Searching for Sugar Man

"Great Art Always Survives"

Jul 26 2012 PG-13 1h 26m
Biography, Documentary, Music

Two South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock 'n' roller, Rodriguez.

Plot

In the early 1970s, Sixto Rodriguez was a Detroit folksinger who had a short-lived recording career with only two well received but non-selling albums. Unknown to Rodriguez, his musical story continued in South Africa where he became a pop music icon and inspiration for generations. Long rumored there to be dead by suicide, a few fans in the 1990s decided to seek out the truth of their hero's fate. What follows is a bizarrely heartening story in which they found far more in their quest than they ever hoped, while a Detroit construction laborer discovered that his lost artistic dreams came true after all.

Written by

Malik Bendjelloul, Stephen 'Sugar' Segerman, Craig Bartholomew Strydom

Directed by

Malik Bendjelloul

Production Countries

United States of America, United Kingdom, Sweden, South Africa, Finland

Production Companies

Canfield Pictures, Red Box Films, Passion Pictures

Languages

English

Awards

Won 1 Oscar. 44 wins & 33 nominations total

Scores
# of Votes
74,442
Average Rating
8.2 out of 10
Metascore
79
Popularity
NA