Shut Up and Say Something

Yayoi Kusama(en)

Yayoi Kusama born March 22, 1929 is a Japanese artist and writer. Throughout her career she has worked in a wide variety of media, including painting, collage, scat sculpture, performance art, and environmental installations, most of which exhibit her thematic interest in psychedelic colors, repetition and pattern. A precursor of the pop art, minimalist and feminist art movements, Kusama influenced contemporaries such as Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg and Yoko Ono.

Being Kae Tempest(en)

Poet, rapper, playwright and recording artist Kae Tempest is one of the most viscerally exciting artists working in Britain today. They are the youngest ever recipient of the prestigious Ted Hughes prize and have been nominated for both the Brit and Mercury music awards. Tempest has always found support and respect within the queer art scenes, a place close to their heart. In July 2020, they came out as non-binary, announcing that they would publish and perform under the name Kae. This film delves deep into their creative process and gains rare, intimate insights into Kae’s life throughout a period of profound personal and artistic change.

Soundz of Spirit(en)

Award winning documentary by Joslyn Rose Lyons exploring the relationship between spiritual connection and the creative process in hip-hop music.

Rhymecology: Write Better Rhymes(en)

The world of hip-hop lyrics has changed, simple rhyme schemes just don't cut it. Rhymes are put under a microscope, and there is no lyrical leeway for emerging artists. This gripping documentary tells the story of Jeff Walker.

Henry Rollins, Easter Sunday(en)

A short film by Albert Watson from 1997 starring Henry Rollins as himself, doing his spoken word bit I Know You of the album The Boxed Life.

Dublin, Spoken.(en)

Three spoken word poets and event organizers based in Dublin - Melissa Ridge, Hazel Hogan and Kasey Shelley - reveal the positive impact poetry has had on their lives, and the challenges they have turning their hobby into a career.

Why We Need Pride(en)

Short film set to a poem about why Pride is important to say thanks for human right's campaigners and to show solidarity. Dedicated to those who lost their lives in Orlando as that terrible attack happened during production.

Your Life(en)

Official video for Andrea Gibson's powerful poem about queer identity, "Your Life."

Billie, Jasmine and the Poet(en)

An interpretive visual to accompany the spoken word poem by Nikki Lorenzo, shot in one day on a hiking trail in Malibu, California.

Blackwood(en)

A look at the challenges of living in a small Australian town, portrayed through the lens of a novelist and her teenage son.

Rhyme & Reason: BBC Introducing Arts(en)

Lemn Sissay presents a selection of short films from a new generation of artists who are inspired by poetry and the spoken word. Dying to Live; Notes on Being a Lady; Other Voices; Raised by Queenz; Terra Firma; The Siren's Song; Alice_Alice; My Grandad; The Fall; When Will It Stop?; Backwards; Covering Scars with Summer Jumpers; Is Anybody Out There?

Christmas in Ireland with Imelda May and Friends(en)

Music and literary performances from well-known and up-and-coming artists filmed at Pepper Canister Church in the heart of Georgian Dublin.

Summertime(en)

Over the course of a hot summer day in Los Angeles, the lives of 25 young Angelinos intersect. A skating guitarist, a tagger, two wannabe rappers, an exasperated fast-food worker, a limo driver—they all weave in and out of each other's stories. Through poetry they express life, love, heartache, family, home, and fear. One of them just wants to find someplace that still serves good cheeseburgers.

Overload(en)

A spoken word piece about an autistic person experiencing sensory overload in a world that rejects their existence.

Young & Naive(en)

Young & Na!ve is a poetic apology to everyone ever sexually molested and a film that needs to be seen by everyone ever born.

Atali'i O Le Crezent (Sons of the Crezent)(en)

NOISE!(en)

Oriana Mejer's niche poem-film style has created "NOISE!". The film dissects late stage capitalism and the effects social media has on the mind. This is a spoken word poem, performed by Mejer, combined with projections. It is a completely new approach to editing. Originally score by Sofia Camarena.

Henry Rollins: Keep Talking, Pal.(en)

Henry Rollins waxes at a high rate of speed about the brilliance of RuPaul, meeting David Bowie, his weirdest shows, why women should rule and more in a live performance from Portland, Oregon.

Gallery(en)

An anthology film told through a spoken word narrative, chronicling the mental states of three filmmakers while under the conditions of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Wings(en)

A kinetic typography animation set to a reading of the poem "The Wings" by Sebastian Fox.