Following the lead of the Sundance Film Festival itself, the ASCAP Music Cafe that usually takes place during the festival will be going virtual for a second consecutive year. ASCAP’s web offerings for the 2022 fest will feature performances by Brandy Clark, John Doe and the teaming of Evan Rachel Wood and Zane Carney, among others, along with panels including composers who scored films premiering as part of Sundance.
The 24th annual edition of the performing rights organization’s Music Cafe will go down in the online Sundance Film Festival Village over a period of four days. The performances will take place Jan. 21-22, followed by panel discussions Jan. 23-24 billed as part of “ASCAP Screen Time,” the org’s ongoing interview series about the art and business of film composing.
Evan Rachel Wood has already made Sundance news with the announcement Wednesday that a two-part documentary about the singer-actor, “Phoenix Rising,” will premiere in the festival. Now it’s turning out that she’ll also perform, as part of the duo Evan + Zane, a cabaret-styled act that does specially tailored sets each time they perform, which will no doubt result in a Music Cafe set that is somehow themed around Sundance.
Among the other intriguing names announced as part of the Music Cafe lineup is Este Haim, of the band Haim, who recently had a cameo in “Licorice Pizza,” which starred her bandmate and sister Alana Haim. Este Haim won’t be performing, but rather will take part in a conversation with Christopher Stracey about the score they co-wrote for the Sundance film “Cha Cha Real Smooth,” starring Dakota Johnson.
Besides Evan + Zane, X member Doe and six-time-Grammy-nominated country artist Clark, the lineup of performers includes singer-actor Hayley Sales, R&B artist Jordan Hawkins and Zimbabwean-American singer-producer Shungudzo.
Among the panels on film composing, besides Haim’s and Stracey’s, are “Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power” composer Sharon Farber speaking with the Sundance movie’s director ,Nina Menkes; “Neptune Frost” co-director/composer/screenwriter Saul Williams talking with his co-director, Anisia Uzeyman; and “Call Jane” composer Isabella “The Machine” Summers chatting with director Phyllis Nagy.
“Our long partnership with the Sundance Film Festival continues its mission to showcase the magical relationship between music and film,” said Loretta Muñoz, ASCAP’s assistant VP of membership. “Whether in-person or virtual, we offer an intimate space for the discovery of captivating performances and conversations with creators whose music resonates with the Sundance Film Festival audience and beyond.”
A complete schedule of performances and artist information can be found here. Access to the Music Cafe via the Festival Village portal can be had by creating a free account here.
