Milford Graves: Full Mantis

Jake Meginsky, Neil Young - United States 2018 - 91 min.

Tuesday 08/01 19:30 Trueba cinema

MILFORD GRAVES FULL MANTIS is the filmed portrait of the famous percussionist Milford Graves, which explores his kaleidoscopic creativity and his tireless curiosity. From 1964 Graves acted both as a soloist and in combos with legends such as Albert Ayler, Giuseppi Logan or Sonny Sharrock. He is a pioneer founder of avant-garde jazz, and remains one of its most influential figures. The film takes the viewer through the lush garden and the ornated artist’s house, the martial arts dojo at his backyard and the laboratory in his basement, a few blocks away from where he grew up in the projects of South Jamaica, in Queens. Graves narrates stories of discovery, struggle and survival, reflects on the essence of ‘swing’, activates electronic stethoscopes in his basement’s laboratory to process his heart’s sound, and travels to Japan where he acts in a school for children with autism, lighting his body in a display of spontaneous collective energy. Oscillating between the present and the past and interweaving intimate visions of the artist’s complex cosmology with impressive performances from all over the world, MILFORD GRAVES FULL MANTIS is a movie full of fluidity, polyrhythm and intensity, which incorporates the essence of Graves’ music.

Director:: Jake Meginsky, Neil Young
Year:: 2018
Country:: United States
Length:: 91 min.
Original language:: English
Leadings:: Milford Graves
Producers:: Jake Meginsky