Illustrations by Maddie Fischer.As part of our Cannes 2024 coverage, we invited critics and programmers to share their thoughts on one moment from a film they've seen at the festival so far.Sign up for the Weekly Edit to receive exclusive reports from the Croisette straight to your inbox.Miriam BaleElizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes by Nanette Burstein (co-director of The Kid Stays in the Picture) is in some ways a straightforward chronological documentary of the movie star's fascinating, tabloid-centric life. What makes the film formally interesting, though, is the separation of voice and image. Burstein’s reliance on audio recordings of Taylor made in 1964 and 1985 foregrounds her remarkable voice over her blinding beauty, seen in stills and film clips. Taylor's voice, even at ages 32 and 53, can range from girlish and flirtatious to bawdy and shrill, sometimes within the same statement. When she describes how the AIDS crisis led...
- 5/29/2024
- MUBI
Being away from home allows room for perspective, and for a group of U.S.-based documentary experts who made the trip to Cannes, the glass remains half full, despite the headwinds. The closure of Participant, Showtime Docs, CNN Films scaling back and belt-tightening across the board have led many to posit that a Golden Age of documentary films has ended. A discussion in the American Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival begged the question: If the Golden Age is over, what comes next?
For the assembled speakers, there was an acceptance of the challenges, but also a desire to take a long view and to look to the future.
“With the market retracting and some distribution outlets not being replaced by others, we’re forced to be creative again about how we get these films out to market, how we find audiences,” said Cinetic Media’s Jason Ishikawa during the Deadline-hosted panel.
For the assembled speakers, there was an acceptance of the challenges, but also a desire to take a long view and to look to the future.
“With the market retracting and some distribution outlets not being replaced by others, we’re forced to be creative again about how we get these films out to market, how we find audiences,” said Cinetic Media’s Jason Ishikawa during the Deadline-hosted panel.
- 5/24/2024
- by Stewart Clarke
- Deadline Film + TV
A celebrity from the age of 11, Elizabeth Taylor was practiced at public relations for almost all her life, so there aren’t many personal revelations in Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes. But Nanette Burstein’s elegantly constructed documentary, mostly in Taylor’s own words backed by illuminating archival images, works as a lively bit of film history about movie stardom in the volatile 1960s as the studio system was fading and the media exploding.
The film — which premiered at Cannes in the Cannes Classics sidebar — is based on 40 hours of recently rediscovered audiotapes, recordings Taylor made in the mid-1960s for a ghost-written memoir (long out of print). It was the most frenzied moment of her fame, when she was coming off the paparazzi-fueled scandal that was Cleopatra. Taylor, who died in 2011, recalls her many marriages — four when she made these recordings, since she was on the first of two...
The film — which premiered at Cannes in the Cannes Classics sidebar — is based on 40 hours of recently rediscovered audiotapes, recordings Taylor made in the mid-1960s for a ghost-written memoir (long out of print). It was the most frenzied moment of her fame, when she was coming off the paparazzi-fueled scandal that was Cleopatra. Taylor, who died in 2011, recalls her many marriages — four when she made these recordings, since she was on the first of two...
- 5/17/2024
- by Caryn James
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
There have been countless books written about the immortal star Elizabeth Taylor, even some credited to her as both memoir or autobiography including 1989’s Elizabeth On Elizabeth. But a book released on January 1, 1965, probably comes closest to a pure autobiography, and the cover simply says, Elizabeth Taylor by Elizabeth Taylor. It is a by-the-numbers account of her life through her own words up until that point, but it actually was written by Richard Meryman, a journalist credited with among other things the last interview with Marilyn Monroe.
Meryman got Taylor to sit for some tape-recorded sessions in 1964, so he would be able to write the book as if Taylor did it herself. Sixty years later, those presumed “lost” recordings have been found and cleared for release by Taylor’s and Meryman’s estates. They have been in Meryman’s wife’s possession all these years,...
Meryman got Taylor to sit for some tape-recorded sessions in 1964, so he would be able to write the book as if Taylor did it herself. Sixty years later, those presumed “lost” recordings have been found and cleared for release by Taylor’s and Meryman’s estates. They have been in Meryman’s wife’s possession all these years,...
- 5/17/2024
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Cannes is not lacking for glamor this year, even in the documentary lineup.
Among the films premiering at the festival is Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes, an HBO feature documentary directed by Nanette Burstein and produced by J.J. Abrams, Glen Zipper, Sean M. Stuart, and Bill Gerber. The documentary draws on conversations with the star recorded decades ago for an autobiography.
“Entirely through the efforts of the [Taylor] estate, they were able to track those tapes down and reclaim them,” Zipper explained in an interview just before he flew to Cannes. “I remember getting an email from one of the trustees of the estate of a picture of the tapes in a box on a private jet on their way back to Los Angeles, strapped in with a seatbelt.”
Director Nanette Burstein
Zipper tells Deadline his production company, Zipper Bros Films, brought Burstein onto the project, a filmmaker known for Hulu’s 2020 docuseries about Hillary Clinton,...
Among the films premiering at the festival is Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes, an HBO feature documentary directed by Nanette Burstein and produced by J.J. Abrams, Glen Zipper, Sean M. Stuart, and Bill Gerber. The documentary draws on conversations with the star recorded decades ago for an autobiography.
“Entirely through the efforts of the [Taylor] estate, they were able to track those tapes down and reclaim them,” Zipper explained in an interview just before he flew to Cannes. “I remember getting an email from one of the trustees of the estate of a picture of the tapes in a box on a private jet on their way back to Los Angeles, strapped in with a seatbelt.”
Director Nanette Burstein
Zipper tells Deadline his production company, Zipper Bros Films, brought Burstein onto the project, a filmmaker known for Hulu’s 2020 docuseries about Hillary Clinton,...
- 5/15/2024
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
The 2024 Tribeca Festival has added even more films, including eight world premieres, to its lineup.
The annual New York event will now include the world premieres of two sports documentaries: Roger Federer’s Twelve Final Days, directed by Asif Kapadia and Joe Sabia, about the 20-time Grand Slam tennis champion’s decision to retire from the sport, and Dawn Porter’s Power of the Dream, about the WNBA’s fights for fair pay, better airtime and social justice. Both docs are set to stream on Amazon’s Prime Video.
And it’s adding the North American premiere of Nanette Burstein’s Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes as well as the world premiere of Sabrina Van Tassel’s Missing From Fire Trail Road, about the efforts to find out what happened to missing Native American woman Mary Ellen Johnson-Davis, who disappeared more than two years ago from the Tulalip Indian reservation near Seattle.
The annual New York event will now include the world premieres of two sports documentaries: Roger Federer’s Twelve Final Days, directed by Asif Kapadia and Joe Sabia, about the 20-time Grand Slam tennis champion’s decision to retire from the sport, and Dawn Porter’s Power of the Dream, about the WNBA’s fights for fair pay, better airtime and social justice. Both docs are set to stream on Amazon’s Prime Video.
And it’s adding the North American premiere of Nanette Burstein’s Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes as well as the world premiere of Sabrina Van Tassel’s Missing From Fire Trail Road, about the efforts to find out what happened to missing Native American woman Mary Ellen Johnson-Davis, who disappeared more than two years ago from the Tulalip Indian reservation near Seattle.
- 5/14/2024
- by Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
New York’s Tribeca Festival has added eight world premieres to its 2024 line-up, including Asif Kapadia and Joe Sabia’s Federer: Twelve Final Days.
The behind-the-scenes sports documentary, which will screen in Tribeca’s Spotlight Documentary section, is about tennis champion Roger Federer and his decision to retire from the sport.
Also set for the festival, which runs June 5-16, is the world premiere, in the International Narrative Competition, of The Freshly Cut Grass, a dramedy directed by Celina Murga and executive produced by Martin Scorsese.
Other world premieres joining the programme are: Power of the Dream, a documentary about women’s professional basketball,...
The behind-the-scenes sports documentary, which will screen in Tribeca’s Spotlight Documentary section, is about tennis champion Roger Federer and his decision to retire from the sport.
Also set for the festival, which runs June 5-16, is the world premiere, in the International Narrative Competition, of The Freshly Cut Grass, a dramedy directed by Celina Murga and executive produced by Martin Scorsese.
Other world premieres joining the programme are: Power of the Dream, a documentary about women’s professional basketball,...
- 5/14/2024
- ScreenDaily
The 2024 Tribeca Festival has added 11 new feature films to its lineup — including a Hannah Einbinder standup special from Max — and has also set a world premiere of Michael Sarnoski’s A Quiet Place: Day One on June 26 in partnership with Paramount Pictures and Imax just ahead of the film’s theatrical release. The red carpet event is for Tribeca members as part of the organization’s push into year-round programming. It’s after the festival, which runs June 5-16.
Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go, features the actress and comedian best known for her role as Ava Daniels in the HBO hit Hacks with Jean Smart.
Other new word premieres include sports documentaries Federer: Twelve Final Days, directed by Asif Kapadia and Joe Sabia — a behind-the-scenes film of the 20-time Grand Slam tennis champion Roger Federer and his emotional decision to retire from the sport — as well as Power of the Dream,...
Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go, features the actress and comedian best known for her role as Ava Daniels in the HBO hit Hacks with Jean Smart.
Other new word premieres include sports documentaries Federer: Twelve Final Days, directed by Asif Kapadia and Joe Sabia — a behind-the-scenes film of the 20-time Grand Slam tennis champion Roger Federer and his emotional decision to retire from the sport — as well as Power of the Dream,...
- 5/14/2024
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
The 2024 Tribeca Festival has just unveiled new additions to its already star-studded lineup.
IndieWire can confirm that the New York premiere of “A Quiet Place: Day One” will take place as part of the festival, which runs June 5 through 16. The film will have a special screening June 26 in partnership with Paramount Pictures in IMAX.
The festival, presented by Okx, announced the addition of 11 new feature films, including eight world premieres. Documentaries “Federer: Twelve Final Days” and “Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes,” produced by J.J. Abrams, are among the highlights, plus Dawn Porter’s “Power of the Dream.”
Hannah Einbinder’s first-ever stand-up comedy special “Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go” will also have its world premiere at the festival.
“At our core, we are an activist festival, united by the belief that art can inspire change,” Tribeca Co-Founder and CEO Jane Rosenthal. “We’re excited to add 11 new films to our Festival lineup,...
IndieWire can confirm that the New York premiere of “A Quiet Place: Day One” will take place as part of the festival, which runs June 5 through 16. The film will have a special screening June 26 in partnership with Paramount Pictures in IMAX.
The festival, presented by Okx, announced the addition of 11 new feature films, including eight world premieres. Documentaries “Federer: Twelve Final Days” and “Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes,” produced by J.J. Abrams, are among the highlights, plus Dawn Porter’s “Power of the Dream.”
Hannah Einbinder’s first-ever stand-up comedy special “Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go” will also have its world premiere at the festival.
“At our core, we are an activist festival, united by the belief that art can inspire change,” Tribeca Co-Founder and CEO Jane Rosenthal. “We’re excited to add 11 new films to our Festival lineup,...
- 5/14/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Cannes Classics, the festival’s selection for tributes and retrospectives, has announced the rest of its program after the previously-announced opening night film “Napoleon Par Abel Gance.”
Among the highlights are a restoration of Charles Vidor’s 1946 “Gilda” to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Columbia Pictures, with Tom Rothman, Chairman and CEO, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, attending. Wim Wenders will be on hand for a 40th anniversary screening of Palme d’Or winner “Paris, Texas,” while Faye Dunaway will be present for the screening of “Faye,” the first documentary about her life.
Ron Howard will present his documentary “Jim Henson Idea Man,” while Nanette Burstein brings the premiere of her documentary “Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes.”
See the full program of Cannes Classics below.
100 years of Columbia Pictures
“Gilda”
Charles Vidor
1946, 1h50, United States
A Sony Pictures Entertainment presentation. Restoration from the original 35mm nitrate negative and a 35mm nitrate internegative.
Among the highlights are a restoration of Charles Vidor’s 1946 “Gilda” to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Columbia Pictures, with Tom Rothman, Chairman and CEO, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, attending. Wim Wenders will be on hand for a 40th anniversary screening of Palme d’Or winner “Paris, Texas,” while Faye Dunaway will be present for the screening of “Faye,” the first documentary about her life.
Ron Howard will present his documentary “Jim Henson Idea Man,” while Nanette Burstein brings the premiere of her documentary “Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes.”
See the full program of Cannes Classics below.
100 years of Columbia Pictures
“Gilda”
Charles Vidor
1946, 1h50, United States
A Sony Pictures Entertainment presentation. Restoration from the original 35mm nitrate negative and a 35mm nitrate internegative.
- 4/25/2024
- by Pat Saperstein
- Variety Film + TV
The Nantucket Film Festival has set the lineup for its 2024 edition and will honor Emmy-nominated writer-producer Kerry Ehrin, Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Roger Ross Williams and Girls5Eva showrunner Meredith Scardino.
The 29th edition of the festival will open with Josh Margolin’s June Squibb-starrer Thelma, close with Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui’s Christopher Reeve documentary Super/Man and Jeff Zimbalist’s documentary Skywalkers: A Love Story, about a daredevil couple who secretly filmed themselves climbing the world’s last super skyscraper. The festival will also continue its tradition of screening a Disney or Pixar film on its opening day, with a festival screening of Inside Out 2.
The festival also announced several honorees: Ehrin will receive the Excellence in Television Writing Award; Williams will receive the Career Achievement in Filmmaking Award and his latest feature Stamped From the Beginning, based on the book of the same name by Ibram X. Kendi,...
The 29th edition of the festival will open with Josh Margolin’s June Squibb-starrer Thelma, close with Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui’s Christopher Reeve documentary Super/Man and Jeff Zimbalist’s documentary Skywalkers: A Love Story, about a daredevil couple who secretly filmed themselves climbing the world’s last super skyscraper. The festival will also continue its tradition of screening a Disney or Pixar film on its opening day, with a festival screening of Inside Out 2.
The festival also announced several honorees: Ehrin will receive the Excellence in Television Writing Award; Williams will receive the Career Achievement in Filmmaking Award and his latest feature Stamped From the Beginning, based on the book of the same name by Ibram X. Kendi,...
- 4/23/2024
- by Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: Keegan-Michael Key and his multi-hyphenate partner Elle Key, along with their Bigger Picture Media Group banner, have signed with Range Media Partners for management.
An Emmy, Peabody, and Webby Award-winning actor, writer, and producer, Keegan-Michael Key last year starred in projects including Illumination and Nintendo’s smash hit The Super Mario Bros. Movie, top holiday movie Wonka opposite Timothée Chalamet, and the second season of the award-winning comedy series Schmigadoon! for Apple TV+. He will next be seen in John Krasinski’s If, the Farrelly brothers’ Christmas comedy Dear Santa alongside Jack Black, and the animated sci-fi pic Transformers One — all for Paramount. Additionally, he’ll be seen coming up on ABC’s Emmy-winning sitcom Abbott Elementary and in Amazon MGM Studios’ crime thriller Play Dirty, opposite Mark Wahlberg and more.
Key came to worldwide attention as the co-creator and co-star, alongside Jordan Peele, of Comedy Central’s Emmy-winning sketch series Key & Peele.
An Emmy, Peabody, and Webby Award-winning actor, writer, and producer, Keegan-Michael Key last year starred in projects including Illumination and Nintendo’s smash hit The Super Mario Bros. Movie, top holiday movie Wonka opposite Timothée Chalamet, and the second season of the award-winning comedy series Schmigadoon! for Apple TV+. He will next be seen in John Krasinski’s If, the Farrelly brothers’ Christmas comedy Dear Santa alongside Jack Black, and the animated sci-fi pic Transformers One — all for Paramount. Additionally, he’ll be seen coming up on ABC’s Emmy-winning sitcom Abbott Elementary and in Amazon MGM Studios’ crime thriller Play Dirty, opposite Mark Wahlberg and more.
Key came to worldwide attention as the co-creator and co-star, alongside Jordan Peele, of Comedy Central’s Emmy-winning sketch series Key & Peele.
- 4/2/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
ESPN Films is working on a docuseries about the legendary Gracie family, Variety has learned exclusively.
Titled “Gracie,” the series will delve deep into the family’s history and dissect how they became the founders of Brazilian jiu jitsu, which serves as a major cornerstone of modern mixed martial arts (Mma).
The official description of the series states: “Featuring larger-than-life personalities, triumphs and tragedies, deep loyalties, passionate loves and deadly feuds, ‘Gracie’ will explore the essence of family, honor, legacy, and humanity’s innate desire to fight. Told through the eyes of key Gracie family members, the series will dive deep into an epic family saga that takes audiences from Scotland and Japan, to Brazil and America.”
The series is directed by Chris Fuller (“Loren Cass”) and is executive produced by ESPN Films. The project is being produced by Solaris Entertainment. Gregory O’Connor, Nanette Burstein, Guy Ritchie and Ivan Atkinson...
Titled “Gracie,” the series will delve deep into the family’s history and dissect how they became the founders of Brazilian jiu jitsu, which serves as a major cornerstone of modern mixed martial arts (Mma).
The official description of the series states: “Featuring larger-than-life personalities, triumphs and tragedies, deep loyalties, passionate loves and deadly feuds, ‘Gracie’ will explore the essence of family, honor, legacy, and humanity’s innate desire to fight. Told through the eyes of key Gracie family members, the series will dive deep into an epic family saga that takes audiences from Scotland and Japan, to Brazil and America.”
The series is directed by Chris Fuller (“Loren Cass”) and is executive produced by ESPN Films. The project is being produced by Solaris Entertainment. Gregory O’Connor, Nanette Burstein, Guy Ritchie and Ivan Atkinson...
- 7/6/2023
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Gigi Pritzker’s entertainment company Madison Wells and veteran doc maker Nanette Burstein have signed a co-production deal to develop premium unscripted projects together.
The two-year agreement will see Burstein, a director, producer and writer best known for the Oscar nominated On The Ropes film, develop documentaries and docuseries with backing from Madison Wells.
“I am thrilled to be partnering with longtime collaborators, Madison Wells, on this new venture. Documentary filmmaking is the love of my life. It is high time I formed my own company to produce not only my own work but support new, up and coming talent in this burgeoning field,” Burstein said in a statement on Tuesday.
Longtime unscripted producer and network exec Lesley Goldman will oversee development across projects that will aim to spotlight pressing issues facing women today.
“We have a long-standing relationship with Nanette and her interests align with our own: telling stories...
The two-year agreement will see Burstein, a director, producer and writer best known for the Oscar nominated On The Ropes film, develop documentaries and docuseries with backing from Madison Wells.
“I am thrilled to be partnering with longtime collaborators, Madison Wells, on this new venture. Documentary filmmaking is the love of my life. It is high time I formed my own company to produce not only my own work but support new, up and coming talent in this burgeoning field,” Burstein said in a statement on Tuesday.
Longtime unscripted producer and network exec Lesley Goldman will oversee development across projects that will aim to spotlight pressing issues facing women today.
“We have a long-standing relationship with Nanette and her interests align with our own: telling stories...
- 4/18/2023
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Sally McNeil was arrested in the late 90s for the murder of her husband, Ray McNeil. Netflix’s Killer Sally worked to explore how the media and authorities portrayed Sally as a female bodybuilder whose recollection of the murder was improbable. But the true crime docuseries relies heavily on Ray’s physical abuse of her and her children. Killer Sally explores the abuse and why John Jr. Lowden said one specific thing to her mother after her arrest for the murder.
Sally McNeil, mother of John Jr. Lowden in ‘Killer Sally’ | via Netflix Ray McNeil started to hurt Sally after their marriage
Sally was still a Marine when she met Ray through a friend. He was also a bodybuilder and former Marine. But Sally called it “lust at first sight ” instead of love at first sight.” His muscles and physique enamored her. The two fell in love, and Sally fell even harder.
Sally McNeil, mother of John Jr. Lowden in ‘Killer Sally’ | via Netflix Ray McNeil started to hurt Sally after their marriage
Sally was still a Marine when she met Ray through a friend. He was also a bodybuilder and former Marine. But Sally called it “lust at first sight ” instead of love at first sight.” His muscles and physique enamored her. The two fell in love, and Sally fell even harder.
- 4/17/2023
- by Gabriela Silva
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Netflix’s Killer Sally three-part true crime series explores Sally McNeil’s side of her husband’s murder and the public’s perception of her during the trials. She claimed shooting her husband was in self-defense, and Ray McNeil had a history of violence and abuse toward her. Killer Sally dives into her defense team using “Battered Woman Syndrome” as a leading factor. But during that time and due to Sally’s image, the jury thought otherwise.
Sally McNeil before the murder from ‘Killer Sally’ | via Netflix What led to Sally’s ‘Battered Woman Syndrome’ in ‘Killer Sally’?
Sally was a Marine when she first met Ray McNeil, also a former Marine. Ray became interested in her when an acquaintance showed him a photo of her. At the time, Sally had developed a love for bodybuilding and competed. For Sally, it was “lust at first sight,” as Ray was also a bodybuilder.
Sally McNeil before the murder from ‘Killer Sally’ | via Netflix What led to Sally’s ‘Battered Woman Syndrome’ in ‘Killer Sally’?
Sally was a Marine when she first met Ray McNeil, also a former Marine. Ray became interested in her when an acquaintance showed him a photo of her. At the time, Sally had developed a love for bodybuilding and competed. For Sally, it was “lust at first sight,” as Ray was also a bodybuilder.
- 4/12/2023
- by Gabriela Silva
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Exclusive: Legendary astronomer and astrophysicist Carl Sagan, who expanded scientific understanding of the universe and helped millions appreciate the wonders of the cosmos, will be the subject of an upcoming documentary feature from National Geographic Documentary Films.
The Untitled Carl Sagan Film will be produced by Fuzzy Door’s Seth MacFarlane and Erica Huggins, Emmy and Peabody winner Ann Druyan – Sagan’s life partner – and Academy Award nominee Nanette Burstein, with Burstein directing. Also producing is production company Hungry Man.
Dr. Carl Sagan during an interview with ‘The Tonight Show’ host Johnny Carson on September 16, 1976.
Sagan’s contributions to planetary science were equaled only by his capacity to spread an infectious joy of the marvel and immensity of space. His 1980 book Cosmos became the best-selling science book ever published in English, and he appeared frequently on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson (amusing the host and the viewing public with...
The Untitled Carl Sagan Film will be produced by Fuzzy Door’s Seth MacFarlane and Erica Huggins, Emmy and Peabody winner Ann Druyan – Sagan’s life partner – and Academy Award nominee Nanette Burstein, with Burstein directing. Also producing is production company Hungry Man.
Dr. Carl Sagan during an interview with ‘The Tonight Show’ host Johnny Carson on September 16, 1976.
Sagan’s contributions to planetary science were equaled only by his capacity to spread an infectious joy of the marvel and immensity of space. His 1980 book Cosmos became the best-selling science book ever published in English, and he appeared frequently on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson (amusing the host and the viewing public with...
- 3/30/2023
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
The second part of this documentary portrait of the tennis star’s rise and fall does fill out the story but it sure takes its time
It is a pleasure, as well as a relief, to be able now to see the second part of Alex Gibney’s documentary about the disgraced German tennis legend who astonished the sports world by winning the Wimbledon men’s singles title in 1985 at just 17, and has wound up in middle age going to prison in the UK for hiding assets after bankruptcy.
Very unfortunately and confusingly, the Berlin film festival showed just the first half of this Apple TV+ documentary (like showing half a movie) – an even more perplexing decision given that the festival showed Charles Ferguson’s Watergate documentary in its four-hour entirety in 2019 and all 252 minutes of Nanette Burstein’s Hillary Clinton documentary in 2020. And what’s more, the film’s...
It is a pleasure, as well as a relief, to be able now to see the second part of Alex Gibney’s documentary about the disgraced German tennis legend who astonished the sports world by winning the Wimbledon men’s singles title in 1985 at just 17, and has wound up in middle age going to prison in the UK for hiding assets after bankruptcy.
Very unfortunately and confusingly, the Berlin film festival showed just the first half of this Apple TV+ documentary (like showing half a movie) – an even more perplexing decision given that the festival showed Charles Ferguson’s Watergate documentary in its four-hour entirety in 2019 and all 252 minutes of Nanette Burstein’s Hillary Clinton documentary in 2020. And what’s more, the film’s...
- 2/22/2023
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Just one year after Maggie Gyllenhaal (“The Lost Daughter”) became the second woman to win the Directors Guild of America’s First-Time Film Director award, Charlotte Wells (“Aftersun”) is set to follow her as the category’s third female champ. The 35-year-old Scottish filmmaker, who helmed three narrative shorts between 2015 and 2017, has already been heavily feted for her feature directing (and writing) debut with accolades such as the Cannes French Touch Prize and the Gotham Award for Best Breakthrough Director. Now, the fact that a whopping 96 of Gold Derby’s 2023 DGA Awards predictions odds-makers have her as their top choice in the rookie race should translate to a decisive win.
This category’s current lineup is the only one in its eight-year history to include just one male nominee. Last year’s unprecedented field of six consisted of two men and four women, including Gyllenhaal. Our odds show Wells far outpacing female contenders Alice Diop,...
This category’s current lineup is the only one in its eight-year history to include just one male nominee. Last year’s unprecedented field of six consisted of two men and four women, including Gyllenhaal. Our odds show Wells far outpacing female contenders Alice Diop,...
- 1/27/2023
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Universal’s ‘Moonage Daydream’ and Sony’s ‘Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song’ both out.
Two modern music icons face off at UK-Ireland cinemas this weekend, with the release of David Bowie documentary Moonage Daydream and Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song.
Opening in 50 sites, most of which are Imax, Universal’s Moonage Daydream is a journey through Bowie’s creative and musical output. The film, which launched as an out-of-competition Midnight Screening in Cannes this May, is written, directed, edited and produced by US filmmaker Brett Morgen.
Moonage Daydream has the backing of the David Bowie estate...
Two modern music icons face off at UK-Ireland cinemas this weekend, with the release of David Bowie documentary Moonage Daydream and Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song.
Opening in 50 sites, most of which are Imax, Universal’s Moonage Daydream is a journey through Bowie’s creative and musical output. The film, which launched as an out-of-competition Midnight Screening in Cannes this May, is written, directed, edited and produced by US filmmaker Brett Morgen.
Moonage Daydream has the backing of the David Bowie estate...
- 9/16/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Click here to read the full article.
The incredible life and death story of John McAfee — who passed away in 2021 — is getting the feature doc treatment at Netflix.
The streamer has ordered Running With The Devil: The Wild World of John McAfee from London-based Curious Films, marking their Netflix debut.
The original computer genius gone rogue, McAfee famously invented of one of the most successful — and hated — pieces of software of all time with the McAfee Anti-Virus. At his peak, he was worth 100 million. But when his neighbor was murdered, he went on the run — cashed in his fortune, left civilization and moved to the jungle in Belize, where he set up a Colonel Kurtz-like compound of guns, sex and madness. But he invited a film crew to join him.
Claiming that he was running for his life and chased by armed gunmen, McAfee and the film crew traveled deep into the rainforest,...
The incredible life and death story of John McAfee — who passed away in 2021 — is getting the feature doc treatment at Netflix.
The streamer has ordered Running With The Devil: The Wild World of John McAfee from London-based Curious Films, marking their Netflix debut.
The original computer genius gone rogue, McAfee famously invented of one of the most successful — and hated — pieces of software of all time with the McAfee Anti-Virus. At his peak, he was worth 100 million. But when his neighbor was murdered, he went on the run — cashed in his fortune, left civilization and moved to the jungle in Belize, where he set up a Colonel Kurtz-like compound of guns, sex and madness. But he invited a film crew to join him.
Claiming that he was running for his life and chased by armed gunmen, McAfee and the film crew traveled deep into the rainforest,...
- 7/27/2022
- by Alex Ritman
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hulu has passed on “Rodham,” the scripted alternate history series about Hillary Clinton that has been in development since 2020, TheWrap has learned.
A source close to the 20th Television project confirmed to TheWrap on Friday that they are still trying to find a home for the series, which now has Claire Danes and Dakota Fanning attached to play Clinton at different points in her life.
Writer-producer Sarah Treem, who was the showrunner on Showtime’s “The Affair,” was set to executive-produce the write the adaptation of Curtis Sittenfeld’s 2020 novel, in which Hillary Rodham never married Bill Clinton. The deal included James Ponsoldt as director and Warren Littlefield’s Littlefield Co. as producer.
In 2020, Hulu aired Nanette Burstein’s four-part docuseries “Hillary,” after it premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.
Clinton was last played on screen by Edie Falco in the FX series “Impeachment: American Crime Story.”
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A source close to the 20th Television project confirmed to TheWrap on Friday that they are still trying to find a home for the series, which now has Claire Danes and Dakota Fanning attached to play Clinton at different points in her life.
Writer-producer Sarah Treem, who was the showrunner on Showtime’s “The Affair,” was set to executive-produce the write the adaptation of Curtis Sittenfeld’s 2020 novel, in which Hillary Rodham never married Bill Clinton. The deal included James Ponsoldt as director and Warren Littlefield’s Littlefield Co. as producer.
In 2020, Hulu aired Nanette Burstein’s four-part docuseries “Hillary,” after it premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.
Clinton was last played on screen by Edie Falco in the FX series “Impeachment: American Crime Story.”
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- 5/13/2022
- by Sharon Knolle
- The Wrap
Nearly three decades after making her film acting debut at age 14, Maggie Gyllenhaal has now added her first feature writing and directing credits to her resume. Since its Venice International Film Festival premiere last September, her “The Lost Daughter” has won her numerous accolades, from the festival’s Golden Osella to the Independent Spirit Awards for Best Feature, Best Director and Best Screenplay. Gyllenhaal is also nominated for the Directors Guild of America’s First-Time Film Director award. According to our DGA Awards odds, she is widely expected to prevail and thereby become only the second woman to receive the honor.
This particular glass ceiling was broken by Alma Har’el, who took the 2020 prize for helming “Honey Boy.” Since the category’s establishment in 2015, 11 women and 25 men have vied for the award, making for a 1:2.3 ratio. The first female contender was inaugural nominee Marielle Heller. Aside from her and Har’el,...
This particular glass ceiling was broken by Alma Har’el, who took the 2020 prize for helming “Honey Boy.” Since the category’s establishment in 2015, 11 women and 25 men have vied for the award, making for a 1:2.3 ratio. The first female contender was inaugural nominee Marielle Heller. Aside from her and Har’el,...
- 3/10/2022
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
What brings documentaries to life? For an increasing number of them, it’s colorful characters — literally. Animation is making docs more accessible to a wider audience, allowing filmmakers to dramatize scenes that can’t be shown with footage and bringing them into once-unimagined awards categories.
No film has demonstrated this more clearly than Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s refugee saga “Flee.” The Neon/Participant release made Oscar shortlists for both documentary feature and international feature film, won a Gotham Award for documentary and Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary. But it also scored a Golden Globe nom and Boston, Chicago and Detroit critics group award wins for animated feature, paving the way for an Academy Award nomination in that category as well.
The critical success of this Danish/French/Swedish/Norwegian co-production is igniting interest in other animated docs at the upcoming Sundance Film Festival, but this...
No film has demonstrated this more clearly than Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s refugee saga “Flee.” The Neon/Participant release made Oscar shortlists for both documentary feature and international feature film, won a Gotham Award for documentary and Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary. But it also scored a Golden Globe nom and Boston, Chicago and Detroit critics group award wins for animated feature, paving the way for an Academy Award nomination in that category as well.
The critical success of this Danish/French/Swedish/Norwegian co-production is igniting interest in other animated docs at the upcoming Sundance Film Festival, but this...
- 1/21/2022
- by Gregg Goldstein
- Variety Film + TV
Brett Morgen, the freewheeling director behind “Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck,” “Jane” and “The Kid Stays in the Picture,” is finalizing a top-secret David Bowie project based on thousands of hours of rare performance footage of the musician, most of it previously uncirculated, sources confirm to Variety.
Morgen has been at work on the Bowie film, for which an official title has not been disclosed, for the last four years. A source close to the production cryptically describes it as “neither documentary nor biography, but an immersive cinematic experience built, in part, upon thousands of hours of never before seen material.”
Sources say live concert footage plays a central role in the film, and that Morgen is eyeing an IMAX release. The filmmaker wears a number of hats on the project, taking on editing, writing and producing duties, in addition to directing.
A Sundance Film Festival premiere in late January could be in the cards.
Morgen has been at work on the Bowie film, for which an official title has not been disclosed, for the last four years. A source close to the production cryptically describes it as “neither documentary nor biography, but an immersive cinematic experience built, in part, upon thousands of hours of never before seen material.”
Sources say live concert footage plays a central role in the film, and that Morgen is eyeing an IMAX release. The filmmaker wears a number of hats on the project, taking on editing, writing and producing duties, in addition to directing.
A Sundance Film Festival premiere in late January could be in the cards.
- 11/18/2021
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
In honor of Women’s Equality Day (August 26), HBO Max announces the launch of its “So She Did” campaign, which champions the network’s female pioneers in front of and behind the camera.
The campaign kicks off with a film that celebrates the women who have been told they are “too much” and break all the rules to be who they authentically are.
The film features nine female-identifying talent: Jordan Alexander (“Gossip Girl”), Laura Donnelly (“The Nevers”), Susie Essman (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”), Myha’la Herrold (“Industry”), Martha Plimpton (“Generation”), Lisa Ling (CNN’s “This is Life with Lisa Ling”), Hannah Einbinder (“Hacks”), Zion Moreno (“Gossip Girl”) and Eyricka Lanvin (“Legendary”).
Ling kicks off the promo video, saying “When we were little, they told us we could be anything.”
“But when we became everything, that was too much for some folks,” Alexander chimes in. “When we push the boundaries. Sometimes the boundaries push back.
The campaign kicks off with a film that celebrates the women who have been told they are “too much” and break all the rules to be who they authentically are.
The film features nine female-identifying talent: Jordan Alexander (“Gossip Girl”), Laura Donnelly (“The Nevers”), Susie Essman (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”), Myha’la Herrold (“Industry”), Martha Plimpton (“Generation”), Lisa Ling (CNN’s “This is Life with Lisa Ling”), Hannah Einbinder (“Hacks”), Zion Moreno (“Gossip Girl”) and Eyricka Lanvin (“Legendary”).
Ling kicks off the promo video, saying “When we were little, they told us we could be anything.”
“But when we became everything, that was too much for some folks,” Alexander chimes in. “When we push the boundaries. Sometimes the boundaries push back.
- 8/26/2021
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Last spring, New York City became the global epicenter of the Covid-19 pandemic, its hospitals struggling to cope with a surge of patients, while temporary morgues filled up with victims.
That grim period, and the health care workers who bravely tended to the sick, are the focus of an upcoming documentary produced by Convicts studio that has reached a global distribution deal with Propagate International.
The untitled film directed by Jonny Kapps foregrounds three medical workers at Mount Sinai Health System in New York who fought in the trenches as the novel coronavirus overwhelmed the city.
“With unprecedented access into Mount Sinai Health System and its team,” Convicts and Propagate tell Deadline, “the documentary provides a rare and intimate window into the harrowing plight of frontline healthcare workers as they care for ill patients and navigate personal hardships amidst the greatest public health crisis of our generation.”
New Yorkers,...
That grim period, and the health care workers who bravely tended to the sick, are the focus of an upcoming documentary produced by Convicts studio that has reached a global distribution deal with Propagate International.
The untitled film directed by Jonny Kapps foregrounds three medical workers at Mount Sinai Health System in New York who fought in the trenches as the novel coronavirus overwhelmed the city.
“With unprecedented access into Mount Sinai Health System and its team,” Convicts and Propagate tell Deadline, “the documentary provides a rare and intimate window into the harrowing plight of frontline healthcare workers as they care for ill patients and navigate personal hardships amidst the greatest public health crisis of our generation.”
New Yorkers,...
- 2/11/2021
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
With such a wide array of potential awards contenders in film and television, awards groups like the Cinema Eye Honors help to cull the field. This year, HBO Documentary Films leads the broadcast categories with 10 nominations, including three each for Liz Garbus’ serial killer series “I’ll Be Gone in the Dark” and David France’s Oscar contender “Welcome to Chechnya.” Cinema Eye also unveiled 10 short documentary semifinalists for the short filmmaking honors.
The Outstanding Broadcast Film nominees also include “Bully. Coward. Victim.: The Story of Roy Cohn,” directed by Ivy Meeropol, 2020 Oscar winner “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl),” directed by Carol Dysinger, “Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese,” and “Sea of Shadows,” directed by Richard Ladkani.
Outstanding Series Nominees include “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children,” directed by Joshua Bennett, Maro Chermayeff, Jeff Dupre, and Sam Pollard, “Hillary,...
The Outstanding Broadcast Film nominees also include “Bully. Coward. Victim.: The Story of Roy Cohn,” directed by Ivy Meeropol, 2020 Oscar winner “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl),” directed by Carol Dysinger, “Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese,” and “Sea of Shadows,” directed by Richard Ladkani.
Outstanding Series Nominees include “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children,” directed by Joshua Bennett, Maro Chermayeff, Jeff Dupre, and Sam Pollard, “Hillary,...
- 11/19/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
With such a wide array of potential awards contenders in film and television, awards groups like the Cinema Eye Honors help to cull the field. This year, HBO Documentary Films leads the broadcast categories with 10 nominations, including three each for Liz Garbus’ serial killer series “I’ll Be Gone in the Dark” and David France’s Oscar contender “Welcome to Chechnya.” Cinema Eye also unveiled 10 short documentary semifinalists for the short filmmaking honors.
The Outstanding Broadcast Film nominees also include “Bully. Coward. Victim.: The Story of Roy Cohn,” directed by Ivy Meeropol, 2020 Oscar winner “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl),” directed by Carol Dysinger, “Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese,” and “Sea of Shadows,” directed by Richard Ladkani.
Outstanding Series Nominees include “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children,” directed by Joshua Bennett, Maro Chermayeff, Jeff Dupre, and Sam Pollard, “Hillary,...
The Outstanding Broadcast Film nominees also include “Bully. Coward. Victim.: The Story of Roy Cohn,” directed by Ivy Meeropol, 2020 Oscar winner “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl),” directed by Carol Dysinger, “Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese,” and “Sea of Shadows,” directed by Richard Ladkani.
Outstanding Series Nominees include “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children,” directed by Joshua Bennett, Maro Chermayeff, Jeff Dupre, and Sam Pollard, “Hillary,...
- 11/19/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
David France’s “Welcome to Chechnya,” a documentary about LGBTQ activists trying to help during the Chechnya government’s brutal crackdown on gays and lesbians, leads all films in nominations in the Cinema Eye Honors’ broadcast categories, which were announced on Thursday during a virtual edition of its annual fall lunch.
Cinema Eye, a New York-based organization founded in 2007 to recognize all aspects of nonfiction filmmaking, also announced its new Stay Focused initiative. The program spotlights 12 films by up-and-coming filmmakers who lost the chance for theatrical exhibition and film-festival exposure because of the coronavirus pandemic. Cinema Eye has pledged to find “in-person opportunities” for the filmmakers once the pandemic subsides, starting with theatrical screenings at the new Vidiots Theatre in Los Angeles in late 2021.
The 12 films include Cecilia Aldorondo’s “Landfall,” which recently won a jury award at Doc NYC; David Osit’s “Mayor,” about the Christian mayor of a...
Cinema Eye, a New York-based organization founded in 2007 to recognize all aspects of nonfiction filmmaking, also announced its new Stay Focused initiative. The program spotlights 12 films by up-and-coming filmmakers who lost the chance for theatrical exhibition and film-festival exposure because of the coronavirus pandemic. Cinema Eye has pledged to find “in-person opportunities” for the filmmakers once the pandemic subsides, starting with theatrical screenings at the new Vidiots Theatre in Los Angeles in late 2021.
The 12 films include Cecilia Aldorondo’s “Landfall,” which recently won a jury award at Doc NYC; David Osit’s “Mayor,” about the Christian mayor of a...
- 11/19/2020
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
This year’s Emmy nominations for the Outstanding Documentary or Non-Fiction Series were competitive — and that’s because the nominees comprise some of the most compelling, tantalizing, and binge-worthy works that kept us all talking. I
It was really anyone’s game last night but, in the end, the ESPN series “The Last Dance” secured its first win out of three nominations. “The Last Dance” focused on basketball superstar Michael Jordan and his final year with the Chicago Bulls. Jordan’s tenure on the Bulls is beloved, and in a year where nostalgia has been the only safe haven in a world full of chaos, it’s a win that makes sense. It was also nominated for its editing and direction in the documentary/non-fiction sphere.
But, as stated already, this was a tough category. The PBS series “American Masters” was being touted as the front-runner up until the award was announced.
It was really anyone’s game last night but, in the end, the ESPN series “The Last Dance” secured its first win out of three nominations. “The Last Dance” focused on basketball superstar Michael Jordan and his final year with the Chicago Bulls. Jordan’s tenure on the Bulls is beloved, and in a year where nostalgia has been the only safe haven in a world full of chaos, it’s a win that makes sense. It was also nominated for its editing and direction in the documentary/non-fiction sphere.
But, as stated already, this was a tough category. The PBS series “American Masters” was being touted as the front-runner up until the award was announced.
- 9/20/2020
- by Kristen Lopez
- Indiewire
In the video above, Hulu hosted a digital happy hour conversation between former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Academy Award-nominated director Nanette Burstein about their documentary series “Hillary,” as moderated by IndieWire TV Awards Editor Libby Hill. The four-part, Emmy-nominated documentary series tracks not just Clinton’s life and career, but examines the sociopolitical landscape of the United States over the last 50 years, with particular focus on women’s evolving role within the system.
The chat is now streaming.
Clinton ended her historic 2016 presidential campaign with around 1,700 hours of behind-the-scenes video footage, which Burstein meticulously combed through to craft her narrative. The director also sat down with Clinton for 35 hours worth of interviews, which appear throughout the documentary series, in addition to archival footage and an extensive amount of ancillary interviews with Clinton’s friends and family, colleagues, former staffers, and journalists who’ve followed the long-time politician’s career.
The chat is now streaming.
Clinton ended her historic 2016 presidential campaign with around 1,700 hours of behind-the-scenes video footage, which Burstein meticulously combed through to craft her narrative. The director also sat down with Clinton for 35 hours worth of interviews, which appear throughout the documentary series, in addition to archival footage and an extensive amount of ancillary interviews with Clinton’s friends and family, colleagues, former staffers, and journalists who’ve followed the long-time politician’s career.
- 8/25/2020
- by Libby Hill
- Indiewire
CAA agents Dave Bugliari, Michael Cooper, Mick Sullivan and Jack Whigham have left the talent agency and will join their former colleague Peter Micelli’s new management and production company, multiple individuals with knowledge of the move told TheWrap.
Others who have recently been added to the staff of the new company are WME lit agent Rich Cook, along with Mackenzie Roussos, Susie Fox, Chelsea Mckinnies and Lucinda Moorhead.
These exits come following the departure of CAA Motion Picture Literary Agent Scott Greenberg, who left to join Lbi Entertainment as a manager and a partner, where he has continued to represent clients Antoine Fuqua, Jaume Collet-Serra, Taylor Sheridan, Dan Gilroy, Brad Ingelsby and Nanette Burstein, among others.
Also Read: Scott Greenberg Departs CAA to Become Manager and Partner at Lbi Entertainment
Micelli stepped down from his role at Entertainment One as the company’s chief strategy officer of film, television...
Others who have recently been added to the staff of the new company are WME lit agent Rich Cook, along with Mackenzie Roussos, Susie Fox, Chelsea Mckinnies and Lucinda Moorhead.
These exits come following the departure of CAA Motion Picture Literary Agent Scott Greenberg, who left to join Lbi Entertainment as a manager and a partner, where he has continued to represent clients Antoine Fuqua, Jaume Collet-Serra, Taylor Sheridan, Dan Gilroy, Brad Ingelsby and Nanette Burstein, among others.
Also Read: Scott Greenberg Departs CAA to Become Manager and Partner at Lbi Entertainment
Micelli stepped down from his role at Entertainment One as the company’s chief strategy officer of film, television...
- 8/24/2020
- by Rosemary Rossi and Jeremy Fuster
- The Wrap
“The person who tries to burst through the glass ceiling takes all the sharks and takes a lot of pain and gets a lot of scar tissue and Hillary did all those things,” says “Hillary” executive producer Howard T. Owens about the subject of his documentary for Hulu. He explains in an exclusive interview with Gold Derby (watch the video above), “The story of Hillary Clinton to me is a change agent and a fighter and someone who wanted to make a difference and someone who wanted to give back to their country and someone who fought to do so.”
As founder and co-ceo of Propagate Content, the production company behind the project, Owens learned of the existence of footage from Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign that could be used for a documentary, so he met with Clinton to confirm “a creative match.” Owens says about the concept, “The initial idea...
As founder and co-ceo of Propagate Content, the production company behind the project, Owens learned of the existence of footage from Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign that could be used for a documentary, so he met with Clinton to confirm “a creative match.” Owens says about the concept, “The initial idea...
- 8/21/2020
- by Riley Chow
- Gold Derby
Between 2008 and 2018, four documentary directors focused their lenses on a quartet of formidable women. Women who are remarkably similar, yet incredibly different. Who defy patriarchy and inspire change. Women whose names are Dr. Amani Ballour, Hillary Clinton, Ursula Kroeber Le Guin and Michelle Obama.
While Clinton and Obama, two former first ladies, are better-known then Ballour and Le Guin, all four of these females have lives that contain an arsenal of dense material through which each filmmaker had to carefully sift and then whittle down in order to construct a project that succinctly and effectively told each groundbreaking story. The result is four Emmy nominated nonfiction projects: “The Cave,” “Hillary,” “American Masters” and “Becoming.”
National Geographic’s “The Cave,” nominated in the exceptional merit in documentary filmmaking category, focuses on unlikely heroine Ballour, who was Syria’s first and only female hospital administrator. Director Feras Fayyad first laid eyes on...
While Clinton and Obama, two former first ladies, are better-known then Ballour and Le Guin, all four of these females have lives that contain an arsenal of dense material through which each filmmaker had to carefully sift and then whittle down in order to construct a project that succinctly and effectively told each groundbreaking story. The result is four Emmy nominated nonfiction projects: “The Cave,” “Hillary,” “American Masters” and “Becoming.”
National Geographic’s “The Cave,” nominated in the exceptional merit in documentary filmmaking category, focuses on unlikely heroine Ballour, who was Syria’s first and only female hospital administrator. Director Feras Fayyad first laid eyes on...
- 8/18/2020
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Scott Greenberg is leaving CAA to become a manager and partner at Lbi Entertainment. He is making the move amicably from agent to manager and will join Lbi principal Rick Yorn, a close friend and mentor since they were fraternity brothers at the University of Maryland, where Yorn gave Greenberg his pledge pin late one night as the pledge worked his way into Tau Kappa Epsilon. Greenberg will make the move after Labor Day.
Greenberg, who began working in the CAA mailroom 29 years ago, will be bringing a major infusion of A-list directors. They are still working out the details, but the clients who’ll be managed by Greenberg are expected to continue to be agented by CAA.
Said CAA President & Co-Chairman Richard Lovett: “Scott has been a valued member of the CAA family and an exceptional advocate for his clients for many years. We are thrilled to...
Greenberg, who began working in the CAA mailroom 29 years ago, will be bringing a major infusion of A-list directors. They are still working out the details, but the clients who’ll be managed by Greenberg are expected to continue to be agented by CAA.
Said CAA President & Co-Chairman Richard Lovett: “Scott has been a valued member of the CAA family and an exceptional advocate for his clients for many years. We are thrilled to...
- 8/12/2020
- by Justin Kroll and Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Hillary Clinton was the guest Monday on The Daily Social Distancing Show with Trevor Noah, and the former Secretary of State and presidential candidate talked about Donald Trump, Roger Stone, voter suppression and the one thing one everyone’s mind — what she’s been up to in isolation.
After discussing the 100th anniversary of American women getting the right to vote and her work with the nonprofit Onward Together, she got to the really important stuff. “And then I get to spend time with my grandchildren, which I have to say is the biggest silver lining, Trevor, that you can imagine during this very difficult time.”
Smiling and jovial, she added from her home: “I don’t know what I do all day, but I’m exhausted every night!”
Topics of the nearly 15-minute edited interview also included voter suppression, which she puts squarely at the feet of the GOP...
After discussing the 100th anniversary of American women getting the right to vote and her work with the nonprofit Onward Together, she got to the really important stuff. “And then I get to spend time with my grandchildren, which I have to say is the biggest silver lining, Trevor, that you can imagine during this very difficult time.”
Smiling and jovial, she added from her home: “I don’t know what I do all day, but I’m exhausted every night!”
Topics of the nearly 15-minute edited interview also included voter suppression, which she puts squarely at the feet of the GOP...
- 7/14/2020
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
It only took 50 years in the spotlight, 2000 hours of behind-the-scenes footage from her 2016 Presidential Election campaign, and 35 hours of intensive one-on-one interviews to answer one of the most enduring mysteries of modern American history: Who is Hillary Clinton?
It turns out, she’s exactly who she said she was.
The specifics of why Clinton is perceived the way she is and how her interaction with the press and public has shaped her behavior — creating an ouroboros of feedback and adjustment that would haunt her entire political career — form the center of Nanette Burstein’s brilliant Hulu documentary series “Hillary.” The four-part series has done the heavy lifting for audiences. In candid conversations, Clinton herself unpacks her own life as framed by history.
But while it’s impossible to capture the full nuance of how Clinton’s life intersects with the course of American history, as well as how it has shaped public perception of her,...
It turns out, she’s exactly who she said she was.
The specifics of why Clinton is perceived the way she is and how her interaction with the press and public has shaped her behavior — creating an ouroboros of feedback and adjustment that would haunt her entire political career — form the center of Nanette Burstein’s brilliant Hulu documentary series “Hillary.” The four-part series has done the heavy lifting for audiences. In candid conversations, Clinton herself unpacks her own life as framed by history.
But while it’s impossible to capture the full nuance of how Clinton’s life intersects with the course of American history, as well as how it has shaped public perception of her,...
- 7/3/2020
- by Libby Hill
- Indiewire
One might think that “Last Chance U” and “Cheer” executive producer and director Greg Whiteley’s 2014 documentary experience with Mitt Romney would bond him to Nanette Burstein, who executive produced and directed “Hillary,” a four-part docuseries about Hillary Clinton. It would not be an incorrect assumption, but it would be a limiting one.
When Variety brought the filmmakers together for a candid conversation about their recent Emmy-eligible series, we found they have something much deeper in common: Both of their approaches to storytelling can be summed up by the opening of Burstein’s 2002 documentary “The Kid Stays in the Picture,” about Robert Evans.
That project begins with the admission that there are multiple sides to a story and only one (very specific) side will be told within. The people Burstein and Whiteley choose to follow dictate the stories they will be telling, which means they are telling a person’s truth,...
When Variety brought the filmmakers together for a candid conversation about their recent Emmy-eligible series, we found they have something much deeper in common: Both of their approaches to storytelling can be summed up by the opening of Burstein’s 2002 documentary “The Kid Stays in the Picture,” about Robert Evans.
That project begins with the admission that there are multiple sides to a story and only one (very specific) side will be told within. The people Burstein and Whiteley choose to follow dictate the stories they will be telling, which means they are telling a person’s truth,...
- 7/2/2020
- by Danielle Turchiano
- Variety Film + TV
Streaming has not only changed the way we produce and consume TV, but, to hear our Meet the Experts: Documentary panelists tell it, the entire documentary field in general. In the past decade, as more platforms emerged, more documentaries have been made, becoming addictive viewing for fans (see: “Tiger King”) and legitimizing the genre as a form of entertainment.
“I’ve seen a huge change. I’ve been making documentaries for 25 years [and] it was a struggle. There were very few outlets and it wasn’t because there wasn’t an audience — it was just a question of how to reach that audience,” “Hillary’s” Nanette Burstein told Gold Derby (watch above). “So streaming was the answer. And it was the unexpected answer and it really changed the marketplace. I think there is, as we’ve seen, a hunger from audiences to see real stories, amazing stories and amazing filmmakers out...
“I’ve seen a huge change. I’ve been making documentaries for 25 years [and] it was a struggle. There were very few outlets and it wasn’t because there wasn’t an audience — it was just a question of how to reach that audience,” “Hillary’s” Nanette Burstein told Gold Derby (watch above). “So streaming was the answer. And it was the unexpected answer and it really changed the marketplace. I think there is, as we’ve seen, a hunger from audiences to see real stories, amazing stories and amazing filmmakers out...
- 7/1/2020
- by Joyce Eng
- Gold Derby
Hillary Clinton and Nanette Burstein first met in 2018, two years after the presidential election that shook the world. Burstein was chosen to make a documentary based on behind-the-scenes footage captured in 2016 by Clinton’s staff. Hillary, a four-part series, premiered on Hulu in March, and in 35 hours of interviews with Burstein, Clinton addressed everything from growing up as a feminist, to her devastating electoral loss to Donald Trump. In between are key sections about Clinton’s time in the U.S. Senate, serving as Barack Obama’s Secretary of State, and decades of experiences with husband Bill Clinton, one of many candid on-camera interviewees. In a Zoom conversation with Deadline, Clinton and Burstein discuss Hillary and the tumult of 2020. This presidential election year, now also defined by Covid-19 and sweeping protests against racism, has thrust their historical record into a vibrant dialogue with the present.
- 7/1/2020
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
When Nanette Burstein agreed to direct Hulu’s Hillary Clinton documentary “Hillary” in 2018, she knew she didn’t want to focus on the one thing everyone would expect it to be about: the 2016 election, of which she acquired thousands of hours of footage filmed during Clinton’s campaign. “Right away I did not want to make a film about the campaign. I felt like it was too raw and too soon and more than that,” Burstein told Gold Derby during our Meet the Experts: Documentary panel (watch above). “I felt that there was a story that was much more important to tell.”
Instead, Burstein, who co-directed the Oscar-nominated “On the Ropes” (1999), widened the scope of the project to incorporate the story of Clinton’s life and her impact on the women’s movement from her days at Wellesley College to the women’s march sparked by her 2016 loss. The four-part...
Instead, Burstein, who co-directed the Oscar-nominated “On the Ropes” (1999), widened the scope of the project to incorporate the story of Clinton’s life and her impact on the women’s movement from her days at Wellesley College to the women’s march sparked by her 2016 loss. The four-part...
- 7/1/2020
- by Joyce Eng
- Gold Derby
Amy Schumer had a message for Hillary Clinton.
On the day after the 2016 election, the “Trainwreck” actor and comedian took to her Instagram account to express her rage at the millions of Americans who had supported Donald Trump. “People who voted for him, you are weak. You’re not just misinformed, you didn’t attempt information,” Schumer wrote online. “Well, you’ve gotten what you asked for. And now you can watch the sky open up, literally.”
“Wow, who said that?” Clinton asked, when presented with the quote.
“That’s me,” Schumer responded.
For nearly an hour, Schumer and Clinton spoke in a far-ranging conversation over Zoom which airs on Tuesday afternoon for Variety’s first virtual TV festival. What brought them together was an unexpected common experience. Both Clinton and Schumer are the subjects of recent documentaries about their careers and lives as trailblazing feminists — in both politics (for...
On the day after the 2016 election, the “Trainwreck” actor and comedian took to her Instagram account to express her rage at the millions of Americans who had supported Donald Trump. “People who voted for him, you are weak. You’re not just misinformed, you didn’t attempt information,” Schumer wrote online. “Well, you’ve gotten what you asked for. And now you can watch the sky open up, literally.”
“Wow, who said that?” Clinton asked, when presented with the quote.
“That’s me,” Schumer responded.
For nearly an hour, Schumer and Clinton spoke in a far-ranging conversation over Zoom which airs on Tuesday afternoon for Variety’s first virtual TV festival. What brought them together was an unexpected common experience. Both Clinton and Schumer are the subjects of recent documentaries about their careers and lives as trailblazing feminists — in both politics (for...
- 6/23/2020
- by Ramin Setoodeh
- Variety Film + TV
Four of TV’s top documentary filmmakers will reveal the details behind their gritty and true life programs when they join Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&a event with key 2020 Emmy contenders this month. Each person will participate in two video discussions to be published soon: one-on-one with our senior editor Joyce Eng and a group chat with Joyce and all of the directors together.
SEEalmost 300 interviews with 2020 Emmy contenders
This “Meet the Experts” panel welcomes the following 2020 Emmy contenders:
Nanette Burstein represents Hulu for “Hillary”
Burstein received an Oscar nomination and Directors Guild win for “On the Ropes.” Other projects have included “The Creators,” “Going the Distance” and “The Kid Stays in the Picture.”
James Hernandez represents HBO for “McMillion$”
Hernandez has also directed “Stick Together,” “Phantom,” “Four Chaplains,” “Unnatural Selection,” “Happenstance” and “The Sixth Minute.”
Reginald Hudlin represents Netflix for “The Black Godfather”
Hudlin received...
SEEalmost 300 interviews with 2020 Emmy contenders
This “Meet the Experts” panel welcomes the following 2020 Emmy contenders:
Nanette Burstein represents Hulu for “Hillary”
Burstein received an Oscar nomination and Directors Guild win for “On the Ropes.” Other projects have included “The Creators,” “Going the Distance” and “The Kid Stays in the Picture.”
James Hernandez represents HBO for “McMillion$”
Hernandez has also directed “Stick Together,” “Phantom,” “Four Chaplains,” “Unnatural Selection,” “Happenstance” and “The Sixth Minute.”
Reginald Hudlin represents Netflix for “The Black Godfather”
Hudlin received...
- 6/18/2020
- by Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
From the outset, Nanette Burstein’s documentary Hillary reaches to humanise its subject; that much is clear in its folksy tone and first name basis title. Yet although it generally succeeds in that goal, the four-part series – a flagship of Sky’s new, lockdown-friendly Documentaries channel – too often veers away from intimate contact with Clinton. More crucially still, its effort to demystify what went wrong in 2016 leaves much to be desired.
Both of those things may be less Burstein’s fault than Clinton’s. The former First Lady, Senator, Secretary of State and two-time presidential candidate quips early on in her seemingly lengthy sit-downs with Burstein, “I’m the most investigated innocent person in America.” Crucially, such hyperbole from a famously cautious speaker – with more than a glint of self-pity that sounds, dare I say, almost presidential these days – occurs after the camera is supposed to have stopped rolling. It...
Both of those things may be less Burstein’s fault than Clinton’s. The former First Lady, Senator, Secretary of State and two-time presidential candidate quips early on in her seemingly lengthy sit-downs with Burstein, “I’m the most investigated innocent person in America.” Crucially, such hyperbole from a famously cautious speaker – with more than a glint of self-pity that sounds, dare I say, almost presidential these days – occurs after the camera is supposed to have stopped rolling. It...
- 6/11/2020
- by Adam Solomons
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Politics are everywhere in 2020, especially on TV, where Hulu premiered its documentary series “Hillary” on March 6. Its subject, politician Hillary Rodham Clinton, didn’t win the 2016 presidential election, but this look into her life and career could win Emmys. So what do critics think of this portrait of a lady under fire?
As of this writing “Hillary” has a MetaCritic score of 76 based on 18 reviews counted thus far: 15 positive, 3 somewhat mixed, none outright negative. On Rotten Tomatoes, which categorizes reviews simply as positive or negative and not on MetaCritic’s nuanced sliding scale, it has a freshness rating of 76% based on 41 reviews, 10 of which are classified as negative. The Rt critics’ consensus says, “‘Hillary’ faces the impossible task of consolidating a full life into four hours — still, it serves as an insightful, often powerful exploration of Hillary Clinton’s life and legacy.”
SEE73% of Emmy viewers want a host this year,...
As of this writing “Hillary” has a MetaCritic score of 76 based on 18 reviews counted thus far: 15 positive, 3 somewhat mixed, none outright negative. On Rotten Tomatoes, which categorizes reviews simply as positive or negative and not on MetaCritic’s nuanced sliding scale, it has a freshness rating of 76% based on 41 reviews, 10 of which are classified as negative. The Rt critics’ consensus says, “‘Hillary’ faces the impossible task of consolidating a full life into four hours — still, it serves as an insightful, often powerful exploration of Hillary Clinton’s life and legacy.”
SEE73% of Emmy viewers want a host this year,...
- 3/10/2020
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
With heavy hype and globs of press, Hulu is set to premiere its Hillary Clinton documentary series March 6.
The four-part series, directed by Nanette Burstein (The Kid Stays in the Picture), is an examination of her life, both public and private, dating back to her childhood. Over the course of more than four hours, Clinton along with several dozen friends, colleagues, journalists and family members explore a range of subjects, from her marital woes to her two failed presidential attempts.
On the eve of its release, here are 10 things to know about the making of Hillary.
1....
The four-part series, directed by Nanette Burstein (The Kid Stays in the Picture), is an examination of her life, both public and private, dating back to her childhood. Over the course of more than four hours, Clinton along with several dozen friends, colleagues, journalists and family members explore a range of subjects, from her marital woes to her two failed presidential attempts.
On the eve of its release, here are 10 things to know about the making of Hillary.
1....
This month, viewers will have their choice of fictional dystopias (in addition to the real one happening outside our doors, naturally). You can visit an alternate reality America in which fascism has taken hold, clock in at a tech company with a possibly sinister secret, or simply dip back in to the A.I.-run-amuck nightmare that is Westworld. If that’s not scary enough, there’s also a new dark comedy about parenthood and a chance to relive the 2016 election. All this, plus a reboot of Steven Spielberg’s anthology show from the ’80s.
- 2/29/2020
- by Keith Phipps
- Rollingstone.com
Is it even possible to watch a Hillary Clinton documentary without bringing one’s preconceived political biases to it? Probably not, so let me be upfront about mine.
I voted for Hillary in 2016… but I also voted for her opponent in that year’s primary and earlier in 2008. I was raised in a staunchly conservative household, and during the ’90s, Hillary Clinton was basically the Antichrist. As I grew up and became a liberal Democrat, my political views began to align with hers — but I still never fully warmed to her as a person. That complicated public persona of hers...
I voted for Hillary in 2016… but I also voted for her opponent in that year’s primary and earlier in 2008. I was raised in a staunchly conservative household, and during the ’90s, Hillary Clinton was basically the Antichrist. As I grew up and became a liberal Democrat, my political views began to align with hers — but I still never fully warmed to her as a person. That complicated public persona of hers...
- 2/25/2020
- TVLine.com
Hillary Clinton has said that yesterday’s guilty verdict in the Harvey Weinstein trial shows “it was time for an accounting.”
Clinton also confirmed that she would support the Democrat nominee in the forthcoming U.S. election regardless of who secures the role.
Speaking at the Berlin Film Festival today, where her Hulu doc series Hillary is screening, Clinton commentated, “The jury’s verdict [in the Weinstein trial] really speaks for itself.” The disgraced movie mogul was found guilty of rape in the third degree and a criminal sexual act in the first degree after a seven-week New York trial.
Asked whether Weinstein’s donations to her presidential campaign meant that there could be more scrutiny placed on the sources of those donations in the future, Clinton pointed out that Weinstein had also donated to the Obama, Kerry and Gore campaigns, and insisted that “I don’t know if that should chill anyone else from contributing to political campaigns,...
Clinton also confirmed that she would support the Democrat nominee in the forthcoming U.S. election regardless of who secures the role.
Speaking at the Berlin Film Festival today, where her Hulu doc series Hillary is screening, Clinton commentated, “The jury’s verdict [in the Weinstein trial] really speaks for itself.” The disgraced movie mogul was found guilty of rape in the third degree and a criminal sexual act in the first degree after a seven-week New York trial.
Asked whether Weinstein’s donations to her presidential campaign meant that there could be more scrutiny placed on the sources of those donations in the future, Clinton pointed out that Weinstein had also donated to the Obama, Kerry and Gore campaigns, and insisted that “I don’t know if that should chill anyone else from contributing to political campaigns,...
- 2/25/2020
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
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