Fans can expect a documentary about the notoriously private singer Courtney Barnett soon. The Australian singer has secured funding for the project as part of Screen Australia’s $2.5 million endowment.
Titled Anonymous Club, the upcoming film will document Barnett’s life and musical career. It’s written and directed by Danny Cohen, who has previously worked with Barnett on her videos “Need A Little Time” and “Everybody Here Hates You.” The title is pulled from Barnett’s 2013 album How To Carve A Carrot Into A Rose and the 90-minute film will explore “the inner life of the notoriously shy artist amidst her significant rise to fame,” according to a brief synopsis.
Screen Australia’s Head of Documentary Bernadine Lim expressed his excitement for the organization’s newly funded films, including Anonymous Club. “Documentaries offer a unique opportunity to hold a mirror up to ourselves and reflect, understand and question,” he said. “As we come to the end of 2020, a challenging year for so many, it’s clear that these compelling documentaries will shine a light on the important issues facing Australians including mental health, the impact of the devastating bushfires and the environment more broadly.”
The documentary announcement arrives on the tail-end of a quiet year for Barnett. While the singer hasn’t released any new music in 2020, she did briefly tease her next project. The singer told Double J host Zan Rowe that she’s “been working on these songs since the last album came out” and the songs will be “distinctly different” from the rest of her catalog. “A lot of them are these soft, folk songs that are written in hotel rooms,” she said. “You can tell, they’re timid and quiet.”