A new documentary about Avicii, the late Swedish DJ who became an international phenomenon in the 2010s, is in the works, with Lawrence Bender, known for his many projects with Quentin Tarantino, and longtime talent manager Orlando John as producing partners. John will co-direct the film with Jonas Trokanas.
“Avicii has changed the music industry,” said John, a Dutch talent manager who works with musician Wyclef Jean, actor Joel Kinnaman and others. People think they know the story, but they really have no clue as to what really happened. I feel a deep responsibility to ensure that he is told accurately and objectively. This documentary will give audiences a deeper understanding of the brand that has left an indelible mark on music and culture.”
Said Bender, producer of “Good Will Hunting,” “Pulp Fiction,” and several other dramatic feature films, as well as the documentary “An Inconvenient Truth”: “What excited me was not just Avicii’s story, but also Orlando’s take on the director. That makes it amazing.”
The announcement for this new project confirms that the film will delve into how the famous DJ, born Tim Bergling, rose to fame with the help of Ash Purnouri, who scouted the DJ in 2008 and managed him until his split in 2016. The document is said to include unreleased footage Before and new interviews with Avicii’s family and friends, as well as fellow EDM superstars like Sebastian Ingrosso and Swedish House Mafia’s Axwell.
This marks the second documentary film produced by the well-known Avicii. In 2021, the Avicii estate announced that a new documentary was in production, to be directed by Bjorn Tjarenberg and Henrik Bormann. At the time, it was slated for a 2023 release date, but no further details about the film or its possible release date were announced.
Avicii’s story attracted cinematic attention prior to Bergling’s death by suicide in April 2018 at the age of 28. And months before his death, in 2017, a documentary called “Avicii: True Stories” was released, directed by friend Levan Tsikurishvili, who had trained his camera on an artist for years, including deciding about his mental health to give up touring in 2016.
The DJ is still a magnet for fans, five years after his death. The Avicii Experience Museum in the artist’s hometown of Stockholm opened in 2021 and attracts visitors from all over the world.
