BRIAN WILSON: LONG PROMISED ROAD

**Official Selection of the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival**

In Theaters and on VOD on November 19, 2021

Directed by: Brent Wilson [no relation] (A Gathering of Heroes: The Last Reunion, Streetlight Harmonies)

Starring: Brian Wilson (Co-Founder of The Beach Boys) and Rolling Stone’s, Jason Fine

Featuring interviews with:

 Al Jardine

Don Was

Bruce Springsteen

Elton John

Nick Jonas

Jim James

Jakob Dylan

Gustavo Dudamel

Linda Perry

Taylor Hawkins

Produced by: Tim Headington and Theresa Steele Page for Ley Line Entertainment, and Brent Wilson

Executive produced by: Brian Wilson, Melinda Wilson and Jason Fine

Co-produced by: Jean Sievers, Nate Kamiya

Join The Beach Boy’s Brian Wilson on an intimate journey through his legendary career as he reminisces with Rolling Stone editor and longtime friend, Jason Fine. Featuring a new song written and performed by Wilson and interviews with Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Nick Jonas, Linda Perry, Jim James, Gustavo Dudamel and Al Jardine.

 

*Featuring Brian Wilson and Jim James’ original song, recorded specifically for the film,

 “Right Where I Belong”*

 

RT: 93 Minutes

 

Synopsis 

Join The Beach Boy’s Brian Wilson on an intimate journey through his legendary career as he reminisces with Rolling Stone editor and longtime friend, Jason Fine. Featuring a new song written and performed by Wilson and interviews with Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Nick Jonas, Linda Perry, Jim James, Gustavo Dudamel and Al Jardine.

Director’s Statement 

Truly great artists have a way of making their art feel as if they were created specifically for you.   Brian Wilson has perfectly executed this magic trick for over 60-years and for millions of fans around the world.   

Including me.  

It was the summer of 78; I was 9-years old and just lost my father to an accident.  On my journey to discover more about my father, I began to explore his massive record collection. 

There were hundreds of albums from the great singers and acts of the 60s and 70s, but on that day, one record in particular caught my attention.  The album cover was a photo of a group of guys standing around a hot rod.  I didn’t know who these clean-cut guys in their matching jackets were, but to me they looked like the coolest cats in the world. 

As I dropped the needle on the album’s first track, I heard the sounds of a car revving up, and the words…‘Tach it up, tach it up, Buddy’s gonna shut you down.’  

Could there ever have been a greater intro to a song?   

This was Brian Wilson’s 1963 hit, “Shut Down” for his group The Beach Boys, and in an instant I discovered the power of a song, and specifically a Brian Wilson song, to speak directly to your soul.   

You see, my father was a weekend drag racer and his name was Buddy. 

As I dug deeper into the Beach Boys catalog, my connection to Brian was reinforced in a more traditional way.  Like so many others before me (including Bruce Springsteen and Jim James, I would later learn) it was Brian’s dreamlike prayer, “In My Room” that fully convinced me that somehow, someway, no one knew me better than Brian Wilson.  

Many albums, concerts and years later, being a thread in the legacy of Brian Wilson is now one of the great privileges of my life. 

My partners and I set out to tell Brian’s story in a way that had never been done before.  With so many books, documentaries and films already out; I knew this was an almost impossible goal.  I needed our film to feel personal and intimate, but not be a hagiography.  I needed music to be at the heart, but with so many hits, I also wanted something new for the ear.  Most importantly, Brian Wilson is an icon as famous for being Brian Wilson as he is being Brian Wilson, and I needed to bridge that gap between myth and reality.  

For me, that’s what Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road has done.  

I didn’t know if putting Brian and Jason in a car together on a largely improvised itinerary would work.  I didn’t know if letting Brian score the soundtrack of his own film by picking the songs they played in that car would work. 

I did know though that this was the only way for the world to come to know the real Brian Wilson.  No camera crew, no formal lighting, just two friends telling stories as friends do.  

Thanks to the incredible team of people who came together for this, and for Brian’s openness, audiences will now be in the backseat of that car, sharing the road, hearing those stories and listening to all of that great music.  

What more could that 9-year-old fan ask?   

Production Notes

Simply put, Brian Wilson does not like interviews.  He’s been asked every question under the sun since he was 19-years-old.  At 78 he’s comfortable with his legacy, proud of his music, and doesn’t need the money.  

So none of the usual motivations are there.  

As filmmakers, this was our biggest challenge.  So challenging in fact that there were times that only our commitment to seeing this film through kept it alive.    

Enter Jason Fine editor of Rolling Stone Magazine. 

Jason has been interviewing Brian for over 15-years, and through that time the two have become very good friends.   After only one conversation with Jason, producer Theresa Steele Page suggested we bring Jason on board to co-write the film and interview Brian.     

That decision ignited a spark that led to the film we have now.  

It was while doing research that I came across an article of Jason’s in Rolling Stone where the concept of a more personal and impressionistic view of Brian and his music sprang.  In his article, “Brian Wilson’s Better Days,” Jason spends a weekend driving around LA with Brian going to his favorite restaurants and simply just hanging out.  The result was a side of Brian that had not been fully revealed before.  

The thought was if we could somehow capture this loose, improvised, yet emotional version of Brian, that perhaps we would have a film worthy of Brian’s legacy.  

Jason had never been on camera before, but reluctantly agreed, and our production team went about creating the structure where there would be no formal lighting, no formal itinerary and no camera crew in the car.    

With Jason at the wheel and Brian in control of the tunes, I thought we would have the film in the can over a weekend.  

Three years later, with over 70 hours of Brian and Jason driving around L.A. sitting on a hard drive, we thought the film was doomed.  

As Jason had predicted when we first spoke, there were long periods where Brian wouldn’t feel like speaking at all.  Often he would just listen to the songs he had selected and look out the window at the scenery rushing past him.  

Listening in the follow-car behind them, the crew was dejected.  It seemed as if we were capturing very little.  

With editor Hector Lopez and 9 months of editing allotted, we began the task of finding within those hours and hours of content moments of unflinching honesty, humor and bravery that would ultimately reveal Brian in a light never seen before. 

Soon the footage of him looking out the car window began to expose a man reflecting on his own life…  

…The car and the journey became a metaphor for Brian’s life.  

Equally important were the songs that Brian was choosing to play as they drove.  While he chose songs that were hits, he also selected songs that reminded him of his brothers, Carl and Dennis.  The three brothers along with cousin Mike Love and neighbor Al Jardine had founded the Beach Boys, but his two brothers have both since passed.    In fact, Brian is the last living Wilson in his immediate family, and as he plays those songs and looks out that window you can see that weight pushing down on him.  

As the film took shape we saw an icon as someone who’s by different turns charming, self-deprecating, at times still struggling, but above all we saw a person who is a survivor.

Brian is someone who has suffered tremendous loss throughout his life, all while struggling with his own demons and mental health issues.  But through it all he’s persevered, and survived, and thrived.  He still plays shows, and the production was fortunate enough to capture him and his band at The Hollywood Bowl in L.A., The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville and the Odeon in London.  

Brian is also still creating music; again the film has been lucky enough to get its very own original Brian Wilson song.  We were also entrusted with Brian’s personal photo albums and home movies.   Between Brian’s own photos, and various archives, we searched through over 15,000 photos and 120 hours of archival film.  

Add to this over 100 hours of interviews with some of Brian’s most esteemed fans, and you can begin to shape this unconventional, intimate and emotionally rich portrait of a legendary trailblazer whose contributions to the musical landscape has inspired generations. 

Featured Interviews

To help bring greater context to Brian’s impact and legacy, we added a selective and diverse list of musical legends to interview on-camera. 

Each of these artists is unique in their own career and place in musical history.  One is an American icon, another a British icon, one a young pop star, another a stalwart of the indie music scene.  The list also includes renowned producers and a classic music conductor and composer who did his interview in his native Spanish.  

Surely the only thing these contributors listed below share is a love of Brian Wilson and his music.  

• Bruce Springsteen
• Elton John
• Nick Jonas
• Jim James 
• Linda Perry
• Gustavo Dudamel 
• Jakob Dylan 
• Steven Page 
• Taylor Hawkins 
• Al Jardine
• Bob Gaudio 
• Don Was 
• Blondie Chaplin 
• Stephen Kalinich 
• Andy Paley 

 

Featured Music 

Nothing is more important to a music documentary than music.  Our production had full access to the entire Brian Wilson and Beach Boys catalog.  Within that treasure chest we located several unreleased gems from Brian’s career that have been rumored to exist for years, but never heard.   The film also features master, multi-tracks and alternate takes scoring the sections of the film outside of the car.  

Perhaps, most significantly though, are those tracks that Brian selects within the car.  With each selection, hardcore fans will discover new meaning and insight to Brian’s music, including the film’s title track.  Long Promised Road is known as “a Carl song” but by the end of this film, fans will know why Brian chose this song for the film.   

Once all combined, the music listed contextualizes Brian’s life and career for younger viewers who may not be as familiar, while also richly rewarding the faithful.  

• Awake (unreleased) 
• Busy Doin’ Nothin’
• California Girls
• Caroline No (Live) 
• Child is the Father of the Man
• Don’t Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder) 
• Fairy Tale Music 
• Farewell My Friend (Dennis Wilson)
• Forever (studio & A cappella) 
• Funky Pretty 
• God Only Knows (studio, A cappella, live) 
• Good Vibrations (studio & alternate takes) 
• Heroes & Villains (live) 
• Honeycomb (new Brian Wilson track)
• I Get Around (studio & live)  
• In My Room (studio & Live) 
• It’s Ok (studio & new Brian Wilson version) 
• Long Promised Road (studio and new Brian Wilson version) 
• Love & Mercy (live) 
• Midnight’s Another Day
• Must Be A Miracle (Unreleased)
• One For The Boys 
• One Kind of Love 
• Our Prayer 
• Right Where I Belong (Original song with Jim James, recorded for the film)
• River Song (Dennis Wilson)
• Sail On, Sailor 
• Southern California 
• Surfin’ Safari 
• The Night Was So Young (live) 
• The Trader 
• ‘Til I Die 
• What’s Wrong (Dennis Wilson)
• Wouldn’t It Be Nice 
• Wouldn’t It Be Nice To Live Again 
• You Still Believe in Me 

Filmmaker Bios

Brent Wilson 

In addition to, “Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road” Brent Wilson (no relation) has brought commitment and passion to his projects as a director for over 25-years including the award-winning WWII documentary, “A Gathering of Heroes: The Last Reunion” and a long overdue homage to Doo-Wop music, “Streetlight Harmonies.”

Tim Headington 

Tim has been involved in all facets of the entertainment business, financing and producing such films as The Tourist, The Young Victoria, Hugo, World War Z and Little Woods. In addition to producing Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road, and David Lowery’s upcoming period epic The Green Knight, he is also an Executive Producer on The Daniels’ upcoming Everything Everywhere All At Once, and Berlinale Silver Bear winner Never Rarely Sometimes Always. For the stage, Tim co-created and produced & Juliet in the West End. The new musical opened to rave reviews and garnered 3 Oliviers. Tim is also producing and developing the upcoming musical The Invention of Hugo Cabret.

Theresa Steele Page  

A principal at Ley Line Entertainment, Theresa oversees film, television, and stage projects. In addition to Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road, producing highlights include David Lowery’s upcoming film The Green Knight, critical darling Miss Juneteenth and executive producing The Daniels’ upcoming Everything Everywhere All At Once. For the stage, Theresa produced the new original West End musical & Juliet which received 3 Oliviers, she is also developing a musical based on the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. A former music industry and advertising executive, she was instrumental in overseeing the careers of many internationally recognized artists, including Britney Spears, NSYNC, Justin Timberlake, and Backstreet Boys. She is an avid supporter of Headington Institute and Ferst Foundation.