Between all of his musical projects, Gruff Rhys — most notably the frontman and creative force behind Welsh psychedelic rockers Super Furry Animals — up until this point, hasn’t delved into the world of film beyond a few soundtrack credits.
Though we missed note of this one when the film made its world premiere in Wales last fall, Rhys does have a new musical documentary entitled “Separado!” which he wrote, scored, and co-directed with Dylan Goch and will make its American premiere this month at the Los Angeles Film Festival on the 24th and 26th. Rhys’ score/soundtrack to the film will be released as his next solo album.
The documentary centers on Rhys’ quest to meet up with his lost long Patagonian uncle René Griffiths, a musician who is known in the area for combining Welsh and Argentine tradition and arriving on stage on horseback (check some samples out here). In the film’s press release, ‘Separado!’ is described as Rhys’ quest through the “theaters, nightclubs and desert tea houses of Wales, Brazil and the Argentine Andes as he discovers what became of his family, the Welsh Diaspora and its musical legacy.” Even for those unfamiliar with his music, the doc sounds pretty cool purely as a cross-cultural examination. Judging from the trailer (which you can watch below) that describes the film as a “psychedelic western musical,” the film seems to have a pretty wacky aesthetic (no surprise considering Rhys’ music) that seems to be a sort of meeting point between The Flaming Lips’ “Christmas on Mars” and Chilean surrealist Alejandro Jodorowsky.
Rhys also commented on the film back in November around its premiere. “At worst, it’s a Borat-style search for someone. At best, it’s a musical road trip couched in a magical realist style. But it’s also a product of wanting to find out more about René,” he told the Guardian in an interview outlining some of the background on the film. Whatever the film is or isn’t, you can color us intrigued. There’s no word yet of an American release beyond its appearance at the LAFF later this month, but Rhys did mention to Prefix that he hopes to put ‘Separado!’ out on DVD sometime this year.