Film Returns to 416 Cedar Ave.

This coming Tuesday, September 29, The Cedar marks a return, of sorts, to the original design of our building as a movie theater. Opened in October, 1948, the Cedar Village Theatre as it was originally named went through a number of owners and identities through the years showing movies, culminating in the early 70's as a porn theater before closing. It opened again in 1975 as the Cedar Theatre and mostly served as an "art movie" house for another 10 years.

On Tuesday we officially add a new program to the Cedar arsenal called Cedar Cinema. And we will launch it with a bang, as the opening night for the Sound Unseen Festival.

This is the 10th year of Sound Unseen in the Twin Cities, a festival dedicated to "films-on-music." And since the whole idea behind Cedar Cinema is to view films about music in a setting with a sound system actually designed for music, we felt it would be a great partnership. What it's about, from their website: "documentaries, rare concert footage, short films, animation, music videos, special performances, gallery exhibitions and dozens of live music events highlighting both local and national acts separate this festival from the usual outdoor mega concerts, film festivals and tours. What began as an underground film festival with 500 attendees has grown to an anticipated array of music, film, new media and art."

We will be hosting four films during Sound Unseen 10. And on opening night, we will host the world premiere of a new documentary on R.E.M. called This Is Not A Show:
Drive - Live at the Olympia in Dublin

On Sound Unseen 10's closing day, Sunday October 4, we are back with three more films... Non-Stop: Gogol Bordello, a doc about the gypsy punk band and its charismatic front man, Eugene Hütz:

...followed by D-Tour, which follows Pat Spurgeon, the drummer for indie rock band Rogue Wave and how he was placed on dialysis for a failing kidney:

...and closing the festival will be this year's Sundance Festival award winner for Best Documentary, We Live In Public, which reveals the effect the web is having on our society, as seen through the eyes of “the greatest Internet pioneer you’ve never heard of”, artist, futurist and visionary Josh Harris:

Finally, looking ahead to October 18 (long after the festival is done), Sound Unseen will co-present a documentary about the extraordinary Senegalese singer Youssou NDour called I Bring What I Love:

Maybe you're starting to feel like me... just set up a cot for me in the green room!

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Still buzzing from last night's unbelievable Global Roots Festival show with Forro in the Dark and Bajofondo. It definitely goes on my All-Time Top Ten Cedar Shows list.

Whew!