The Life of Sean DeLear
Director: Markus Zizenbacher Run Time: 82 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 2024 Language: English & German with English subtitles
Starring: Ann Magnuson, Jeppe Beck Laursen, Scott Ewalt, Sean DeLear, Steve McDonald
A multidisciplinary artist and scene queen in a variety of different circles from the beautiful elite to the queer punks of LA in the 90s, Sean DeLear broke the mold when it came to being Black and gay in the art world and in the music scene. A rebel in the face of gender, race, and sexuality, DeLear fronted the post-punk band Glue, whose music video was deemed too hot for MTV, and counted The B-52s and Yoko Ono among his fans. In The Life of Sean DeLear, friends and peers pieced together DeLear’s video archives and writing samples into a fun and enlightening tribute, honoring the counterculture spirit of this American artist — who died of cancer in 2017. Did SeanD really go to highschool with Courtney Love? Did he really befriend Kate Moss after crashing her birthday party? The film dispels none of the myths about this artist of allure and mystery. Alongside the posthumously published teenage diaries of DeLear, I Could Not Believe It, Marcus Zizenbacher’s film — which features the likes of Rick Owens, Ann Magnuson, and Susan Tyrrell — ensures that Sean DeLear (sounds like “chandelier”) and his vibrant light will never go out.