Synopsis

More than 40 years ago Dick Fontaine made a film with the legendary jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins, who suddenly rejected fame to play alone high above the traffic on the Williamsburg Bridge NYC. Now 43 years later, in the context of his 80th birthday concert and with the help of other jazz legends, Ornette Coleman, for example, who Sonny invited to celebrate the history of his music with him, Sonny Rollins: Beyond the Notes follows his journey, still refusing stereotype and compromise, still searching for answers to his music and his life.

Director

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  • Dick Fontaine
  • Dick Fontaine has made over 40 documentaries that push the boundaries of the form, with a strong narrative structure shaped by his experience as a journalist and his early work focused on cinéma vérité. A former musician himself, he has created documentaries featuring legendary artists such as Catherine Battle, Sonny Rollins, and Ornette Coleman. His film received numerous awards.