Doc'n Roll Films

10/10/2025

UK PREMIERE + Special guests Q&A selling fast...🔥
4 Nov - BFI IMAX

Rockumentary reveals Culture Club as a smorgasbord of heritages and influences; this diversity made their music rich but also caused their egos to explode - from the 12th Doc'n Roll Festival

07/10/2025

BIG MAMA THORNTON: I CAN’T BE ANYONE BUT ME

A blues powerhouse who shook American music to its core, Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton made “Hound Dog” a #1 hit before Elvis ever sang it, and her ferocious “Ball & Chain” lit the fuse for Janis Joplin’s career. Defying gender norms in jeans, boots and a cowboy hat, Big Mama Thornton captivated audiences with raw energy, humor and soul. From Alabama juke joints to European festivals, she lived hard, sang harder, and left an indelible mark on rock, R&B and the blues.

Director Robert Clem (One State Films) joins us for a Q&A after the screening.

⇒ 24 October | UK PREMIERE Barbican Centre, London

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/big-mama-thornton-i-cant-be-anyone-but-me/
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

06/10/2025

MOVE YA BODY: THE BIRTH OF HOUSE

A celebration of the sound that rose from Chicago’s South Side and ignited a global movement of freedom and radical togetherness. Just as disco was collapsing, young Chicagoan Vince Lawrence and a group of visionary friends began experimenting with drum machines and synthesizers, forging a revolutionary new sound: house music. Elegance Bratton’s film is an electrifying tribute to the pioneers who transformed a local scene into a worldwide phenomenon — a story of liberation, unity and pure, undiluted bliss.

Catch director Elegance Bratton for a post-screening Q&A — and don’t miss this unique chance to experience the celebration of house on Britain’s largest cinema screen!

⇒ 6 November | LONDON PREMIERE BFI IMAX, London

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/move-ya-body-the-birth-of-house/

In collaboration with Sheffield DocFest
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

06/10/2025

FELIX, DARE TO DREAM

A story of defiance, creativity and freedom, Felix, Dare to Dream paints a portrait of Felix Leu — artist, traveler and leading figure of one of the most iconic families in international tattooing. From Paris’s 1960s art world to the counterculture of New York, Felix and his partner Loretta chose a nomadic life, raising four children while rejecting conformity. In the late 1970s, tattooing became both a way to sustain their journeys and the medium through which Felix emerged as a pioneer, founding the legendary Leu Family Iron.

Stay with us after the screening for a special Q&A with the incomparable Loretta Leu, joined on stage by directors Valerio Bariletti & Morgan Bertacca.

⇒ 26 October | UK PREMIERE Rio Cinema, London

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/felix-dare-to-dream/
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

06/10/2025

DOC’N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL DUBLIN 3RD EDITION

We’re landing in Dublin with our longtime partner Light House Cinema for four nights of music on film — four IRISH PREMIERES spanning punk mayhem, experimental film, and singular voices.

BU****LE SURFERS: THE HOLE TRUTH AND NOTHING BUTT
⇒ 18 October

A WAY TO DIE: THE SHORT FILMS OF COIL
⇒ 19 October

I WAS A TEENAGE S*X PISTOL
⇒ 20 October

MONK IN PIECES
⇒ 20 November

📍 All screenings at Light House Cinema
🎟 Tickets via: https://www.lighthousecinema.ie/doc-n-roll
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

06/10/2025

✨ TAKE THE SURVEY, WIN A POSTER ✨

We’ve got three S/HE IS STILL HER/E: The Official Genesis P. Orridge Doc posters to give away 丰🖤丰
All you need to do is complete a short anonymous form (link in bio).

Your answers will help us show the impact of supporting independent films like this one.

Add your email at the end to enter the raffle — winners announced 15 Oct 💌

📝 Survey link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd4_WzYLBRXniNS6QkYP1BLpDPJb6VoDFmRoSiPCRKh-Tc98A/viewform
📅 Closes 14 Oct ⇒ winners announced 15 Oct

Thanks for helping us keep independent cinema alive!

Supported by BFI

02/10/2025

A BEAUTIFUL PLACE: LEBANON HANOVER

An intimate journey with darkwave icons Lebanon Hanover, A Beautiful Place follows William Maybelline and Larissa Iceglass across their 2024 European tour — from Bristol and London to Paris and Berlin — capturing the raw emotion behind their haunting sound. More than a concert film, it explores the bond between the duo and their devoted fans, weaving mesmerising performances with behind-the-scenes moments to offer a singular glimpse into a band that has become a cult force for a generation.

Catch director Isolde Woudstra live for a post-screening zoom Q&A.

⇒ 3 November | UK PREMIERE Rio Cinema, London

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/a-beautiful-place-a-music-doc-about-lebanon-hanover/
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

02/10/2025

MONK IN PIECES

Meredith Monk — composer, performer, and interdisciplinary artist — is one of the great pioneers of our time, though her influence has often gone unrecognised. Monk in Pieces mirrors her own work: wild, original, and singular, with her music at its core and interviews with Björk and David Byrne. From enduring viciously sexist reviews in 1960s New York to being hailed by Philip Glass as “the uniquely gifted one,” Meredith Monk has always defied the odds; now, facing mortality, she must entrust her masterpiece ATLAS to new interpreters, raising the question of what will become of such art when its creator is gone.

Director Billy Shebar will join us for the UK premiere for a special post-show conversation.

⇒ 1 November | UK PREMIERE Barbican Centre, London
⇒ 9 November The Castle Cinema, London
⇒ 20 November | IRISH PREMIERE Light House Cinema, Dublin

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/monk-in-pieces/
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

30/09/2025

A WAY TO DIE: THE SHORT FILMS OF COIL

In tribute to COIL’s founding members Peter Christopherson (1955–2010) and John Balance (1962–2004), A Way to Die restores the duo’s 8mm and 16mm filmed archives into a hallucinatory body of work. Medical art, ho******ic performance, and body horror collide with the aesthetics of England’s post-punk industrial scene — evoking Georges Bataille, J.G. Ballard, Jean Genet, Derek Jarman and the Viennese Actionists.

Accompanied by previously unreleased COIL compositions, the film is both sensual and disturbing — a rare, immersive journey into Christopherson and Balance’s visual imagination.

Post-screening Q&As will take place in London and Brighton, with directors Xavier Laradji & Maxime Lachaud joined by Thighpaulsandra (COIL) and Jean-Claude Wouters (actor in a Christopherson short).

⇒ 19 October | IRISH PREMIERE Light House Cinema, Dublin
⇒ 24 October | UK PREMIERE Rio Cinema, London
⇒ 25 October Duke of York's Picturehouse, Brighton
⇒ 30 October ICA, London

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/a-way-to-die-the-short-films-of-coil/
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

30/09/2025

PIECES OF HEAVEN: PORRIDGE RADIO | WORLD PREMIERE

For over a decade, Dana Margolin and Porridge Radio gave voice to heartbreak, longing, and the fragile joy of being alive. Pieces of Heaven follows their final chapter: a farewell performance at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, filmed in 2024 to mark the release of their last album, Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me.

Moving between concert film, lullaby and confession, Pieces of Heaven is not only an ending, but also an unbridled celebration of the void: nothing means anything, and within that is complete freedom to do and feel everything.

Director Ella Margolin will be present at the premiere for a conversation after the screening.

⇒ 4 November at ICA, London

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/pieces-of-heaven-porridge-radio/
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025

30/09/2025

Check out some highlights from our line-up!

The 12th edition takes place across the UK and Ireland from October 23rd through November 9th.

29/09/2025

ROCKERS DON’T STOP: THE REVIVAL OF ROCKERS REVENGE | WORLD PREMIERE

A comeback with grit and groove: New York’s 1980s dance pioneers Rockers Revenge reunite to finally record their debut album, turning nostalgia into a journey of friendship, resilience and unfinished dreams. From the shock of COVID to the pulse of Black Lives Matter, their music channels loss, hope and defiance. Directed by legendary producer Arthur Baker — collaborator of New Order, Afrika Bambaataa, Bruce Springsteen and Al Green — this is a testament to survival, second chances, and the unstoppable spirit of Rockers Revenge.

Arthur Baker joins us in London for a special post-screening conversation.

⇒ 8 November, 18:00 — BFI Southbank, London
⇒ 9 November, 16:00 — Dukes at Komedia, Brighton

🎟 Tickets via: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/films/rockers-dont-stop-the-revival-of-rockers-revenge/

Produced by Pulse Films
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✦ DOC'N ROLL FILM FESTIVAL | 12TH EDITION ✦
23 October – 9 November 2025