Everyone remembers their first best friend — the one that made you braver, funnier, more creative, more you. For Flea and Anthony Kiedis, two of the original members of rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, their first best friend — the late Hillel Slovak — is remembered in a way we all get to share, as the subject of the new documentary The Rise of the Red Hot Chili Peppers: Our Brother, Hillel.
Directed by Ben Feldman (Bug Out, Rich & Shameless), the documentary explores the friendship between a group of boys growing up in the Los Angeles punk scene in the late ’70s and early ’80s, and all that comes with it: the antics, adventures, arguments, and obsessions that forged their bond, and the love and respect for Hillel’s life and influence that endures to this day. Told through Hillel’s journal entries, unseen archival footage, and emotional interviews with current and former band members, including Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam drummer Jack Irons, as well as Alain Johannes of Eleven, and funk legend George Clinton, The Rise of the Red Hot Chili Peppers: Our Brother, Hillel is a raucous, moving, and surprisingly tender look at the power of adolescent bonds, and the enduring legacy of Hillel.
“There's just something that's so defining about friendship at that age. There's something about that time in your life when you have a good amount of freedom, but not a lot of responsibility yet, and you're just free to explore and find out who you are. This is an extraordinary story about friendship and loss and creativity and joy and sadness,” says director Ben Feldman, who had came across a published copy of Hillel’s journals, and found them deeply moving. “Because he was so open and vulnerable when keeping the journal, and covered a lot of this period that I wanted the film to cover, I felt convinced that there was a way to make him feel alive and present.”
As noted in the documentary, digital technology was used to reconstruct Hillel’s voice, and bring his journal entries to life: “With the blessing of Hillel’s family, we used AI to have Hillel’s voice reading his own journals,” says Feldman. “That was a critical way to make his [words] feel alive.”
Dan Braun, Josh Braun, David Blackman, James Slovak, and Ben Feldman are the executive producers. Marc D'Agostino is also a producer.
The Rise of the Red Hot Chili Peppers: Our Brother, Hillel is streaming now on Netflix.
