On this episode of The Tragedy Academy, Jay welcomes documentary filmmaker Andrew Nethery. His new documentary, Bury Us! A Punk Rock Uprising is a film about the Basque punk rock scene. Andrew discusses the harrowing parts of the film shedding light on a sliver of what Basque people have endured since the 70s.
Key Points:
🎸 Bury Us! A Punk Rock Uprising
🗺 Where is Basque, and what does it mean?
😳 Moments that stuck out in the documentary
😱 The lousy side of freedom of speech
🎭 Fans of comedy
Episode Highlights:
[00:41] Introduction to Andrew Nethery
[01:58]Andrew presents to us his documentary, Punk Rock Uprising, and describes it as a sonic journey through the Basque punk scene and their turbulent past along with the history that defines the genre.
[03:03]Andrew describes the people who represent Basque. He relates to it as a nation without a state; most Basque countries are in the northeast of Spain, with one of their most famous cities being Pamplona. Andrew details the long history of repressions under the Franco dictatorship and touches on its lasting effects.
[13:00]Andrew and Jay agree that Punk usually gets a bad rep when in reality, they are the ones who are fighting for a legitimate cause they in which they believe.
[13:53]Andrew is given the challenging task of choosing a moment in the documentary that stuck out to him; he explains the censorship in Spain and how the pronounced polarization is, and how it mimics what America is starting to experience. Andrew mentions that he created the film as a cautionary tale for America.
[17:37]Andrew spells out the bad side of freedom of speech. He goes into the arrests of comedians, rappers, and even Twitter users. The rapper had a lyric about killing the king and was forced to leave the country or be arrested. Nonetheless, he commends the interviewees for speaking out in the documentary.
[22:04]Punk Rock Uprising premiered in Barcelona at the Basque Film Festival. Andrew later won an award for best director at DOC LA in 2020.
[24:41]Andrew shares his 20ft Slim Jim experience; he and another colleague carried around a massive Slim Jim around New York and into the subways. The Instagram page, Subway Creatures, inspired him.
[35:01]Andrew and Jay discuss their love for comedy. They touch on The Chappelle Show, where he took years off from stand-up, and agree that comedians remain misunderstood as a whole. They struggle to get their art out, and then they work to defend their positions.
[40:14] Where to find and see if it's coming to a city near you.
Website: BuryUsFilm.com
Andrew Nethery Film & Commercial Director
Andrew was awarded Best Director by the Los Angeles Film Festival in 2020 for his debut feature film. His commercial work has earned a host of awards and honors: Cannes Lions Golds, Silver, and Bronze; ANDY Gold; Clio Bronze, ADC Bronze, ONE Show Finalist.
He brings 15 years of professional experience in the film and media industry as a veteran filmmaker, commercial director, creative director, cultural strategist, writer, producer, editor, the many-hat wearer. His diverse background of hands-on creative and production experience makes him a holistically competent and empathetic team leader, having worked at every stage of production, creative ideation, and even strategy.
Sometimes called scrappy, he is a natural problem solver with experience producing the high-quality film, television, commercial, interactive, editorial, and branded content from $10K-$5MM. Further tested during 2020, executing high-concept creative during pandemic lockdowns. Comfortable producing and directing 1 - 50 person crews.
He has created content for VICE, Complex, ESPN, R29, Live Nation, Smithsonian Channel, Esquire, Havoc, and many others. He has worked on campaigns for brands like Adidas, United Nations, Slim Jim, Mtn Dew, Travelers Insurance, Live Nation, TD Bank US, TD Bank Canada, Recording Academy, Apple, Google, Disney, and others.
He now works as lead creative for TBWA\Redslash, the award-winning in-house production studio for TBWA\Chiat\Day New York. This role sits between the creative and production departments, regularly interfacing with agency clients, executives, strategy, and third-party production partners. Constantly developing pitches for clients, building treatments and mood boards, producing and directing commercials, interactive campaigns, digital, social content, still campaigns, and much more.
Career side effects may include: obsessive commitment to excellence, compulsive storytelling, dry humor, unexpected late nights, obscure knowledge of film and music, the occasional landing on active aircraft carriers, jamming a 20 foot long Slim Jim onto the NY Subway (all for the likes), filming celebrities get dominated by hot wings, working with pro athletes and musicians, filming NASA rocket launches, working with Basque revolutionaries, ending distract
