SYNOPSIS
I’M AN ELECTRIC LAMPSHADE is a joyous, heart-warming and offbeat docu-narrative adventure starring Doug McCorkle, a buttoned-up, mild mannered corporate accountant who retires at age 60 to become the world’s least likely rock star. Truth is indeed stranger than fiction as Doug puts his marriage, life savings and reputation on the line to chase his lifelong fantasy. An inspiring underdog story about finding your unique voice — I’M AN ELECTRIC LAMPSHADE is a film that proves it’s never too late to pursue your dreams.
Shot in the United States, Mexico and the Philippines, I’M AN ELECTRIC LAMPSHADE features a strong supporting cast of undiscovered talent from across the globe – all chasing the same dream as Doug. Like Sean Baker’s Tangerine, the cast is a menagerie of real people portraying versions of themselves, bringing an authenticity to the film that would be impossible to fake. The result is a mind-bending musical odyssey in the tradition of Stop Making Sense and Searching For Sugar Man.
2021 / ENGLISH (USA) / 96 MINUTES
BIOS
John Clayton Doyle
Writer / Director
John Clayton Doyle is a multidisciplinary artist known for his use of movement, unconventional casting and experimental storytelling.
John is the writer and director of I’M AN ELECTRIC LAMPSHADE, a feature length docu-fiction based on the true story of Doug McCorkle. John and his crew follow Doug as he retires from a successful career in corporate accounting and incredibly goes on to become one of the most daring and unlikely performers of the 21st Century.
John’s movement work has been presented at The Brooklyn Museum, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, The Die Foundation, Alvin Ailey Citibank Theater, Joe’s Pub at The Pubic Theater, Clemente Soto Velez, Parque Lage (Brazil), and informally at many nightclubs around the world.
John is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Harlem Dance Club. HDC is an arts organization that builds community by breaking down perceived boundaries and barriers through the use of music, dance and visual arts. HDC offers free dance programming through their partnership with NYC Department of Parks and Recreation.
Jacob Krupnick
Producer
Jacob Krupnick is a filmmaker and photographer from New York, and the founder of Wild Combination — a creative studio based in Brooklyn. His feature film Girl Walk // All Day was a viral sensation filmed in the public spaces of NYC, screening at dozens of film festivals around the world and inspiring dance parties from Icelandic fjords to the oldest chapel in Manhattan.
Doug McCorkle
Producer / Actor
After a successful career in public and corporate accounting, Doug McCorkle retired at age 60 and decided to pursue his dream: to become a singer and performer. A lifelong music lover, Doug was the DJ of a weekly radio show for several years at a local station in New York’s Hudson Valley region, but never sang in public until after his retirement.
What started as a music video/short film, made in collaboration with writer/director John Clayton Doyle, evolved over several years to become a feature-length film entitled I’M AN ELECTRIC LAMPSHADE. In addition to producing and starring in the film, Doug co-wrote many of the songs. He lives in the Hudson Valley with his wife, Regina.