Lost Soulz is written and directed by Austin-based Katherine Propper. She received the 2022 Austin Film Society (AFS) grant for Feature Films. This is her feature debut. It was a 2023 nominee for the Audience Award at the Tribeca Film Festival and nominated for various awards in other festivals last year. Last year, the film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Tallgrass International Festival.
I am glad I went to see the film and attend the special screening on May 10th at the AFS Cinema with a post-show musical performance by cast members Malachi Mabson, Alex Brackney, Krystall Poppin, Micro TDH, and Sauve Sidle, followed by a Q&A with the director, producers Andrés Figueredo Thomson and Juan Carlos Figueredo Thomson, and cast.
The film captures a musician’s life with friends who become family, the reality of a touring crew in a van across Texas and on the way to performing in Los Angeles. Each crew member has their personality; for Sol, the ride is only sometimes the smoothest. The cast members perform well as an individual and as an ensemble. There is so much authenticity in the film, from what I have seen and heard in real life, as well as stories from musicians in various genres. The stage brings them together even when the road trip may be halted for numerous reasons. Even if someone may not be a fan of the genre of music, the film captures the reality of what the artists are living through to achieve the goals of a music career.
SYNOPSIS: When aspiring rapper Sol is discovered by a group of Gen-Z musicians after performing at a house party, he joins their tour through the heart of Texas and embarks on a once-in-a-lifetime road trip. Sol and his new collaborators bond over their shared pains and longings for the lives they left behind. Bold and brash, yet surprisingly sensitive and vulnerable, these young artists pour their souls into the music they create together. The novelty of Sol’s newfound family fades as the demons Sol left behind come back to haunt him, including his guilt over abandoning his ailing friend. His sense of self is tested as he seeks refuge from the rootlessness and loss that has defined his existence. Set to a lo-fi, genre-bending hip-hop soundtrack, Katherine Propper’s award-winning debut is imbued with hazy and infectious energy and features virtuosic musical performances, from the tour van to the stage, that allow the ensemble’s winning chemistry to shine.
The film follows aspiring rapper Sol (Sauve Sidle) as he joins a group of Gen-Z musicians on tour across the heart of Texas, embarking on a once-in-a-lifetime road trip. The cast includes Sauve Sidle, Micro TDH, Krystall Poppin, Siyanda “Yung Bambi” Stillwell, Malachi Mabson, Aaron “Seven” Melloul, Tauran “Big 40 Thrax” Ambroise, and Alex Brackney.
About the filmmaker: Her short film BIRDS won a special jury prize at SXSW ’22 and the International Competition at Clermont-Ferrand ’22. Her short films have been screened at various film festivals worldwide, including at BFI London, Tribeca, Palm Springs, and Aspen, and have been selected to screen on The New Yorker, Short of the Week, PBS, and Omeleto. Her AFS-supported feature debut, LOST SOULZ, is participating in Gotham Week’s Narrative Feature Lab 2022.
Kino Lorber’s Lost Soulz continues at the AFS Cinema through May 16th, then expands to additional cities this Friday, May 17th, at the Alamo Drafthouse in El Paso and Houston, Texas. For details on these and future screenings in other cities/states, visit https://kinolorber.com/film/lost-soulz
Source: Kino Lorber, AFS