''Anyone Can Play Guitar'' is a

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

made by Jon Spira, examining the music scene in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

over the period starting 1978, but focusing on 1984–2007. The film takes its name from the Radiohead song of the same name."Fans fund independent music film Anyone Can Play Guitar"
"BBC Introducing", 24 September 2010, accessed 8 December 2010 Through over 300 hours of interviews with band members and other key people in the Oxford music community, distilled down to one and a half hours, the film examines the roles of community, the music industry, and luck in a band gaining commercial success. Narrated by

Stewart Lee Stewart Graham Lee (born 5 April 1968) is an English comedian, screenwriter, and television director. His stand-up routine is characterised by repetition, internal reference, deadpan delivery, and consistent breaking of the fourth wall. Lee b ...

,Amanda Williams
"Music fans invited to back movie"
"Oxford Mail", 10 January 2011, accessed 10 January 2011 it features interviews and concert footage of several bands that have been nationally and internationally successful (

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

Supergrass Supergrass are an English rock band formed in 1993 in Oxford. For the majority of the band's tenure, the line-up consisted of brothers Gaz (lead vocals, guitar) and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn (bass, backing vocals) and Danny Goffey ( ...

Foals A foal is an equine up to one year old; this term is used mainly for horses, but can be used for donkeys. More specific terms are colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, and are used until the horse is three or four. When the foal is ...

), as well as some that had moderate success (e.g.

The Candyskins The Candyskins were an English rock band formed in 1989 in Oxford, England. Though early members of the 'Oxford Scene', they enjoyed limited commercial success compared to their contemporaries Radiohead and Supergrass. They were considered by ...

Ride Ride may refer to: People * MC Ride, a member of Death Grips * Sally Ride (1951–2012), American astronaut * William Ride (19262011), Australian zoologist Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Ride'' (1998 film), a 1998 comedy by Millicen ...

Swervedriver Swervedriver are an English alternative rock band formed in Oxford in 1989 around core members Adam Franklin and Jimmy Hartridge. Between 1989 and 1998, the band released four studio albums and numerous EPs and singles despite a considerable f ...

), and many more that were not commercially successful including The Cornflower Concept. Creation of the film was initially through a Production Award fro
Film Oxford
as well as self-funded by Spira, but finishing the

sound mix Audio mixing is the process by which multiple sounds are combined into one or more channels. In the process, a source's volume level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated or enhanced. This practical, aesthetic, ...

and picture grade to a professional standard needed additional funding, which Spira sought through the Indiegogo

crowd funding Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by cro ...

site. The initial target of $15,000 was reached before the campaign closing date, and the campaign was extended to $30,000 to raise funds for final music and film footage

rights clearance Collective rights management is the licensing of copyright and related rights by organisations acting on behalf of rights owners. Collective management organisations (CMOs), sometimes also referred to as collecting societies, typically represent ...

.Jon Spira
"Indiegogo updates"
10 April 2011, accessed 18 April 2011

Release

Previews were screened at the OX4 music festival in October 2010, as part of

Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. History Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...

Oxjam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. History Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...

musical fund-raising initiative, and at an industry screening in April 2011. The film's ticket-only premiere – for an audience of 300 donors and participants in the film – was on 20 September 2011 at Oxford's

Phoenix Picturehouse The Phoenix Picturehouse is a cinema in Oxford, England. It is at 57 Walton Street in the Jericho district of Oxford. The Phoenix used to be an independent cinema, and from 1989 the Picturehouse Cinemas chain developed from it. Since 2012 the ...

. The

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

screened the London premiere on 31 October 2011, followed by a Q&A session with Spira, Ed O'Brien of Radiohead, Gaz Coombes of Supergrass, Mark Gardener of Ride, and Nick Cope of The Candyskins, hosted by Adam Buxton."Sonic Cinema Presents"
"BFI", accessed 5 November 2011 The film's DVD release is set as 31 October 2011,Music In Oxford

, 10 July 2011, accessed 18 September 2011 supported by a tour of independent cinemas.

References

External links

* *
Indiegogo funding page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anyone Can Play Guitar Music in Oxford Music scenes 2010 documentary films British documentary films English films 2010s English-language films 2010 directorial debut films 2010 films Rockumentaries 2010s British films