Chris Pandolfi of The Infamous Stringdusters picks 5 movies to pair with ‘20/20’
In Pairings, artists and creators pick the movies that complement their latest work.
Chris Pandolfi plays banjo for Grammy-winning bluegrass band The Infamous Stringdusters, whose latest album 20/20 is out now! We asked Chris to pick a few movies that pair well with the new album.
Children of Men
Children of Men is my favorite film of all time (I think!). It’s such a beautiful, brutal movie that ultimately is a story of hope amidst very dark times. Our music explores all kinds of themes, but we aligned on a message of hope for this record, and it happened really naturally. It probably has a lot to do with our shared experiences, living through all kinds of challenging times, and ultimately choosing to orient ourselves toward hope. Because what else can you do?
Baraka
Baraka was introduced to me in college, and I’ve watched it many many times since. It’s a visual film, and I love to put films like this on when I am writing music to give me visuals to stir ideas, emotions and creativity. It helps get me out of my little bubble and I start sensing the endless universe around me and the infinite connections. I definitely had this one on in the background working on the music for 20/20!
Arrival
This is another favorite, and what resonates here as I think about our music and our new album is the theme of communication. Music cuts through the borders that divide us—age, race, upbringing, gender, and so on. Music lets us connect, and as we listen more and go deeper with the music we love, we find more layers of connection and even deeper meaning, and we need as much connection as we can get in these times. We are always trying to create that with our original music.
Train Dreams
What a beautiful film! Train Dreams meditates on simplicity. It’s real and it’s raw, and I think acoustic music has a lot of the same properties and a lot of the same appeal. What we perceive doesn’t always make perfect sense, but it can stir something deep without that strong understanding. I love that part of bluegrass—even one ringing note on a beautiful old instrument can stir the soul, and we will never know why.
The NeverEnding Story
I wrote a song called “Longclaw” for this record that was definitely inspired by Game of Thrones, the best show ever. “Longclaw” is a reference to Jon Snow’s sword, but zooming out, the tune definitely sounds like the theme from a fantasy movie. The NeverEnding Story was my favorite movie as a kid. I fell in love with fantasy and sci-fi, and those visuals and stories have inspired a lot of music for me over the years.