20 Feet from Stardom

20 Feet from Stardom is a documentary about the backup singers whose voices fill out some of the best-known songs in popular music, yet who remain largely unrecognized. The film follows several of these singers, among them Darlene Love, Lisa Fischer, Merry Clayton, Judith Hill, Claudia Lennear and Táta Vega, as they describe their careers, their aspirations and what it means to spend years performing beside major stars without stepping into the spotlight themselves. Interviews with figures such as Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Mick Jagger and Sting offer an outside view of the work these singers do. Archive footage and concert material accompany their accounts.

Morgan Neville directed and wrote the film, and produced it with Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers. It was Neville's first directed feature, and he went on to make documentaries including Won't You Be My Neighbor?, Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain and Piece by Piece. Made for about 1 million USD, the film took roughly 6 million USD worldwide, a strong return for a documentary of its scale. On IMDb it holds 7.4/10 from around 14,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.2/10 from about 267 votes. A critics' rating of 8.1/10 from 126 reviews places it above both audience scores.