Fri, June 7 / 9 pm
Sat, June 8 / 3 pm & 7 pm
Sun, June 9 / 3 pm
Directed by Barry Lank
2018, Canada, 78 min
June 7 & 8 screenings introduced by Barry Lank and Marty Kramer
Sat, June 8* (Q&A with Barry Lank and Marty Kramer and John Einarson following the 7pm screening.
Born and raised in Winnipeg’s North End, road manager and music aficionado Marty Kramer has worked alongside acts like Neil Young, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, The Who, and Ringo Starr, but finds that keeping the Class of ‘59 performers’ feet on the ground may be the biggest challenge of his career yet.
On a road trip through an alternate universe, where Elvis Presley and Roy Orbison never died, this film explores the lives of three of the world’s top tribute artists, the cost of borrowed fame and the risk of getting ‘lost in the act’. Fifty years after trailblazers like Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Jackie Wilson defined music as we know it today, three world-class tribute artists carry on their legacy. But what happens when borrowed fame begins to lose its charm? Can they ever find stardom on their own terms? Almost, Almost Famous follows the stories of Texas rockabilly musician Lance Lipinsky as Jerry Lee Lewis, Las Vegas-based R&B singer Bobby Brooks as Jackie Wilson and the “Elvis from Orlando”, Ted Torres, on their “Class of ‘59” cross country road tour. Their intrepid road manager, Marty Kramer, has his work cut out for him as he struggles not only to keep their feet on the ground and the music centre stage, but also to keep the crowds clamouring for more.
