The Sound of Us to Receive Movie that Matters Award During Cannes Film Festival

Watch the Music Documentary's New Trailer at Rolling Stone, Featuring Avery*Sunshine, Ben Folds, Bettye LaVette, Patti Smith, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Sarah McLachlan, Sekou Andrews & Many More

"What is music, what is music to you?"

 

On July 12, 2021, during the Cannes Film Festival, forthcoming music documentary The Sound of Us will proudly accept the Movie that Matters Award. Presented as part of the Better World Fund Gala, and granted by filmfestivals.com on a very select number of occasions over the past decade, the prestigious honor embodies the urgency, inspiration and change-making impact captured throughout The Sound of Us. During this divided and critical point in history, from COVID-19 to civil unrest, crippling unemployment to countless personal hardships, The Sound of Us illustrates how music remains one of humanity's final unifying forces, giving voice to hope and courage, allowing the greatest avenue to grief and honesty, and providing a universal language for the most difficult conversations. 

Watch a brand new trailer for The Sound of Us, including appearances by Avery*Sunshine, Ben Folds, Bettye LaVette, Francesco Lotoro, Grace Kelly, Mercy Bell, Patti Smith, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Sarah McLachlan, Sekou Andrews and many others: https://youtu.be/aqWJyq7aodg 

Read more at Rolling Stone, including an interview with The Sound of Us director, 12x Emmy-winner and Grammy-nominated record producer Chris Gero. 

After receiving the Movie that Matters Award at the Better World Fund Gala, which will also honor Barry Alexander Brown and Spike Lee, The Sound of Us will host a premiere screening on July 13th, at 13:45pm in Cannes Film Festival's Palais H. Cannes attendees can also access The Sound of Us via the Cinando platform. 

Shot over the course of two months, across five countries during the height of COVID-19, The Sound of Us unfolds as a series of breathtaking vignettes, spellbinding performances and revelatory interviews that demonstrate music's power not only to heal the painful moments of the present, but to preserve history and inspire the future. Guided by a seemingly impossible question - "What is music, what is music to you?" - every person, song and scene of the film help to prove a profound truth: through music we are never alone. Music defines the inexplicable, it gives us life and, most importantly, it gives us each other. Director Chris Gero says: 

"Music opens a window to the world of my most vulnerable self, truly a doorway into the soul. The notes don't take into account division, hatred, race, hurt, anger. They transcend, bind together, and somehow find ways to celebrate what so often divides us. It is through this unique language that we can communicate across barriers, across time, between souls. Music brings experiences to another place and another level, beyond this physical world. Music ultimately shows us we are human – empathetic, genuinely kind, and together."

In addition to Ben Folds, Butch Walker, Dan Tepfer, Eric Whitacre, Hiromi, Jason Mraz, Pasek & Paul, Patti Smith, PJ Morton, Will Wells and dozens more musicians, The Sound of Us includes Project: Music Heals Us playing private concerts for hospital patients and offering Rikers Island inmates new outlets to express their emotions. The films finds a Holocaust survivor whose 70-year career persisted with the help of one particular melody, a group of underserved children finding new types of families in music education, venues grappling with pandemic-spurred shutdowns, the history of jazz evolving in New Orleans, and composers creating space for conversation in the wake of injustices against George Floyd and too many others. 

The Sound of Us features original compositions by Chris Gero, as well new renditions of songs by many the aforementioned artists, plus stunning reinterpretations of Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit" from Avery*Sunshine, Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" from Sarah McLachlan, and a spoken-word performance from trailblazing National Poetry Slam champion Sekou Andrews, which will ensure viewers never hear "Amazing Grace" the same way again. 

Learn more and stay updated on festival appearances, future showings and release dates at The Sound of Us site: https://thesoundofus.com 

 

About Chris Gero

Chris Gero is a 12-time Emmy Award winner and Grammy Award-nominated record producer, well-known for his visionary style in the music industry. An accomplished composer and director, The Sound of Us is Gero's second documentary feature film. Gero previously directed the 2014 award-winning feature length documentary, Nathan East: For the Record. Prior to his documentary directorial debut, Gero produced and directed Elton John's full length concert film The Million Dollar Piano, which screened worldwide. As founder of Yamaha Entertainment Group and Chief Artist Relations Executive for Yamaha Artist Relations Group, Gero oversees the management and branding of Yamaha's global roster, having signed more than 5,000 artists to date. Also known for his large-scale concert productions, Gero has produced live concert events for some of the biggest names in the music industry, including Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Tony Bennett, Michael McDonald, Norah Jones, Sheryl Crow and John Legend. Gero resides outside of Franklin, Tennessee with his wife and four children.

 

About Movie that Matters

The Movie that Matters Award was created in 2016 by Bruno Chatelin, inspired by his days running Sony in France, when the Chairman of the company, David Puttnam, tagged the Studio's mission as "Making Movies that Matter." Since its creation, the award has only been handed (during Cannes) to a very small number of films. All films awarded have held significant meaning, bringing strong and positive messages and showing the brighter side of the human soul. They are films which inspire, call for action and change, and make an impact. The award is a prestigious and rare honor handed by filmfestivals.com to selected filmmakers with a strong message, during the Better World Fund's Gala. Previous recipients of the Movie that Matters Award include Bilal, Iqbal, Junod, Pope Francis: A Man of His Word, Release from Heaven and Yellow Submarine.