Everybody loves a good music documentary – and why not? Music doesn’t just appear out of nowhere, streaming out of your radio. There are people and processes behind this amazing artistic medium, and we want to know their stories. Two of the last three documentary Oscars went to music films, beating documentaries about serious and important subjects such as genocide, revolution, rape, gay rights, and the sordid history and practices of the United States.
Not that a documentary deserves artistic prominence merely because it is political or relevant – but sometimes music is political, and that is what we are here to talk about today: the film Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll, which is to be screened at Dreamland this Sunday, August 9.
The world was a crazy place in the 1960s and ‘70s, and parts of the world were infringing on the rest of it – but not always in a bad way. As we, the United States, were in Vietnam and Cambodia, so, too, did our music travel – and Cambodian musicians ran with it, creating from the seeds a sound and culture unique to them. However, violent conflict continued to erupt and spread, and in the aftermath of the Cambodian civil war, the victors – the Khmer Rouge – turned its sights on the culture of the country, forcing musicians to lie or hide or be killed.
Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten will have several screenings at Dreamland on Sunday; screenings at noon, 2:15, and 4:30 are all ages, while 6:45 and 9:00 are 21 and over. Admission is $7. Dreamland is located at 810 E. Market Street. Details can be found at the Facebook event page. Check out the film’s website for more information as well.
Image from film trailer
