JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE 

Intimate, Revealing Portrait Traces the Legendary Singer and Activist’s Life 

From Childhood to Final Tour with Extraordinary Access to Her Archives; 

Documentary Has US Theatrical Premiere Friday, October 6 at Film Forum

Film Forum is pleased to present the US theatrical premiere of JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE, directed by Karen O’Connor, Miri Navasky, and Maeve O’Boyle, on Friday, October 6. 

“I am not a saint, I am a noise,” wrote 13-year-old Joan Baez in her journal, reflecting on a discordance between her outer and inner lives that would only deepen. Icon of ’60s folk music and activism, Baez made the cover of TIME at 21, her relationship with Bob Dylan was widely publicized, and she famously performed “We Shall Overcome” at the March on Washington. What the public didn’t know: she was subject to racist taunts as a child (her father was Mexican), suffered intense anxiety, and harbored long-simmering questions about unacknowledged family trauma. 

Crafting an intimate, revelatory portrait of an artist looking back on a six-decade career, the filmmakers -- who had extraordinary access to Baez on and off stage – draw from a wealth of never-before-seen home movies, diaries, drawings, and candid audio recordings, while following Baez during her 2018 farewell tour. "Whether you’ve followed her career for decades or are just now discovering [Baez], the life under scrutiny is undeniably impressive and ceaselessly engaging.” - Todd McCarthy, Deadline

JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE premiered at the 2023 Berlin International Film Festival and was an official selection at SXSW, Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival, and Hot Docs. 

“The film’s fascinating prologue has Baez speaking to, and physically illustrating, what’s necessary for a world-class, gold-throated singer to go out on the road in her late 70s…But there’s no less intrigue when the documentarians flash back to her early life — when Baez emerged as a virtual overnight sensation... Whether crooning at Carnegie, marching in Selma or dueting with paramour Bob Dylan, she wasn’t just a TIME magazine cover subject but a poster girl for a kind of wholesomely sexy liberal social consciousness.” – Chris Willman, Variety

“What makes JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE stand out — both among documentaries, more generally, but also work about Baez — is its willingness to burrow into Baez’s psyche. I AM A NOISE gives Baez the space to talk through her career highlights, as the film overlays archival footage of an early Baez adjusting to the rigors of touring and public celebrity… A novel approach to exploring Baez… Compelling” – Christian Gallichio, The Playlist

“Introspective…Baez gets remarkably frank about her long history of therapy and her sometimes disturbing excavations of childhood experience… and speaks freely about what she describes as her syndrome of euphoric highs followed by inevitable descents back into darkness. But I AM A NOISE traces a satisfying arc, taking her to a point where she feels less encumbered, no longer carrying the world on her shoulders.” – David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter

JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE (2023, 113 min.) Directed by Miri Navasky, Maeve O'Boyle, Karen O’Connor. Directed and produced by Miri Navasky, Karen O’Connor. Cinematography: Wolfgang Held, Ben McCoy, Tim Grucza. Original Score: Sarah Lynch. Executive Producers: Greg Sarris, Patti Smith, Josh Braun, Ben Braun, Terry Press. USA. A Magnolia Pictures Release. 

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