R.I.P. American Movie's Mike Schank

Mike Schank has died. As one of the key subjects of (and the composer for) Chris Smith and Sarah Price’s beloved 1999 documentary American Movie, Schank charmed audiences with his low-key but friendly vibe, his talent for music and histrionic screams, and his unwavering support for friend Mark Borchadt’s dreams of making movies. Schank’s death was reported widely today by filmmaker Mark Duplass, and was confirmed by Milwaukee Record. Schank was 56.

Schank appeared in American Movie 23 years ago, serving as Borchardt’s musician, extra, assistant director, and all-purpose get-stuff-done guy on the production of his troubled short film Coven. Childhood friends with Borchardt, and a recovering alcoholic and drug addict—one of his final social media posts was from this August, when he celebrated 27 years of sobriety—Schank was among the most reliable of the various family members and friends that Borchardt roped into making his movie, amiably helping in whatever ways were necessary to get Coven made.

With the release of American Movie, Schank became a minor darling of the indie world; two years later, he’d appear in Todd Solendz’s Storytelling as the cameraman helping Paul Giamatti capture the life of a miserable upper-class family. Other credits included an appearance on Family Guy, a cut part (that appeared in the special features) in Jason X, and occasional small parts in various indie or horror movies.

Schank continued to reside in Milwaukee; in a radio interview from 2012, he reported that he and Borchardt continued to stay in close contact, talking every day, and expressed his happiness at the opportunities afforded to him by American Movie. The Record notes that, among his other accomplishments, Schank was a key member of the MKE Alano Club, a sobriety and recovery club in the city.