http://www.filmthreat.com...asp?Id=497

GIRLS INTERRUPTED: THE CONTROVERSIAL NEW RUNAWAYS DOCUMENTARY
by Chris Parcellin (2005-04-27)


Victory Tischler-Blue's powerful documentary "Edgeplay" has been a long time in the making, but this was never the way she intended things to be. The filmmaker had set out to simply chronicle the experiences of the girls who made up the 1970s teen hard rock group The Runaways. At age 17, Tischler-Blue (under the name Vicki Blue) replaced original Runaways bassist Jackie Fox after the latter had left the band after a Japanese tour in 1977. (The band included future rock luminaries Joan Jett and Lita Ford and the quintet's influence still reverberates in such current bands as The Donnas and the gender-bending Toilet Boys.) For her part, Tischler-Blue stuck around until shortly before the band finally imploded in 1979.





The California native effectively left her musical aspirations behind at that point, and went on to a successful career in TV and film production. However, in the late '90s she got an idea to put together a film of Runaways live performances for her bandmates, which grew into the documentary "Edgeplay." Tischler-Blue interviewed all of her former musical comrades except Joan Jett, who--according to the filmmaker--ignored her requests to participate in the film for several years. When Jett and her manager Kenny Laguna finally viewed the film, Tischler-Blue says Jett thought she deserved more screentime and effectively began trying to derail the project.





In the meantime, Tischler-Blue contends that The Runaways' eccentric former manager and longtime Hollywood scenester Kim Fowley proved to be both a help and hindrance to the production at various times. And recently, Runaways vocalist Cherie Currie, after being interviewed extensively for the movie, has criticized the project.





All of the behind-the-scenes wrangling might not mean much if the film itself were not so riveting. Tischler-Blue has pulled-together a harrowing tale of '70s rock'n'roll excess and shattered dreams that rivals any rock documentary ever made. Just the footage of drummer Sandy West's mother discussing her daughter's oftentimes sad post-Runaways existence is gut-wrenchingly real. But when you add in all of the other members' experiences as teenage girls who were thrown into a cut-throat business and degraded on a regular basis by sleazy, cheapjack management types, the showbiz veneer is replaced by a kind of brutal honesty that doesn't make it to the silver screen much these days. "Edgeplay" dodges the usual pre-sweetened rock'n'roll clichés, and goes straight for the jugular.




GIRLS INTERRUPTED: THE CONTROVERSIAL NEW RUNAWAYS DOCUMENTARY
by Chris Parcellin (2003-01-13)


You had some problems with Joan Jett and her manager Kenny Laguna involving the film?
When you produce a film that includes footage and music not owned by the production you have to license that content. The Runaways’ song publishing is owned by Peer Music, which I believe is actually the world’s largest independently owned music publishing company and a company with which the Runaways’ have been involved with since the beginning.


Usually all your licenses are obtained in the beginning of a project, which is what we did, but in this particular instance, we had to go on blind faith and trust a company that I personally had been doing business with since I was 17 years old. I trusted them, and still do, as Peer Music is a wonderful organization.


So, one of the first calls made when we started this film was to Peer Music to tell them about the film and that we would be seeking a license for a lot of our music. Ralph Peer himself became interested in the project and told me that there would be no problem with the licenses as long as the film was approved by Peer. So over the years we kept Peer Music updated regularly with the film’s progress.


Four years later, when I screened the final version of the film for Peer Music, they told us that it was one of the best rock documentaries they had ever seen and I quote them now: “Congratulations on a job well done. This film far exceeded our expectations… We have no problem licensing you Runaways music for this project…”


While we were negotiating the licenses with Peer, Joan’s people called us and asked us to screen the film for them. Since they refused to view the film at my attorney’s New York Offices, Peer graciously offered to screen the film for Joan on our behalf. What transpired at that screening caught everyone by surprise.


Peer Music screened "Edgeplay" for Joan and 6 of her advisors, all who vehemently disapproved of the film on the grounds that Joan wasn’t featured prominently enough within the body of the film or with enough importance to the story and also felt that “far too much importance was placed on Jackie’s and Vicki’s involvement in the band...”


Long story painful, Peer tried to negotiate a compromise by not licensing any Runaways’ songs of which Joan was the sole author of, but eventually the legalities began to weigh in from Blackheart and Peer Music found itself forced into a corner. Rather than being faced with a lawsuit and having to spend a lot of time, money and resources that they would not be able to recoup through royalties, Peer made the decision not to license any Runaways’ songs for "Edgeplay" that Joan either wrote or co-wrote, without Joan’s consent. Joan flat out refused to give her approval.


That left me with 9 Kim Fowley co-written songs that I still had in the film.


What happened with Kim Fowley? He kind of tried to make life difficult for you, didn't he?
Actually, Kim blew me away because at this point, he really stepped up to the plate. Not only did he offer to co-write and co-produce new music with me for the film (which we did), he actually consented to let me finally shoot him for "Edgeplay."


A little back-story here: I had to license footage of Kim from VH1 for "Edgeplay" because originally he wanted several thousand dollars for me to shoot him. Since everyone involved with this film did it gratis, there was no way I was going to pay Kim – that wouldn’t have been fair.


Kim’s motivation for helping me with the music was that there were some things said in "Edgeplay" that he wanted taken out. And that if I deleted those scenes, he would consent to letting Peer license me those remaining 9 songs. I needed those songs – so my attorney (Jackie Fuchs aka Jackie Fox) drafted paper work stating that the scenes in question, one of which was called “Kim Fowley’s Sex Education Class," would be deleted in exchange for the song licenses.


On the day of shooting the new Kim footage we actually recorded some songs, too. It was strange being in the studio with him again after all these years. Kim asked me if he could rebut some of the things that were said about him in "Edgeplay" and since we all ragged on him in the film, I said sure. So Kim sits down and begins to sing his rebuttal answers while this other guy is sitting next to him playing guitar. The whole thing was very strange in true Kim Fowley fashion.


Now while all of this is going on with "Edgeplay," there is another film currently in production in Hollywood titled “The Mayor of Sunset Strip." The producer of that film was also seeking licenses for Runaways’ songs. And, apparently, Cherie Currie streamed her “Kim Fowley Sex Education Class” story for this production too. The story is an awful tale in which Kim, 27 years after the alleged “incident," is still quite concerned about the statute of limitations with regard to his actions – need I say more?


At this point, Kim sensed opportunity and began to leverage both films to get what he wanted, namely, for this particular “Sex Education Class” story never to see the light of day (no pun intended). So Kim called me up with a list of 15 additional demands to be added to the paperwork that Jackie had already drafted. Included in those demands were 3 astonishing requests.


The first request was that I make a dub from the "Edgeplay" raw footage of part of an interview with Cherie in which she states something incredibly personal and very revealing about Joan Jett. Kim wanted me to send a dub of this footage to Blackheart because he wanted to show some of Joan’s advisors, who are huge Cherie fans, that Cherie does not walk on water 24 hours a day and that Cherie is a loose cannon. Kim’s goal was for Blackheart to help him stop the “Mayor of Sunset Strip” or at least use their muscle and thug tactics like they did with "Edgeplay" to get the other producers to pull the “Kim Fowley Sex Education Class” scene from that film. In Kim’s thinking, the reason they would be interested in pulling that clip, too, is because it places Joan at the scene of the “crime” (so to speak).


The second request was for me to produce the documentation from a proposed lawsuit against Cherie by various band members wanting Cherie to delete that same "Sex Education Class" chapter from her as yet, unreleased, revised book.


The third request was to discuss a royalty rate/payment for his rebuttal answers. I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about at this point, until he said that since he sang all of his rebuttals to a guitar accompaniment, each answer constituted a “song” and he expected royalties from that and wanted to know what the rate would be.


Looking back in retrospect, it’s quite funny - but at the time it was just more than I could deal with. It totally sent me over the edge. You have to hand it to him, that at 63 years of age, the old man still has his hustle down. He nailed me.


Those requests and the 12 other less interesting requests were beyond my ethical scope of reality. So I told Kim forget it and within moments I had an email from Peer Music stating that because of both Kim’s and Joan’s objections to the use of their songs in the film they would not license me any Runaways music.


It was a dark day and one I will never forget. I think I learned the true meaning of acceptance that day.

Since you can't use the Runaways music in the film, what are you going to do for a soundtrack?
I have amazing friends who are also blown away by what has happened and have provided songs for "Edgeplay." Mike Chapman sent a CD full of material; Suzi Quatro has given me material. Kari Krome went into the studio to record music with a member of the Buzzcocks. We have all the music Lita recorded and, we have music from David Holmes.


Now that the Runaways music is out, is the movie's other content going to change substantially, as well?
I’d be lying if I told you that I wasn’t affected by Joan’s underhanded actions and her continued backdoor threats. It seriously compromised the "Edgeplay" project and I will never understand why she felt, and still feels, the need to be so vindictive and mean-spirited. And, most importantly, why they waited 4 years to pull this maneuver.


For any artist, the greatest gifts are the freedom of speech and the ability to create. For another artist, especially one who has benefited so much from those freedoms, to set out to deliberately compromise, interfere with and block someone else’s right of freedom of expression by bullying and threatening nuisance lawsuits because that artist can afford to, makes me sick.


So with regard to your question about the film’s story content changing… the answer is yes.


There have been definite storyline changes made as we’ve re-edited the film with the new music. I’m not as motivated as I was in the beginning to continue to go out of my way to protect specific people, subjects, and situations in the band as I was before all of this happened.


Joan and Kenny Laguna did something similar to Lita Ford several years back. They threatened a very well known songwriter and a music video director, both who had worked with Joan, that if they worked with Lita Ford, they would NEVER be allowed to work with Joan Jett again. The songwriter conceded, but the director told them to fuck off and shot a video with Lita.


I strongly believe that everything happens for a reason and maybe the reason is that now, without the Runaways music in the film, I can really cut loose and make the film that, as a producer and director, I wanted to. Ultimately, I think I will owe Joan a big thank you for an almost perfect Courtney Love imitation.


I understand Cherie Currie has made some negative comments lately about the film. Do you care to comment?
Cherie Currie is the Norma Desmond of rock and roll. She is one of the few people I know who has built a career based on bitterness and self-loathing and sustained it brilliantly for over 2 decades. I think, at this point, most of us are really tired of being sold out by Cherie and her discontent.


People have been emailing me these online interviews that Cherie has been conducting and when asked about "Edgeplay," she’s been voicing serious disapproval, which is ironic because, as far as I know, she has not seen one frame of footage. She’s accusing me of forcing Sandy to say things she didn’t want to reveal. She’s announcing to the world that I should never, ever speak on behalf of the band. She’s claiming that I have a serious agenda with regard to being so damaged from my stint in the Runaways and that she and Joan are going to “squash this film”… Jesus Christ, I was in the band longer and played many more gigs than she did. And after 25, 26, 27 years – who gives a fuck anyway.


The thing to remember with "Edgeplay" is that there is absolutely no narration in the film driving the story forward. I specifically did it that way because I wanted the audience to hear the story directly from everyone involved - without any third party interpretation.


Cherie is going to have a hard time trying to argue this point with me because everything she said in the film - she said in the film. There is no fancy sound bite editing - it’s strictly out of the mouths of babes.


On a serious note - it’s a very heavy film. But in a really twisted and tragic way, it could also fall into the genre of a dark comedy, because the characters involved are all so extreme.

When you do a project like this, it’s important to remember that it was 25 years ago and EVERYONE has their own memories of what happened and what it meant to them. Sometimes those memories are skewed by time, by drug/alcohol use and also, by the need for self-preservation.


"Edgeplay" is dedicated to Suzi Quatro, and she shows up in the film, as well. It's well known that Joan Jett was highly influenced by Suzi, but what's her importance to you and to the film?
The first time I ever heard Suzi Quatro, I must have been 13 or 14 and she blew my mind. And unlike Joan, I never wanted to be Suzi Quatro – I just really enjoyed her music immensely.


To say that The Runaways were highly influenced by Suzi is an understatement – everything in the beginning was based on the music we listened to and all we listened to growing up pre-Runaways was Suzi Quatro.


While other rock documentaries have certainly covered the dark side of showbiz, "Edgeplay" seems to really forego a lot of the usual bullshit "rockumentary" clichés and goes for the ugly truth--without being exploitative. You really got people to open up. Was the dark feel by design, or did it just kind of happen?
I wanted to go for the truth and I knew the truth was dark - it was very dark. So yes, it was by design – I just never dreamed it would have turned out this twisted.


A few weeks ago, Time magazine came out with its annual Person of the Year issue. On the cover were the three women who blew the whistle on corporate America. These women are risk takers and stood up for what they believed to be right – in spite of the personal and professional risks. I have so much respect for what these women did and the stand they made for what they believed in. It’s time for people to be held accountable for their actions – or lack of action.


What do you think people are going to come away with from this movie?
The truth. Because sometimes what appears to be, isn’t always as it seems.

any idea of when this will be released?

origmnd said:

none yet...

and man, there is some juicy stuff in that interview.... why nobody read?

I see it was released on dvd 4/5/05

origmnd said:

really? cool.....


based on this interview joan jett is fucking rot...

i love joan madly, but sometimes she can be a real 'see you next tuesday'.

Anxiety said: