Filmmaker Gives New Life to Silent Films by Adding a Rock Music Soundtrack

BOSTON – A Texas filmmaker is creating the ultimate mashup, resurrecting silent cinema with a new twist, and you’ll soon be able to see it here in Boston.

Add music to silent films

With Silents Synced, Josh Frank took the 1922 silent film “Nosferatu” and added rock music.

“I’ve always been fascinated by the question of whether you can do something with these big silent films that people don’t watch regularly anymore,” Frank said. “How can I make this exciting and how can I do it independently?”

FW Murnau’s film now also features enhanced visuals and a full soundtrack from Radiohead’s albums “Kid A” and “Amnesiac.”

“Towards the end of the pandemic, I was playing around with silent movies, and of course I had my headphones on as a Gen Xer, I listen to alternative rock,” Frank explained. Then he thought, “Wow, some of these songs work really well with these classics.”

The idea was also inspired by uses of classic rock before the Internet, such as a Pink Floyd laser show or the band’s “Dark Side of the Moon” corresponding to the “Wizard of Oz.”

“The idea of ​​these subversive underground duos that encouraged cool kids to go out at night.”

Helping independent theaters

Frank also owns a small drive-in theater in Austin called Blue Starlite that can accommodate up to thirty cars per showing.

And he admits that much of this was also done to give struggling independent cinemas something to set them apart.

He hopes moviegoers will be just as in tune with the vibe of this project as he is.

“As the ship pulls into port with Nosferatu, Kid A’s national anthem plays,” Frank explains. “The way it connects is very powerful. When I first did it in my study room at home, I got goosebumps watching that. And I was like, I can’t wait to sit in a theater and get goosebumps again and know that some of my audience understands it too.”

“Nosferatu” will be released in 150 theaters in the coming weeks, including many in the Boston area. The next silent film on Frank’s list is Buster Keaton’s “Sherlock Junior.” This will be paired with REM songs from their albums “Monster” and “New Adventures in Hi Fi” and is expected to be released in February 2025.