Sundance Institute

Institute History

2024 Sundance Film Festival

Description

Born in response to the Kent State massacre, new wave band Devo took their concept of “de-evolution” from cult following to near–rock star status with groundbreaking 1980 hit “Whip It” while preaching an urgent social commentary.

Leave it to acclaimed filmmaker Chris Smith (American Movie) to perfectly capture the gloriously radical spirit that is Devo. This high-energy documentary embraces the spectacle of the band reveling in lofi archival footage, swift montage, and a charging rhythm that leaves you mesmerized by their wild rise. Band members are open with both their memories and archives — finally sharing their full story. They are a rare band founded by a philosophy; a Dada experiment of high art meets low, hellbent on infiltrating American popular culture, and DEVO relishes every freakish moment of their story. Not to mention all the incredible performances.—CS

This film contains strobe effects.

Screenings include closed and open captions.

Screening Details

Section: Premieres
Film Type: Documentary Feature
Country: United Kingdom/U.S.A.
Language: English
Run Time: 95 min.

Credits

As you use our Online Archives, please understand that the information presented from Festivals, Labs, and other activities is taken directly from official publications from each year. While this information is limited and doesn't necessarily represent the full list of participants (e.g. actors and crew), it is the list given to us by the main film/play/project contact at the time, based on the space restrictions of our publications. Each entry in the Online Archives is meant as a historical record of a particular film, play, or project at the time of its involvement with Sundance Institute. For this reason, we can only amend an entry if a name is misspelled, or if the entry does not correctly reflect the original publication. If you have questions or comments, please email [email protected]