Ten years in the making, “Free To Rock” explores how American rock and roll contributed to the end of the Cold War. In the eyes of the Soviet Ministry of Culture, western rock music combined the twin evils of spreading the English language and encouraging illicit free enterprise.
It was prohibited by the Soviet and Eastern Block authorities and deemed as propaganda. However, the "soft power" of American rock music was pumped into Eastern Europe and the USSR by Voice of America and Radio Free Europe.
This forbidden music inspired thousands of underground rock bands and tens of millions of their passionate supporters. Their enthusiasm for rock and roll became a youth movement that openly defied the Communist government.
Narrated by Kiefer Sutherland, the film features interviews with former President Jimmy Carter; Mikhail Gorbachev, former president of the USSR; musicians Billy Joel and Mike Love; Robert Santelli, executive director of the Grammy Museum; Oleg Kalugin , a former major general in the Soviet KGB; Soviet rock artists Stas Namin, Pete Anderson and Andrey Makarevich; and other scholars and experts.
The film also highlights performance footage from later cultural exchange efforts from the late '60s to the early '90s, including The Beach Boys, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen and Metallica.
JOIN THE CONVERSATION:
"Free To Rock” movie is on Facebook, Instagram, and you can follow @freetorockmovie on Twitter. #RockandRoll
The "Free To Rock" DVD is available to purchase.
CREDITS:
Produced by Jim Brown Productions. Distributed by American Public Television.
Directed by Jim Brown
Produced by Nick Binkley, Stas Namin, Jim Brown, Doug Yeager
Executive Producer for Russia - Stas Namin
Executive Producers Nick Binkley, Doug Yeager, John Beug, Bill Ivey
Created by Stas Namin, Nick Binkley, Jim Brown
Original Story by Nick Binkley, Valery Saifudinov, Doug Yeager
