Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story will open Border Mail International Film Festival

The founder of Mushroom Records stayed ahead of the curve in the music industry over decades by seeking out opinions from his peers and those at live gigs.

Mushroom Studios chief operating officer Bethany Jones said Gudinski had a knack for listening to people.

"He was always doing his market research," she said.

"But he loved going to gigs and he'd go and talk to the punters; it was that kind of listening that allowed him to find out what was going on on the ground."

A new Australian documentary, Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story, will open the 20^th annual Border Mail International Film Festival (BMIFF) on Wednesday, August 23.

The film premiered at Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) on August 10; a glitzy and glamorous affair attended by the likes of Dannii Minogue, Missy Higgins and Mark Seymour.

MIFF promoted the film as "a uniquely Australian tribute to a much-loved industry legend".

The film includes commentary from Kylie Minogue, Dave Grohl, Sting, Shirley Manson, Jimmy Barnes, Ed Sheeran, Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel.

Ms Jones said there was no shortage of celebrities willing to do an interview about Gudinski for the film.

She said those interviews were interwoven with 850 pieces of archival footage of Gudinski telling his own life story.

"We were super lucky we had Bruce Springsteen, Sting and Ed Sheeran happily come on board to do interviews," Ms Jones said.

"It was a privilege hearing those stories and those relationships that developed over 50 years.

"Ed Sheeran described Michael as a big ball of fun; clearly there was a lot of joy in that relationship."

Gudinski, born to Russian immigrants, his father a builder and his mother a homemaker, co-founded Mushroom Records with Ray Evans in 1973.

He remained chief executive of the extensive Mushroom Group - the largest independent music and entertainment company in Australia, which was home to eight record labels and more than two dozen specialist divisions as well as Frontier Touring and Chugg Entertainment - until his death in March 2021.

Filmmaker Paul Goldman never got the key interview with Gudinski owing to his untimely death.

However, Ms Jones said fortunately there was plenty of footage in the bank.

"He wasn't shy of the camera," she said.

"He was proud to see Australian music going to the world.

"His contribution to building a music industry in Australia was unparalleled."

Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story will open in cinemas on August 31.

It will run at Regent Cinemas Albury-Wodonga on Wednesday, August 23, at 6pm; Sunday, August 27, at 11.30am; and Tuesday, August 29, at 6.15pm.

BMIFF will present 43 films from 21 nations over 12 days from August 23 to September 3.

For tickets visit regentcinemas.com.au.

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