Orquesta Tipica: Tango or Death

DIRECTOR INVITED

Director: NICOLAS ENTEL

Probably the only title in this year’s lineup to make a hit at both the Beverly Hills Film Festival and the Barcelona Tango Festival, director Entel’s debut documentary follows a group of Argentine musicians who walk the line between new school and Old World. “Orquesta Tipica” Fernandez Fierro is a twelve-man street band specializing in traditional tango music with a punk rock attitude.

Entel’s employs deliberately choppy style and a Wiseman-esque structure to capture the group’s cult following on the streets of Argentina and the preparations for their first-ever European tour.

Director’s Statement: “Just as many other Argentineans my age I didn’t care much for tango . . . until, by chance, I came across the Orquesta Tipica Fernández Fierro playing on the street. First I saw twelve guys looking like wannabe rock-stars pushing a piano down the street. Their sound was as elaborate as it was raw and powerful . . . filled with beauty and passion. It was love at fi rst sight. After that, I was also impressed by their political committment and their understanding of music as a way of practicing cultural resistance.”

-- Nicholas Entel, 33, Buenos Aires, cine grad and New York-based producer.

Click here to view the trailer.

ARGENTINA • 2006 • 85 MINUTES • DIRECTOR: NICOLAS ENTEL