News
3 August 2026 – The Best Summer Unearths an Extraordinary 1990s Indie-Rock Time Capsule
By Editorial Team - August 3, 2026
Summary
Director Tamra Davis presents 'The Best Summer', a documentary restoring 1995-96 Summersault tour camcorder footage of Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth, Pavement, and Foo Fighters.
Key Facts
- Tamra Davis directs 'The Best Summer' documentary from 1995-96 Summersault tour camcorder tapes.
- Features Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth, Pavement, Bikini Kill, Beck, and Foo Fighters.
- Premieres at Melbourne International Film Festival in August 2026.
- Entities: Tamra Davis, The Best Summer, Summersault Tour, Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth, Pavement, Bikini Kill, Beck, Foo Fighters, Kathleen Hanna
- Tags: tamra-davis, the-best-summer, beastie-boys, sonic-youth, pavement, foo-fighters, summersault-tour, indie-documentary
Director Tamra Davis has transformed decades-old camcorder tapes into 'The Best Summer', a documentary capturing Australia’s 1995–96 Summersault tour in 90s alternative rock.
The original festival brought together Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth, Pavement, Bikini Kill, Beck and a newly established Foo Fighters for a travelling celebration of alternative music at a pivotal cultural moment. Davis filmed performances, backstage conversations and ordinary downtime without the distance of a formal documentary crew.
Kathleen Hanna helped conduct spontaneous interviews, while musicians appear before public personas and permanent online visibility reshaped how artists behaved around cameras. Rather than replacing the rough footage and imperfect live audio, Davis retained much of its raw character. 'The Best Summer' screens at the Melbourne International Film Festival on 7, 8 and 14 August before a wider Australian cinema release.