Watch the New Trailer for the Eric Clapton Documentary ‘Life in 12 Bars’
Eric Clapton: Life in 12 Bars, a documentary about the legendary guitarist, will debut later this month at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival, but fans can now see the first trailer.
Directed by Lili Fini Zanuck, who received an Oscar as Driving Miss Daisy's producer, and produced by John Battsek, known for his work on Searching for Sugarman, the film will chronicle Clapton's personal affairs and professional development through the years. His private life "is the emotional spine of the film," Zanuck said. The filmmakers had access to a treasure trove of home videos, which they interspersed with music and interviews.
Fans will get a glimpse of Clapton's friends, family and collaborators — including his grandmother and ex-wife Pattie Boyd, as well as members of the Yardbirds, Bluesbreakers, Cream, Blind Faith and Derek & the Dominos. George Harrison, B.B. King and Jimi Hendrix also figure into the movie, which includes plenty of music from throughout his career.
“Clapton’s music is the foundation of our film. His commitment to the blues, its traditions and originators, is absolute from his earliest days," said Zanuck, whose only other directorial experience came from the feature Rush, the 1991 movie that included Clapton's "Tears in Heaven."
The new trailer, which you can watch above, immediately delves into some serious issues, with Clapton saying things like "I was full of hatred and anger" and "I was in absolute denial about my alcoholism," while friends report "It looked like he wanted to kill himself."
"He was forever restless in his search of a suitable vehicle to shape and grow his artistic voice, often bewildering fans and the media with sudden changes in musical direction, bands, songs, guitar style, tone and physical appearance," Zanuck noted.
In the two days prior to the documentary's Sept. 17 premiere, Clapton will be performing at the Forum in Los Angeles. If you can't make it to Toronto for the debut, the movie will air on Showtime on Feb. 10, 2018.