Miho Hatori
Copyright Criminals examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, including the related debates over artistic expression, copyright law, and (of course) money. This documentary traces the rise of hip-hop from the urban streets of New York to its current status as a multibillion-dollar industry. For more than thirty years, innovative hip-hop performers and producers have been re-using portions of previously recorded music in new, otherwise original compositions. When lawyers and record companies got involved, what was once referred to as a “borrowed melody” became a “copyright infringement.” The film showcases many of hip-hop music’s founding figures like Public Enemy, De La Soul, and Digital Underground—while also featuring emerging hip-hop artists from record labels Definitive Jux, Rhymesayers, Ninja Tune, and more.
A host of personalities reminisce about the life and work of songwriter, lawyer, and congressman Humberto Teixeira — aka "Baião Doctor" — the author of such classic Brazilian popular songs as "Asa Branca". A musical film about the baião, a movement in Brazilian music in the 1940s and 1950s that was later snowed under by samba and bossa nova.
"5 Sides of a Coin" is a comprehensive overview of the worldwide cultural movement of Hip-Hop.
Celebrity Takedown is a compilation DVD by Gorillaz, released in November 2002. The DVD compiles the videos and animatics related to the release of the band's first album, Gorillaz, as well as the related singles.
Following up on her 2000 opus Suspicious River, Lynne Stopkewich directs this documentary about the final Lilith Fair. Launched in 1997 by Sarah McLachlan and a host of other female singer/songwriters, the concert series quickly became one of the most popular, and profitable, tours of the late '90s. Stopkewich, along with her crew, tagged along during the 2000 tour, traveling to 42 shows across the continent. Rising early and crashing late -- often in the bus as it drives to the next destination, Stopkewich's crew quickly gets a taste of the rigors of life on the road. Along the way, they interview fans, crew, tech staff, and the stars. Apart from such documentary footage, Lilith also features performances from McLachlan, Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders, Sheryl Crow, the Dixie Chicks, and sundry other.
