Janis Ian Film Brings Us Back & Forward

In this new must-see documentary “Janis Ian: Breaking Silence” available on VOD platforms April 29th, director Varda Bar-Kar takes the audience on an intimate journey over decades from Ian’s perspective. Through Janis’s narrative, archival footage, dramatic reenactments & celebrity interviews an important retrospect is presented for our viewing consumption. I first became aware of Janis Ian in 1965 with her hit single "Society's Child" a song about an interracial relationship written & recorded by Ian when she was just 13 which was later featured on her debut album in 1967 with cover art above by Joseph Solman. The film begins with an introduction by Leonard Bernstein who learned of Ian after she performed "Society's Child" at “The Gaslight” during the vibrant Greenwich Village music scene of 1960’s. The intro was part of a segment of “Inside Pop: The Rock Revolution” a 1967 CBS television special about new pop music. The documentary then addresses the turbulent civil rights movement of our past, through Vietnam War protests & into the current wave of achieving equality for all. One of the most significant factor in this documentary is showing a talented female artist's lifelong survival in this world by staying true to their art & themselves. There are notable interviews with Joan Baez, Lily Tomlin, Jean Smart, Laurie Metcalf & many more Janis encountered during her journey. Janis Ian won her first Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1976 for “At Seventeen” & her 2nd Grammy Award in 2013 at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony for Best Spoken Word Album for her audio book "Society's Child” when I talked to her about her career in this exclusive audio interview. LISTEN