ha, OutKast , Kings of Leon, Leona Lewis, Chris Brown, Kelly Clarkson, P!nk, Christina Aguilera, Usher, Dave Matthews Band, Jamie Foxx, Buddy Guy, Daughtry, Foo Fighters, Three Days Grace, Whitney Houston, Tool, Ciara, Sarah McLachlan, Kirk Franklin, Avril Lavigne, Jennifer Hudson, Donnie McClurkin, and many more. RCA/JIVE Label Group is a unit of Sony Music Entertainment.ABOUT JAMES MOLL
Oscar® and Emmy winning filmmaker James Moll has produced and directed non-fiction feature films and television programs for more than a decade. Moll’s feature documentary credits include Running the Sahara for Executive Producer Matt Damon, about three men who attempt to run across the Sahara Desert; Inheritance, a PBS/POV film depicting a woman struggling with the crimes of her Nazi father; Price for Peace for NBC and Executive Producer author/historian Stephen Ambrose, focusing on WWII in the Pacific; and The Last Days for Executive Producer Steven Spielberg, chronicling the lives of five Hungarian Holocaust survivors.
Born in Allentown and raised in Los Angeles, Moll earned a degree from USC School of Cinematic Arts. He is co-chair of the Directors Guild of America Documentary Award, and is a member of the Documentary Executive Committee for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.
ABOUT VH1ROCK DOCS
VH1 Rock Docs is television’s premier collection of music documentaries. Launched in 2006, the franchise has already won two Emmy Awards, for DMC: My Adoption Journey and Anvil! The Story of Anvil. VH1 Rock Docs has featured the work of such noted directors as Barbara Kopple (Woodstock: Now & Then), Nanette Burstein (NY77: The Coolest Year in Hell), David Leaf (The Night James Brown Saved Boston), John Scheinfeld (The U.S. vs John Lennon), Paul Crowder & Murray Lerner (Amazing Journey: The Story of the Who), Hart and Dana Perry (The Drug Years, Sex: The Revolution), and Lauren Lazin (Last Days of Left Eye). VH1 Rock Docs have won many awards and screened at film festivals worldwide.
