Factory 25

Vinegar Syndrome, Deaf Crocodile, Imprint, Cinema Guild, and more.
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Antoine Doinel
Joined: Sat Mar 04, 2006 1:22 pm
Location: Montreal, Quebec
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Factory 25

#1 Post by Antoine Doinel » Fri Jun 26, 2009 1:42 pm

Factory 25

Matt Grady, former Director Of Production at Plexifilm has left and started his own label, Factory 25. Judging by the run of initial releases, it looks like he will be targeting the same kinds of films as his former workplace.

Their debut release will be Ronald Brownstein's Frownland, being released on DVD on September 29th.

Future releases will include:

Joe Losurdo & Christina Tillman's You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk 1977-1984
Ben Wolfinsohn's High School Record
Justin Mitchell's Songs for Cassavetes
Matt Boyd's All the Way from Michigan Not Mars
Braden King & Laura Moya's Dutch Harbor: Where The Sea Breaks Its Back
Spiritualized: Acoustic Mainlines

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neuro
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: New Jersey
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Re: Factory 25

#2 Post by neuro » Thu Jan 27, 2011 10:55 pm

This label continues to intrigue me with its eclectic and unexpected releases. It reminds me of Plexifilm, before they became a indie music doc label (and before their output diminished to a single release a year, I suppose). While I don't care for some of their releases, I admire their willingness to put out films that they truly enjoy, fully independent of popular taste.

It's hard to recommend their releases because they seem to all dwell within a certain niche. Like the aforementioned Frownland - which I can't recommend solely on the fact that it's so perverse and will perhaps be greatly irritating to some - I also enjoyed their Norwegian Black Metal documentary Until the Light Takes Us. Although the story behind that particular scene has a certain intensity and narrative pull - particularly when we get to the murders and church arson - I also can't recommend the film because many would find the music and its varying ideologies repellent.

A film I feel more comfortable recommending is NY Export: Opus Jazz, but I hesitate slightly because many people are simply allergic to ballet. While I'm not allergic to ballet specifically - I find the movement liberating and astonishing - I do have an acute reaction to musicals. I cannot get past the kitsch, no matter how I try.

But Opus Jazz is a different animal. It takes an unfilmed Jerome Robbins score and applies it to a documentary aesthetic. While at times it gets dangerously close to becoming Rent-like (or an Old Navy commercial), it is a gorgeously composed film that celebrates the beauty of movement. And not just the movement of highly trained, professional ballet dancers; it celebrates the movement of everyday life. Superimposed over this is a love of New York City, down to its grimiest edges. The dance numbers are infectious and beautiful, and they become more impressive as you realize that large portions (or entire dances) are a single take.

In short, this is a label to watch as it grows out of its awkward early years. Let's hope it doesn't go the way of similar labels - Plexifilm and Fantoma especially.

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Gregory
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:07 pm

Re: Factory 25

#3 Post by Gregory » Thu Jan 21, 2016 1:41 pm

Factory 25 will be releasing DVDs of the WFMU documentary, which has been renamed Sex and Broadcasting (the title an homage to the 1970s community radio guide/manifesto by Lorenzo Milam). No street date for the public release yet.

Trailer

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