Directed by Jem Cohen • 1999 • United States
Starring Ian MacKaye, Guy Picciotto, Brendan Canty

Filmed over the course of more than ten years, from 1987 to 1998, INSTRUMENT is director Jem Cohen’s visceral, fittingly unconventional portrait of legendary DC punk band Fugazi from their origins through their electrifying prime. Capturing the blistering intensity of their live shows, intimate moments backstage and in the studio, and interviews with members including frontmen Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto, the film sheds light on an often enigmatic band whose unwavering commitment to their independent, anticorporate ideals—forgoing money and mainstream fame in favor of accessibility and activism—continues to inspire the DIY underground.