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Matt Johnson (director)

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Matt Johnson
Johnson in 2026
Born (1985-10-05) October 5, 1985 (age 40)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
EducationYork University (MFA)
Occupations
  • Film director
  • producer
  • screenwriter
  • actor
Years active2007–present
Spouse
Carly Balestreri
​
(m. 2026)​

Matt Johnson[1] (born October 5, 1985) is a Canadian director, screenwriter, producer and actor. He directed, co-wrote and starred in the films The Dirties (2013), Operation Avalanche (2016), BlackBerry (2023) and Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie (2025); the latter film is based on his docufiction sitcom web series Nirvana the Band the Show (2007–2009) and its television adaptation Nirvanna the Band the Show (2017–2018). Johnson subsequently directed Tony, a 2026 biopic about chef Anthony Bourdain.

Johnson began his career working in low-budget independent docufiction productions, and first attracted accolades for The Dirties, which won Best Feature Narrative at the Slamdance Film Festival. He achieved critical and commercial success with the biopic BlackBerry, winning directing awards at the Canadian Screen Awards and Vancouver Film Critics Circle. He won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Performance in a Comedy Film for Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie.

Johnson's work includes elements of pseudo-documentary filmmaking and improvisation, often using hidden camera techniques and location filming without permits. He has frequently played fictionalized versions of himself in both his own productions and those of other filmmakers.

Personal life and education

[edit]

Johnson was born in Toronto, Canada,[2] on October 5, 1985.[3][4] He is of Icelandic descent on his father's side.[2] Johnson attended John Fraser Secondary School in Mississauga.[4] He was introduced by his then-girlfriend to Jay McCarrol, who attended nearby Erindale Secondary School. McCarrol and Johnson became friends and creative collaborators, producing many student films together.[4][5] Johnson completed an MFA at York University in 2015.[1][6]

Johnson married his girlfriend, filmmaker Carly Balestreri, in August 2026.[7][8][9][10] He has served as an executive producer on her short films.[10][11][12]

Career

[edit]

2007–2021: Early work

[edit]
Johnson and Jay McCarrol co-created and co-starred in the Nirvanna the Band series and movie.

One of Johnson's earliest directorial works was the independent docufiction sitcom web series Nirvana the Band the Show (2007–2009), which he co-created with McCarrol.[13][14] Johnson and McCarrol star as fictionalised versions of themselves in a musical duo who attempt to book a gig at the Rivoli in Toronto.[15][14]

Johnson achieved widespread critical acclaim in Canada with his feature directorial debut The Dirties (2013),[16][17] a low-budget independent film starring Johnson as a bullied high school student.[18][19][20] The Dirties won the Grand Jury Sparky Award for Feature Narrative at the Slamdance Film Festival,[21][22] and Johnson was nominated for Best Editing at the 2nd Canadian Screen Awards.[23]

Following The Dirties's release, Johnson and producer Matthew Miller established the production company Zapruder Films. The company's debut feature, Operation Avalanche (2016),[24][25][26] was directed by Johnson and starred him alongside Owen Williams as CIA agents who become embroiled in a conspiracy to fake the Apollo 11 Moon landing. Operation Avalanche premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Johnson had received an offer to premiere the film at the Toronto International Film Festival, but he declined, reasoning that the film would be lost in the large number of films shown there.[27][28] Lionsgate released Operation Avalanche in the United States on September 16, 2016.[29] The film received generally positive reviews from critics.[30][31] Johnson was nominated for Best Director at the 5th Canadian Screen Awards in 2017.[32][33]

Johnson and McCarrol adapted Nirvana the Band the Show into a television series, Nirvanna the Band the Show, which premiered on Viceland in 2017.[14][34] Several episodes of the first season screened at the Toronto International Film Festival.[35] Two seasons aired across 2017 and 2018.[36][37] A third season was partially produced but not released due to Viceland's discontinuation.[37][38] Johnson and McCarrol co-created and starred in the animated children's show Matt & Bird Break Loose (2021), a spiritual successor to Nirvanna the Band the Show.[38]

In addition to his own productions, Johnson has acted in the film Diamond Tongues (2015),[39][40] and Kazik Radwanski's films How Heavy This Hammer (2015),[41] Anne at 13,000 Ft. (2019)[42] and Matt and Mara (2024).[43] Between 2018 and 2021, Johnson taught film at York University.[8][44]

2022–present: Career expansion

[edit]
Johnson at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival

Johnson directed the 2022 biographical film BlackBerry, which dramatises the rise and fall of the BlackBerry line of mobile phones produced by Canadian tech company Research in Motion.[4][45] Co-written by Johnson and Miller, it stars Glenn Howerton as Jim Balsillie, Jay Baruchel as Mike Lazaridis, and Johnson as Douglas Fregin.[46][47][48] BlackBerry premiered in competition at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival on February 17, 2023,[49][50][51] and attracted widespread critical acclaim.[52] The film won the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award from the Toronto Film Critics Association.[53] It also became the most nominated film in the history of the Canadian Screen Awards, with 17 nominations,[54][55] and won 14 awards including Best Motion Picture and Best Director,[56] making it the most awarded title in the organisation's history.[57] In 2024, Johnson served as jury president of the Compétition Cheval Noir at the 28th Fantasia International Film Festival.[58]

Following the success of BlackBerry, Johnson and McCarrol received funding from Telefilm Canada to develop a feature film adaptation of Nirvanna the Band the Show—a project they had been workshopping as early as 2009.[37][36][4] Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie premiered on March 9, 2025 at South by Southwest.[59][60] The film won critical acclaim and was nominated for the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award at the Toronto Film Critics Association Awards 2025.[61] It earned eight nominations at the 14th Canadian Screen Awards, winning Best Motion Picture.[62][63] Johnson won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Performance in a Comedy Film. Additionally, Johnson and McCarrol won Best Original Song for "The Alphabet Song".[62] Johnson and McCarrol reprised their roles in Joel Haver's short film Nirvanna the Band Tries to Get an Animation Made.[64]

After BlackBerry, Johnson was "inundated" with pitches for various biopics, including for a film focusing on celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain. Following a meeting with actor Dominic Sessa, Johnson and Miller conceived that the biopic would focus on Bourdain's early career.[65] The film, titled Tony, released in August 2026.[66][4] It is Johnson's first American film[8] as well as his first feature that he does not star in.[65] It received positive reviews.[67][68][69] In July 2026, Johnson directed Tony actor Stavros Halkias' stand-up special, titled Uncle Stav. Filmed over four shows in Baltimore, the special is set to premiere on Netflix on September 8.[70][71]

Johnson will direct a film based on the card game Magic: The Gathering,[72][73] which he plans to make as the first part of a trilogy.[8] He will also direct a film inspired by Slava Pastuk's 2010s cocaine smuggling operation, starring Finn Wolfhard and distributed by Neon.[74][75] As early as 2023, he was developing a "TSA comedy" with Josh Safdie.[76][8]

Filmmaking style and process

[edit]

Johnson's films are often styled like documentaries, utilising handheld camerawork and an improvisational, iterative filming process.[4][77][78] The Dirties, Operation Avalanche and Nirvanna the Band the Show and its 2025 film adaptation were not formally scripted but improvised by the actors, with Johnson and the crew continually refining the narrative structure based on the footage captured. Additionally, various scenes were shot in public spaces, often without filming permits, and involved actors improvising interactions with unsuspecting members of the public in the style of a hidden camera show; sometimes these interactions would lead to major changes in story.[nb 1] Johnson dislikes the description "found footage" applied to his films, preferring "fake documentary".[86][87] Critics have compared his blend of fiction and documentary filmmaking to the 2006 mockumentary film Borat and the reality television series Jackass and Nathan for You.[88][89][90]

Johnson is also an advocate of the liberal application of the concept of "fair use" in United States copyright law,[nb 2] and has worked with lawyer Chris Perez to develop legal arguments for the use of copyrighted material in his films.[95][92][93] The title sequence of each Nirvanna the Band the Show episode parodies the opening sequence of an established film or television series.[96]

Johnson has frequently played fictionalized versions of himself in his own productions.[81][82][85] For Operation Avalanche, Johnson used his own name for his character to make it easier to navigate interactions with on-screen individuals not involved in the production.[97] Additionally, he portrayed characters named "Matt" in Anne at 13,000 Ft. and Matt and Mara.[43][42] Johnson stated: "I do have a monomania about making these movies, which have taken over my life. In many ways, I think the guys I play are a chance for the Shadow Me to have a life—the outgoing, confident, consequence-free kid. The real me is an inversion of that: more risk-averse."[2]

Filmography

[edit]

Film

[edit]
Year Title Director Writer Producer Notes Ref.
2013 The Dirties Yes Yes Yes Co-wrote and co-edited with Evan Morgan [98]
2016 Operation Avalanche Yes Yes Yes Co-wrote with Josh Boles [99]
2023 BlackBerry Yes Yes No Co-wrote with Matthew Miller [48]
2025 Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie Yes Yes No Co-wrote with Jay McCarrol [100]
2026 Tony Yes Yes Yes Co-wrote with Todd Bartels, Lou Howe and Matthew Miller [101]

Executive producer

Year Title Ref.
2026 Crash Land [102]

Television

[edit]
Years Title Creator Director Writer Producer Note Ref.
2017–2018 Nirvanna the Band the Show Yes Yes Yes Executive Directed and co-wrote all 16 episodes
2021 Matt & Bird Break Loose Yes Yes Yes Executive Co-directed and co-wrote all 3 episodes
2026 Uncle Stav No Yes No No Stavros Halkias comedy special [70]

Web

[edit]
Years Title Creator Director Writer Producer Note Ref.
2007–2009 Nirvana the Band the Show Yes Yes Yes Yes Directed and co-wrote all 11 episodes with Jay McCarrol [13]

Music videos

[edit]

Acting roles

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2007–2009 Nirvana the Band the Show Matt Web series; fictionalised version of himself [15]
2013 The Dirties Matt Fictionalised version of himself [18]
2015 Diamond Tongues John Matheson
How Heavy This Hammer Hardware Store Employee
2016 Operation Avalanche Himself Fictionalised version of himself [82]
2017–2018 Nirvanna the Band the Show Matt Television series; fictionalised version of himself [37]
2018 Spice It Up Passport Photographer [104]
2019 Anne at 13,000 Ft. Matt [42]
2021 Matt & Bird Break Loose Matt Voice; television series [38]
2023 BlackBerry Doug Fregin [105]
2024 Matt and Mara Matt [43]
The Heirloom Belligerent Veterinarian [106]
2025 Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie Matt Fictionalised version of himself [36]

Awards and nominations

[edit]

Canadian Screen Awards

[edit]
Year Category Work Result Ref.
2017 Best Motion Picture (with Matthew Miller and Lee Kim) Operation Avalanche Nominated [107]
Best Director Nominated
2024 BlackBerry Won [108]
Best Adapted Screenplay (with Matthew Miller) Won
Best Supporting Performance in a Comedy Film Nominated
2026 Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie Won [109]
Best Original Song (with Jay McCarrol) Won

Toronto Film Critics Association

[edit]
Year Category Work Result Ref.
2013 Jay Scott Prize The Dirties Won [110]
Rogers Best Canadian Film Award Runner-up
2017 Operation Avalanche Runner-up [111]
2024 BlackBerry Won [112]
2025 Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie Nominated [113]

Vancouver Film Critics Circle

[edit]
Year Category Work Result Ref.
2019 Best Supporting Actor in a Canadian Film Anne at 13,000 Ft. Won [114]
2023 BlackBerry Nominated [115]
Best Screenplay for a Canadian Film (with Matthew Miller) Won
Best Director of a Canadian Film Won
2025 Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie Won [116]
Best Actor in a Canadian Film Won
Best Screenplay for a Canadian Film (with Jay McCarrol) Nominated [117]

Miscellaneous

[edit]
Organizations Year Category Work Result Ref.
Slamdance Film Festival 2013 Grand Jury Sparky Award for Feature Narrative The Dirties Won [118]
Spirit of Slamdance Sparky Award Won
Kingston Canadian Film Festival 2017 People's Choice Award Operation Avalanche Won [119]
Toronto International Film Festival 2025 People's Choice Award: Midnight Madness Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie Won [120]
Critics' Choice Super Awards 2026 Best Actor in a Science Fiction/Fantasy Movie Nominated [121][122]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ See coverage on the filmmaking process of The Dirties,[79][16] Operation Avalanche,[80][81][82] Nirvanna the Band the Show,[83][84] and Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie.[85]
  2. ^ Attributed to multiple sources[91][92][93][94][87]

References

[edit]
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