Through 20 years of archival footage and intimate interviews, The Punk Singer tells the story of Kathleen Hanna, lead singer of the punk band Bikini Kill and dance-punk trio Le Tigre.
Kathleen Hanna, lead singer of the punk band Bikini Kill and dance-punk trio Le Tigre, rose to national attention as the reluctant but never shy voice of the riot grrrl movement. She became one of the most famously outspoken feminist icons, a cultural lightning rod. Her critics wished she would just shut-up, and her fans hoped she never would. So in 2005, when Hanna stopped shouting, many wondered why. Through 20 years of archival footage and intimate interviews with Hanna, The Punk Singer takes viewers on a fascinating tour of contemporary music and offers a never-before-seen view into the life of this fearless leader.
Sini Anderson has worked in film for over ten years as a producer, first assistant director, and creative consultant to directors on such films as BY HOOK OR BY CROOK, MANGO KISS, JADED CONSUMER LOOKING FOR SOMETHING MORE, FUMBLING TOWARDS ROCK: THE MIRIAM AND HELEN STORY, KARMA CALLING, and MAGGOTS AND MEN, among others. She has directed short form pieces such as Jolie Holland’s “All The Girls” music video and Melissa Febos’s experimental book/video short “Whip Smart.” THE PUNK SINGER is Anderson’s first feature length documentary. Anderson’s work has been supported by the San Francisco Arts Commission, the Horizons Foundation, Theatre Bay Area’s Cash Program, the California Arts Council, Grants for the Arts San Francisco, Open Meadows, the Women’s Foundation, and the Astraea Foundation. She has served as chief curator and artistic director for the National Queer Arts Festival, president of the board of directors for the Harvey Milk Institute, and co-chair of the board of directors for the Queer Cultural Center. Currently, Anderson is working to finish another feature-length documentary called I Spit On Your Country: Sister Spit, and is developing her first narrative film, based on a 1990 documentary about New York City’s queer culture. Anderson lives both in Brooklyn, NY, and San Francisco, CA, and performs and speaks at universities nation-wide.
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