North East's punk scene to be brought to the screen as documentary gathers pace

Organised Chaos is being made by Sunderland filmmaker Rob Kilburn and his production team, with work resuming on the project as the pandemic eases and a teaser trailer now out.

Olga from the Toy Dolls, Baz Warne from The Stranglers and Mensi from the Angelic Upstarts have already been interviewed to offer their insight.

Audio of The Clash playing at a flat in Hendon has been unearthed and joins footage from another North East date, while details have been pulled together about Bjork’s first band Kukl playing Wearside gig and rehearsal rooms The Bunker.

Venues including The Barbary Coast and The Old Twenty Nine in Sunderland, The Garage in Newcastle and the Old Police Station in Gateshead are among those to feature.

To make the full film a reality, Rob is hoping people with a passion or curiosity about the scene will give it their backing through a Crowdfunder campaign, which will help fund travel to gather interviews and licencing agreements.

The 27-year-old University of Sunderland graduate, who has already won awards with fellow students under their Tyne and Weird banner, hope the success of Two Monkeys, the film they made about the Wearside dance scene and Blue Monkey and New Monkey clubs, will be replicated with the new film.

Other subjects they have covered include Cup of Tea, which focused on West Auckland FC winning the Sir Thomas Lipton trophy, which is considered as the precursor of the World Cup, and the region’s parkour scene.

Rob, who recently wrote a book about the North East’s weird and wonderful tales, said: “This is something we started pre-Covid and it’s been a long time in the making.

"We are looking at the microcosm of the North East, Tyne and Wear in particular and the people who came out of the area.

"It’s amazing how many bands were playing and it was real community, by the kids, for the kids.

"We’ve called it Organised Chaos, as that seems pretty representative of the scene.”

Anyone who would like to pass on information, images or footage to feature in the film can get in touch with Rob via the Tyne and Weird Facebook page.

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