New Urbanism Film Festival - Instrument of Change: Street Piano
Music transforms people's lives. Street Pianos transform cities. This film is about generating more street pianos across the globe.
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Maureen Ni Fiann
Watch Instrument of Change: Street Piano here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Thank You. I made this film because I noticed that something very powerful was happening around the street piano where I lived - and that this story would be best told through film. I had just moved back to London from a small provincial town and was drawn to live again in a big city because of the incredible diversity of people all living in such proximity. I then realised that people in cities are very much in their own little bubble - and tend to walk past each other as if they were just an obstacle - like cars passing each other in a purely functional way. This seemed a great lost opportunity and also very dull.
Every time that I passed the street piano I had such interesting encounters - with either someone playing or listening. A child doing a duet with a homeless person. A traffic warden doing gospel. A refuse worker composing a song. Two young guys who just met improvising a song.
Everyone I spoke to about the pianos had the same reaction - their eyes would light up - "O when I passed one day I heard this song that reminded me of my father…" "I was really stressed and I looked up and was amazed at this young guy with a BMX playing Mozart."
I was a therapist at the time working with people and relationships. I could clearly see that the piano was a therapist for cities! It allowed people to drop their guard - it created a warm island where people could have a memorable exchange that enhanced their whole day.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
The film reminds people that cities can be more enjoyable - it is not that difficult to place an object in the right location and lift the atmosphere so it is no longer dull - but full of life. It helps people to think about their own neighbourhood.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The film shows how music transforms the individual lives of three players. With so much division increasing across the world politically the street pianos do a great service in helping us to drop our stereotypes of each other. They are great levellers. When someone is playing you no longer categorise them by their clothes or their job, you just appreciate them, brilliant.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Initially the acoustic piano was at the centre of the script - gradually the three characters became the heart of the film.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
People talk a lot about their own neighbourhoods. Cities are not designed for our psychological well being and people respond to that aspect of the film. Sometimes people contact us to know how to get a piano in their own neighbourhood.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
We have been delighted at how much the audience become very fond of some of the main players.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I guess the film is about encouraging change in the way we behave in cities. Having the film screened, distributed or broadcast would get the story seen and heard. We would love if people started making some changes in their own neighbourhoods, and more pianos started to pop up in railway stations and shopping malls. It has begun - there is definately something in the air. People do love these pianos.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Yes, sales agents and distributors that have a place for arts/social documentaries within their catalogue.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
Sometimes people ring us up and ask us to find a piano for their neighbourhood. Recently someone contacted us after an horrific tower block fire tragedy in UK, where over 80 people died. They were creating a memorial community art space. There is a piano in that space now. Apparently it is played all the time. Music is often the language of choice when words fail. This was a very rewarding response to the film.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Do you think that people are more social than cities allow them to be?
Would you like to add anything else?
A sub plot of the film is that acoustic pianos in the western world are going to landfill. Thousands every year in the UK and USA. It's like burning books, shouldn’t be happening. This film is about recycling these family instruments - diverting them from the dump to an urban community where they can spread their magic.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
There are a few projects in the pipeline, too soon to discuss!
Interview: October 2017
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
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Instrument of Change: Street Piano
Music transforms people's lives. Street Pianos transform cities. This film is about generating more street pianos across the globe.
Length: 42 minutes
Director: Maureen Ni Fiann. Tom Rochester.
Producer: Maureen Ni Fiann.
Writer: Maureen Ni Fiann. Tom Rochester.
About the writer, director and producer:
Maureen is an independent Film Maker and was a first time director on the short film The People's Piano 2014. Her background is in psychotherapy. It was the human connections that she saw happening around her local street piano that motivated her to make the film. The introductory short film The People's Piano was made in 2014 with Tom Rochester.
Tom Rochester is an independent film maker and first time director on Instrument of Change:Street Piano. He made the short film The People's Piano in 2014 which was screened at Raindance. Tom’s background is as a lighting camera man. His work has been shown by BBC, Channel 4, ITV, Sky Arts. Having worked in TV for 10 years Tom is now drawn to work more with people and their stories.