A film about the creative driving force Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala the duo behind the rock bands At The Drive-In and Mars Volta is screening in cinemas in Ireland this week.
Omar And Cedric tells the true story of the pair’s relationship taking in “deception, Scientology, death and betrayal”.
It was directed by Nicolas Jack Davies., and shows in the Lighthouse Dublin this Saturday.
- 10 Oct – BRISTOL Watershed – Book now
- 11 Oct – DUBLIN Light House – Book now
- 12 Oct – BRISTOL Watershed – Book now
- 13 Oct – LONDON Genesis Mile End – Book now
- 14 Oct – GLASGOW GFT – Book now
- 15 Oct – GLASGOW GFT – Book now
- 15 Oct – BRISTOL Watershed – Book now
- 15 Oct – SHEFFIELD Showroom – Book now
- 18 Oct – LONDON DocHouse @ Curzon Bloomsbury – Book now
- 18 Oct – BIRMINGHAM Mockingbird – Book now
- 20 Oct – LONDON Rio Dalston – Book now
- 31 Oct – DERBY Quad – Book now
- 02 Nov – DERBY Quad – Book now
- 02 Nov – EDINBURGH Filmhouse – Book now
- 05 Nov – EDINBURGH Filmhouse – Book now
- 12 Nov – LIVERPOOL Picturehouse @ FACT – Book now
- 14 Nov – BRIGHTON Duke’s @ Komedia – Book now
- 15 Nov – MANCHESTER Cultplex – Book now
Here’s the trailer and synopsis.
“If this ever gets weird, promise me we can just stop, as nothing is more important than loving you.” These were the words of Omar Rodríguez-López to his childhood friend Cedric Bixler-Zavala in January 2000, on the eve of recording a breakthrough album that would change their lives forever. For a decade they stayed true to this pact, until it was spectacularly broken in a haze of deception, Scientology, death and betrayal. The friends then spent the following ten years trying to heal those wounds.
This is a documentary film about the artistic and personal relationship between Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala (At the Drive-In / The Mars Volta). It is also the story of two immigrant outsiders and their desire to create their own place in the world. Told almost entirely through hundreds of hours of intimate footage filmed by Omar Rodríguez-López over the last 40 years, the documentary charts the duo’s intense and profound journey of friendship, brotherhood, love, fame, self-discovery, and sacrifice. A story like no other, the film unflinchingly tackles the greater themes of success, addiction, death, grief, tragedy, betrayal, forgiveness, and redemption head on. An intimate portrait of a lifelong friendship and a look at the world through a whole new creative prism.

Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.