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Robin Bell, born and based in Washington DC, is an award-winning videographer, artist, and Founder and Owner of Bell Visuals, a boutique production company focused on supporting social justice groups and environmentally sustainable companies.
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Positive Force: More Than a Witness: 30 Years of Punk Politics In Action (DVD)
Directed By: Robin Bell
Publisher: PM Press
ISBN: 978-1-60486-242-3
UPC: 760137497592
Published: 11/2014
Format: DVD NTSC
Length: 70 minutes
Size: 7.7 by 5.5
Subjects: Music-Punk, Politics-Activism
$19.95
Punk activist collective Positive Force DC emerged in 1985, rising from the creative, politically-charged ferment of DC punk’s Revolution Summer. Born in a dynamic local scene sparked by Bad Brains, Minor Threat, and Rites of Spring, a handful of young activists also drew inspiration from UK anarcho-punks Crass and the original “Positive Force” band Seven Seconds to become one of the most long-lasting and influential exponents of punk politics.
This feature-length film by Robin Bell skillfully mixes rare archival footage (including electrifying live performances from Fugazi, Bikini Kill, One Last Wish, Nation of Ulysses, Crispus Attucks, Anti-Flag, and more) with new interviews with key PF activists like co-founder Mark Andersen (co-author of Dance of Days) and supporters such as Ian MacKaye, Ted Leo, and Riot Grrrl co-founder Allison Wolfe. Covering a span of 30 years, More Than A Witness documents PF’s Reagan-era origins, the creation of its communal house, FBI harassment, and the rise of a vibrant underground that burst into the mainstream amidst controversy over both the means and the ends of the movement.
Through it all, Positive Force has persisted, remaining deeply rooted in their hometown, reaching out to those in need and building bridges between diverse communities, while regularly bringing punk protest to the front doors of the powers-that-be. Encompassing an ever-evolving cast of characters, the all-volunteer group has helped to nurture several generations of activists. In the best punk fashion, PF has applied creative DIY tactics and radical critiques to issues of homelessness, hunger, racism, corporate globalization, sexism, homophobia, war, gentrification, and animal/earth liberation, while struggling to constructively address conflicting dynamics and visions within the group itself.
Run time: 70 minutes.
The filmmakers' portion of the proceeds from the sale of the DVD will benefit the We Are Family senior outreach network.
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Mentions & Interviews
- Capital Gifts 2014: The Ultimate D.C. Punk Collection: DCist
- Fugazi Perform at 1991 D.C. Protest in Clip From Positive Force Documentary: Pitchfork
- Penny Rimbaud of Crass Talks about Politics and Philosophy in a New Positive Force Documentary: Noisey Music by VICE
- Robin Bell Interviewed about Positive Force: DC Downloads
- ‘Positive Force: More Than a Witness’ profiles a D.C. group that’s hard-core in its pursuit of change: Washington Post
- Too Punk for TV: WAMU 88.5/bandwidth
- Recap: Positive Force: More than a Witness Screening
- Does D.C. Really Need Two More Punk Retrospectives?
- D.C.’s Punk Movement: Looking Back And Ahead: The Kojo Nnamdi Show
- Too Punk For TV: Bandwidth
- Positive Force: DC Punk Activism: Huck Magazine
Reviews
- Positive Force: NightFlight
- Positive Force: Scanner Zine
- Positive Force: Razorcake
- Postive Force: Library Journal Starred Review
- Positive Force: Video Librarian Three Star Review
- Postive Force: PopDose
- Positive Force: Dangerous Minds
- Positive Force: Alpine Anarchist
Positive Force: More Than A Witness: A Review
By Bryan
NightFlight
May 18th, 2016
Bell’s feature-length film features archival footage — including vintage live concert footage of bands like Fugazi, Nation of Ulysses, Bikini Kill, and more — along with interviews from some of punk’s most influential pioneers, like Ian MacKaye (founder and owner of Arlington, VA-based Dischord Records, and the leader of Fugazi) to Penny Rimbaud (of the UK anarcho-punks Crass), along with supporters and followers, many of whom have played Positive Force gigs, people like Jenny Toomey (Simple Machines, Tsunami), Jello Biafra, Dave Grohl, Ted Leo, Riot Grrrl co-founders Allison Wolfe (Bratmobile) and Kathleen Hanna (Bikini Kill), and others...."
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Positive Force: More Than A Witness: A Review
Scanner Zine
November 10th, 2015
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Positive Force: More Than A Witness: A Review
By Lisa Weiss
Razorcake
March 19th, 2015
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Positive Force: More Than A Witness: Starred Review
By Douglas King
Library Journal
March 25th, 2015
VERDICT This informative and inspiring film about several generations of punks singing about positive social change and working to make it happen should appeal to socially conscious music fans of all ages, especially viewers interested in learning about the mix of punk, politics, and activism in the DC underground music scene.
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Three Star Review of Positive Force: More Than A Witness
By T. Keogh
Video Librarian
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Capital Gifts 2014: The Ultimate D.C. Punk Collection
By Tori Kerr
DCist
December 4th, 2014
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Positive Force: More Than a Witness: A Review
by Rob Ross
PopDose
December 18th, 2014
VERY interesting and intriguing historic look at the Positive Force organization, which began in Nevada, but has thrived and stayed the course in Washington D.C. from 1985 onward. Led by D.C. co-founder Mark Andersen, Positive Force ran parallel to the socially conscious punk movement (the majority of bands recorded for Dischord Records), which by 1985 had begun to widen its spectrum and become, itself, more politicized. The rawness of the punk anger and ethos began to be pointing toward constructivity, rather than negativity and destruction, and found itself moving in a socially, morally and politically upward (and left-leaning) direction. As seen in the documentary from director Robin Bell, Positive Force acts upon its words with deeds – from delivering groceries to those in need (especially the elderly) to holding benefit concerts to raise money for various causes, to orchestrating protests.
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Fugazi Perform at 1991 D.C. Protest in Clip From Positive Force Documentary
Pitchfork
December 9th, 2014
Positive Force: More Than a Witness; 30 Years of Punk Politics in Action is a new documentary about the Washington, DC punk activist group Positive Force. Directed by Robin Bell, the film tells the story of the group's campaigns against homelessness, racism, corporate globalization, sexism, war, and more. It features interviews with prominent artists as well as archival performance footage. Watch a clip from the film of Fugazi playing a 1991 D.C. protest below via Pitchfork.tv.
Penny Rimbaud of Crass Talks about Politics and Philosophy in a New Positive Force Documentary
By Noisey Staff
Noisey Music by Vice
Positive Force: More Than A Witness; 30 Years Of Punk Politics In Action examines the punk collective Positive Force and their influence on the scene through awareness of political, social, and economic issues. Featuring appearances from bands like Fugazi, Bikini Kill, Nation of Ulysses and more, the documentary spans the group's origins and includes performances, details on their tactics, and much much more. In the above clip, Penny Rimbaud of Crass discusses the evolution of the band and how it fit into the Positive Force ethos.
‘They Wanted to be Rock Stars’: Crass Co-Founder Disses Sex Pistols and Clash in Positive Force DC
Dangerous Minds
December 16th, 2014
If you have any interest at all in the history of American punk and/or activism, Positive Force is definitely worth your time.
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Positive Force: More Than a Witness: A Review
By Gabriel Kuhn
Alpine Anarchist
November 2014
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Robin Bell interviewed about ‘Positive Force: More Than a Witness’
By Gregory Ayers
DC Music Downloads
November 14th, 2014
Many of Positive Force’s volunteers are featured, as well as co-founders Mark Andersen and Kevin Mattson and other key figures from the group’s history.
‘Positive Force: More Than a Witness’ profiles a D.C. group that’s hard-core in its pursuit of change
By Dean Essner
Washington Post
November 13th, 2014
"If Robin Bell’s new documentary Positive Force: More Than a Witness is out to prove anything, it’s that D.C. punk is as much about ideals as it is about attitude.
The film chronicles the origins of Positive Force, an activist group founded in 1985 that channels punk’s raw anger and discontent to foster social change — be it delivering groceries to the elderly or raising money through benefit concerts.
It may not be as widely known or celebrated as the music itself, but the Positive Force story is inextricably linked with D.C. punk."
Too Punk For TV: Positive Force Documentary To Premiere in D.C.
By Ally Schweitzer
WAMU 88.5/ bandwidth
October 29th, 2014
"Robin Bell has spent five years working on “Positive Force: More Than A Witness.”
But the cable TV network had caught on to Simple Machines, and in 1992 the label owners invited an MTV crew to film at the residence. What happened next is already recounted in Andersen and Mark Jenkins’ book about the history of D.C.’s punk scene, Dance Of Days, but the story is revived in Robin Bell’s engrossing new documentary, Positive Force: More Than A Witness, which gets a preview at Mount Pleasant Library Thursday night and formally premieres Nov. 14-15 at St. Stephen’s Church."
Recap: Positive Force: More than a Witness Screening
By Clarissa Villondo
Brightest Young Things.com
November 17th, 2014
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Does D.C. Really Need Two More Punk Retrospectives?
By Maxwell Tani
Washington City Paper
November 20th, 2014
Punk or not, those in the business of remembering one of D.C.’s greatest stakes in music history have made a big year of 2014. In the past 10 months alone, the D.C. public library announced a comprehensive punk archive; the University of Maryland launched its own D.C. punk fanzine collection; and one of the most expensive private schools in the country, George Washington University, opened a local music archive and introduced an academic course on D.C. punk history. To cap off the year of reminiscence, two different D.C. punk-rock documentaries—Positive Force: More Than a Witness and Salad Days: The DC Punk Revolution—premiered last weekend. The former traces the history of Positive Force, the activist collective that was born out of the revolutionary rhetoric and energy of punk rock in the mid-’80s; the latter, directed by Scott Crawford, is a more traditional rock doc, following a few influential bands and exposing some of the rifts and conflicts within the local scene.
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D.C.'s Punk Movement: Looking Back and Ahead
By Jen Golbeck
Kojo Nnamdi Show
October 30th, 2014
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Too Punk For TV: Positive Force Documentary To Premiere in D.C.
By Ally Schweitzer
Bandwidth WAMU 88.5
October 29th, 2014
But the cable TV network had caught on to Simple Machines, and in 1992 the label owners invited an MTV crew to film at the residence. What happened next is already recounted in Andersen and Mark Jenkins’ book about the history of D.C.’s punk scene, Dance Of Days, but the story is revived in Robin Bell’s engrossing new documentary, Positive Force: More Than A Witness, which gets a preview at Mount Pleasant Library Thursday night and formally premieres Nov. 14-15 at St. Stephen’s Church."
Read more | Buy the DVD now | Back to reviews | Back to topPositive Force: DC Punk Activism
By Shelly Jones
Huck Magazine
June 26th, 2014
“The destructive urge is also a creative urge!” Robin Bell's new documentary about DC punk activist group Positive Force reveals the radical possibilities of a subculture.
“Revolution has to begin in the ruthless criticism of everything existing.”
Or so says the Marx quote that opens Robin Bell’s new documentary More Than a Witness about Washington DC-based punk activist organisation Positive Force. It’s summoned by one of the organisation’s co-founders Mark Andersen, who goes on to quote Bakunin too: “The destructive urge is also a creative urge.”
Combined, suggests Andersen, these quotes form the essential politics of punk. “It’s an all-out assault on business as usual,” he says, animatedly on camera, “on society, on the state, on religion, on the family. All of the sacred cows are subjected to the withering, truth-seeking gaze of punk.”
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