ABC to air Michael Hutchence documentary for Ausmusic Month
ABC is set to air Mystify Michael Hutchence as part of Ausmusic Month on Sunday November 24.
The announcement:
MYSTIFY Michael Hutchence to air on ABC during Ausmusic Month
Image: Andrew de Groot
To cap off a month-long celebration of Australian music, the critically acclaimed MYSTIFY Michael Hutchence will air on ABC and iview on Sunday 24 November at 8.40pm AEDT.
Direct from its world premiere in competition at Tribeca and screenings at Hot Docs, Sydney, Karlovy Vary, London and Rome Film Festivals, ahead of theatrical releases in the UK, USA, Belgium and the Netherlands. Mystify Michael Hutchence has received universally good reviews, with critics saying:
…a strikingly original portrait of an enigmatic man
– The Times ★★★★
“…enlightening and affecting, providing a missing piece in the puzzle of a life prematurely ended. “ – The Guardian ★★★★
“If you’d forgotten that Michael Hutchence was a goddamn rock star, Mystify is a potent reminder… an immersive and deeply affecting portrait of a man who was wildly charismatic and sexy onstage, sweet and sensitive once the spotlight was turned off. By the film’s end, your heart breaks all over again.”
– Rolling Stone
MYSTIFY is a journey into the heart and soul of internationally renowned INXS front-man Michael Hutchence, and delivers an intimate narrative portrait, imbued with authenticity, warmth and humour. Michael came to epitomise the very definition of leather-clad sexually magnetic rock front-man, but underneath it all he was a poetic, multifaceted and intensely sensitive man who struggled with the idea of success and the creative limits of pop.
Extraordinary archive footage, personal home movies and intimate insights from Michael’s friends, lovers, band members, family, collaborators and Hutchence himself guide us through his trajectory from unconventional fractured childhood to a charismatic, turbulent and ultimately tragic public stardom.
MYSTIFY Michael Hutchence is a feature-length theatrical documentary written and directed by Richard Lowenstein, director of many of both INXS and Michael’s hit music videos and the 1986 feature film, Dogs in Space, in which Michael played the lead.
The score for MYSTIFY Michael Hutchence was composed by Warren Ellis (The Dirty Three, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds) and features some of the most iconic INXS songs and rare tracks from Michael’s collaboration with Ollie Olsen in Max Q.
Production Credits:
A Passion Pictures and Ghost Pictures production, presented by ABC, Screen Australia and BBC in association with Baird Films and Film Victoria. Director: Richard Lowenstein; Producers Maya Gnyp, John Battsek, Sue Murray, Mark Fennessy, Richard Lowenstein, Lynn-Maree Milburn and Andrew de Groot; ABC Executive Producer Miranda Culley; ABC Manager of Arts, Richard Buckham.
Source: ABC media release
