Indie Documentary and Music Subculture Lovers, Get Ready!
We're thrilled to announce the return of the DOC’N ROLL NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL, running from 30 April - 9 May at some of Manhattan and Brooklyn’s favourite movie screens. This year, we're delighted to be back for our 3rd edition with a brand-new venue addition: the iconic Roxy Cinema in Tribeca. We're also thrilled to be back at the beloved Nitehawk Cinemas in Williamsburg & Prospect Park where it all started!
In addition, we’re excited to announce a new partnership with Ace Hotel's NYC & Brooklyn sites, where we’ll be hosting both our opening and closing parties.
Join us for a celebration of music, culture, and incredible storytelling through indie documentaries that highlight the best of the music subculture!
ROLL BUS ROLL: A JEFFREY LEWIS DOCUMENTARY NYC Premiere + director Q&A
1 MAY | 9:15 PM | THE ROXY CINEMA
Ilya Popenko, US, 2024, 73 mins
Roll Bus Roll spotlights the life and art of Jeffrey Lewis, one of the most prominent musicians associated with New York City’s anti-folk scene. It opens with an exploration of anti-folk, offering a look at a unique movement that challenges traditional folk conventions. We meet Lewis, a self-deprecating genius, on tour across cities and continents, and come to see him via contrasting narratives: his own modest self-assessment, and the views of fans and fellow artists such as Adam Green. The film reaches its emotional climax as he talks about lost love, revealing the impact of his mental health struggles on the relationship.
GODDESS OF SLIDE: THE FORGOTTEN STORY OF ELLEN MCILWAINE NYC Premiere + director Q&A plus special guest
2 MAY | 9:30 PM | THE ROXY CINEMA
Alfonso Maiorana, Canada, 2024, 96 mins
Goddess of Slide: The Forgotten Story of Ellen McIlwaine is a feature documentary about the legendary – and now largely forgotten – Canadian singer and musician who fought for her right to play the slide guitar, a male-dominated instrument in a male-dominated world. Eight months after arriving in Greenwich Village with no prospects, she found herself opening for the biggest blues legends in the world, including Odetta, Richie Havens and Mississippi John Hurt. But it would be the six magical nights that a young, fearless, red-headed McIlwaine ignited the stage with Jimi Hendrix that would change the course of her life. This is an intimate look at a pioneering performer whose road trip to stardom and long career deserves a rightful place in music history.
THE 9 LIVES OF BARBARA DANE NYC Premiere + filmmakers Q & A, music by Eljuri, Women's Rebel Voices Film and Music Tour and special guests
3 MAY | 7:15 PM | THE ROXY CINEMA
Maureen Gosling, US, 2024, 104 mins
Barbara Dane: folk, blues and jazz singer, international social justice activist and recording star, wife, mother of three, feminist, record producer, unwavering maverick and general troublemaker on the road at 90. The 9 Lives of Barbara Dane is an explosion of music and passion, and a celebration of one woman’s groundbreaking artistry and moral leadership. Standing strong with her singular confidence, Dane combined the people-powered connectivity of folk, the defiance of blues and the elemental cool of jazz while documenting major historic events with boldness and subversion that cut through commercial artifice and earned her a 5 inch-thick FBI file.
DORY PREVIN: ON MY WAY TO WHERE NYC Premiere + directors' Q&A
4 MAY | 3:00 PM | THE ROXY CINEMA
Julia Greenberg & Dianna Dilworth, US, 2024, 80 mins
Writing and singing the unvarnished truth about buried secret life experiences is more common today than when Dory Previn wrote brilliant, disturbing and darkly funny songs in the 1970s. She began as an Academy Award-nominated lyricist for Hollywood musicals with songs for Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland and Dionne Warwick, before a tabloid scandal and public breakdown led to her re-emergence as a cult artist
in the Laurel Canyon scene. The film draws on archives for its compelling story as J. Smith-Cameron (Succession) reads the voices in Dory’s head. Previn’s eloquent articulation of her relationship with her voices anticipates the burgeoning Hearing Voices and Mad Pride movements that are revolutionising how we now understand mental health.
A WAY TO DIE: The short-films of COIL US Premiere
5 MAY | 7:00 PM | NITEHAWK WILLIAMSBURG
Xavier Laradji, Maxime Lachaud, France, 2024, 100mins
After paying tribute to and introducing the photographic and pictorial work of Peter Christopherson (1955-2010) and John Balance (1962-2004) to a larger audience, founding members of the cult formation COIL, Timeless editions have had the duo’s filmed archives restored, from their early films in adolescence in the early 1970s to the more accomplished works of the 1980s/90s, uncovering a first-rate cinematic body of work.
CHRIS GOLLON: LIFE IN PAINT INTERNATIONAL Premiere+ director Q&A, Art Historian & Curator Wilfrid Wright and Chris Gollon Estate Trustee, David Tregunna.
6 MAY | 7:00 PM | NITEHAWK WILLIAMSBURG
Dir. Mark Calderbank, UK, 2024, 85 mins
The first-ever feature documentary on acclaimed London-born artist Chris Gollon (1953 - 2017), Life in Paint explores his pioneering use of music to create new imagery; from lyrics by Bob Dylan, Neil Young or Talk Talk, to direct collaborations with musicians such as Yi Yao, Eleanor McEvoy and Thurston Moore, who has hailed Gollon’s “creative and modest genius”. A sensitive and innovative painter of women, Gollon also expressed a powerful common humanity via his androgynous figures, and there has been a surge of interest in his work since his untimely death just seven years ago.
BLUES RUN THE GAME: THE STRANGE TALE OF JACKSON C. FRANK NYC Premiere + director Q&A and special guests
7 MAY | 7:00 PM | NITEHAWK PROSPECT PARK
Damien Aimé Dupont, France & US, 2023, 84 min
Amidst Soho’s flourishing folk scene of the mid-60s, Jackson C. Frank released a masterpiece album, produced by fellow American expat Paul Simon. Jackson was close to Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel and was a vital musical influence for so many, like Bert Jansch, Nick Drake, Counting Crows, Graham Coxon, John Mayer and Laura Marling. However, after the release of his album, he disappeared without a trace. With physical disabilities and severe PTSD as a result of a childhood tragedy, his mental health deteriorated. While absent, his musical influence greatly increased over the years. That’s when a young music fan decided to seek him out. This film follows in Frank's footsteps to unknot the threads of a unique artist with a dire fate.
HAVING FUN WITH A**H*LES / THE GIRAFFES WORLD Premiere+ director Q&A and band members
8 MAY | 7:00 PM | NITEHAWK PROSPECT PARK
Ted Maniatakos, US, 2025, 50 min
The story of The Giraffes, a native New York City band. The doc delves into their nearly 30-year career, highlighting their raw beginnings, tumultuous experiences, and unwavering passion for creating and performing rock and roll music. Despite their dedication and drive, the band has not achieved the same level of success as similar artists they shared the stage with, such as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Strokes, Interpol, and many others from the early 2000s New York City music scene. Yet, The Giraffes continue to record and perform all over the country, with a small but loyal fan base showing up.