A new documentary about Céline Dion aims to educate about stiff person syndrome, the neurological disorder the singer has been diagnosed with.
Amazon-MGM will release I Am: Céline Dion, a film that spans a year in the life of the globally successful singer as she deals with the condition that affects her spinal cord and brain.
“This last couple of years has been such a challenge for me, the journey from discovering my condition to learning how to live with and manage it, but not to let it define me,” Dion said in a statement. “As the road to resuming my performing career continues, I have realized how much I have missed it, of being able to see my fans. During this absence, I decided I wanted to document this part of my life to help others who share this diagnosis.” She added that she hopes the film will “raise awareness of this little-known condition”.
The official synopsis calls it an “emotional, energetic and poetic love letter to music” and Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon MGM Studios, praises it as “a raw, intimate portrayal of a pivotal time”.
Dion told fans in December 2022 that she was dealing with stiff person syndrome in an Instagram video, saying that the spasms involved with the condition “affect every aspect of my daily life”. It’s prevented Dion from performing and in May 2023, she cancelled all future tour dates.
In December 2023, her sister told the Canadian website 7 Jours that she “doesn’t have control over her muscles” but was determined to return to the stage.
Stiff person syndrome, first diagnosed in 1956, is a rare autoimmune neurological disorder that can cause progressive muscle stiffness and painful spasms in the lower back, legs and torso. It affects an estimated one to two people in a million.
The new film comes from the Oscar-nominated film-maker Irene Taylor whose, credits include the Hulu sex abuse documentary Leave No Trace: A Hidden History of the Boy Scouts and, most recently, HBO’s Trees and Other Entanglements.
Dion has sold more than 250m albums during her 40-year career and she recently appeared in the romantic comedy Love Again.
The documentary has yet to be given a release date.
