Subotnick doc spotlights work of electronic music pioneer Morton Subotnik

Film subject Morton Subotnick and director Robert Fantinatto will be at Saturday's screening of Subotnick at Hot Docs Cinema.

Here's the scoop...

Through a series of candid interviews and illuminating conversations with key figures from his past and present, Subotnick explores the life of electronic music pioneer Morton Subotnick.

At 90 years of age, he has become a cult figure for a whole new generation that have come to recognize him as 'The Father of Techno.’ Featuring live performances captured in surround sound and augmented with innovative liquid-light psychedelic effects, Subotnick is a multimedia experience that highlights and celebrates one of the world’s most influential living composers.

Film subject Mort Subotnick and director Robert Fantinatto will participate in a post-screening Q&A. Moderated by musician, composer and TMU's RTA School of Media teacher, Heidi Chan.

Subotnick screens at Bloor Hot Docs Cinema on Saturday (October 28) at 6:30 pm. 

Tickets: $15 (Members from $10) and available right here.

Poly Styrene: I Am A Cliché documentary screens @ Bloor Hot Docs, July 22

The story of X-Ray Spex frontwoman is told by her daughter the film Poly Styrene: I Am A Cliché screening tonight at 9 pm.

Here's the scoop...

She introduced the world to a new sound of rebellion, using her unconventional voice to sing about identity, consumerism, postmodernism and everything she saw unfolding in late 1970s Britain, with a rare prescience. As the frontwoman of X-Ray Spex, the Anglo-Somali punk musician was also a key inspiration for the riot grrrl and Afropunk movements. But the late punk maverick didn’t just leave behind an immense cultural footprint. Her daughter, filmmaker Celeste Bell became the unwitting guardian of her mother’s legacy and her mother’s demons.

Misogyny, racism, and mental illness plagued Poly’s life, while their lasting trauma scarred Celeste’s childhood and the pair’s relationship. Featuring unseen archive material and rare diary entries narrated by Oscar-nominee Ruth Negga, this documentary follows Celeste as she examines her mother's unopened artistic archive and traverses three continents to better understand Poly the icon and Poly the mother.

Pre-recorded Q&A with director Celeste Bell. Moderated by Sardé Hardie, VP, Acquisitions and Sales, Photon Films.

Tickets: $15 | FREE for members! Watch the trailer and a vintage X-Ray Spex clip below. Visit the Bloor Hot Docs site for more info.