What happened to Kieran Turner? Documentary filmmaker dies at 56

Documentary director, producer, and writer Kieran Turner passed away on Monday, December 23, in West Hollywood at 56. Per Variety, the filmmaker was battling with cancer at the time of his death. According to the outlet, the president of CLG3 Communications, Christy Grosz confirmed the news of Turner's passing.

Turner was well-known for producing, writing, and directing the 2012 biographical documentary Jobriath A.D., based on the life of the eponymous rock star. For the unversed, Bruce Wayne Campbell, aka Jobriath, is widely regarded as the first openly gay rock star. In his documentary film, Kieran Turner explored the life of the late rock icon, tracking his rise to fame and ultimate fall.

The film was distributed by Factory 25 for its theatrical release in March 2012. Following its release, Turner received much acclaim at different film festivals, including wins at Out on Film and Dublin Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. The film also featured interviews from different contemporaries of Campbell, including the 80's Spoken Word artist Henry Rollins.

A look at Kieran Turner's filmmaking career, as the director-writer passes away at 56

The alumnus of New York University, Turner, commenced his filmmaking career in 1999 with 24 Nights, a queer Christmas movie. It was his debut feature film, which he made as a senior thesis project for his NYU course. Initially, 24 Nights was not meant for a commercial release but was picked up by TLA Releasing for distribution.

In 2013, Turner wrote and directed a comedy web series Wallflowers. The 12-episode-long series was centered around four friends with hopeless love lives. The series was produced by Turner's Eight Track Tape Productions, which also brought Jobriath A.D. to life. Wallflowers initially streamed on Stage17.tv for its two-season run and is currently available on Dekkoo.

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In 2022, Kieran Turner's screenplay – Black Dogs – made it to the 2022 Black List. Based on Jason Buhrmester's 2009 novel of the same name, Black Dogs talks about Rock n Roll history's "greatest robbery" featuring four friends. It is currently under development with the LA-based production company, Star Thrower Entertainment.

Before his death, Kieran Turner was busy with GHOST LIGHTS: Reclaiming Theatre in the Age of AIDS. The documentary reportedly explores the impact of AIDS on the theatre industry. The project is said to have around 150 interviews with relevant people within the industry.

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