Tate Modern Spotlights Frida Kahlo Exhibition

Frida: The Making of an Icon opened at Tate Modern at the end of June and is their highest pre-selling exhibition in Tate's history. Working alongside Ace of Hearts, it's taking Frida out of the gallery and across London.

This film is told entirely in Frida's own words. It opens in her childhood and arrives quickly at the tram accident in 1925. She was eighteen. What happened to her body that day became the thing that made the work. Her own lines carry the film, "I am not sick, I am broken", and, written to Diego Rivera in 1929, "I love you more than my own skin". Underneath it runs a heartbeat that builds pace alongside the imagery, X rays, family photographs, the move to New York, Frida painting from her bed.

The last stretch is about the afterlife. It moves through the many ways she's been reinterpreted since, including a portrait of Tracey Emin, and ends on the fact that over 70 years after her death her influence is still growing rather than fading.

It was made with UNTOLD STUDIOS, directed and edited by Humby and produced by Chuckles Studios. The score is by Luis Almau at Soundtree, written with Mexican multi instrumentalist Tulio Torres, who played traditional flutes, whistles, drums and percussion including the tlapizalli. It roots the film in Mexican musical tradition rather than gesturing at it. Cristina Kaminis contributed spoken word.

Richard Brim, Co-Founder & CCO at Ace of Hearts, said, "Being asked to work on this project is great but incredibly daunting, as Frida means a lot to many different communities. It’s great to see the work out there and landing so well."

Credits:

Client: Tate

Chris Condron - Interim Director of Audiences and Innovation

Nick Gilmer - Head of Marketing

Shareen Alder - Senior Marketing Manager

Logan Kingsbeer - Senior Marketing Manager – Partnerships

Richard Thompson - Marketing Manager

Lucy McNabb - Marketing Consultant

Laura Wells - Marketing Officer

Rachael Young - Senior Press & Communications Manager

Soraya Chumroo - Head of Design

Vangeli Moschopoulos - Creative Lead

Nadine Fleischer - Senior Designer

Keziah Barrett - Artworker

Lina Manrique - Artworker

Creative Company: Ace of Hearts

Polly McMorrow - Co-Founder & CEO

Richard Brim - Co-Founder & CCO

Martin Beverley - Co-Founder & CSO

Rasmus Smith Bech - Executive Creative Director

Matteo Alabiso - Creative Director of Design

Charlotte Faurisson - Senior Creative

Aimee Paul - Creative

Cameron Turner Lowe - Creative

Rosie Cross - Strategy Director

Sam McGeorge - Operations Director

Sam French - Business Lead

Clementine Cuthbertson - Director of Communications and Culture

Production: King Henry Studios

Ian King - Founder / Partner

Carolyn Henry - Founder / Partner

Alex Fairman - Head of Design

Sam Kim - Motion Designer

Hashir Khan - Motion Designer

Cassia Henry - Producer

Production: Chuckles Studios

Nikki Cramphorn - Co-Founder & Director of Production

Trailer: Untold Studios

Humby - Director / Editor

Ian Berry - ED

Melody Alexander - EP

Music & Sound: Soundtree

Head of Music/Composer - Luis Almau

MD/Creative Partner - Jay James

Archive Research & Clearance: Hazel May Ltd

Researchers - Hazel May & Rebecca O’Connor Thompson

Legal: Makers Counsel

Legal Consultant - Tom Campbell