Event Review

EVENT: Glastonbury Movie Premiere

Joogleberry Playhouse, 8th September

Phill Jupitus said that: “Leftfield is such a fundamental part of what Glastonbury is all about” and yes, this area of Glastonbury Festival is renowned for its political agenda, striving to raise awareness of its associated trade unions that tackle cultural, social and environmental issues. So with that said, I was fully expecting the premiere night of Leftfield The Movie 2008 to be consumed by facts depicting which causes I should be fighting for and being slapped around the face if I didn’t sign up and show support.

In fact, the evening wasn’t bogged down by heavy politics or a lack of understanding or care about the unions involved. Spokespersons from Battersea and Wandsworth TUC, NUJ, PCS, FBU and RMT were clear in their messages and in their support for all that Leftfield stands for.

Onto the screening: the film featured performances and various interviews from artists at Leftfield, really promoting a sense of ‘togetherness’, which is a true reflection of Leftfield’s campaigning nature. There have been fears that young people today are not standing up for social justice, instead being more interested in skinny jeans and parading the right haircut, but Alan Miles, director of the film disproves this argument. He spoke proudly of meeting festival goers that were there only to catch the political legend Tony Benn and the folk/punk genius that is Billy Bragg onstage.

The use music to support politics was well-received and Drew Mcconnell of Babyshambles summed up the relationship perfectly when he reasoned that musicians are listened to so they should address issues that matter. One issue was tackled rather ingeniously by the annoying screeching guy from The Automatic, who when was asked for an anti-racist message, answered “Er… Don’t be racist.” Top marks for that after-thought.

It was great to see so many people fighting for justice and joining together for such worthy causes. It seemed quite apt that DJ Don Letts, renowned for fusing reggae with punk in the 1970s, should be closing such a motivating night, powering-out celebratory chilled anthems to a content crowd.

I really assumed that the film and trade union words would come across as a bit preachy, but I was pleasantly surprised, they were informative and brought a powerful message. I left feeling positively about making a real change to the world we live in. What a truly inspirational night.

Words by Amy Rutter
Photographs by Rob Thomas