Xeroxing Grooves

Stranger than the Stars they pretend to be...
The Xeroxing Grooves visits a tight knit, but aging group of Rock'n'Roll impersonators from Burnaby, B.C. who are truly stranger than the stars they pretend to be. A "Rod Stewart"/Newspaper Delivery Man and his pal, Mailman "Mick Jagger", live somebody else's Rock'n'Roll glory as they trade rips at a local Karaoke Bar. Via a mobile performance live from Mick's postal delivery truck, Mick attempts to convince us that his original songs are as good or better than anything REM or the Rolling Stones have ever done. At times eccentric, but always entertaining, these impersonators show us that somewhere between fantasy and reality, Rock'n'Roll dreams can come true.
producer:
SVEN JANSEL
director:
STEVE DALLAL
editor:
NICOLE RATCLIFFE/
sound:
KIMBERLY WRIGHT
music:
DAN YARD
photographs:
DEE LIPPINGWELL
executive producer:
JAMES TAYLOR
Xeroxing Grooves is a ten minute documentary that visits the bizarre world of three eccentric rock'n'roll impersonators. Although the juxtaposition of odd, dead end day jobs and rock'n'roll dreams played out at local Karaoke bars, we get an intimate glimpse into the personal lives of three friends whose recipe for life consists of a littie bit of fantasy mixed with a whole lot of fun. The impersonation trio of Steve Mathison (Rod Stewart), Guy Turnbull (Mick Jagger) and guitarist DanYard (Keith Richards) met on the impersonation circuit about nine years ago and have been friends ever slnce. every day at Kod's llite ls a visual tribute to the real Rod Stewart. From the lime green denim jeans to the spiked blonde hair, Rod admits that he is a shy egomaniac who loves the attention he gets from the image. But life as an impersonator is changing for Rod. Unlike Mick and Keith, Rod has a wife, two daughters and a baby on the way. He cannot travel to Japan to do a Rod Stewart tour as he was offered. Instead, Rod is working as a newspaper delivery man just to make ends meet. In short, Rod is the image of someone else's fame and fortune who is burdened with the real life responsibilities of a family who is depending on him. Like Rod, it seems the persona of the star has invaded Mick's personal life. Unlike Rod, Mick seems to be burden free. As a resuit Mick can experiment with other voices, like Anne Murray, sing his originai songs, like Electric Lady as he cruises through his postal route in his mail truck. From Rod's pertormance of Hot Legs to Mick's Time is on my Side, we see dedicated performers whose only fault may be that they take the impersonation gig too far. ln this strange mix of stardom and struggle, these Impersonators exhibit traits of pride and dedication, fear and ambition - in short they have a lot more in common with you and I than the stars they pretend to be.
Top Sheet Design: Paul Foody, Multimedia Class 15