Film charting Chinese rock explosion made in Sheffield despite huge challenges

It might sound far-fetched. It was certainly far flung as Richard Anderson navigated his way between London, Beijing, Los Angeles and Sheffield.

The reason was Chinese Rocks - Making of a Legend. It is a documentary already seen by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts brigade and which will be shown at Sheffield’s DocFest in June.

Happily, the 29th edition of DocFest will take place in-person, bringing the documentary community and audiences back to Sheffield

Richard, aged 52, can’t wait to share the film’s story in his home city. Chinese Rocks tells how a boy from nowhere saw a picture which inspired him and eventually led him to become a huge star in his native China.

“The film revolves around this discarded photo. It is based on chance,” Richard says, recovering at his Peak District home after his night with the BAFTA luminaries at the academy’s Run Run Shaw Theatre.

“I was told about the photo by someone in a bar in Beijing and found the story unbelievable, I didn’t think too much about it.”

The photo in question was of New York Dolls guitarist Johnny Thunders. It was found by an aspiring Chinese musician called Bian Yuan in 2001. Richard heard about it and Bian’s story while on a trade mission.

Bian had found the photo on a dumpit site in Beijing and it changed his life. He was inspired by the image of Thunders to form a band called Joyside.

This outsider from 3,000 miles west of Beijing then triggered an unprecedented upheaval across China’s music history. Bian’s life-changing performances ultimately reached 450 million people and Richard was there as the band took off. They influenced others including Penicillin and Hangnail – suddenly there was a scene.

And it was a scene which changed Richard’s mind about the picture and its story. “We went to a bar which had pictures of The Stooges and The Damned on the wall. It felt like home,” he says.

“In the next room, bands were playing which had attitude and energy. It reminded me of the 1970s and punk.

“There was a guy at the bar, whisky in one hand, cigarette in the other, and I goaded him because he looked like a rock star. I kept saying rock star until I was told he was the legend.”

This was Bian Yuan, seemingly asleep despite Richard’s efforts. Eventually, Richard left him alone but returned to the same backstreet bar the next evening. He was given a card by the barman and it had a contact number which read Rock Legend. As Richard took this in, a Johnny Thunders song came on and the place exploded.

“I thought this wouldn’t happen in Sheffield so I started asking questions which led to the photo.

“This type of music is an area I know about and I’m thinking I can make a good film about this scene,” he said. “Joyside and Penicillin were influencing others and their following grew significantly.”

The East-West mix also interested Richard. Sheffield is well versed in Chinese influence – the £75m New Era Square near Bramall Lane being the start of more hoped for Eastern investment.

His documentary puts Sheffield in China. It was screened for the first time at BAFTA this month and led Richard to meet Caroline Richards, acclaimed editor for film maker Julien Temple. He also bumped into Toby Holdsworth, founder of Music Film Network, Ade Fenton and Steve Malins, Gary Numan's producer and manager.

Good contacts, no wonder Richard’s work is already tipped for awards in three continents.

The real miracle of this pioneering work is that it got made at all. Chinese Rocks took four years and crossed thousands of miles in production.

The raft of filming derailments became almost routine. Cultural complications, political sensitivities, physical distances, global political sensitivities, international pandemics, and social media wars against one of the film’s stars were all part of the daily schedule.

But Richard’s belief in the project never wavered. He said: “This is an amazing story which deserves to be told, and a chance to bridge an often seismic-seeming divide between Eastern and Western culture which is needed today more than ever.”

He was delighted by the reaction. “I showed it to a friend and within a few minutes he said ‘They are just like us.’ I said ‘Exactly’. That’s the point of this, music has always been a great bridge, a great leveller. This film is needed more than ever in terms of East-West relations.”

The 90-minute feature uncovers the exploding underground music scene across China, which echoes the 1970’s UK and US alternative scene which produced Sex Pistols, The Clash and the New York Dolls.

The film, which takes its name from a Johnny Thunders’ cult single, is already receiving much praise from both the film and music industry.

It features contributions from UK music luminaries including Alan McGee whose Creation Records label signed Oasis, Marco Pirroni of Adam and the Ants/Siouxsie and the Banshees and Tony James of Generation X/Sigue Sigue Sputnik/Sisters of Mercy fame.

This is a taste of the feedback.

‘Award-winning material,’ said Gina Fegan, a BAFTA council member.

‘A very cool film!’ added Phil Patterson of the Department for International Trade and formerly with EMI/Chrysalis.

‘..may well be in line for awards.’ said Gennaro Castaldo, a director at the British Phonographic Institute.

How good is that? “The reaction was incredible,” Richard says. “We felt so privileged to have a screening at BAFTA, we were thinking, is this really us? Sure enough, yes it was and there was our film on the screen. It was astounding and terrifying.

“You're really in the lion’s den and you don’t know whether you will sink or swim.

“These names march in to see your film - heads of film, heads of music, the BBC, the Financial Times.

“At the end, people were hugging me - it was shocking.”

The BAFTA break came when Gina Fegan came on-board with the project after Richard was introduced to her by a Sheffield contact. Her presence helped, but Richard still had to convince the rest of the academy.

For Richard it represents a significant shift from a professional background in music, photography and journalism, to filmmaking. He had never faced such a challenge.

“On a daily basis there were obstacles, there was never a day without a problem. Will we be allowed in the country with the equipment, will we have problems with censorship? Then there was covid 19 and we couldn’t do the edit the way we wanted to. Finance was another issue, it was a massive ordeal.

“You have to shut off that noise otherwise the film will never get done.

“I dedicated every hour of the day I could to it. With other projects, I have got bored but this has been a huge monster. There have been endless times when I’ve dragged myself out of bed at 4am to work on an edit or a transcript because if you don’t do it, it doesn’t get done.

“My stomping ground was London, Beijing and Los Angeles for the work meetings and filming, then Sheffield for the majority of the post production.”

He wasn’t much of a New York Dolls fan but loved the music around them such as The Damned and The Stooges. They influenced Sheffield bands he was in such as Etiquette and Gentlemen Of Fire. Both feature on the soundtrack.

A Chesterfield Boys school pupil, he studied Ancient History in London and at Reading. Briefly, Richard was an ice cream man before launching a PR company which won the contract to promote Sheffield’s National Centre for Popular Music.

Remember that? A £15 million project largely funded with contributions from the National Lottery, which opened on 1 March 1999, and closed in June 2000.

A great idea, but not well executed which is why the three domes which housed the museum are now Hallam University’s student union.

Nevertheless, father-of-two Richard is proud of his home city and its music. “I’ve been involved in film for the last few years and it is part of the creative reputation Sheffield has. That is a huge reputation and one which isn’t celebrated as much as it should be.

“The music which comes from here is phenomenal. The NCPM didn’t work but when I was involved with it it was staggering to learn about the musical heritage of the city.

“Research suggests more music comes from here than any other city and that is massive. This is a creative place and that includes film.

“It is all about timing and not letting the financial aspect take over, feeling you must get loads of gear. Your phone can do everything so if you’re interested use your phone and go and start shooting, practice the art form. Then it’s a question of have you got the time and tenacity to do what it takes?”

Richard did and anything could happen now for him and his company SW4FILM. It is a lesson in perseverance and dedication. The reward he’s discussing is a series set in LA and with his foot firmly in the industry door everything is possible. Watch this space. Or more to the point, watch his film at DocFest.