Rockumentaries : Documenting Music on Film

There is something awkward about the idea of documenting music on film, of translating a predominantly aural phenomenon into a predominantly visual representation. Can you actually see pop and rock music? Is there anything to see? It seems no coincidence that the term 'rockumentary' was coined in This Is Spinal Tap (1984) - a mockumentary, that is, a fake documentary about the fictional heavy metal band Spinal Tap. The film is seen by many as the most successful attempt to produce what looks like a classical documentary of a rock band - it reveals all the drama that (apparently) goes on behind the scenes of a touring band. Alas, it documents nothing (real).

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Huck, C., 2008. Rockumentaries: Documenting Music on Film, in: Anglistentag 2007 Münster: Proceedings. WVT, Trier, pp. 155–164.
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