A young Irish bard, an avant-garde artist, a mercurial musician and an enigmatic R&B star, alongside a cult musical, a legendary opera, trance-inducing dances, Andalusian sounds and concerts in exile. The International Music Documentary Competition DocFilmMusic is inhabited by artistic souls attuned to themselves and the melodies of the world. Nine remarkable titles competing for the Golden Heynal are going to be screened between late May and early June during the 65th Krakow Film Festival.
Once again, we are going to witness just how much can be conveyed through a music documentary. These films delve not only into the dramatic arcs of stars rising and falling but also into the fascinating creative process and into rituals that go far beyond empirical comprehension. An artist does not create in isolation, and so music films also serve as a kind of report on the state of the world, then and now, – comments Festival Director Krzysztof Gierat.
Artistic Souls
Here is a total artist whose vocal and performative work has always defied easy categorisation. It is said that Meredith Monk’s voice expresses the inexpressible, and her music seems to come from a different planet. The film Monk in Pieces pays tribute to the American artist, featuring the likes of Björk, Philip Glass, and David Byrne. Yet her beginnings gave little hint of such a huge success. Over fifty years ago, she had to carve out her own space on stage – both as a performer and as a woman. The documentary created by Billy Shebar and David Roberts is a collage of Monk’s extraordinary endeavours and intimate reflections as she confronts her past and the inevitability of ageing.
Viewers also revisit the past in Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story. Directors Lucah Rosenberg-Lee and Michael Mabbot use candid phone conversations recorded shortly before Shane’s death to recount her heartrending story. “I was born, but I never lived,” confesses the African American R&B singer, driven out from the US to Canada by transphobia and racism in the late 1950s. Some likened Jackie Shane to Little Richard, with a mesmerising voice that could rouse crowds. Yet she was more than a gifted vocalist; she was an androgynous figure concealing a non-heteronormative identity. Years later, the performer of Any Other Way became a symbol of courage ahead of her time, albeit not without personal cost.
A different kind of burden borne by sensitive artists is explored in David Keenan: Words on Canvas. In his music and lyrics, you can hear the true Ireland of today – grappling with local challenges – as well as the Ireland rooted in tradition and landscape. The film also maps a personal journey that led a self-taught troubadour with an acoustic guitar to performing in the largest of venues. Director Paddy Hayes captures David Keenan at a pivotal juncture, as he strives to maintain his individuality amid the pressures of the contemporary music industry. The camera follows the Irish bard over eighteen months, tracing the roots of his artistry and painting an intimate portrait.
It is hard to spot a sensitive soul in the protagonist of Simona Constantin’s documentary. In the Romanian village of Clejani, the legendary Taraf de Haïdouks ensemble was born, famed for their lively concerts and appearances in global cinema – not least through their connection with Johnny Depp. Following the group’s dissolution, violin virtuoso Gheorghe “Caliu” Anghel attempts a comeback with a different line-up and under a new name. Yet his explosive, despotic temperament does not make it easy. Caliu, Nothing Else, What More Could I Do? presents a full-blooded portrait of a brilliant artist and a complex man, blending vivid reminiscences, far-reaching ambitions, and a glimpse into everyday Roma life.
The Sound of the World
The Andalusian province of Huelva is known for nurturing its traditional music, sometimes dismissed and considered a plebeian version of flamenco. Yet fandango is a distinct genre, still very much alive among locals, and performed by women too. The black-and-white film by Remedios Málvarez Báez and Arturo Andujar is an ethnographic exploration of the genre’s history, nuances and variations, capturing tavern performances, street rituals, and scholarly debates. Fandango chronicles an enduring, timeless fascination with a style embraced by younger generations in more contemporary forms.
Young Indonesian musician Anggi grew up in West Java, where Reak is one of the forms of artistic and spiritual expression It is an art, whose participants go into trance to connect with the spirits of their ancestors. In Cosmic Balance, the protagonist is poised to lead a Reak troupe, yet some question the leadership of an adopted son. His future in-laws also have severe doubts, viewing his lack of formal education and unconventional career with suspicion. What can you do when faced with mounting obstacles? Immerse yourself in a prolonged trance and perform at the famous Roskilde Festival in Denmark. Directed by Andreas Johnsen, the film is a meditation on passion, tradition, identity, and the cosmic energy of music.
Some phenomena even pop culture scholars have not dreamt of – among them, the stage musical The Rocky Horror Show and its even more outrageous cinematic incarnation. After conquering London and New York stages, Jim Sharman’s film adaptation of this eccentric play went from a total flop, through a cult favourite, and finally to a box-office sensation. Marking its 50th anniversary, Andreas Zerr’s documentary Sane Inside Insanity: The Phenomenon of Rocky Horror recounts the the bold story of the film’s creation and the enduring fandom that surrounds The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
When a world-renowned Chinese artist and activist takes on a classical opera, a revolutionary interpretation is all but guaranteed. In Ai Weiwei’s Turandot, we witness the staging of the opera at the Rome Opera House, featuring artists from diverse cultures. Maxim Derevianko’s film is at its most compelling when showing how Ai Weiwei reimagines Puccini’s work through a contemporary lens. Infusing the libretto with themes of the refugee crisis, the pandemic, and the war in Ukraine, he reaffirms his belief in art’s capacity to influence reality.
What is merely touched upon in Ai Weiwei’s opera becomes the central theme of Kyiv Soloists. Musicians from the Kyiv orchestra had just embarked on a series of concerts in Italy when news broke of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Overnight, they became refugees – yet continued the tour. They toured Europe with a revised programme, using performance to protest Russian barbarity and express solidarity with their compatriots. Trond Kvig Andreassen’s film captures a changing tide of emotions, difficult choices, and varied personal trajectories in the early months of the war. Each musician must now redefine their role as both artist and citizen.
Listen to the artists featured in this year’s competition and special sections.
Films in the International Music Documentary Competition:
- Ai Weiwei’ s Turandot, dir, Maxim Derevianko, Italy, USA, 78’, 2025
- David Keenan – Words on Canvas, dir. Paddy Hayes, Ireland, 70’, 2024
- Fandango, dir. Remedios Málvarez Báez, Arturo Andujar, Spain, 87’, 2024
- Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story, dir. Lucah Rosenberg-Lee, Michael Mabbot, Canada, 99’, 2024
- Cosmic Balance, dir. Andreas Johnsen, Denmark, Indonesia, 77’, 2025
- Monk in Pieces, dir. Billy Shebar, David Roberts, USA, 94’, 2025
- Sane Inside Insanity: The Phenomenon of Rocky Horror, dir. Andreas Zerr, Germany, 100’, 2025
- Caliu Nothing Else, What More Could I Do?, dir. Simona Constantin, Romania, 90’, 2025
- Kyiv Soloists, dir. Trond Kvig Andreassen, Norway, Ukraine, Netherlands, 87’, 2025
Insider passes for the 65th Kraków Film Festival are now on sale!
The Krakow Film Festival is on the exclusive list of film events qualifying for the Academy Awards® in short film categories (fiction, animation, documentary) and feature-length documentary, the European Film Awards in the same categories, and serves as a qualifying event for the BAFTA Awards.
The Krakow Film Festival is organised with financial support from the City of Krakow, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the Polish Film Institute, and the Creative Europe MEDIA Programme. The Polish Filmmakers Association serves as co-organiser.
The 65th Krakow Film Festival will be held from 25 May to 1 June 2025, and online on KFF VOD from 30 May to 15 June.