Documentary filmmaker Gordon Quinn, executive producer of the Oscar-nominated basketball documentary “Hoop Dreams,” has been diagnosed with coronavirus, reports Chicago Sun Times.
Jenny Rohrer, a former Kartemquin partner, wrote on Quinn’s new CaringBridge site that he is in Northwestern Hospital in Chicago with Covid-19.
Our dear friend Gordon Quinn is in Northwestern Hospital in Chicago with Covid-19. He seems to have caught the virus while at the Australian International Documentary Conference in Melbourne. He’s been sick for about a week, following having a hard time finding a Covid-19 test, and finally being admitted to the ER by his doctor. I just spoke with his wife, Meg Gerken, who will co-author this Caring Bridge site. Meg is self-isolating till the end of the month, but is feeling fine currently. Meg just told me they put Gordon on a ventilator at midnight last night because he couldn’t breathe. Please spread the news about this site as we’ll keep it up to date with the latest news. Please pray, wish hard or do whatever you can to bring good health back to this wonderful man.
Kartemquin Films issued a statement on their website confirming the diagnosis, “After returning from the Australian International Documentary Conference on March 8th, Gordon had been ill, and yesterday he was diagnosed with COVID-19. He’s currently in the ICU and we’re very grateful that he has early access to the quality care he truly needs right now. In between returning from Australia and going to hospital on Wednesday night, he had already been isolating at home and had only interacted in person with his wife, Meg, and medical professionals.“
Gordon Quinn, 77, founded Kartemquin in 1966 reportedly with a goal of creating documentaries exploring social issues. In 1994 he was executive producer of the Oscar-nominated Chicago basketball documentary “Hoop Dreams,” directed by Steve James.