Matthew Miller (filmmaker)

Matthew Miller is a Canadian screenwriter and producer. He is also a contractual university lecturer. Miller's work has been featured at international film festivals and has garnered awards at TIFF, Sundance, and Berlin International Film Festival.

Miller achieved widespread acclaim for the feature film ''BlackBerry'' (2023), co-written with Matt Johnson, which premiered in competition at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, and won 14 Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Motion Picture.

Career

2003–2009: Early work

Miller's short film ''The School'' played at 25 international film festivals, was named ''Best Canadian Short Film'' at the Atlantic Film Festival, and received ''Gold Plaque'' at the Chicago International Film Festival. Produced as an undergraduate project at York University, Miller worked with a fellow, Ezra Krybus on the film.

In 2007, Miller released his first feature film, ''Surviving Crooked Lake'', which later won the 2008 Kodak Vision Award for Cinematography at the Sundance Film Festival.

Johnson, and others, wrote and produced the low-budget web series ''Nirvana the Band the Show'' from 2007 to 2009. This is the first time Miller works with Matt Johnson, who he goes on to work closely with on other endeavors.

2013–2018: Johnson Collaboration and Zapruder Films

In 2013, Miller produced ''The Dirties'', feature film written and directed by Johnson, which won ''Best Narrative Feature'' at the Slamdance Film Festival.

The same year, Miller and Johnson, started a production company, ''Zapruder Films''. Three year later, in 2016, the production house released the pair's first project, ''Operation Avalanche.'' The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, after ''Zapruder Films'' declined the premiere offer from the Toronto International Film Festival.

Miller was still active at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival with the re-launch of ''Nirvanna the Band the Show'' when three episodes premiered at the festival, with Miller credited as a writer. The full television series was released on Viceland in 2017. Johnson has announced a movie project based on the series currently being shot in Italy and Toronto in June 2023. Miller has yet to confirm any participation.

2023: ''BlackBerry''

In 2022, Miller wrote the screenplay for ''BlackBerry'' with Johnson'','' about the Canadian tech company formerly called Research in Motion. The film stars Glenn Howerton as Jim Balsillie, Jay Baruchel as Mike Lazaridis, and co-writer and director Matt Johnson as Doug Fregin. ''BlackBerry'' premiered in competition at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival on February 17, 2023, and attracted widespread critical acclaim.

The screenplay was later adapted into a limited series and released November 2023. It received positive reviews for its detailed portrayal of real-life events. Miller described the adaptation as another opportunity to broaden its audience and promote Canadian media.

Miller signed with CAA, alongside production partner Johnson, in 2023.

Johnson and Miller won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 12th Canadian Screen Awards in 2024 for ''BlackBerry''.

Diversity work

In 2013, during festival screenings of ''Operation Avalanche'', Miller noted an evident gender imbalance in the film industry was vocal about his desire to change that.

Later that year, Miller's production company ''Zapruder Films (''which he co-founded with Johnson), launched a contest to back a first-time female screenwriter with $12,000 CAD in funding, story editor guidance, and script optioning. The company used 100% of its Telefilm financial award to support the project. Chandler Levack and her feature film ''Anglophone'' were announced as the winners of 137 entries.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Matthew
Living people
21st-century Canadian screenwriters
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century Canadian male writers
Canadian male screenwriters
Canadian film producers
Canadian television writers
Canadian television producers
Best Screenplay Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners
Producers of Best Picture Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners