ABOUT THE FILM:
(Canada / 2019 / 80 minutes)

“Sonic magic… One of the best films of 2019” - Variety

“Absolutely essential... A love letter… to the art of crafting a damn fine Stratocaster, to taking pride in your work and to finding a place for freaks and misfits to call home.” – David Fear, Rolling Stone

CARMINE STREET GUITARS is set in what once was the center of the New York bohemia, Greenwich Village –– now home to luxury restaurants, and buzzer door clothing stores catering to the nouveau riche.

One shop in the heart of the Village remains resilient to the encroaching gentrification: CARMINE STREET GUITARS. In this shop, custom guitar maker Rick Kelly and his young apprentice Cindy Hulej, build handcrafted guitars out of reclaimed wood from New York’s old hotels, bars, churches and other local buildings.

Nothing looks or sounds quite like a Rick Kelly guitar, which is the reason they are embraced by the likes of Lenny Kaye (Patti Smith Band), Kirk Douglas (The Roots), Eleanor Friedberger, Nels Cline (shopping for Wilco bandmate Jeff Tweedy), jazz guitarists Bill Frisell and Marc Ribot, and filmmaker/composer Jim Jarmusch –– not to mention Bob Dylan, Patti Smith.

Featuring a cast of prominent musicians and artists, and some virtuoso performances, the film captures five days in the life of one shop in the heart of Greenwich Village that remains resilient to the all-too-quickly vanishing way of life.

The film is dedicated to Jonathan Demme.

ABOUT RON MANN
Ron Mann is one of today's foremost documentary filmmakers. He established his international reputation while in his twenties with a series of award-winning theatrical documentaries, including Imagine the Sound (1981), Poetry in Motion (1982), Comic Book Confidential (1988), Twist (1992), and Grass (1999). Ron’s other films include Go Further (2003), Tales of the Rat Fink (2006), Know Your Mushrooms (2008), In the Wake of the Flood (2010), Altman (2014) and Carmine Street Guitars (2018). Ron has also acted as executive producer on the documentaries Brakhage (1998), Examined Life (2008), Mighty Uke (2010), Lunarcy! (2012), Mermaids (2016) I Called Him Morgan (2016) as well as the television series Pure Pwnage (2010).

In 2002, Ron also founded FILMS WE LIKE, a boutique distributor of documentary, independent and international films in Canada. Beginning with Sam Green and Bill Siegel's The Weather Underground (2002), Films We Like has released over 300 films and counting.

ABOUT THE WOODSTOCK FILM FESTIVAL:
Widely acknowledged as one of the premiere independent film festivals in the U.S, the Woodstock Film Festival will celebrate its 20th Anniversary October 2-6, 2019, in Woodstock, Saugerties, Rosendale, Kingston and Rhinebeck, NY. For more than two decades, the festival has brought together thousands of filmmakers, film lovers, artists and musicians, through the annual festival and outstanding year-round programming. The Hudson Valley Film Commission arm of the organization helps productions secure local crew, cast, locations, vendors, lodging options, post production facilities, and more! Since 2000, the film commission has supported and worked on over 500 productions, helping to create thousands of jobs and over $200 million in regional economic development especially in Ulster, Dutchess and Orange County

The Woodstock Film Festival is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. To make contributions, please click here.