Punx (2015)

A full-length documentary film and TV series in 4 parts by Thomas Robsahm about punk's breakthrough in Norway and its influence on culture and society. With, among others, Thomas Seltzer (Turboneger), Kjartan Kristiansen (Dumdum Boys), Edvard Valberg (Honningbarna). For young people in the late 70s, freedom of expression was used to scream out their message accompanied by raw, unfinished music that scared most people. Over 30 years later, Punk is more relevant than ever, but also more accepted. Punk differed from earlier youth rebellions by being more anarchistic, less politically correct and entirely unpredictable. A punk band could play at a Rock Against Racism-event with swastikas on their shirts. Provocation was key. But all rebellion has a reason. The punks were the hippie's children. They didn't buy their parents naive faith in a harmonious world. Peace & Love was the dream, Hate & War was reality. Many people associate Norwegian punk with the eve of the 1st of May and Blitz, but that was just a small part of it. Punk was so much more than politics and rebellion. It renewed Norwegian music, Norwegian pop lyrics, Norwegian literature, fashion, art, and especially journalism. Surprisingly many of today's leading journalists started their careers with punk fanzines or music newspapers towards the end of the 70s. Punx is a film about doing things yourself. That was punk's most important mission. You don't need to be a schooled musician to play in a band, you don't need a record company to release the music, you don't need a publisher to be an author, you don't need a newspaper to be a journalist. You don't even need freedom to express yourself, you just do it.