Completely unknown director Gil Reyes has tackled the quite project for his first spotlight appearance. Searching For Elliott Smith is an 80 minute documentary that premiered at the CMJ Music and Film Festival in New York at the end of October. The documentary interviews friends, former band mates, roommates, musicians, directors and even Smith’s Texas high school principal although none of Smith’s family agreed to be interviewed.

So far the film has gotten favorable reviews but I have been unable to find a date were the rest of us 9 to 5 schmucks can see it without having to go to a film festival.

Below is the film summary as well as the 1998 mini documentary Strange Parallel.

Elliott Smith’s intensely intimate songs helped popularize lo-fi, indie-rock: A traditionally underground genre until Smith’s mainstream effort ‘Miss Misery’ took Hollywood by surprise. But even after an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song, he managed to fly mostly under the radar. And Smith wanted it that way. After his suicide in 2003, Smith’s peers avoided the media. Granting very few print interviews and NO on-camera interviews. Until now. From his high school days as a National Merit Scholar, to his early work in the Portland rock band, ‘Heatmiser’, to critical acclaim… to his mysterious death at the age of 34. We learn the dark motivations behind a musical genius. And discover how psychic pain can also produce timeless art.