Flatpack Festival
Film for all the senses

Sex and Broadcasting (Sunday)

Sunday 29th March, 2015

The Electric Cinema Screen 2 | 13:00 - 15:00

Fly-on-the-wall portrait of listener-funded freeform radio station WFMU, as it navigates the rough seas of the recession.

Given that we own three WFMU T-shirts, you’d expect us to be excited about a documentary which peeks behind the scenes of this improbable listener- supported radio station. What’s more exciting is that Tim K Smith has crafted a film which should resonate well beyond the fans, one which raises sharp questions about what independent culture really means.

Named after a how-to guide to community radio that informed WFMU in its early years, Sex and Broadcasting jumps between the station’s genesis at Upsala College and its current home in Jersey City, where a regular stream of bizarre and brilliant bands drop in to play sessions. Famous fans like Matt Groening and Ad-Rock pay homage, and at the centre of the film is Station Manager Ken Freedman, phlegmatically battling with the recession, the regulators and his leaky building.

Flatpack is honoured to welcome back Ken Freedman and director Tim K. Smith for a Q&A after this repeat screening. On Friday night, Ken will also be hosting a live broadcast from the Flatpack hub.

Dir: Tim K. Smith USA 2014, 76 mins Cert: 12*

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