The man behind the Academy Awards' 2013 Best Documentary 'Searching for Sugar Man' died in Stockholm, Sweden.
- May 14, 2014
AceShowbiz - Oscar-winning director Malik Bendjelloul was found dead at the age of 36. Based on preliminary investigation, the circumstances around the Swedish filmmaker's death were not suspicious.
Police spokeswoman Pia Glenvik told the Associated Press that the "Searching for Sugar Man" director was found dead on Tuesday, May 13, in Stockholm, Sweden. Cause of his death was not specified.
Bendjelloul's death has shocked the Swedish film community. "This terrible news has put us all in a state of shock," Swedish Film Institute spokesman Jan Goransson told the AP. "Malik Bendjelloul was one of our most exciting film makers, which the Oscar award last year was a clear proof of."
"Searching for Sugar Man" chronicled the life and career of singer Sixto Rodriguez, and the efforts of two fans who set out to discover what had become of him. It won him the Academy Awards for Best Documentary in 2013 in addition to accolades from the Directors Guild of America and the Producers Guild of America.
"I was backpacking around Africa and South America looking for stories with a camera. I found six stories and this was one of the six. I thought it was the best story I'd ever heard," he told the Independent newspaper in 2012.
Bendjelloul is survived by his parents and brother Johar Bendjelloul. No funeral arrangements are known as of writing time.
