Punk’s Not Dead [documentary]
Here’s an interview I did with PUNK’S NOT DEAD film maker SUSAN DYNNER… if you haven’t already checked out the doco I suggest you pic up a copy on dvd, it makes for interesting viewing. Listening to what the people she’s interviewed had to say really resonated with me… it also prompted me to ask some questions of myself having been involved in the punk/hc for the last 14 years.
There’s also a new doco coming out on the ’90s punk explosion called ONE NINE NINE FOUR that looks set to be killer. It’s going to be narrated by TONY HAWK. Woo hoo!
When you first had the idea to do the doco… what was the first step that you took into making it a reality? Did you have any idea what you were doing or did you just go for it?
I got the idea to make the film when I saw an ad in the LA Weekly for a concert called Inland Invasion – 25 years of punk rock. Bands that were playing were The Sex Pistols, The Damned, The Buzzcocks, alongside TSOL, Circle Jerks, GBH, alongside Bad Religion, The Offspring, Social Distortion, alongside New Found Glory and Blink 182. And it was all categorized as punk. It was in a huge venue that held like eighty thousand people, and it sold out in less than ten minutes. And it was sponsored by Levis and Budweiser. So I thought – this is a great idea for a film – nothing has been done about punk today, and how it’s become mainstreamed and corporatized and acceptable. But I also wanted to show how there is still a vital underground scene and bands that have been touring for 30 years, keeping punk alive. So once I had the idea, I approached a couple of producers I know, they loved the concept, so I went out and bought the camera on my credit card, and the rest is history.
Although I’ve never made a documentary before, I’ve been working in the film industry for the past 18 years, so I did have some idea of what I was doing. I had the concept in mind, the questions written out in advance, etc. But docos are very different than narrative features since you don’t really have full control over anything, so the project did change and morph into something else over time, but the basic concept remained the same.
What did you set out to do/achieve with the doco? Did that change as the process went on?
Basically, I just wanted to make a film about a subject matter that I love. I didn’t really set out to achieve anything in particular, other than the fact that I hoped people would enjoy the film and perhaps learn something as well. And I wanted to show that punk is alive and well. Nothing really changed as the process went on.
Did you have any previous interviewing experience? I know you’ve been a photographer for years...
I never really had any official interviewing experience, other than interviewing people for jobs. But, I like to think that any time you meet new people and get to know them better, it’s sort of like a mini-interview. You have to be a good listener. And I’m lucky because I’m not shy at all, and I love meeting new people.
Did you have any hard interviews? Anyone that your interviewed that you really connected with?
I didn’t really have any hard interviews. With this film, I was already friends with about half the bands I interviewed, and for the others that I didn’t know previously, we all had friends in common. So I think that made us all comfortable right off the bat. As for interviews where I connected with people – I think I pretty much connected with everyone – especially as so many interviewees were already friends. As I said, it’s a small scene, and even though I was interviewing people in other states and even other countries that I may not have known before, we all had mutual friends in common.
Were there any particular questions that came up over and over again while making the doco?
Yes – I asked everyone what punk was to them and how they got into it.
Have you found anything that came up in the interviews that was surprising to you?
The interviews with the pop-punk bands were most surprising. I definitely went into the interviews at the beginning with preconceived notions, but that changed. They were really sincere and were definitely influenced by punk, so I thought, who am I to judge? That’s why I let the bands (both old and new) speak for themselves, and left it to the audience to draw their own conclusions and make up their own minds.
What is one of the most important things you learnt from this project?
Licensing music sucks. And it’s really expensive. Actually, we decided to self-distribute the film, so we’ve learned a lot about that.
Any challenges in making the doco?
Yes – where do I begin? We self-financed the film because we didn’t want anyone to tell us we needed a certain band in the film, or we needed to take other bands out. That was definitely challenging and most of us had to work day jobs to support ourselves. Self-distribution is challenging. Licensing all the music is a nightmare. But overall, it’s been worth it.
Was there a moment when you realised the doco was finally done? When it was finished how did you feel?
After working on this for 4 ½ years, I was thrilled when it was finally done. You just kind of know when it’s finished. And once you do the final sound mix, color correction, etc., there’s no going back – it’s done. I’m really proud of the film, and I’m proud of everyone who worked on it – it’s been a real labor of love.
At the premiere what was going through your head? Didn’t the Rancid guys, Ian MacKaye and Bad Religion people came out to support?
That was great because it was in Washington, D.C., which is where I grew up. Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat, Fugazi), Alec MacKaye (Faith), John Stabb (Government Issue), Mike Dolfi (Black Market Baby, Iron Cross), Boyd Farrell (BMB), Brian Baker (Bad Religion, Minor Threat), Fat Mike & Eric Melvin (NOFX) all came out to support the film.<> >I think there were other bands there too – maybe Rise Against and Against Me? It just so happened that Warped Tour was in town the next day, so a bunch of bands came down.
My producing partner, Todd Traina, is from San Francisco, so when we showed the film at the San Francisco International Film Festival, we also had a big benefit party. Todd’s brother, Nick, used to be in a punk band called Link 80, and unfortunately, he passed away, so the screening/party was to benefit the Nick Traina Foundation. Fat Mike and Eric Melvin came to see the film, along with Lars (Rancid). The Germs played at the party.
The big LA premiere was amazing. There were about 900 people there. Lots of bands came and a bunch played afterwards – members of Youth Brigade, Channel 3, The Adicts, The Skulls, The God Awfuls, The Diffs, Total Chaos, No Doubt, Dr. Know, etc. I’m sure I’m missing a bunch.
Also, the UK Subs played our party in Cannes when we were there to sell our film to foreign territories – that was tons of fun – punk rock infiltrating Cannes!
Tim Armstrong is one of the executive producers for the doco… what did he bring to the project? Did you learn anything from him?
He actually helped us out a bit financially. He made it possible for me to work on the film for a while without having to get a day job. We had a lot of friends in common as well. I didn’t really learn anything from him – we traded some great stories though. He’s extremely talented.
As punks morphed and evolved over the years has the way you’ve personally viewed punk changed?
No, not really. To me, personally, it’s about being an individual. Doing what you want on your terms and not having to compromise your integrity. Freedom of thought and expression. And for me a large part of it is the politics and definitely, the music.
Is there anything you would have done differently with the doco given the chance?
I don’t think so. Everything happens for a reason, and everything that happened with the film helped to make it what it is. I had a blast making it, but I’m glad that now it’s done and out there for people to see.
Any final thoughts?
Yes. It needs to be said that without the support of everyone who worked on the film and volunteered their time, photos, video, etc., this film never could have been made. And the bands who gave us so much time and access were amazing. And the venues and festivals who let us film there were invaluable. Just the strength of the punk community in general proves that punk’s not dead.
