'Bold, Unforgettable Films': Music Documentary Film Festival Debuts On Long Island

STONY BROOK, NY — The Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame's first-ever Music Documentary Film Festival featuring 24 music documentaries kicks off Friday in Stony Brook.

The film festival runs through Sunday, Aug. 8, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Q&A sessions and live music performances will follow each film block.

Opening day films include "Coming Home: The Guggenheim Grotto Back in Ireland, "Building the Beatles," and the Harry Chapin film "Cats in the Cradle: The Song that Changed Our Lives, featuring interviews with Billly Joel, Pat Benatar, Dee Snider, Darrly DMC McDaniels and other musicians talking about what that song means to them.

"The highly anticipated LIMEHOF Music Documentary Film Festival puts Long Island at the center of the global music documentary scene—featuring bold, unforgettable films that capture everything from rock legends and rising stars to hometown heroes and hidden histories," said Tom Needham, the film festival's executive director.

The festival's 24 feature-length and short music documentary films include a wide range of music genres, such as classical, hip-hop, rock, jazz, ska, blues, folk, and more. Also scheduled are films about the music industry, a pirate radio station, and break dancing.

Live musical performances by Billy J Kramer, Guggenheim Grotto’s Mick Lynch, Public Enemy’s DJ Johnny Juice, Naked Blue, Brady Rymer, Jennifer Silecchia-Hackett, Sandra Taylor, and Mega Infinity are also part of the festival.

Full list of scheduled films:

1. "Chrysalis Orchestra: Layla" (Short) | United States
2. "Beethoven’s Nine: Ode to Humanity" (Feature) | Canada, Germany, Poland, US
3. "Fighting Gravity" (Short) | United States
4. "40 Watts from Nowhere" (Feature) | United States
5. "Coming Home: The Guggenheim Grotto Back in Ireland" (Short) | U.S., Ireland
6. "Building the Beatles" (Feature) | United States, United Kingdom
7. "My Back Pages" (Short) | United States
8. "Cat’s in the Cradle 50th Anniversary: The Song That Changed Our Lives" (Feature) | United States
9. "Fugazi’s Last Stop in Wisconsin" (Short) | United States
10. "Born To Be Wild: The Story of Steppenwolf" (Feature) | Canada
11. "Notes on a Page" (Short) | United States
12. "String Theory: Guitar Obsessed" (Feature) | United States
13. "If Jack Reacher Could Sing" (Short) | United States
14. "Garland Jeffreys: The King of In Between" (Feature) | United States
15. "Hello! My Name is Blotto: THE MOVIE" (Feature) | United States
16. "The Bronx Boys – The Evolution of B-Boy Culture" (Short) | United States
17. "To My Rescue, it Was the S1Ws" (A Public Enemy Story) (Feature) | United States
18. "They All Came Out to Montreux" (Feature) | United Kingdom, Switzerland
19. "D.I.Y.L.I." (Short) | United States
20. "Charlie Loves Our Band: The Story of From Good Homes" (Feature) | United States
21. "Songs of Black Folk" (Short) | United States
22. "Goddess of Slide: The Forgotten Story of Ellen McIlwaine" (Feature) | Canada
23. "Ron Delsener Presents" (Feature) | United States
24. "Hung Up on a Dream: The Zombies Documentary" (Feature) | United States

For more information and to purchase tickets to films and opening/closing night parties, click here or email info@limusichalloffame.org.