Matt Johnson

Matt Johnson is a Canadian filmmaker, director, writer, producer, editor, and actor. His work includes his feature film directorial debut, The Dirties (2013), which premiered at Slamdance; his second feature film, Operation Avalanche (2016), which premiered at Sundance; and his third feature film, BlackBerry (2023), which premiered at the Berlinale before winning several Canadian Screen Awards in 2024. He is also co-creator of the cult comedy series Nirvanna the Band the Show (2017). As an actor, he has appeared Kazik Radwanska's film Anne at 1,300 Feet (2019) and Matt and Mara (2024).

Works

Nirvanna the Band the Show

Two lifelong best friends and roommates are planning the greatest musical act in the history of the modern world.

Release Date2017-02-02

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Matt

Episode Count16

Vote Count29

Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie

When their plan to book a show at the Rivoli goes horribly wrong, Matt and Jay accidentally travel back to the year 2008.

Release Date2026-02-13

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Matt

Vote Count41

BlackBerry

Two mismatched entrepreneurs – egghead innovator Mike Lazaridis and cut-throat businessman Jim Balsillie – joined forces in an endeavour that was to become a worldwide hit in little more than a decade. The story of the meteoric rise and catastrophic demise of the world's first smartphone.

Release Date2023-02-13

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Doug

Vote Count858

Matt & Bird Break Loose

Monkey and bird best friends, Matt and Bird, have been studying humans very closely from their shared cage in the zoo. But everything they know about being human is based on what they've seen on TV. In each episode, Matt and Bird cleverly break out of the zoo in disguise in order to chase their dreams and fame...and quickly discover it's not so easy being human.

Release Date2021-09-16

DepartmentProduction

JobExecutive Producer

Charactersd Matt (voice)

Episode Count3

Nirvana the Band the Show

Musicians Matt and Jay attempt to achieve their dream of playing at a small Toronto venue, the Rivoli, through a series of various schemes and publicity stunts.

Release Date2007-12-11

DepartmentProduction

JobProducer

Charactersd Matt

Episode Count11

Vote Count6

Operation Avalanche

In 1967, four undercover CIA agents were sent to NASA posing as a documentary film crew. What they discovered led to one of the biggest conspiracies in American history.

Release Date2016-09-16

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Matt Johnson

Vote Count217

The Dirties

The line between reality and fiction starts to blur when two best friends start making a movie about getting revenge on bullies.

Release Date2013-10-04

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Matt

Vote Count145

Anne at 13,000 Ft.

Anne hasn't been the same since the jump. While skydiving for her best friend Sarah's bachelorette party, the 27-year-old felt focused, free, above it all. Back on the ground, the pressures of her daily life threaten to overwhelm her.

Release Date2021-09-03

Charactersd Matt

Vote Count14

Matt and Mara

Mara is a young creative writing professor struggling with problems in her marriage to an experimental musician. One day, she runs into Matt, a charismatic, free-spirited author from her past, when he wanders onto her university campus. Bonded by their shared interests, the two gradually become closer. When Mara’s husband unexpectedly cancels plans to drive her to an out-of-town conference, Matt accompanies Mara on the trip instead. Along the way, the tension surrounding their undefined relationship slowly grows.

Release Date2024-09-13

DepartmentProduction

JobExecutive Producer

Charactersd Matt

Vote Count38

The Fantastic Corpse

The Fantastic Corpse is a short film project based on the exquisite corpse collaborative method. Dell Precision and AMD are working with creative content company Arts+Labor to bring five Fantastic Fest filmmakers together to create one short film, each filming an equal part, and continuing each others segment.

Release Date2013-09-26

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd

Diamond Tongues

Edith dreams of being a successful actress but just can't seem to make things happen. When she can't figure out what she's doing wrong, she begins to do everything wrong.

Release Date2015-01-25

Charactersd John Matheson

Vote Count6

How Heavy This Hammer

Follows a middle-aged married man who finds his only outlet is online gaming.

Release Date2015-09-15

Charactersd Hardware Store Employee

Vote Count7

Spice It Up

A film student at Ryerson University struggles to complete her thesis project.

Release Date2019-08-15

Charactersd Passport Photographer

Vote Count1

The Heirloom

Facing a long winter of lockdown and a stubborn bout of writer’s block, filmmaker Eric reluctantly agrees to get a dog with his girlfriend, Allie. After plenty of research and negotiation, Milly arrives—a traumatized rescue from the Dominican Republic.

Release Date2024-01-25

Charactersd Belligerent Vet

Vote Count2

Chatterboxing

It's the ultimate shouting match!! Zootaker vs. Derrick, champion vs. newbie, animal facts vs. jokes...... but WHO WILL WIN?

Release Date2020-10-22

Charactersd Brody (voice)

Nirvana the Band the Show the Adventures

Musicians Matt and Jay step away from their quest for the Rivoli to conquer various Toronto landmarks and seasonal traditions through a series of misguided, high-energy excursions and chaotic improvisations.

Release Date2010-04-12

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Matt

My Mother's Pearls

Release Date2014-05-01

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Older Steve Hamelin

Matt Johnson Live at Comic-Con

In a short sketch produced for Funny or Die, Matt Johnson reports live on the scene in the 2013 Comic-Con convention hall.

Release Date2013-07-21

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd Self

Mile End Kicks

Grace Pine, a 22-year-old music critic, moves to Montreal to write a book on Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill, but her plans are complicated when she becomes romantically involved with two members of an indie band she is covering and decides to become their publicist.

Release Date2026-04-17

DepartmentProduction

JobExecutive Producer

Vote Count1

Hell of a Summer

When 24-year-old Jason Hochberg arrives for counsellor weekend at his beloved Camp Pineway, his biggest problem is feeling out of touch with his teenage co-workers. Little does he know; a masked killer has murdered camp owners John and Kathy and is preparing to strike again.

Release Date2025-04-03

DepartmentCrew

JobThanks

Vote Count158

Tony

Based on the influential chef, writer, and travel journalist Anthony Bourdain.

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Crash Land

Lance, Clay, and Darby have spent their childhoods drinking, wreaking havoc, and filming crude stunts in their small town. Everyone hates them. Wanting to finally prove their lives have meaning, the boys set out to make a “real movie” and in the process are forced to confront emotions and experiences they’ve never considered: love, loss, and ultimately, what it means to grow up.

Release Date2026-03-13

DepartmentProduction

JobExecutive Producer

Matt & Bird Break Loose

Fueled by delusions of grandeur, Matt and Bird disguise themselves as humans and break out of the zoo to chase their dreams, only to learn that it's not so easy being human.

Release Date2021-09-16

DepartmentProduction

JobProducer

Episode Count3

Vote Count2