Birdman Live comes to Des Moines

Parker.Reed.Com

Coming almost two-and-a-half years after it’s original release, someone might question the relevance of a showing of “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” in a venue outside of a traditional movie theater.

The critically acclaimed black-comedy was originally released in October of 2014, but has since remained relevant due to “Birdman Live,” a showing of the film with a live score performed by Antonio Sanchez, the jazz drummer who provided the film it’s drum-centric score.

“Timeless films are gonna stand the test of time … Great art is like an onion, the more layers you peel back the more detail you find,” Sanchez said. “‘Birdman’ has a lot going on. The amount of detail is astounding.”

Birdman Live with Antonio Sanchez will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday night at Hoyt Sherman Place in Des Moines. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased online via Hoyt Sherman’s website.

Sanchez was first approached by Alejandro G. Inarritu, director of the film, in early 2013 with a copy of the script and an idea. A comedy filmed in a single show, with a drum-only score to match the spontaneity of the visuals.

“The beauty of the shots [in the film] is so well done, and we tried to match the tone of the drums to the unpredictability of the camera,” Sanchez said.

When recording of the percussion-centric score began, Inarritu believed that the drums sounded too professional. After all, this was the first film score that Sanchez had ever recorded.

“[Inarritu] wanted the drums to sound like they had been sitting in the basement of the St. James Theatre for ten years … they should should sound dusty and out of tune,” Sanchez said.

When pursuing this certain sound, Sanchez determined, in association with Inarritu, that the score should seem ferocious, unpredictable and highly improvised. Sanchez continues this approach during the live performances of the show by mixing his improvisational attitude with a certain number of scripted moments.

“[I stick to a] general script and stay true to general effect … but I also honor the improvisational attitude of the film,” Sanchez said.

In 2015, “Birdman” won four categories at the 87th Academy Awards including “Best Director,” “Best Original Screenplay” and “Best Cinematography.” The film went on to take home the night’s top prize, “Best Picture,” winning over “Boyhood,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel” and “Whiplash,” the latter of which also heavily focused on drumming as a part of the narrative.

“Whiplash” has also received more attention recently, as the film’s director, Director Chazelle, went on to direct last year’s “La La Land,” which was nominated for a total of 14 awards at last Sunday’s 89th Academy Awards, tying the all-time record for number of nominations with “All About Eve” and “Titanic.”

“The issue with [movies like “Whiplash”] is that if the drummer isn’t being slapped or abused, than people aren’t interested,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez, along with others, questioned the accuracy of the jazz scene depicted in films like “Whiplash” and “La La Land” following their notable success in the mainstream. However, Sanchez admitted that he hadn’t yet seen “La La Land.”

“I just don’t think the way [Chezelle] depicts jazz is accurate … at no point in [“Whiplash”] is there any joy coming from creating music,” Sanchez said. “They never get [jazz] right. They try to glamourize it too much.”

Sanchez also commented on last Sunday’s “Best Picture” mix up at the 89th Academy Awards, in which “La La Land” was mistakenly awarded the top prize before it was revealed that “Moonlight” had actually won.

“That was unforgivable … so gratuitous,” Sanchez said.

While Sanchez says he has easily seen “Birdman” over 50 times, he doesn’t believe that the style of performance in the film has significantly influenced his style outside of the film’s environment.

“I bring to the movie my experience of playing … I was allowed to be myself,” Sanchez said.