Radar: Being Elmo - A Puppeteer’s Journey at FACT

Of course it’s great that there’s some challenging, truthful, progressive filmmaking going on at the moment. But there’s only so much misery and bleakness we can take. Sometimes, all we want is to have our cockles warmed.

We caught a glimpse of ‘Being Elmo’ last year when it was cleaning up at film festivals, and it’s finally heading to town this Tuesday (May 1st). It pretty much does what it says on the tin: this is a documentary about puppeteer Kevin Clash, the man who brings Elmo to life, one of the most popular TV characters of all time and a Sesame Street stalwart. This Whoopi Goldbery-narrated documentary whisks us into Kevin’s world: bringing pure, undiluted glee to children and adults wherever Elmo goes. There’s absolutely no death, destruction or deep introspection here: just a perfect, warm and joyful bit of filmmaking; a glimpse into just how much of an impact one furry red puppet has had on generations across the globe.

Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey
FACT, Wood Street, Liverpool
Tuesday 1st May, 8:45pm