Malik Bendjelloul, the cash-strapped film maker who shot to Hollywood stardom overnight with the Oscar-winning music documentary "Searching for Sugar Man" about an obscure Mexican-American folk-rocker who became a cult hero in apartheid-era South Africa, has died. He was 36.
Swedish police spokeswoman Pia Glenvik told The Associated Press that Bendjelloul died in Stockholm late Tuesday, but wouldn't specify where his body was found or the cause of death.
She said no crime is suspected in relation to the filmmaker's death.
"Searching for Sugar Man," which tells the story of how singer-songwriterr Sixto Rodriguez became a superstar in South Africa without knowing about it, won the Oscar for best documentary in 2013. It was the first time a Swedish film had won an Oscar since Ingmar Bergman's "Fanny and Alexander" in 1984.
"Oh boy!" Bendjelloul exclaimed when he accepted the Oscar for best documentary feature from Ben Affleck last year and proceeded to thank "one of the best singers ever, Rodriguez."
The film also won several other prizes, including a British BAFTA for best documentary and the Swedish Guldbagge award.
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