Song For Hope: New film captures the transformative power of music
Florence Lockheart
Monday, September 4, 2023
Set to be released tomorrow, the documentary feature film follows the story of trumpeter Ryan Anthony following his terminal cancer diagnosis
A documentary feature film will tell the story of Dallas Symphony Orchestra trumpeter Ryan Anthony who, after being diagnosed with terminal cancer was motivated to start a charity promoting the transformative impact of music. Song for Hope is set to be released on AppleTV+ tomorrow.
Song For Hope follows the story of Anthony from his early interest in music to being diagnosed with multiple myeloma at the age of 42 and given just months to live. Motivated by the diagnosis Anthony and his wife Niki launched CancerBlows, a charity which aims to raise awareness and money for cancer research and patient support programs with a focus on blood cancers and multiple myeloma and the film finds him eight years later continuing to perform, record and tour in defiance of his diagnosis.
Cinematographer Luke Wyatt captures Anthony in rehearsal with the Memphis Symphony ©Song For Hope
In a recent interview, director Chris Haigh said: ‘I had to tell this story. Cancer is a horrible scourge that affects every human being around the world in some way or another… For me, to see someone fighting that terminal illness, being given months, not years, spending whole days in hospital and then refusing to allow it to stop him from doing what he loves - playing music – was the most inspiring thing I’ve ever seen.’
Having met Anthony when the two performed together as part of Jens Lindemann’s All Star Brass, director Chris Haigh used his own musical background to inform his approach to this project. The film’s title is taken from a work dedicated to Anthony by composer Peter Meechan which was included in a CancerBlows fundraising concert and became Anthony’s anthem.
Anthony being interviewed for the film while in hospital ©Song For Hope
The film has won 17 film festival awards over the last year, including Audience Choice Award at the Dallas International Film Festival, Best Documentary and Best Music Score at Beaufort International Film Festival and the Best Documentary and overall best film (Emerald Award) at the Coronado Film Festival.
