Programs and Events

Detroit Film Theatre
AIR GUITAR NATION

June 21, 23 & 24 

(USA—2006—directed by Alexandra Lipsitz)

Every August, the Air Guitar World Championships bring thousands of fans all the way to Oulu, Finland to see the world’s best air guitarists battle it out for 60 seconds of mock stardom. For years, the USA was missing in action. Enter the first official US Air Guitar Championships. What starts as a friendly contest above a New York strip club becomes a battle of naked ambition played out on the national and, ultimately, the world stage. Full of triumph and disappointment, patriotic spirit and political tension – and of course invisible guitars – this tension-filled competition (each performance is just one minute in duration) quickly turns very real as the contest becomes even more fierce with contestants working hard to win the title of World Air Guitar Champion! This lively and surprisingly engaging new documentary won Audience Awards at both the South by Southwest and Traverse City Film Festivals, and brought the audience to its feet at New York’s Tribeca Festival. (82 min.)

“Funny and sophisticated. By the end of this oddly compelling and genuinely suspenseful documentary, the ridiculousness of such notions seems open to genuine debate.” -David Ansen, Newsweek

Tickets are available online, or by calling the DIA Box Office at (313) 833-4005, Wednesday through Sunday from 10:30 am to 4:30 pm. Theater Box Office window and will call ticket pick-up opens one hour prior to the start of the show.  Parking is available on John R Street, directly across from the DFT theater entrance.

Click here to purchase tickets.