Apple Buys Rights to 'The Velvet Underground' Documentary

[MacRumors]

Apple today announced that it has purchased the worldwide distribution rights to "The Velvet Underground," a documentary from Todd Haynes.

Haynes' documentary follows 1960's band "The Velvet Underground," which was headlined by Lou Reed and once managed by artist Andy Warhol. "The Velvet Underground" was known as the "house band" at the Factory, which was Warhol's studio that served as a hangout for artists and a venue for legendary parties.

"The Velvet Underground" will feature never before seen performances and recordings, Warhol films, experimental art, and in-depth interviews with key players of that time.

The Velvet Underground created a new sound that changed the world of music, cementing its place as one of rock 'n' roll's most revered bands. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Todd Haynes, "The Velvet Underground" shows just how the group became a cultural touchstone representing a range of contradictions: the band is both of their time, yet timeless; literary yet realistic; rooted in high art and street culture.

There's no known release date for "The Velvet Underground" at this time, but it joins several other documentaries that Apple has picked up such as Werner Herzog's "Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds," "Boys State," "Beastie Boys Story," "Dads," and "The Elephant Queen."

Article Link: Apple Buys Rights to 'The Velvet Underground' Documentary

 

[citysnaps]

Looking forward to this!

 

[AhRiHmAn]

Finally something interesting!

 

[red elma]

awesome...

 

[rmoliv]

Another uninteresting documentary about geriatric musicians... Apple TV+ is doomed. Perhaps Foundation will act as a temporary lifeboat, but still one hit alone is not enough to keep a streaming service afloat.

 

[Ar40]

Freaking amazing!! I love the Velvet Underground!! Cannot wait!! Thanks Apple!!

 

[PieTunes]

Both unexpected and quite interesting. Looking forward to seeing what comes from this.

 

[sparkinstx]

This ought to be interesting.

Is there a reason that the artwork is reversed?

 

[Act3]

yawn, apple tv + excusive for a limited audience. many apple tv owners most likely never heard of velvet underground or even care about this

 

[LoadStar]

This ought to be interesting.

Is there a reason that the artwork is reversed?

Looks like a plate that they'd use to do offset printing of a poster. (It's not just reversed, it's a negative as well.) Maybe the idea is to reflect the "behind the scenes" nature of the documentary?

 

[kc2kth]

I suppose I’ll want to see this, but I wonder how marketable this is considering there already is a lot of VU history documented in all media forms. I imagine, much like VU themselves, this will appeal mainly to hardcore VU fans. VU wasn’t exactly a band one listened to casually.

 

[kc2kth]

Another uninteresting documentary about geriatric musicians... Apple TV+ is doomed. Perhaps Foundation will act as a temporary lifeboat, but still one hit alone is not enough to keep a streaming service afloat.

Harsh, but kind of how I feel. There may not be a huge audience for this.

 

[Zen_Arcade]

One of the two most influential rock bands.

I hope the documentary is awesome!

 

[Mal Blackadder]

This is the first Apple TV offering that I want to watch.

 

[Eduardo1971]

Yummy!
Cannot wait to see it!

 

[folp02]

The Velvet Underground are definitely not for everyone, but they are one of the greatest bands ever. Can't wait to see this!

 

[SuperCachetes]

yawn, apple tv + excusive for a limited audience. many apple tv owners most likely never heard of velvet underground or even care about this

The Velvet Underground's first album only sold 30,000 copies during its first five years but “everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band.” -Brian Eno

There is plenty of content based on things someone somewhere never heard of. The simple truth is that this band was incredibly influential on the rock music of the 20th century, and beyond. It doesn’t matter if you or I like them subjectively, or if we are even familiar with them.

I look forward to being entertained and educated by this.

 

[johnnylarue]

yawn, apple tv + excusive for a limited audience. many apple tv owners most likely never heard of velvet underground or even care about this

And God forbid those Apple TV owners should ever want to expose themselves to new ideas... 🙄

 

[Stevez67]

Another uninteresting documentary about geriatric musicians... Apple TV+ is doomed. Perhaps Foundation will act as a temporary lifeboat, but still one hit alone is not enough to keep a streaming service afloat.

Documentaries always appeal to a narrow range of viewers, regardless who they're about. Also, it's kinda hard to do an interesting documentary about a young musician that includes unknown facts because a) they haven't done much and b) everyone already knows all the juicy details of their lives because they post it all on social media.

 

[melican]

Also, Todd Haynes is a great director. This will be something for rock fans and film fans.

 

[needsomecoffee]

Big fan of this era, but Velvet Underground is sort-a like Andy's art imho. What I would like to get is a doc on is how John Fogerty wrote a huge number of incredible CCR hits in a day or two in his kitchen. Even JF has not been able to explain how this happened. So if Apple's Trillions get spent, let's investigate what is perhaps the most incredible "moment" of creative genius of the Rock Era. Solving this mystery would mean the most impactful Apple TV doc to date.

 

[citysnaps]

yawn, apple tv + excusive for a limited audience. many apple tv owners most likely never heard of velvet underground or even care about this

Yawn? Hopefully there was a righteous eye-roll to go along with that.

So many have no awareness of the Factory, Warhol, and others who were influential in the progression and culture of art, and have no desire to learn something new. Curiosity in some corners is clearly over-rated.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

Apple seems to just be buying the rights to stuff that was going to be made anyways, reducing the number of people who will ultimately be able to enjoy it.

Maybe it's good for the people making the content because they end up making more than otherwise.
[automerge]1603310712[/automerge]

Yawn? Hopefully there was a righteous eye-roll to go along with that.

So many have no awareness of the Factory, Warhol, and others who were influential in the progression and culture of art, and have no desire to learn something new. Curiosity in some corners is clearly over-rated.

And now that it's going to a service few have or want, even fewer will learn than otherwise.

 

[citysnaps]

And now that it's going to a service few have or want, even fewer will learn than otherwise.

No worries. Those that are curious about art, music, culture, history, will find it.

 

[ThunderSkunk]

Looking forward to this!

This could easily be a 12 hour epic.
and I’d savor all 12 hours.

...and somewhere near a still telephone, Roger Waters and Jimmy Page are squirming with anticipation.