John Williams Documentary to Open AFI Fest
“Music by John Williams,” a documentary chronicling the life and accomplishments of legendary Oscar-winning composer John Williams, will open AFI Fest, the American Film Institute announced Thursday.
The film will hold its world premiere at the 38th annual festival on Oct. 23. It will then have a limited theatrical run before dropping Nov. 1 on Disney+.
Produced by Lucasfilm, Amblin Documentaries and Imagine Documentaries, “Music by John Williams” is described as “a comprehensive look” at Williams’ prolific life and career. From his early days as a jazz pianist to his 54 Oscar nominations and five wins, the doc spotlights Williams’ contributions to the moving image arts, music for the concert stage and impact on popular culture.
Featured in the doc are interviews with Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Kate Capshaw, Gustavo Dudamel, J.J. Abrams, Chris Martin, Ron Howard, Chris Columbus, George Lucas, Itzhak Perlman, Lawrence Kasdan, Yo-Yo Ma, Ke Huy Quan, James Mangold, Alan Silvestri, David Newman, Thomas Newman, Seth MacFarlane, Anne-Sophie Mutter and Branford Marsalis.
Laurent Bouzereau directed the doc, which is produced by Spielberg, Brian Grazer, Howard, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey, Sara Bernstein, Justin Wilkes, Meredith Kaulfers, Kennedy, Marshall and Bouzereau with Markus Keith and Michael Rosenberg as executive producers.
“John Williams is an American icon with a true and timeless global impact,” said AFI President and CEO Bob Gazzale in a statement. “One could say we are ‘over the moon’ to host the World Premiere of the film, but that sentiment would hardly soar without the music of ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.’”
“Growing up in France, I discovered the soundtracks I bought on vinyl ahead of most American movies that would come out months after the U.S. release. John Williams was the composer I immediately identified with; his scores made me fall in love with music, and made me realize at a very young age, the power that a score had on cinematic storytelling,” Laurent Bouzereau said. “This was an important story to tell, not only because it is about one of the greatest composers of all time, but because of the message it carries about the survival of orchestral music, and musicians.”
In 2016, Williams became the first composer to be honored with the AFI Lifetime Achievement Award.
Williams is one of the most influential composers in Hollywood. He has won five Oscars for composing the original scores of “Fiddler on the Roof” (1972), “Jaws” (1976), “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope” (1978), “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” (1983) and “Schindler’s List” (1994), and is the second-most Oscar-nominated person after Walt Disney with 54 nods.
AFI Film Fest runs Oct. 23-27 in Los Angeles.
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