Frank Zappa: The Present-Day Composer Refuses To Die

Watch Movie

Frank Zappa: The Present-Day Composer Refuses To Die

2000

0h 52m

0.0(0 votes)

Documentary

Overview

Frank Zappa: The Present-Day Composer Refuses To Die is a 2000 documentary about Frank Zappa.

Links & Resources

Social & External

Production Companies

Cast & Crew

12 members

Production

Gail Zappa

Self

No Image

Acting

Tom Fowler

Self

No Image

Acting

George Duke

Self

Acting

Dweezil Zappa

Self

Acting

Joe Travers

Self

No Image

Acting

Bruce Fowler

Self

No Image

Acting

Pierre Boulez

Self

Sound

Todd Yvega

Self

No Image

Sound

Ali N. Askin

Self

No Image

Acting

Frank Zappa

Self (archive footage)

Sound

Edgard Varèse

Self (archive footage)

Sound

Ian Underwood

Self

No Image

Similar Movies

5.9

1969

One Second in Montreal

A silent succession of black-and-white photographs of the city of Montreal.

Movie

Einstein on the Beach: The Changing Image of Opera

9.0

1985

Einstein on the Beach: The Changing Image of Opera

The creative processes of avant-garde composer Philip Glass and progressive director/designer Robert Wilson are examined in this film. It documents their collaboration on this tradition breaking opera.

Movie

Classic Albums: Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention - Freak Out!

8.6

2021

Classic Albums: Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention - Freak Out!

This programme tells the story behind the conception, recording and release of this groundbreaking album. By use of interviews, musical demonstration, performance, archive footage and returning to the multi tracks with Ahmet Zappa and Joe Travers we discover how Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention created the album with the help of legendary African- American producer Tom Wilson.

Movie

4.8

2010

The Drummers of Frank Zappa Roundtable Discussion and Performance

This DVD features performances and interviews with some of the best drummers to ever work with Frank Zappa: Terry Bozzio, Chester Thompson, Chad Wackerman, Ruth Underwood, and Ralph Humphrey.

Movie

2007

Sam in the Bag

While Trevor and Sam are smoking pot, Trevor’s mom comes home. When she finds out, Trevor reveals his father’s adulterous ways and destroys his family.

Movie

6.7

2017

A Life in Waves

Explores the life and innovations of composer and electronic music pioneer Suzanne Ciani.

Movie

2006

DJ Screw: The Untold Story

DJ Screw: Untold Story tells the story of Robert Davis before the phenomenon and before the fame from the people who were there. This DVD also contains never-before seen footage of the one man who gave Houston its sound indentity, at work and at play as well as interviews with the original members of the S.U.C., Davis' family members and others whose careers are influenced by his music.

Movie

8.0

1991

Frank Zappa: Peefeeyatko

For the past ten years Zappa in composing has turned away from Rock and Roll music - for which he first became famous - and has been working on new, contemporary, orchestral electronic music; in solitude and beyond any commercial conventions or commitments. It is the first time that Zappa has allowed a film crew to study him during compositional work, actually filming the first moments of a new compositional process. By contrast, in a staged interview Zappa gives comments on music. This film seeks to reveal the sensetivities of Zappa's personality and character also beyond narrative content.

Movie

2007

Frank Zappa: A Pioneer of the Future of Music

Frank Scheffer's (collage like) documentary on the American composer and rock guitarist Frank Zappa, as broadcast by VPRO in the Netherlands April 22,2007. Most of what’s on here is seen before, particularly in Roelof Kier’s 1971 documentary and/or Scheffer’s own documentary “A present day composer refuses to die”. But there is some new stuff too, particularly interviews with Denny Walley, Haskell Wekler, Elliot Ingber and Bruce Fowler.

Movie

1994

An American Dissident: un tributo a Frank Zappa

An American Dissident: un tributo a Frank Zappa is an Italian documentary that aired on the Videomusic channel on January 7, 1994. It includes footage from Zappa's Universe, Video From Hell, Does Humor Belong In Music?, Baby Snakes, The True Story Of 200 Motels, The Late Show, Zappa's May 17, 1988 show at Palacio de Deportes in Barcelona, Spain, The Dub Room Special, various other interviews and performances.

Movie

Pink Floyd: Whatever Happened to Pink Floyd? The Strange Case of Waters and Gilmour

6.0

2011

Pink Floyd: Whatever Happened to Pink Floyd? The Strange Case of Waters and Gilmour

This film traces the path Floyd took after the recording of the Animals album - an era when cracks in the band first started to show - and brings the strange story of the group and the intense relationship between Waters and Gilmour right up to date with the unexpected collaboration of these two maverick musicians at a 2010 charity event. Featuring numerous interviews.

Movie

7.5

1927

Berlin: Symphony of a Great City

A day in the city of Berlin, which experienced an industrial boom in the 1920s, and still provides an insight into the living and working conditions at that time. Germany had just recovered a little from the worst consequences of the First World War, the great economic crisis was still a few years away and Hitler was not yet an issue at the time.

Movie

10.0

1992

One 11 and 103

Avant-garde composer John Cage is famous for his experimental pieces and "chance music" but temporarily branched into video in 1992 with this art film about meaningless activity. The work is composed of two segments that are supposed to be played simultaneously: "One 11" contains the artistic statement, and "103" is a 17-part orchestral piece. Also included is a revealing documentary about Cage and director Henning Lohner.

Movie

7.4

2019

Wandering Stars

This film follows the making of Nekfeu's 3rd album, between Paris, Japan, Greece and the United States.

Movie

6.9

1968

Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One

In Manhattan's Central Park, a film crew directed by William Greaves is shooting a screen test with various pairs of actors. It's a confrontation between a couple: he demands to know what's wrong, she challenges his sexual orientation. Cameras shoot the exchange, and another camera records Greaves and his crew. Sometimes we watch the crew discussing this scene, its language, and the process of making a movie. Is there such a thing as natural language? Are all things related to sex? The camera records distractions - a woman rides horseback past them; a garrulous homeless vet who sleeps in the park chats them up. What's the nature of making a movie?

Movie

6.5

1972

Fata Morgana

Shot under extreme conditions and inspired by Mayan creation theory, the film contemplates the illusion of reality and the possibility of capturing for the camera something which is not there. It is about the mirages of nature—and the nature of mirage.

Movie

7.9

1972

The Concert for Bangladesh

A film about the first benefit rock concert when major musicians performed to raise relief funds for the poor of Bangladesh. The Concert for Bangladesh was a pair of benefit concerts organised by former Beatles guitarist George Harrison and Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar. The shows were held at 2:30 and 8:00 pm on Sunday, 1 August 1971, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, to raise international awareness of, and fund relief for refugees from East Pakistan, following the Bangladesh Liberation War-related genocide.

Movie

6.0

2021

Grid

A ritual of grids, reflections and chasms; a complete state of entropy; a space that devours itself; a vertigo that destroys the gravity of the Earth; a trap that captures us inside the voids of the screen of light: «That blank arena wherein converge at once the hundred spaces» (Hollis Frampton).

Movie

2023

The Afterlife

A young adult's first-hand account of "accidentally becoming human again" after, and with, trauma induced depression. Lo-fi, vulnerable, and uniquely youthful, "The Afterlife" is a melancholic affirmation of life after death.

Movie

7.2

2022

Hans Zimmer: Hollywood Rebel

An in-depth look of the 40 year journey, from post-war Germany to Hollywood royalty, of Hans Zimmer, the man who’s become the dominant force in the world of movie soundtracks. His film credits include The Lion King, Rain Man, Pirates of The Caribbean, Gladiator, The Dark Knight Trilogy, 12 Year A Slave, The Thin Red Line, The Da Vinci Code and Dune.

Movie

Recommended Movies

7.3

2020

Zappa

With the help of more than 10,000 dedicated Zappa fans, this is the long-awaited definitive documentary project of Alex Winter documenting the life and career of enigmatic groundbreaking rock star Frank Zappa. Alex also utilizes in this picture thousands of hours of painstakingly digitized videos, photos, audio, writing, and everything in between from Zappa's private archives. These chronicles have never been brought to a public audience before, until now.

Movie

Industrial Symphony No. 1: The Dream of the Brokenhearted

6.0

1990

Industrial Symphony No. 1: The Dream of the Brokenhearted

After her boyfriend ends their relationship, the dreamself of a heartbroken woman floats through the air over an industrial wasteland singing ballads of love.

Movie

7.4

2018

Quincy

An intimate look into the life of icon Quincy Jones. A unique force in music and popular culture for 70 years, Jones has transcended racial and cultural boundaries; his story is inextricably woven into the fabric of America. Jones came to prominence in the 1950s as a jazz arranger and conductor before working on pop music and film scores. He moved easily between musical genres, producing major pop hits of the early 1960s and serving as an arranger and conductor for several collaborations in the same time period.

Movie

6.1

2024

Chief of Station

After learning that the death of his wife was not an accident, a former CIA Station Chief is forced back into the espionage underworld, teaming up with an adversary to unravel a conspiracy that challenges everything he thought he knew.

Movie

6.4

2018

The Commuter

A businessman, on his daily commute home, gets unwittingly caught up in a criminal conspiracy that threatens not only his life but the lives of those around him.

Movie

7.0

2013

Justin Bieber's Believe

A backstage and on-stage look at Justin Bieber during his rise to super stardom.

Movie

6.7

2017

Gilbert

The life and career of one of comedy's most inimitable modern voices, Mr. Gilbert Gottfried.

Movie

7.4

2018

Above Majestic

A look at the origins, history and conspiracies behind the "Majestic 12", a clandestine group of military and corporate figureheads charged with reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology.

Movie

6.8

2013

Metallica: Through the Never

Trip, a young roadie for Metallica, is sent on an urgent mission during the band's show. But what seems like a simple assignment turns into a surreal adventure.

Movie

7.6

1970

Let It Be

A documentary chronicling the Beatles' rehearsal sessions in January 1969 for their proposed "back to basics" album, "Get Back," later re-envisioned and released as "Let It Be."

Movie

7.5

2010

Lemmy

Over four decades, Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister has registered an immeasurable impact on music history. Nearly 65, he remains the living embodiment of the rock and roll lifestyle, and this feature-length documentary tells his story, one of a hard-living rock icon who continues to enjoy the life of a man half his age.

Movie

7.3

2008

The Wrecking Crew

A celebration of the musical work of a group of session musicians known as "The Wrecking Crew." a band that provided back-up instrumentals to such legendary recording artists as Frank Sinatra, The Beach Boys, and Bing Crosby.

Movie

6.4

2019

Fyre Fraud

A true-crime comedy exploring a failed music festival turned internet meme at the nexus of social media influence, late-stage capitalism, and morality in the post-truth era.

Movie

5.9

2023

The Best Man

Mercenaries seize control of a remote resort hotel during a wedding and it's up to the best man, the groom and their drunken best friend to stop the terrorists and save the hostages.

Movie

7.1

2017

Score: A Film Music Documentary

Music is an integral part of most films, adding emotion and nuance while often remaining invisible to audiences. Matt Schrader shines a spotlight on the overlooked craft of film composing, gathering many of the art form’s most influential practitioners, from Hans Zimmer and Danny Elfman to Quincy Jones and Randy Newman, to uncover their creative process. Tracing key developments in the evolution of music in film, and exploring some of cinema’s most iconic soundtracks, 'Score' is an aural valentine for film lovers.

Movie

7.4

2016

Supersonic

Supersonic charts the meteoric rise of Oasis from the council estates of Manchester to some of the biggest concerts of all time in just three short years. This palpable, raw and moving film shines a light on one of the most genre and generation-defining British bands that has ever existed and features candid new interviews with Noel and Liam Gallagher, their mother, and members of the band and road crew.

Movie

Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert

5.9

2008

Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert

In this concert film, 'Hannah Montana' star Miley Cyrus performs a slew of hit songs, including 'Just Like You' and 'Life's What You Make It.'

Movie

The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart

7.6

2020

The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart

The story of the triumphs and hurdles of brothers Barry, Maurice, and Robin Gibb, otherwise known as the Bee Gees. The iconic trio, who found early fame in the 1960s, went on to write over 1,000 songs and have 20 No. 1 hits throughout their career, transcending more than five decades of changing tastes and styles.

Movie

7.7

1984

The Terminator

In the post-apocalyptic future, reigning tyrannical supercomputers teleport a cyborg assassin known as the "Terminator" back to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor, whose unborn son is destined to lead insurgents against 21st century mechanical hegemony. Meanwhile, the human-resistance movement dispatches a lone warrior to safeguard Sarah. Can he stop the virtually indestructible killing machine?

Movie

6.6

1959

No Name on the Bullet

When hired killer John Gant rides into Lordsburg, the town's folk become paranoid as each leading citizen has enemies capable of using the services of a professional killer for personal revenge.

Movie