Documentary

  • Watch Trailer for THE WAY I SEE IT, Documentary on Pres. Obama’s White House Photographer Pete Souza

    The Way I See It
    The Way I See It

    Focus Features released the trailer for The Way I See It, the new documentary on former Chief White House Photographer Pete Souza’s time behind-the-scenes covering Presidents Barack Obama and Ronald Reagan.

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  • Sundance Documentary CODED BIAS Gets Virtual Cinema Release in November

    MIT researcher Joy Buolamwini in Coded Bias
    MIT researcher Joy Buolamwini in Coded Bias

    Director Shalini Kantayya’s feature documentary, Coded Bias, that premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival explores the fallout of MIT Media Lab researcher Joy Buolamwini’s startling discovery that facial recognition does not see dark-skinned faces accurately. As part of a national Science on Screen initiative, Coded Bias will have a virtual cinema release starting at Museum of the Moving Image (MOMI) in Queens, New York (Two week run opening Wednesday 11/11) and Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline, MA (Two week run opening Friday 11/18).

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  • EPIX Docuseries “Enslaved” with Actor Samuel L. Jackson Premieres in Fall 2020

    Samuel L. Jackson
    Samuel L. Jackson

    Actor Samuel L. Jackson will headline the new six-part docuseries Enslaved set to premiere September 14, 2020 at 10 P.M. ET/PT on EPIX. Enslaved sheds new light on 400 years of human trafficking from Africa to the New World. Based on a DNA test identifying his ancestral tribe, the series traces Jackson’s personal journey from the U.S. to Gabon for his induction into the Benga tribe, with rare and unprecedented access to secret ceremonies and local customs. Following its launch on EPIX, Enslaved will also premiere on CBC in Canada on Sunday, October 18 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT).

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  • Actress Sigourney Weaver to Narrate National Geographic Docuseries “Secrets of the Whales,”

    Sigourney Weaver
    Sigourney Weaver

    Award-winning actress Sigourney Weaver (“Alien,” “Avatar,” “Gorillas in the Mist”) will narrate the National Geographic docuseries Secrets of the Whales, which chronicles the whale way of life and their challenges and triumphs in an ever-changing ocean with renowned filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer-at-Large James Cameron serving as executive producer. Secrets of the Whales will premiere globally on National Geographic on Earth Day 2021 in 172 countries and 43 languages.

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  • Watch Trailer for Sebastian Junger’s “Blood on the Wall” Set to Premiere on National Geographic in September

    ‘Blood on the Wall’. Sinaloa man cleans guns. (Nick Quested)
    ‘Blood on the Wall’. Sinaloa man cleans guns. (Nick Quested)

    The new feature documentary, Blood on the Wall, from Academy Award nominee and best-selling author, journalist and filmmaker Sebastian Junger and Emmy-winning filmmaker Nick Quested, will premiere Wednesday, September 30, at 9/8c on National Geographic.

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  • Award Winning Documentary MR. SOUL! Sets Late August Release Date

    On the set of SOUL!, Host Ellils Haizlip (middle) is surrounded by members of the J.C. WHITE SINGERS after their moving performance
    On the set of SOUL!, Host Ellils Haizlip (middle) is surrounded by members of the J.C. WHITE SINGERS after their moving performance

    Before Oprah – before Arsenio – there was Mr. SOUL! Ellis Haizlip made television broadcast history with SOUL!, America’s first “black Tonight Show.” The documentary titled Mr. SOUL! which brilliantly profiles Haizlip is right on time given the subject with Black Lives Matter and the current state of our country and our communities addressing racism in a meaningful manner – Haizlip’s story and his inspiration is now even more important. Mr. SOUL! comes to theaters and cinemas across the nation through the virtual cinema platform starting August 28, 2020.

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  • Steve James’ Chicago Docu Series CITY SO REAL to Debut on National Geographic in Fall

    Amara Enyia at a rally in Chicago in "City So Real"(courtesy Participant Media)
    Amara Enyia at a rally in Chicago in “City So Real” (courtesy Participant Media)

    From twice Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Steve James (America to Me, Hoop Dreams) and his longtime producing partner Zak Piper (Life Itself, The Interrupters), City So Real, an official Indie Episodic selection at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, will premiere on the National Geographic network this fall. The fascinating and complex portrait of contemporary Chicago delivers a deep, multifaceted look into the soul of a quintessentially American city, set against the backdrop of its history-making 2019 mayoral election.

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  • Watch Trailer for THE BLECH EFFECT, Documentary on Fallen ‘King of Biotech’ David Blech

    THE BLECH EFFECT
    THE BLECH EFFECT

    Virgin Films released the official trailer for The Bleech Effect, the documentary on fallen “King of Biotech” David Blech from award-winning filmmaker David Greenwald. The documentary film chronicles David Blech trying to keep his family afloat as he battles a gambling addiction and a possible jail sentence, while racing to develop an Alzheimer’s drug that could reverse his fortunes and rebuild his legacy. The Bleech Effect will be available on Digital/HD on August 25, 2020.

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  • “Tesla,” “Mayor” Among August Lineup for Rooftop Films Queens Drive-In

    Ethan Hawke appears in Tesla by Michael Almereyda, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Cara Howe.
    Ethan Hawke appears in Tesla by Michael Almereyda

    Rooftop Films, in partnership with Museum of the Moving Image (MoMI) and the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI), announced the programming for August as part of their summer drive-in festival at the Queens Drive-In location in New York City.

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  • Watch Max Powers’ Timely Documentary ‘Don’t Be Nice’

    Dont Be Nice by Max Power
    Ashley Octo in Don’t Be Nice

    The powerful and timely feature documentary film Don’t Be Nice, follows a New York City team of young African American, Afro-Hispanic, and queer slam poets as they fight to find the words to speak their truths to a nation awakening in Black Lives Matter protest and on the brink of a general election.

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  • Documentary “How It Feels To Be Free” on Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Diahann Carroll, Nina Simone, Cicely Tyson and Pam Grier Headed to PBS

    Cicely Tyson
    Cicely Tyson

    American Masters: How It Feels To Be Free, is an upcoming documentary film that tells the inspiring story of how six iconic African American female entertainers – Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson and Pam Grier – challenged an entertainment industry deeply complicit in perpetuating racist stereotypes, and transformed themselves and their audiences in the process. The film, which is slated to premiere in early 2021 on PBS and on documentary Channel in Canada, features interviews and archival performances with all six women, as well as original conversations with contemporary artists influenced by them, including Alicia Keys, an executive producer on the project, Halle Berry, Lena Waithe, Meagan Good, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Samuel L. Jackson and other luminaries, as well as family members, including Horne’s daughter Gail Lumet Buckley.

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