Anything He Can Do: 'Girls Rock'

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THE IMAGES THAT LINGER after watching the documentary "Girls Rock!" are made by 8-year-old Palace -- a doe-eyed cherub who shakes her rock 'n' roll fist at the camera and lets fly with some eardrum-shattering screams. Her sweetness contrasted with her punk attitude is, frankly, adorable.

But the young ladies in "Girls Rock!" aren't trying to be cute. As participants in the Rock 'n' Roll Camp for Girls, they're trying to learn their instruments, get along with their band mates and overcome their own psychological hurdles to compose a song and perform it in front of hundreds of people at a climactic showcase concert.

Including Palace, the film focuses on four girls' journey through the camp -- Laura, an excitable Korean adoptee with a passion for death metal and a habit of masking her feelings; Misty, who has a troubled past including family troubles and drug addiction; and Amelia, a spacey 8-year-old who sings songs about her dog, Pippi.

"Girls Rock!," the documentary, was made by two men -- Shane King and Arne Johnson -- who decided to make a film on the camp after hearing Sleater-Kinney guitarist/camp counselor Carrie Brownstein discuss how inspiring the camp was.

"We did have a moment there we sorta asked ourselves 'Are we going to be able to tell this story properly?' Johnson said.

"If we felt that our being men was somehow clouding up the interviews, making girls uncomfortable, etc., we'd know it wasn't meant to be. And, actually, quite the reverse happened. They were surprised we cared, and also excited about taking these doofy guys on a tour around their worlds."

Johnson said that seeing the showcase of the girls' final performance was an inspiring and emotional payoff for both him and the audience.

"We get loads of e-mails from women who tell us they wept all through the trailer!" he said.

The "Girls Rock!" opening will also feature live music from the organizers of Girls Rock! D.C. as well as a post-show dance party.

» Avalon Theatre, 5612 Connecticut Ave. NW; Friday, 8 p.m., $12; theavalon.org.

Photos courtesy Avalon