Elvis Presley: The Searcher

Elvis Presley: The Searcher is a 2018 television documentary film produced by HBO Documentary Films about the life of American singer Elvis Presley, highlighting the development of his musical artistry. Co-edited, co-produced, and directed by Thom Zimny, the documentary premiered at the 2018 South by Southwest Film Festival in two parts on March 14 and 15, 2018, before airing on HBO in its entirety on April 14.[2]

Elvis Presley: The Searcher
GenreDocumentary
Written byAlan Light[1]
Directed byThom Zimny[1]
Composer(s)Mike McCready[1]
Country of originUnited States
Original language(s)English
No. of episodes2
Production
Executive producer(s)Glen Zipper
Priscilla Presley
Jerry Schilling
Andrew Solt
Alan Gasmer
Jamie Salter
Producer(s)Jon Landau[1]
Thom Zimny[1]
Kary Antholis[1]
CinematographyLuke Geissbuhler[1]
Editor(s)Anoosh Tertzakian[1]
Thom Zimny[1]
Running time215 minutes
Production company(s)Old Farm Road Films[1]
DistributorHBO Documentary Films
Sony Pictures Television
Release
Original networkHBO
Original releaseApril 14, 2018 (2018-04-14)
External links
Website

Production

Development

In 2014, Priscilla Presley, the ex-wife of Elvis, began discussing with the singer's close friend Jerry Schilling the prospect of an honest telling of Elvis' story through his music. The two soon approached HBO Miniseries president Kary Antholis with their plan, which she ardently agreed to, enough so that she and the network reached out to producer Jon Landau to jumpstart the project.[3]

Landau brought in Thom Zimny as the director, having worked together for nearly two decades on Bruce Springsteen documentaries.[3] Landau thought of the title Elvis Presley: The Searcher upon hearing Priscilla's comment about Elvis as "a searcher".[4]

Soundtrack
Main article: Elvis Presley: The Searcher (The Original Soundtrack)

Marketing

The photo of Elvis Presley used as the documentary's key image is from a test shoot for his 1960 film Flaming Star, in which he wore brown contact lenses to assess if it was a better fit for his role as a half-Native American character, as Elvis had naturally blue eyes; this plan was discarded, however, when they began shooting the film. The test shoot photo was chosen to represent The Searcher for its "unearthly quality".[4]

References
  1. DeFore, John (March 22, 2018). "'Elvis Presley: The Searcher, Parts One and Two': Film Review | SXSW 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Valence Media. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  2. Perry, Elle (March 1, 2018). "Priscilla Presley, David Porter to premiere Elvis HBO film at SXSW". Memphis Business Journal. American City Business Journals. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  3. Greene, Andy (April 4, 2018). "'Elvis Presley: The Searcher' Pulls Back the Veil on the King". Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone, LLC. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  4. Beifuss, John (April 9, 2018). "Elvis the Artist: The 'Searcher' Finds 'Rescue' in New HBO Documentary". USA Today. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
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