Johnny Matteson
One of the names in the credits of The Insatiable Moon is Johnny Matteson. He has credits for acting (busker), music, and as ‘Psychiatric Advisor’. I first met Johnny back in 1985 when both of us were living in Ponsonby. He was a friend and fellow muso of the original Arthur, who the film is based on. His path through life has not been easy. As his website says:
“Johnny Matteson has devoted the past two decades to motivating and entertaining with his music and spreading positive messages about mental health through music.
Diagnosed with bipolar disorder at 19, Johnny forged a path back to respectability through work and study, and through his music, which has made him an esteemed and loved performer who has stood the test of time. In his 20s, following his diagnosis, Johnny felt keenly the weight of self-stigma and undertook a degree in health science to fight his way out of the mire of mental illness.”
Through his music and through his friendship, Johnny has made himself one of the best-known and most-loved advocates of the acceptance of psychiatric illness. His song-writing draws on his experiences as a consumer and survivor of mental health services, and is his way of speaking to a world which has a lot of misconceptions.
Johnny was present at the launch of the novel The Insatiable Moon back in 1997, and has been a part of the film project from its earliest days. As Rawiri was preparing for the role of Arthur, Johnny spent time with him both recalling stories about Arthur and offering insights into what it’s like to be on the inside of a psychiatric illness. Rawiri listened closely and was indebted to Johnny for this korero.
There was a stunningly poignant moment during shooting when we were filming in the boarding house down in Herne Bay. Johnny quietly mentioned that the room we were in was the room in which his father had died, when he was being cared for with his own mental health problems.
Johnny has a new album coming out soon – watch this space. And in the meantime, have a look at this to get a glimpse of the wonderful man Johnny is.
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Peter Mateer says:
Many years ago Johnny came around my place with a partly finished song called Arthur. I helped him with the song’s melody and some of it’s lyrics…he never did nail the chord changes (too tricky for such a punky folky artist) but later recorded a version with string quartet. Before that happened though we both played at your book launch Mike at the book store which ran parallel with Queen St, along with a guy called Nile, who played a Persian instrument called a santur.
I am pleased this project I have heard about for so long from Johnny has come to fruition. Bummer about the song Arthur not being used, but unless those interesting passing chords were nailed by Johnny it wouldn’t have served the purpose well I suppose:). Johnny would have been an invaluable person to gain insight into the person behind the main character though, obviously, and it’s good to see he has played a significant role.
Warmest regards
Pete
May 1st, 2011 at 4:21 am ()