MIFF- It Must Schwing! The Blue Note Story and We Are Little Zombies

My first MIFF film for the evening was with Sally at the Kino Cinemas for Eric Friedler's documentary It Must Schwing! The Blue Note Story about the famous jazz label. I had no idea that it was founded by two Jewish/German immigrants who escaped the Nazis in Berlin. Childhood best friends Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff had a deep love of jazz music and set up the label in 1939. They both took care of the musicians who worked for the label during a time of racial segregation, and those musicians considered them to be friends. The label's distinctive album covers were due to Francis Wolff's amazing photographs and some cutting edge graphic design. It's a wonderful story of friendship and features some amazing music and interviews with key people in the history of Blue Note Records.

Next I headed to Hoyts Melbourne Central for the Japanese film We Are Little Zombies. This incredibly creative film by Makoto Nagahisa is about four young teens who meet at a crematorium after the deaths of their parents from different circumstances. The film is structured like a video game as you learn about Hikari, Ikuko, Ishi and Takemura and their lives. The four end up forming a pop band that becomes a viral sensation with their very catchy songs, but it's all short lived. The film is visually exciting with a unique storytelling structure. Definitely check it out if you get the chance.