‘Electric Hills’ Marche synth documentary opens crowdfunding for post-production

The Museo del Synth Marchigiano and production company The Blink Fish have launched a crowdfunding campaign to finish ‘Electric Hills’, a documentary about electronic instrument manufacturing in Italy’s Marche region. Filming is complete. The money covers what comes after: editing, archival licensing, original music, sound design, color grading and mastering.

Marco Bragaglia directs. The film follows the region’s path from accordion making in Castelfidardo to electric organs, synthesizers and early drum machines, and looks at how small workshops built instruments that ended up in studios and on stages worldwide. It covers the history of companies including Farfisa and Elka, alongside manufacturers such as Fatar, Eko, FBT, Sisme, Viscount and Crumar.

The project started at the Museo del Synth Marchigiano, which recovers, restores and preserves instruments made in the region. Composer Paolo Bragaglia founded the museum, and the screenplay came from its team and him. Several of the participating musicians have visited to record and experiment with instruments from its collection.

Jean-Michel Jarre is on the participant list, as are Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein, the composers behind the ‘Stranger Things’ soundtrack. So are Boosta of Subsonica, Claudio Simonetti of Goblin, Hainbach, Look Mum No Computer, and Matmos members Martin Schmidt and Andrew Daniel. Tommaso Colliva, Massimo Martellotta, Enrico Gabrielli and Fabrice Quagliotti also contribute. The film features previously unseen interviews, archival footage and rare instruments.

Campaign rewards draw on the museum’s archives: photographic prints, historical manufacturing materials, a signed film poster, and recording sessions on instruments from the collection.