Russell Crowe Turns the Camera on His Other Career in ‘What Love Builds’

Russell Crowe has spent decades as one of Australia’s most recognisable screen stars. His latest film, however, turns its attention to the career audiences may know considerably less about.

Crowe premiered his self-directed documentary What Love Builds at the Venice Film Festival on Friday, unveiling a deeply personal look at his lifelong relationship with music.

Presented out of competition, the 99-minute Australian documentary combines live performances, archival footage and Crowe’s own reflections to trace a musical career that has continued alongside his work on screen.

For Crowe, the two disciplines have never been particularly separate.

“As I think the film attempts to explain, the two things are just completely intertwined for me,” Crowe told reporters in Venice. “There is no difference.”

The Oscar winner first conceived the documentary around 15 years ago, initially believing it would take roughly a year to complete. Instead, the project continued growing as Crowe documented more performances and musical projects, eventually accumulating what he said was 18 million feet of footage.

While internationally recognised for films including Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Crowe has maintained a parallel career as a musician.

He currently fronts Indoor Garden Party, whose music draws from rock, blues, country and gospel, and has regularly toured between acting projects.

What Love Builds traces that history from performances in St Kilda through to stages in Europe and the United States, examining how music has influenced Crowe’s approach to storytelling and performance.

The film also reaches considerably further back. Venice’s official synopsis notes that Crowe received his first guitar in 1970, the same year he first stepped onto a film set.

Crowe told reporters that performing live has shaped how he approaches acting, giving him an understanding of how to guide an audience even when making a film without one physically in the room.

The documentary’s Venice premiere proved emotional for the actor-director. Crowe wiped away tears as the screening concluded, with the audience applauding and cheering throughout the film’s performance sequences.

Now 62, Crowe is showing few signs of abandoning either side of his career. Alongside several upcoming screen projects, Indoor Garden Party is planning another European tour in 2027.

After decades of being known primarily for the characters he plays, What Love Builds offers Crowe the opportunity to tell his own story — through the creative pursuit that has been running alongside acting from the beginning.