Creator says film on Sunderland's punk days is moving closer, thanks to the public's outstanding backing

Rob Kilburn, from Seaburn, is part of a team behind the project which is being put together by Tyne and Weird.

The team appealed for footage, photos, recordings, ticket stubs, flyers and more to help tell the story and Rob said the response had been superb.

So was the public reaction to a Crowdfunding appeal and Rob said: “We are just beginning editing the project now.”

He added: “We are eternally grateful for everyone’s support. Not only those who donated but people who came forward with footage and shared to help spread the word.

“We had people come forward with unseen footage, VHS and cine-reels of venues long since closed and rare appearances of bands that are no longer around.”

The film project is called Organised Chaos and the Echo previously reported how Olga from the Toy Dolls, and Baz Warne from The Stranglers have already

been interviewed to offer their insight.

Audio of The Clash playing at a flat in Hendon has been unearthed and joins footage from another North East date, while details have been pulled

together about Bjork’s first band Kukl playing Wearside gig and rehearsal rooms The Bunker.

Venues including The Barbary Coast and The Old Twenty Nine in Sunderland, The Garage in Newcastle and the Old Police Station in Gateshead are among those to feature.

Rob, who has already won awards with fellow students under their Tyne and Weird banner, said: "It is a tricky thing to create a project that encapsulates a genre. There are a great deal of things to consider as punk is a big umbrella and means a lot of different things to different people.

"One thing that has been important was to capture the views of people you might not normally see like those of bands who sprung out of the era such as Olga from the Toy Dolls, Mensi from the Angelic Upstarts, Pauline from Penetration and we even got a few words from Fay Fife from the Rezillos.

Other subjects the team has covered include Cup of Tea, which focused on West Auckland FC winning the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy, which

is considered as the precursor of the World Cup, and the region’s parkour scene.

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