CUT UP THE BORDER by Nicolas Humbert & Marc Parisotto with Fred Frith, Tom Cora, Jonas Mekas, Robert Frank, John Zorn, Iva Bittová and many others 57’30’’ 2019 The movie „Step Across the Border“ hit the scene of improvised music in 1990 and almost immediately became a legend. Over the course of two years the filmmakers Nicolas Humbert and Werner Penzel followed musicians like Fred Frith, Tom Cora, John Zorn and Iva Bittová. They traveled the world with them, covered concerts and jam sessions in hotel rooms and outdoors. The result is a movie that is just as virtuously improvised as the music. But only a small portion of the recorded material has made it into the final cut. The original tapes have been stored in a metal box and were almost destroyed by flooding. 30 years later filmmaker Nicolas Humbert and French sound artist Marc Parisotto opened the box again and recomposed the raw material together with Fred Frith into an imaginative journey through many different soundscapes. Nicolas Humbert was born in Munich in 1958. He is a filmmaker, author and co-founder of the production company „Cine Nomad“. He has created many movies, among others „Middle of the Moment“ (1995), „Brother Yusef“ (2005) and „Wild Plants“ (2016). „Step Across the Border“ has received many awards like the European Film Award and the Golden Gate Award. Marc Parisotto was born in Marseille in 1957. He works as a composer and sounddesigner for movies. He has studied electro-acoustic music at the conservatory of Marseille. Collaboration with filmmakers like Michael Haneke, Edgar Reitz, Benjamin Heisenberg and Philip Gröning. In 2006 he received the German Film Award and in 2010 the Austrian Film Award. Fred Frith was born in Hearthfield in 1949. He is a multi-instrumentalist and composer and became famous as a guitarist for bands like Henry Cow, Art Bears, Massacre, Skeleton Crew, Keep the Dog and Cosa Brava. Since the 1980s he has ranked among the most influential figures of international improvised music. He has as well composed works for movies, dance and theatre. Fred Frith is a Professor Emeritus at Mills College in Oakland.