Backyard

One day a guy named Árni Rúnar had the idea of gathering a few bands together in his backyard to do some live recording. His idea evolved into this film. He filled his little shack of a studio with equipment and prayed for good weather. He invited all his neighbours round and made them pizza, cupcakes and pancakes. Many of the most exciting Icelandic musicians of their generation showed up to play as well, giving us a unique look at the island’s fresh pop scene in the summer of 2009. The film Backyard is, in a way, the underground antithesis of the big-budget, somewhat “promotional” portrait of the Icelandic arena, Screaming Masterpiece (the tour de force screened at KVIFF in 2005). This intimate, home-grown film presents the “do-it-yourself” nature of the Icelandic scene as an essential breeding ground for individuality and creativity. The “backyard” festival hosts some of the best bands on the island: Múm, FM Belfast, Hjaltalín, and Sin Fang Bous.... But the audience will also be bowled over by the affable and productive human dimension of everything going on here – the friendships, the craftwork, endearing amateurism, and mistakes which lead to true discoveries. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)