When you think of Ibiza, the last thing you think about is silence. The island has had a rich, cultural heritage with music and counter cultures for some 2,000 years now, and it is this which director Julien Temple has mined for his latest documentary, Ibiza: The Silent Movie.
Premiering at Glastonbury Festival tonight (26 June), on the Cineramageddon stage, the audience will be able to watch the movie in vintage cars and in the presence of Michael Eavis, Temple and Fatboy Slim. And after the showing, Fatboy Slim will be doing a DJ set.
“It’s the second time we’ve done Cineramageddon at Glastonbury. The first was when Johnny Depp opened it in 2017. It’s the biggest screen in Europe and we’ll be premiering Ibiza: The Silent Movie there,” says Temple, speaking to us from his house in Somerset.
“There are similarities between Glastonbury and Ibiza,” continues Temple. “They are both places to escape your everyday life.
“Norman [Cook, Fatboy Slim who did the soundtrack to the movie] is a fixture of both, so he’s in both camps.”
As for the movie, it’s the “loudest silent movie ever” explains Temple, but it’s not just about the dance culture, but all cultures that have found the island a place of solace.
“The documentary is a guide to the history of the island, it’s for punters but telling them to have a bit more respect. Ibiza is in danger of tourism. It’s such a beautiful, magical place.”
As for his own experiences of Ibiza, he went back for the documentary but his best, if rather hazy memories, are of decades before.
“I was there in the late 80s and 90s, so I did see the clubs and the island and it was magical then. But the beatniks were there in the 50s, there was cool jazz on the beaches, then the 60s arrived and the hippies got involved there, Bob Marley was there.”
With all this rich culture it’s surprising Temple took the silent movie approach to the movie, but he tells us he “wanted to raise eyebrows and try to think of another way to do it.”
And that’s what he’s done with Ibiza: The Silent Movie, with Temple noting: “most silent movies have an orchestra, we have a Fatboy Slim.”
Head to the official website for more information on where you can catch the doc, if you are not at Glastonbury, and check out Julien Temple’s 5 favourite silent movies below.
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Julien Temple’s 5 favourite silent movies
