Spike Lee works on Michael Jackson documentary

NEW YORK (AP) — Spike Lee worked with Michael Jackson and considered him a friend, but the director says even he learned a lot combing through footage of the icon for a planned documentary about the singer's "Bad" album.

Lee calls it a "treasure chest of findings."

"We have footage in this documentary that no one's ever seen, stuff that Michael shot himself, behind-the-scenes stuff," he said in an interview Monday. "We had complete access to the vaults of Michael Jackson. ... He wrote 60 demos for the `Bad' record. Only 11 made it. So we got to hear a lot of that stuff, too, so it was just a great experience."

He added: "You don't have to be a Michael Jackson-head to enjoy this."

Lee's documentary, which does not yet have an official title, will be part of a flood of material to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the "Bad" album, Jackson's follow-up to "Thriller" that included hits like the title track, "Smooth Criminal," `'The Way You Make Me Feel" and more.

The album is being re-released Sept.18 with additional tracks, a DVD and other bonus material; Lee's film is due to come out later this year, but no date has been set.