Underplayed Doco Stacey’s Lee’s Homage to Women

Electronic music documentary Underplayed is the feature debut of New Zealand-born director Stacey Lee, who has been shortlisted for the Cannes Young Directors Award. “Filmed through a deeply intersectional feminist lens, Underplayed highlights not just the genre’s shortcomings when it comes to representation, but also how the industry can do better,” Alisha Mughal writes for Canadian music magazine, Exclaim!

“A remarkable feat of equitable representation, Underplayed, in its 88-minute runtime, manages to show us the beautiful, diverse and talented multitude of people making electronic music – their history, and their hopeful future. The documentary is beau idéal when it comes to critiquing and representation all at once,” Mughal writes.

“The film is punctuated by stunning and delicate cinematography done by Zoe Simone Yi – but of course the star of the show is the music, and the people making it … threaded throughout are the particular stories of a handful of women as they follow their dreams: Rezz, Alison Wonderland, TOKiMONSTA, Nervo, Sherelle, Nightwave, Tygapaw and Louisahhh.”

Lee began her career as an advertising creative at Saatchi New Zealand, 180 Amsterdam and Mother New York.

Original article by Alisha Mughal, Exclaim!, September 6, 2020.