Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

London, 3 July 1973. The fans attending the David Bowie concert in Hammersmith Odeon are in no way prepared for the shock of an on-stage ambiguous farewell. Ziggy Stardust, the greatest persona invented by David Bowie, is ascending back to the stars, waving goodbye to the crowd of the devoted believers. The agonizing question, though, remains lingering: Is it Ziggy’s or Bowie’s last dance? Academy Award-winner filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker, a true expert in the field of legendary music documentaries, was planning to shoot a short film, recording only a handful of songs performed by Bowie. However, as he left mesmerized from the dress rehearsal by Bowie’s thundering stage presence, Pennebaker soon realized that he had a treasure in his hands. Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, which took its final form following a 6-year exhausting process in the post-production stage, captures the frenzy, the thrill, and the adoration of the audience, while immersing us in a mystical ambiance and a hallucinatory rhythm. Above all, it wholeheartedly surrenders itself in the divine charisma and the otherworldly androgynous seductive charms of a rock star who fell to Earth from distant worlds, like an ephemeral yet invaluable gift, while grasping the moments when (music) history was being written before our eyes.
Screening Schedule

No physical screenings scheduled.

Direction: D.A. Pennebaker
Cinematography: Jim Desmond, Mike Davis, Nick Doob, Randy Franken, D.A. Pennebaker
Editing: Lorry Whitehead
Actors: David Bowie, Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder, Mick Woodmansey, Ken Fordham, Brian Wilshaw, Geoffrey MacCormack, John 'Hutch' Hutchinson, Mike Garson
Executive producer: Tony Defries
Format: DCP
Color: Color
Production Country: UK
Production Year: 1979
Duration: 103'
Contact: DCD Rights

D.A. Pennebaker

Filmography

1953 Daybreak Express (short)
1967 Dont Look Back
1968 Monterey Pop
1979 Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars
1979 Town Bloody Hall (co-direction)
1989 Depeche Mode: 101 (co-direction)
1993 The War Room (co-direction)
2009 Kings of Pastry (co-direction)
2016 Unlocking the Cage (co-direction)