In 2006, Jeff Feuerrzeig released his documentary “The Devil & Daniel Johnston,” chronicling the eccentric singer-songwriter’s life and particularly focusing on the musician’s bipolar disorder. Johnston, who spent a considerable amount of time in mental hospitals in the 1990s, recently told the BBC of his regrets in letting the documentary be made.
“It wasn’t really fair because it really talked about the worst experiences of my life,” Johnston said. “I wish they had included more music instead of making it one of those Stranger Than Fiction shows.”
Fair or not, we enjoyed the harrowing documentary and even included it in our Best Music Documentaries of the Decade. But, given the fragile nature of the subject material, it is easy to see how Johnston would be unhappy with it. We imagine that Johnston similarly might have reservations about the upcoming biopic based on him.
Johnston, however, plans on stepping into the film world as a director. “I’d like to direct my own movies. I’m working on a film of my own and I want to direct it all myself,” he said. “[I’m planning] a variety show, with songs, videos and comedy skits all together.”
While we certainly wouldn’t expect anything close to a polished conventional feature from him, we still look forward to any sort of filmmaking project he may embark on. Certainly the man has enough life experience to come up with an interesting product that might be something we’ll see in small festivals in upcoming years.