Alana Haim has been a member of the pop rock band HAIM alongside her sisters Danielle and Este since 2007. Prior to releasing an EP, Stillin 2012 the band managed to tour extensively with well-known artists such as Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros and even Kesha.
After gaining attention from a string of shows at SXSW, the band signed with Polydor Records in the UK. This led to even more supporting slots with Florence and the Machine and Mumford and Sons.
In 2013, HAIM released their first album – The days have passed, which was well received by critics. They performed at Glastonbury, joining Primal Scream on stage to perform backing vocals on several of their songs. Since the group’s successful year, they have maintained their momentum by releasing two more albums, something to tell you in 2017 and Women in Music, Part III in 2020.
Alana is the band’s guitarist, keyboardist and percussionist, making her a multifaceted player. She also contributes three-part vocal harmonies alongside her sisters. But Alana is not only a talented musician. In 2021, the musician made her film debut in Paul Thomas Anderson Licorice Pizza alongside the late Philip Seymour Hoffman’s son, Cooper.
The film is set in 1970s Los Angeles, specifically in the San Fernando Valley, where sisters Haim and Anderson grew up. As a close friend of the Haim family and having previously directed several music videos for the band, Anderson cast Alana to play the lead role. He said, “She has a ferocity. She is very impatient and she learns quickly. I don’t know how many more boxes you can tick.
Although the film was her acting debut, Alana was praised for her performance, receiving several nominations including a BAFTA and a Golden Globe. She has also won awards at smaller award shows, such as the Boston Society of Film Critics and the National Board of Review.
Alana and Anderson seem to have a mutual love for each other’s work. While the filmmaker has made 10 clips for her group, including valentinea short film featuring three performances, Alana has cited several of her films as some of her all-time favorites.
In an interview with identifierthe musician/actress shared that her favorite Anderson films were there will be blood, love stuffed with punchand Ghost thread. Her too praised Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood for her beautiful scores, which she called “crazy”.
However, her favorite movie turns out to be a much more unconventional choice. Alana revealed that her favorite movie is none other than A wacky movie, claiming that “people laugh at me” for loving the animated classic. She continued, “If you haven’t seen it, you need to watch A wacky movie. It’s the best movie of all time.”
Although we don’t know if A wacky movie might be considered the best movie of all time, the film has garnered a cult following since its release on home media in 1995, partly attributed to its soundtrack full of catchy tunes penned by Carter Burwell. The movie was even a big inspiration for Domee Shi, who directed the Disney Pixar movie. Become red. Maybe Alana’s next concert will voice an animated character similar to those of Goofy movie.
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