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ALBERT MAYSLES, JORGEN LETH & BLONDE REDHEAD TEAM FOR KICKSTARTER PROJECT
Filmmaker has its own curated page on the Kickstarter site, spotlighting projects worthy of your attention (and financial assistance). But I thought it would be a good idea to also flag up The Commentator, which I had previously been unaware of and is fast approaching its fundraising deadline. (At the time of writing, it has just under two days to reach its target but is still less than 50% funded).
Here’s the description of the film from its Kickstarter page:
In 1976 Danish filmmaker Jorgen Leth made the legendary sports and cycling film, A Sunday in Hell, about the Paris Roubaix cycling race. It defined a genre and helped put the Paris-Roubaix on the global sporting map. Leth now comments on the race for television.
We plan to follow Leth as he prepares for and comments on the race. We’ll be with him from his hotel in Paris until the end of the race at the Roubaix Velodrome. Along the way our team of photographers and filmmakers will shoot footage of the race, crowds and Leth himself caught up in the excitement of sport. We’ll capture the intense effort of contemporary pro racers, and will be sure to include stars from cycling’s past.
Directed by Brendt Barbur, the founder of the Bicycle Film Festival, The Commentator is impressive because of the creative team already attached. This includes not only Leth (most famous for The Five Obstructions) but also the legendary Albert Maysles, who will be one of the cinematographers on the film, and cult dream pop outfit Blonde Redhead, who will provide an original score for the film.
Based on the Kickstarter blurb and the fundraising trailer below, the subject matter looks pretty compelling too, so this is a hopefully a project that will reach fruition.
