---
name: "Matt Johnson"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/matt-johnson"
fi1m_id: "matt-johnson"
imdb_id: "nm4798740"
tmdb_id: 1144092
wikidata_id: "Q25209047"
roles: ["Director","Writer"]
born: "5 October 1985"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 77
average_as: "director"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-24T10:21:05.816121+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Matt Johnson

## Identity

Matt Johnson

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/matt-johnson
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** matt-johnson
- **IMDb ID:** nm4798740
- **TMDB ID:** 1144092
- **Wikidata ID:** Q25209047
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Johnson_(director), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q25209047, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4798740/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/1144092

Director and writer. Born 5 October 1985 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

## Details

- **Work:** Director, Writer
- **Born:** 5 October 1985, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- **Active:** 2023–present
- **Also known as:** Matthew Johnson
- **Frequently works with:** [Matthew Miller](https://film.one/person/matthew-miller.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 77, as director, over 2 titles
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Johnson_(director), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q25209047, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4798740/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/1144092

## Streaming the US now

- **AMC+:** [*BlackBerry*](https://film.one/film/blackberry.md) (78)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Matt Johnson

> Matt Johnson is good at making overconfident men funny without dismissing them. We like his willingness to let work and unruly company occupy the screen; *Tony* also shows how readily the women can be neglected.

In *Tony* (2026), the kitchen job takes up the space another film might reserve for the milestones of Anthony Bourdain's life. Johnson is right to keep it there: the work is funny, and Dominic Sessa makes the young man's confidence and limited usefulness worth watching. We warmed to the kitchen scenes because they give this would-be writer something to do besides have opinions. The modest scope suits Johnson, who allows his young hero to be irritating without making irritation the only thing about him. The familiar growing-up story is less rewarding.

His feature debut, *The Dirties* (2013), established a mockumentary approach, followed by the guerrilla location filming of *Operation Avalanche* (2016). Handheld camerawork, improvisation and hidden cameras in public spaces are recurring tools, well suited to the manic outsiders he often plays as fictionalised versions of himself. They make overconfidence something we can watch being tested rather than simply hear about. His collaborators include cinematographer Jared Raab and Jay McCarrol, who has worked with him as a writer, performer and composer. McCarrol also co-created the web series *Nirvana the Band the Show* (2007–2009) with Johnson.

The move to *BlackBerry* (2023), dramatising the rise and fall of Research In Motion, widened the subject beyond those self-portraits. The 2025 film adaptation of his long-running series still returned him to playing Matt. *Tony*, his first US feature, takes him out of the cast. We would not mistake that for abandoning his interests: the young Bourdain is another man with more certainty than experience.

What needs to change is the attention paid to everyone around that man. In *Tony*, Johnson and fellow writers Todd Bartels, Lou Howe and Matthew Miller let the men be funny and uncertain, but Emilia Jones's Nancy has too little to do alongside them. The women chiefly matter for what they contribute to Tony's development, and the lively kitchen scenes do not make that less frustrating. We want the same curiosity about them that Johnson grants his aspiring writer. Start with *Tony* for Sessa and the kitchen company; allow for some thin writing outside it.

## Biography

Matt Johnson (also credited as Matthew Johnson) is a Canadian director, screenwriter, producer and actor. Born in Toronto in 1985, he began his career with low-budget independent docufiction films and web series.

He directed, co-wrote and often starred in *The Dirties* (2013), *Operation Avalanche* (2016), *BlackBerry* (2023) and *Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie* (2025). *BlackBerry* won multiple Canadian Screen Awards, including for Best Director. Johnson directed, wrote and produced the 2026 biopic *Tony*, about the early life of chef Anthony Bourdain. He won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Performance in a Comedy Film for *Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, nowtoronto.com, slashfilm.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Tony* (2026), Fi1m 76, Producer, Writer, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/tony.md)
- *BlackBerry* (2023), Fi1m 78, as Doug — [page](https://film.one/film/blackberry.md)

## Complete filmography (35)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Stavros Halkias: Uncle Stav* (2026), Director
- *Uncle Stav: Mission Impossible Teaser* (2026), as Guy in Basement · Director
- *Tony* (2026), Director, Producer, Writer — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/tony.md)
- *The Two Year Rule* (2026), Executive Producer
- *Mile End Kicks* (2026), Executive Producer
- *Crash Land* (2026), Executive Producer
- *Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie* (2026), as Matt · Director, Story, Writer, Original Series Creator
- *Hell of a Summer* (2025), Thanks
- *Matt and Mara* (2024), as Matt · Executive Producer
- *The Heirloom* (2024), as Belligerent Vet (Voice)
- *BlackBerry: The Limited Series* (2023), series, Director
- *Therapy Dogs* (2023), Executive Producer
- *BlackBerry* (2023), as Doug · Director, Writer — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/blackberry.md)
- *Matt & Bird Break Loose* (2021), series, as Matt (Voice) · Director, Writer, Producer, Creator
- *Anne at 13,000 Ft.* (2021), as Matt
- *Chatterboxing* (2020), as Brody (voice)
- *Spice It Up* (2019), as Passport Photographer
- *Nirvanna the Band the Show* (2017), series, as Matt · Director, Writer, Producer, Creator
- *Operation Avalanche* (2016), as Matt Johnson · Director, Producer, Writer
- *Operation Avalanche* (2016), as Boy · Director, Editor, Writer
- *How Heavy This Hammer* (2015), as Hardware Store Employee
- *Diamond Tongues* (2015), as John Matheson
- *My Mother's Pearls* (2014), as Older Steve Hamelin · Director
- *The Dirties* (2013), as Matt · Director, Writer, Producer, Editor
- *The Fantastic Corpse* (2013), Director
- *Matt Johnson: Live At Comic-Con* (2013), as Matt Johnson · Director
- *The Revenge Plot* (2011), as Oversized Kid · Writer
- *Nirvana the Band the Show the Adventures* (2010), as Matt · Director, Producer, Writer
- *Shubadak* (2009), as Blanks · Editor
- *Nirvana the Band the Show: Live @ the Rivoli* (2009), as Matt · Director
- *Nirvana the Band the Show* (2007), series, as Matt · Producer, Writer, Creator
- *Honolulu Blue* (2004), Director, Writer, Editor
- *Magic: The Gathering*, Director
- *Journalism 101*, Director, Writer
- *Kill Hitler*, Director

## Gallery

- ![Kazik Radwanski, Deragh Campbell, Matt Johnson, Berlinale 2020, Filmgespräch zu Anne at 13.000 ft](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-48f3fde40b4e.jpg) Kazik Radwanski, Deragh Campbell, Matt Johnson, Berlinale 2020, Filmgespräch zu Anne at 13.000 ft — Wolke700, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Kazik_Radwanski_3.jpg/1280px-Kazik_Radwanski_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Matt Johnson, Kazik Radwanski, and Deragh Campbell at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) for the movie](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-8ab4c4b94808.jpg) Matt Johnson, Kazik Radwanski, and Deragh Campbell at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) for the movie — Jennifer 8. Lee, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Matt_Johnson%2C_Kazik_Radwanski%2C_and_Deragh_Campbell_at_the_2024_Toronto_International_Film_Festival.jpg/1280px-Matt_Johnson%2C_Kazik_Radwanski%2C_and_Deragh_Campbell_at_the_2024_Toronto_International_Film_Festival.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Matt Johnson, Berlinale 2020, discussion of en:Anne at 13,000 Ft.](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-fab6358e1b98.jpg) Matt Johnson, Berlinale 2020, discussion of en:Anne at 13,000 Ft. — Wolke700, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Matt_Johnson_-_Berlinale_2020.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Matt Johnson attends world premiere of "Mile End Kicks" (2022)](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-3502adfa5e35.jpg) Matt Johnson attends world premiere of "Mile End Kicks" (2022) — Max Surprenant, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Matt_Johnson_TIFF_2025.jpg/1280px-Matt_Johnson_TIFF_2025.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Matt Johnson](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-3d60c4ca8642.jpg) Matt Johnson — Image via TMDB
- ![Matt Johnson](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-9a8434d7380b.jpg) Matt Johnson — Image via TMDB
- ![Matt Johnson](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-e43859eea1b7.jpg) Matt Johnson — Image via TMDB
- ![Matt Johnson](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-d69ca53938ca.jpg) Matt Johnson — Max Surprenant, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/Matt_Johnson_TIFF_2025_%28cropped%29.jpg/1280px-Matt_Johnson_TIFF_2025_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Matt Johnson](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-940b9ba1b136.jpg) Matt Johnson — Image via TMDB
- ![Matt Johnson](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-ec4ed750d9e7.jpg) Matt Johnson — Image via TMDB
- ![Matt Johnson](https://film.one/media/person/92885/gallery-96521317c645.jpg) Matt Johnson — Image via TMDB

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/matt-johnson