Initially focused on live performance events, but since 2003 their work has been predominantly film and video based. They have restaged
David Bowie's farewell performance as Ziggy Stardust, a 1973 video work by
Vito Acconci (working with rap artist
Plan B) and a 1968 work by
Bruce Nauman. In 2003, the artists recreated the 1978
Cramps performance at the Napa Mental Institute at the
ICA in a work entitled
File under Sacred Music. The work caused some controversy by including an audience of patients undergoing psychiatric care. The musicians were assembled by Forsyth and Pollard for the project and included Alfonso Pinto from
The Parkinsons as
Lux Interior,
Holly Golightly as
Poison Ivy, former
Headcoat Bruce Brand as
Bryan Gregory and John Gibbs as longtime Cramps drummer
Nick Knox.
Silent Sound, featuring an original score by
J. Spaceman, was presented at the 2006
Liverpool Biennial. The piece was originally presented as a live performance that took place in the Small Concert Hall at
St. George's Hall, Liverpool. It was based, in part, on the public séance act performed by Victorian entertainers The
Davenport Brothers. During the performance the artists were seated on-stage inside a soundproof booth based on the Davenport's "Spirit Cabinet". Together they recited a single phrase into a microphone, which was fed into a machine they had created that claimed to embed the phrase as a
subliminal message into the music, which was performed live by a small orchestra. The Davenport Brothers had performed their act on the same stage in 1865. The performance was introduced by
Ciarán O'Keeffe, a British parapsychologist who became famous after appearing as the resident skeptic on the paranormal television series
Most Haunted. An installation of "Silent Sound" was then presented by
A Foundation at Greenland Street, Liverpool. An
ambisonic recording of the live performance was incorporated into a large-scale immersive installation, created in consultation with acousticians from
Arup. The installation was recreated inside a shipping container in 2008 for
Art Basel Miami Beach where it was described by the
New York Times as "one of the fair's biggest word-of-mouth hits". In 2010 Silent Sound was re-presented as part of the
AV Festival at Middlesbrough Town Hall. Begun while at college, their first project together was publishing "
Words & Pictures" - an art magazine in a box. Published three times per year from May 1994 until November 1997 each issue collected together objects made by 20 different artists into an A5 sized cardboard box, produced in a signed and numbered limited edition of 100 copies. A printed booklet was included that contained information on the contributors as well as a specially commissioned preface and introductory text. The first issue was launched at the
Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, with a preface by Scottish singer/songwriter
Momus and an introduction by artist and writer
Liam Gillick. Artists contributing to the project included
Martin Creed,
Jeremy Deller,
Matthew Higgs,
Bob and Roberta Smith,
Georgina Starr and
David Shrigley. Writers for the project included
Tracey Emin,
Angus Fairhurst,
Jake Chapman,
Billy Childish and
Joshua Compston. Forsyth and Pollard ended the project after 10 issues, citing the influence of the British indie band
Felt who released ten albums in ten years and then disbanded. "
More News From Nowhere" and "
Midnight Man". They have also worked with
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds on a series of films relating to each of the 14 studio albums produced by the band. Collectively titled "Do you love me like I love you" each film will feature on a DVD accompanying the album it relates to as part of the remastered Collector's Editions released by
Mute Records throughout 2009. Continuing their association with
Nick Cave, the duo produced and sound-directed the audiobook for his novel
The Death of Bunny Munro, working with the acoustics department at
Arup to produce a spatialized
binaural mix which creates a 3D effect when played on headphones. It was published by
Canongate Books in September 2009. Occasionally directing music videos for other artists, they have also worked with
The Veils,
Fanfarlo,
Tindersticks,
Scott Walker and
Gil Scott-Heron. In 2009 they were commissioned by the
British Film Institute to produce a new work for the
BFI Gallery (the contemporary art space at
BFI Southbank) called "Radio Mania: An Abandoned Work" a multi-screen 3D video installation featuring
Kevin Eldon,
Caroline Catz,
Terrence Hardiman and
Fenella Fielding with Martians played by
Ben Crompton,
Iain Lee and
Ben Moor. The project was curated by Elisabetta Fabrizi, who invited the artists to access the
BFI National Archive of film and television, the largest of its kind in the world, to create a new commission. Their first major survey show was presented by the
South London Gallery in February–March 2011. In January 2012 they were nominated for the Samsung Art+ Prize. Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard are currently represented by Kate MacGarry (London). They have previously worked with
Lawrence Eng Gallery (Vancouver) and
Galleria Paolo Bonzano (Rome). They are represented as filmmakers by Josh Varney at 42. Their first feature film was announced by
Film4. The hybrid drama-documentary titled 20,000 Days on Earth focuses on the musician and writer
Nick Cave, and is backed by
Film4,
BFI and Corniche Pictures. The film is produced by Pulse Films and JW Films and cinematography is by Erik Wilson (Submarine, Tyrannosaur, The Imposter, The Double). An interview in
The Guardian with the directors revealed that the film will also star
Kylie Minogue and
Ray Winstone. Forsyth & Pollard won the Directing Award at the
Sundance Film Festival in January 2014, where the film premiered. The Editing Award was also presented to Jonathan Amos for 20,000 Days on Earth. The European premiere was in February 2014 at
Berlinale in Berlin. A theatrical release took place in September 2014 by Picturehouse in the UK, Drafthouse in the US and Madman in Australia. In 2014 they were shortlisted for the Jarman Award and were awarded a Channel 4 Random Acts Commission. Forsyth and Pollard were presented with the
Douglas Hickox Award for best debut director at the 2014 Moët
British Independent Film Awards. They have also been
BAFTA nominated for Best Documentary and shortlisted for the London Film Critic's Circle Award. A performance film, The Extraordinary Miss Flower, was released by the
BFI in May 2025 starring
Emiliana Torrini and
Caroline Catz. Their hybrid documentary
Broken English premiered out of competition at the
82nd Venice International Film Festival in 2025. The film stars
Tilda Swinton and
George MacKay. It's an exploration of the life and career of English singer and actress
Marianne Faithfull, who died 30th January 2025. The film includes Faithfull's last ever singing performance, together with
Nick Cave and
Warren Ellis. It had its US premiere at the
2026 Sundance Film Festival and its domestic premiere at the
2025 BFI London Film Festival. The film was released in the United Kingdom on 20 March 2026, by Vue Lumière. ==Work as curators==