Scala!!! Uncovering life hidden in plain sight
Scala!!! Co-directed by Jane Giles and Ali Catterall
The Scala, a once thriving music venue in Kings Cross, London, is resurrected in this raw documentary. This film covers the history of this venue from the 1970s, where it was the first venue to host Iggy Pop and Lou Reed, to a thriving cinema in the 1990s at the centre of a controversy over the screening of the then banned movie A Clockwork Orange. A documentary so filled with grit, crisis, and emotion it feels like a modern-day Shakespearian drama.
With multiple interviewees and hundreds of different pieces of raw and film footage, this felt like an unbiased representation of youth, and a celebration of its fragmented and boundary-pushing nature. This film presented a realness and authenticity. This authenticity was pushed further by the fact the directors were sat in with the audience for the duration of its screening, and later opened themselves up to questions. Replying to a question, Jane Giles said that she wanted this film to be a “discovering of culture outside of the family home”. I think she made this discovery quite easy for her audience through showing youth culture in all the authentic documentary footage. One of the most interesting parts of the film for me was how it gave a vivid depiction of the scene surrounding the Scala without seeming biased. When asked how this was achieved, Giles explained that the diversity of interviewees represents the type of people who felt comfortable and at home in the Scala, and that a multitude of opinions and personal experiences needed to be expressed.
With this variety of voices, the film felt like a permission slip to "express who you are".
The audience that attended this screening of Scala!!! varied in age. Interestingly, there were people in the audience who has been to the venue in its prime; it was clear to see this film evoked a sense of nostalgia for them. For the younger people, I think this film evoked a sense of pride in simply being themselves.
Discussing difficult issues such as queer identity, punk identity, sexuality, even video nasties in a profoundly nuanced way, I really feel the film opens up a conversation about what it’s like to live a life that expresses who you are, and not who others want you to be.
A truly eye-opening, gritty, but hopeful film.
About the Reviewer
Sasha Edmunds
Sasha Edmunds is an English student currently on a gap year exploring journalism, who has become more and more interested in understanding the world though a multitude of literature. Sasha is currently based in Hereford and is involved in P.O.V young producers with Rural Media. When not reading or writing, she is finding out about sustainable practices, especially the practice of foraging.
