News

ABC News Studios presents a mysterious four-part documentary focusing on one man's quest to unearth the truth surrounding the tragic death of his brother. With executive producers Jeff Dupre and Maro Chermayeff, Never Let Him Go tells the story of Scott Johnson, a man described as gentle yet incredibly intelligent. He was a brilliant US mathematician whose untimely death in 1988, at the age of just 27 in Australia, became shrouded in controversy.

The Hollywood Sign is as much a marker of location as it is a marker of industry. First erected 100 years ago as “Hollywoodland,” the bold, mountain-bound letters are a bona fide fixture of Los Angeles’ landscape, and have impacted the way the city has expanded — and the visual language of the films made in its shadow — forevermore. In a new PBS series, Iconic America: Our Symbols and Stories with David Rubenstein, the Hollywood sign is the focus of one of the show’s eight episodes, which explore American history through significant national symbols.

“This is designed to use the medium of television, which is a very effective medium in getting things through, by taking eight iconic symbols geographically dispersed around the country, and saying: ‘Here’s what you don’t know about these symbols. Here’s what you should know. And why don’t you try to read a little...

Three-time Grammy award-winning singer Lizzo will receive “The People’s Champion” award at the 2022 People’s Choice Awards, NBC and E! announced on Friday.

Lizzo has been nominated five times previously for her record-breaking compositions and continuous activism related to topics like body positivity and racial inclusion.

“She leads with kindness, advocates for inclusivity and champions increased diversity and equity in the industry and beyond,” Cassandra Tryon, senior vice president of entertainment live Events for NBCUniversal Television and Streaming, said of Lizzo. “Her commitment to breaking barriers and empowering others to use their own voices to create change makes her a true ‘People’s Champion.’”

Lizzo released her latest album, “Special,” in July 2022, and the featured song “About Damn Time” rapidly accelerated to #1 on Billboard’s “Hot 100” list. Most recently, Lizzo debuted a remix of the album’s fourth track, “2 Be Loved (Am I Ready), with Pnau — a trio of Edm musicians.

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The filmmakers behind HBO’s Hostages didn’t know that their four-part documentary would premiere in the middle of the second week of anti-government protests in Iran stemming from the death of a young woman in state police custody. They were probably relatively confident, though, that no matter when Hostages debuted, it would have immediacy.

The series examines the Iran hostage crisis of 1979-1981 in full context, before and after the 444-day international crisis that represented a historical linchpin event for both countries. It was integral to the 40+ years Iran has now spent in diplomatic isolation from much of the West, an illustration of the sometimes catastrophic consequences of even a populist revolution. And it was integral to the 1980 presidential election in the United States, an election that ushered in the version of the political right as we now understand it, as well...

Lisa Ling will highlight the hidden gems and hottest spots for Asian cuisine in America in her HBO Max series Take Out.

The streaming platform ordered the six-part docuseries that seeks to shine a light on the diverse communities and stories behind America’s Asian food scene. Produced by Part2 Pictures, which is currently producing the eighth season of This Is Life with Lisa Ling, and executive produced by Ling and David Shadrack Smith, Take Out brings viewers behind the counter and into the lives of the people and families who run some of America’s over 45,000 Asian restaurants. The CNN host will explore the stories and complicated journey of the Asian American community, past and present while celebrating the joy that the little white take-out box can bring.

“It is time that we learn about a community that has been integral to America’s development but has largely been ignored by American history.

Crip Camp, the Netflix documentary about a unique summer camp for disabled kids and its role propelling the disability rights movement, won Best Feature at the International Documentary Association’s IDA Awards, in something of an upset.

The film directed by Nicole Newnham and Jim LeBrecht (the latter attended the titular camp as a teen) also won the ABC News VideoSource Award, recognizing its skillful use of archival video from the 1970s to 1990s.

“I want to thank everybody at Camp Jened, the staff, the counselors and the campers,” said an emotional LeBrecht as he, Newnham and producer Sara Bolder accepted the award. “My life set a course when I went there and you all are responsible for this–you are so much a part of this award.”

Newnham added, “The hippie teens and counselors of Camp Jened could never have imagined the wide-reaching impact that their brief utopian community...

“Crip Camp” has been named the best documentary of 2020 at the 36th annual IDA Documentary Awards, the International Documentary Association announced on Saturday at a virtual ceremony.

The film, about an upstate New York summer camp for disabled teens that helped launch the disability rights movement, also won the ABC News VideoSource Award for its use of archival footage and finished as runner-up to “My Octopus Teacher” for the Pare Lorentz Award.

“Crip Camp,” a Netflix film that premiered at last year’s Sundance Film Festival, won in a category whose other nominees were “Collective,” “Gunda,” “MLK/FBI,” “The Reason I Jump,” “Reunited,” “Softie,” “Time,” “The Truffle Hunters” and “Welcome to Chechnya.”

Garrett Bradley won the best director award for “Time” and also won the Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award for that film.

In the television categories, awards went to “American Experience” for curated series, “Last Chance U” for episodic series and...

The International Documentary Association has announced the winners of the 36th annual IDA Documentary Awards, with “Crip Camp” taking home the top prize.

The ceremony was hosted by actor Willie Garson, with musical entertainment from Ruby Ibarra, who performed the theme from “A Thousand Cuts.”

Directed by Nicole Newnham and Jim LeBrecht, “Crip Camp” received the best feature award as well as the ABC News VideoSource award. Garrett Bradley won best director for his film “Time,” while “John Was Trying to Contact Aliens” from Matthew Killip received the best short award. “Dick Johnson Is Dead” took home the awards for best writing and best editing.

Besides “Crip Camp,” the nominees for best feature included “Collective,” “Gunda,” “The Reason I Jump,” “Softie,” “The Truffle Hunters,” “MLK/FBI,” “Reunited,” “Time” and “Welcome to Chechnya.” Nominees for best director besides Bradley included Newnham and LeBrecht for “Crip Camp,” Jerry Rothwell for “The Reason I Jump,...

The International Documentary Association’s annual awards is usually a bustling get-together for the film and television non-fiction community. The 36th iteration was the usual pandemic-era virtual version, sans networking, but with returning host Willie Garson. “This past year has not been normal in any way,” said outgoing IDA executive director Simon Kilmurry. “If 2020/2021 has shown us anything, it’s that even with all the challenges we face and the grief we’ve had, the work of storytellers is essential.”

At the end of the streamlined affair, Nicole Newnham and Jim LeBrecht’s “Crip Camp” (Netflix) took home both the Best Feature Award and ABC News VideoSource Award. “It’s one of the major civil rights stories of American history that had been forgotten,” said Newnham.

LeBrecht thanked Sundance for its support, as well as Camp Jened, he said: “My life set a course when I went there. You are all responsible,...

The International Documentary Association’s annual awards is usually a bustling get-together for the film and television non-fiction community. The 36th iteration was the usual pandemic-era virtual version, sans networking, but with returning host Willie Garson. “This past year has not been normal in any way,” said outgoing IDA executive director Simon Kilmurry. “If 2020/2021 has shown us anything, it’s that even with all the challenges we face and the grief we’ve had, the work of storytellers is essential.”

At the end of the streamlined affair, Nicole Newnham and Jim LeBrecht’s “Crip Camp” (Netflix) took home both the Best Feature Award and ABC News VideoSource Award. “It’s one of the major civil rights stories of American history that had been forgotten,” said Newnham.

LeBrecht thanked Sundance for its support, as well as Camp Jened, he said: “My life set a course when I went there. You are all responsible,...

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,...

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,...

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...

The white-hot market for the next entertaining, obsessive, engaging, gasp-inducing docuseries that leads to real-world change is still very much alive and well.

In the past six months alone, docuseries including HBO’s “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children,” Lifetime’s “Surviving R. Kelly Part II: The Reckoning,” Netflix’s “The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez” and ESPN’s “The Last Dance” have been released and received widely. Each series was made with the intent to inform as well as entertain, leaving filmmakers in the precarious position of not only having to report and make sense of the facts, but also order those truths in a compelling, and at times dramatic, fashion.

While editing the 10-part series “The Last Dance,” about the Chicago Bulls 1997-98 season, director Jason Hehir says he had a “philosophy that we had to keep people entertained and keep them off balance a little bit by...

HBO’s Atlanta’s Missing And Murdered: The Lost Children, a five-part docuseries executive produced and directed by Sam Pollard and Maro Chermayeff, along with Jeff Dupre and Joshua Bennett, is an intricate reexamination of one of the most horrific events in that southern city’s not-too-distant history — the kidnapping and murder of at least 30 (though likely more) African-American children and young adults between 1979 and 1981. Though the crimes ultimately would all be pinned on one man, a 23-year-old oddball named Wayne Williams, the case has now been reopened by current Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. The case was the […]...

HBO’s Atlanta’s Missing And Murdered: The Lost Children, a five-part docuseries executive produced and directed by Sam Pollard and Maro Chermayeff, along with Jeff Dupre and Joshua Bennett, is an intricate reexamination of one of the most horrific events in that southern city’s not-too-distant history — the kidnapping and murder of at least 30 (though likely more) African-American children and young adults between 1979 and 1981. Though the crimes ultimately would all be pinned on one man, a 23-year-old oddball named Wayne Williams, the case has now been reopened by current Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. The case was the […]...

Over a two-year period beginning in 1979, at least 30 black children and young adults were murdered in the city of Atlanta. Eager to solve the case, officials pegged the crimes to 23-year-old Wayne Williams, who would eventually be found guilty of murdering two adults. Days after he was sentenced to two life terms, most of the children’s cases were closed and attributed to him, without ever going to trial. The new HBO series “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered” explores how the victims’ family members remain skeptical of Williams’ guilt. It points to alternate suspects and biases, while investigating the racial tensions and cultural clashes that brought Atlanta to a boiling point, raising new questions that demand further investigation.

Directed by Sam Pollard, Maro Chermayeff, Jeff Dupre, and Joshua Bennett, the five-part “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered” distinctly reproduces its period. It documents in detail Atlanta’s history over the past half-century,...

It’s been 40 years since 30 children and young adults were murdered in Atlanta, Georgia, sending a shock wave through what was then one of the most promising up-and-coming Southern cities. Now, the questions that have plagued the victims’ families for decades are finally being reexamined in HBO’s five-part docuseries, “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered.”

To tell the complex and multi-layered story, the series dives deep into archival footage, legal documents, photographic evidence, and exclusive interviews to take a fresh look at what happened all those years ago — and it gives a voice to the tireless parents who have never stopped searching for the truth about their kids’ murders that they believe is still out there.

“There was something not quite right about how the case had unfolded, and how Wayne Williams had been arrested and convicted. It didn’t smell right,” filmmaker Maro Chermayeff, who made the series along with Sam Pollard,...

This Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children review contains no spoilers.

Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children, directed by Show of Force, which includes Joshua Bennett, Maro Chermayeff and Jeff Dupre, and Sam Pollard, is devastating, appalling, and utterly riveting. It will move you to yell at your TV screens frustrated at justice denied, and leave you with the horrific anxiety of a killer or killers on the loose and possibly protected by a system corrupted with endemic racism.

Between 1979 and 1981, at least 28 African-American children, aged 7 to 17, most of them boys, but also adolescents and young adults, were kidnapped and murdered in Atlanta. The city became the center of attention throughout the world. Twenty-three-year old Atlanta native Wayne Williams was arrested and charged with two of the adult murders. The judge allowed the prosecution to attribute ten additional victims to him, essentially putting Williams on trial...

There’s a shake-up in Genoa City: Daniel Goddard, who plays Cane Ashby on The Young and the Restless, is exiting the CBS daytime soap.

“It’s with a heavy [heart] that I share the news that I will no longer be part of the cast of The Young and the Restless,” Goddard wrote on Twitter Tuesday afternoon. “I’m as shocked & gutted as [you are]. I’m forever grateful for my 13 [years] in the Y&r family but sadly it seems that without Neil & Lily… there just is no Cane.”

More from TVLineTVLine Items: 'Robert Mueller' Cast in Mini, Grey's Star Visits Power...

Lisa Ling is to front a travel docuseries for HBO Max after striking an overall deal with the upcoming streamer.

The host of CNN’s This is Life with Lisa Ling, currently in its sixth season, is extending her relationship with WarnerMedia with the overall arrangement. She will present Birth, Wedding, Funeral, based on an idea by journalist Dan Rather, Maro Chermayeff and Jeff Dupre, for the service, which will launch in spring 2020.

Each episode of the series will be set in a different country to reveal its culture through rituals surrounding births, weddings, and funerals. Birth, Wedding, Funeral is produced by Part2 Pictures, which produces This is Life with Lisa Ling as well as Hulu’s upcoming Padma Lakshmi cooking series. Ling executive produces alongside Rather and Philip Kim for News and Guts.

As part of Ling’s overall deal, HBO Max will have a first look at new projects from Ling,...

CNN journalist Lisa Ling has signed an overall deal with WarnerMedia’s upcoming streaming service, HBO Max. The first project greenlit under the pact is travel docuseries “Birth, Wedding, Funeral,” which she will produce with Dan Rather.

Ling hosts “This is Life with Lisa Ling,” which is currently airing its sixth season on the WarnerMedia-owned CNN. Her deal with HBO Max expands her relationship with parent company WarnerMedia and will give the streaming service “a first look at new projects she will continue to develop for the streamer.”

“As part of the CNN family, Lisa has carved out a unique space for herself using her style of gritty, investigative journalism to drive at the heart of every human story she tells,” Jennifer O’Connell, Evp original content at HBO Max, said. “‘Birth, Wedding, Funeral’ takes audiences on a global journey through a range of societies, exploring the rituals around three...

In today’s TV news roundup, Amazon Prime Video releases the official trailer for “Modern Love,” and Discovery Channel Family will air the 90-minute series finale of “My Little Pony” on Oct. 12.

Dates

Nickelodeon announced its three-part limited series return to “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” will launch on Oct. 11. The three episodes will air on consecutive Friday evenings, concluding on Oct. 25. The show will follow an entirely new Midnight Society, who tell a tale of the Carnival of Doom and its evil ringmaster Mr. Top Hat (Rafael Casal), only to witness the shocking story come to life. Watch the first official trailer below:

“Crikey! It’s the Irwins” will be back for a second season on Oct. 5 on Animal Planet. In the show, Terri, Bindi and Robert Irwin continue the legacy of the late Steve Irwin by interacting with wild animals and promoting wildlife conversation.

HBO announced that...

Tony Sokol Jul 24, 2019

HBO orders doc series about the Atlanta Child Murders - the reason we're asked "it's 10 p.m., do you know where you children are?"

HBO Documentary Films started production on a new documentary series reexamining the Atlanta Child Murders of the late-1970s and early-1980s.

Between 1979 and 1981, approximately 30 African-American children, aged 7 to 17, most of them boys, were kidnapped and murdered in Atlanta. The disappearances happened on a frighteningly regular basis. The bodies were discovered weeks and sometimes months later. They were found tossed behind dumpster, under bridges, or in rivers. Parents stopped letting their kids play outside. Some stopped sending them to school. The city of Atlanta imposed a curfew. Georgia TV broadcast stations began broadcasting a eerie, nightly advisory: "It's 10 p.m., do you know where your children are?"

read more: True Detective Season 3 and the West Memphis Three

As-yet-untitled, the series, which HBO is producing alongside Documentary Films,...

HBO announced its documentary slate for the second half of 2019 during its TCA panel today and also revealed a new documentary series about the Atlanta child murders of the late 1970s and early ’80s. Read details about all of the projects below.

HBO Documentary Films, Show of Force, Roc Nation and Get Lifted Film Co. are in production on the Atlanta docuseries. It will offer a never-before-seen look at the killings of at least 30 African-American children and young adults that occurred over a two-year period in the Georgia capital — from the initial disappearance and discovery of two slain teenage boys and the fear that gripped the city to the prosecution and indictment of 23-year-old local native Wayne Williams and the rush to officially shut down the case.

Four decades after the killing spree began, evidence has come into question and decades of pressure from the community has prompted Atlanta’s...

“Dark Money,” “Free Solo,” “Minding the Gap,” “The Silence of Others” and “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” have been nominated for the top film award at the International Documentary Association’s 2018 Ida Documentary Awards, the Ida announced on Wednesday.

Those five films will be joined in the feature category by another five: “Crime + Punishment,” “Hale County This Morning, This Evening,” “Of Fathers and Sons,” “Sky and Ground” and “United Skates.”

The 10 Ida Documentary Awards feature nominees is the largest number ever nominated in the category, which has typically consisted of five films. Half of the films were directed by women.

Also Read: 'Free Solo' Leads Critics' Choice Documentary Awards Nominations

Missing from the list are a few of the most successful docs of the year, including “Rbg,” “Three Identical Strangers” and “Fahrenheit 11/9.”

In the television categories, nominees include “American Masters,” “Pov” and “Independent Lens” in Curated Series,...

With the sprawling number of high-caliber documentaries flooding every platform and clamoring for attention, the International Documentary Association Awards are a crucial curator pointing other awards groups in the direction of what they need to see. Academy documentary branch members, who are inundated with hundreds of movies to watch, aren’t necessarily keeping track of which movies won awards at festivals along the way.

So far, the influential Doc NYC shortlist and the Critics Choice Documentary Award nominees also included many of the Ida’s feature picks: On all three lists are Stephen Maing’s NYPD expose “Crime + Punishment,” fall box office hit E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s vertiginous “Free Solo,” rookie filmmaker Bing Liu’s “Minding the Gap,” and Morgan Neville’s summer box office phenomenon “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?,” an emotionally wrenching portrait of the late TV star Fred Rogers.

Making two out...

With the sprawling number of high-caliber documentaries flooding every platform and clamoring for attention, the International Documentary Association Awards are a crucial curator pointing other awards groups in the direction of what they need to see. Academy documentary branch members, who are inundated with hundreds of movies to watch, aren’t necessarily keeping track of which movies won awards at festivals along the way.

So far, the influential Doc NYC shortlist and the Critics Choice Documentary Award nominees also included many of the Ida’s feature picks: On all three lists are Stephen Maing’s NYPD expose “Crime + Punishment,” fall box office hit E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s vertiginous “Free Solo,” rookie filmmaker Bing Liu’s “Minding the Gap,” and Morgan Neville’s summer box office phenomenon “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?,” an emotionally wrenching portrait of the late TV star Fred Rogers.

Making two out...

The International Documentary Assn. announced nominees for the 34th annual Ida Awards Wednesday, spotlighting the best in documentary filmmaking.

Among the feature nominees were mainstays on the circuit so far this year like Hulu’s “Crime + Punishment” and “Minding the Gap,” as well as National Geographic’s “Free Solo” and Focus Features’ “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”

In recognition of another banner year for non-fiction cinema, which has been reflected in box office spikes around key titles this year, the Ida expanded the number of nominees in the best feature and short films categories to 10 films.

In “creative recognition” fields, winners and nominees were announced. “Distant Constellation” won the cinematography prize, while “Minding the Gap” took editing. “The Other Side of Everything” won the writing award, and the music category saw a tie, between “Bisbee ’17” and “Hale County This Morning, This Evening.”

Additionally, the Ida’s Courage Under...

The International Documentary Association is out with the nominees for its 2018 Ida Documentary Awards. Winners of the 34th edition will be announced December 8 duyring a ceremony hosted by Ricki Lake at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles. See the full list of nominees below.

Up for Best Feature — which has been expanded to 10 nominees this year — are Stephen Maing’s Crime + Punishment, Kimberly Reed’s Dark Money, E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s Free Solo, RaMell Ross’ Hale County This Morning, This Evening, Bing Liu’s Minding the Gap, Talal Derki’s Of Fathers and Sons, Talya Tibbon and Joshua Bennett’s Sky and Ground, Almudena Carracedo and Robert Bahar’s The Silence of Others, Dyana Winkler and Tina Brown’s United Skates and Morgan Neville’s Won’t You Be My Neighbor.

“This year’s nominees and winners of the Ida Awards reflects that 2018 has been a remarkable...

Documentary hits “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” and “Three Identical Strangers” are two of the 31 shortlisted films for the International Documentary Association’s award for top feature of 2018.

Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 11/9,” Netflix’s “Shirkers,” and Hulu’s “Minding the Gap” were among the other high-profile titles unveiled on Tuesday.

Morgan Neville’s Fred Rogers story “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” has grossed $22.6 million domestically since its release in June, making it the 12th-highest-grossing doc of all time. Tim Wardle’s “Three Identical Strangers” has also performed well with $12.3 million and is 26th on the list. “Fahrenheit 11/9” has reeled in $6 million since its Sept. 20 launch — far below the record $119 million grossed by Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11” in 2004.

It’s the first time the Ida has unveiled the shortlists in the shorts and features categories. The 34th annual awards will take place on Dec. 8 at Los Angeles’ Paramount Theatre. Nominees...

Won’t You Be My Neighbor? is among features in the running for documantary association honours.

Major award contenders Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, Three Identical Strangers and Free Solo are among the thirty-one films on the shortlist for this year’s International Documentary Association (Ida) feature award.

The Ida has unveiled the shortlists for its feature and short categories for the first time this year. Up to ten nominees in each category will be selected from the shortlists and nominees will be announced – along with nominees for the Association’s Special Awards and Creative Recognition Awards - on...

The amazing eight-part documentary Soundbreaking: Stories from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music returns tonight, with all-new episodes airing daily at 10pm until Wednesday. It is the most wide-ranging documentary on the art of music recording and we are thoroughly addicted to it. Produced and directed by award-winning filmmakers Maro Chermayeff and Jeff Dupre, Soundbreaking was described as a labor of love for the late Sir George Martin, the arranger and producer who guided the Beatles to realize all of those extraordinary sounds. Tonight tells the story of New York City’s rise of hip-hop, which had barely learned to crawl back...read more...

Before George Martin's death on March 8th, the legendary producer and "fifth Beatle" aligned with PBS for an eight-part series titled Soundbreaking: Stories From the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music. For the series, which was five years in the making, Martin and his son Giles recruited over 150 artists to share behind-the-scenes stories about the art of recording.

The first two Soundbreaking episodes are scheduled to premiere March 14th at the SXSW Film festival with a PBS premiere set for November. Rolling Stone has the exclusive first look at the Soundbreaking trailer,...

Two years ago a team surrounding journalists Sheryl WuDunn and Nicholas Kristof and producer Maro Chermayeff released a four-hour documentary and multimedia project called Half the Sky, a companion to WuDunn’s and Kristof’s book of the same name. It dealt with basic human rights issues for women, focusing on topics like women’s healthcare, domestic violence and rape, and girls’ education in countries like Sierra Leone, Afghanistan, Somaliland, and Cambodia, and I wrote a piece for Filmmaker about its transmedia components and outreach efforts. Late last year WuDunn and Kristof released their follow-up book, A Path Appears, shifting their focus from women in extreme […]...

Two years ago a team surrounding journalists Sheryl WuDunn and Nicholas Kristof and producer Maro Chermayeff released a four-hour documentary and multimedia project called Half the Sky, a companion to WuDunn’s and Kristof’s book of the same name. It dealt with basic human rights issues for women, focusing on topics like women’s healthcare, domestic violence and rape, and girls’ education in countries like Sierra Leone, Afghanistan, Somaliland, and Cambodia, and I wrote a piece for Filmmaker about its transmedia components and outreach efforts. Late last year WuDunn and Kristof released their follow-up book, A Path Appears, shifting their focus from women in extreme […]...

FremantleMedia has acquired global distribution rights to Half The Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity. Inspired by the books of Nicholas Kirstof and Sherly WuDunn, the four-hour series follows the authors and a host of celebrity advocates on a journey across 10 countries to showcase stories of female resilience in the face of adversity. The documentary airs in the U.S. on PBS in late 2014. Maro Chermayeff, Jamie Gordon, Jeff Dupre, Mira Chang and Joshua Bennett are producing the program from Show of Force Productions. Germany’s Beta Film will handle international sales on HBO Europe’s three-part mini The Burning Bush. Directed by Agnieszka Holland and based on real events, the series follows the plight of Jan Palach, who set himself on fire in protest of the Soviet occupation of Prague in 1969, and his family’s legal fight to clear his name. HBO Europe’s most ambitious project to date,...

It would be the film with the juju in David O. Russell’s zany black comedy that was the toast of the 28th Independent Spirit Awards beating Beasts Of The Southern Wild – its fiercest rival in all major categories. Silver Linings Playbook cleaned up, grabbing Best Feature, Director, Screenplay and Best Actress went to Jennifer Lawrence – the heavy favorite for tomorrow’s Oscar. Fox Searchlight might have grabbed only one award for Beasts in the Cinematography category, but it’s other Sundance pick-up The Sessions managed to nab a pair of acting prizes for Helen Hunt and Oscar snubbed John Hawkes for Best Male Lead. In our favorite grant categories, Adam Leon (Gimme the Loot) nabbed the Someone to Watch Award (last year it went to Mark Jackson), the Piaget Producers Award went to Mynette Louie (she produced Tze Chun’s sophomore film Eye of Winter which we are keeping...

David O. Russell's "Silver Linings Playbook" was the big winner at the 28th annual Independent Spirit Awards held in Santa Monica, CA this afternoon and hosted by Andy Samberg. "Silver Linings" took home the Best Feature, Actress (Jennifer Lawrence), Director, and Screenplay trophies.

McConaughey, who nearly stole the show in Steven Soderbergh's "Magic Mike," won the Best Supporting Male award for a performance that was largely ignored by the Academy Awards. As Samberg astutely observed, "We've got Matthew McConaughey...Hollywood fuck you!"

Jennifer Lawrence won the Best Female Lead award for "Silver Linings Playbook," while John Hawkes took home the Best Male Lead trophy for "Sessions." His co-star, Helen Hunt, won the Best Supporting Female award.

Michael Haneke's "Amour," a darling of the 85th Academy Awards, deservingly won Best International Film.

The awards show can be seen on IFC tonight at 10 pm (Est).

Here's the full list...

Today the 2013 Spirit Awards were handed out and it was a dominating effort from Silver Linings Playbook as it won Best Picture, Director (David O. Russell), Actress (Jennifer Lawrence) and Screenplay (Russell). The only award it was nominated for and didn't win was Best Actor where Bradley Cooper lost to John Hawkes for The Sessions, but that's only a minor blip on the radar when you win this big. Among the early awards handed out, Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower won for Best First Feature while Derek Connolly won for Best First Screenplay for the romantic sci-fi film Safety Not Guaranteed. Then the Twitterverse exploded with a Best Supporting Actor win for Matthew McConaughey and his work in Magic Mike, which, for a time, seemed like it may be able to eek into that last Supporting slot at the Oscars. No dice, a Spirit Award it will have to be.

"The Imposter" and "Searching for Sugar Man" each received 5 nods from the Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking. 31 features and 5 shorts will vie for the best of the best in documentary filmmaking. Check out the full list of nominees below including the Audience Award and Heterodox Award.

Winners of the 6th Annual Cinema Eye Honors will be announced on January 9, 2013 as Cinema Eye returns for a third year to New York City.s Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens.

Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking

5 Broken Cameras

Directed by Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi

Produced by Christine Camdessus, Serge Gordey, Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi

Detropia

Directed by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady

Produced by Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady and Craig Atkinson

The Imposter

Directed by Bart Layton

Produced by Dimitri Doganis

Marina Abramović The Artist is Present

Directed by Matthew Akers

Produced by Jeff Dupre and Maro Chermayeff...

The 28th Annual Film Independent Spirit Award nominations were announced eaelier today and while Moonrise Kingdom and Silver Linings Playbook both grabbed five noms a piece, it is Bernie, Keep The Lights On and Beasts of the Southern Wild who are glowing with their four noms each. Our jeers, cheers and snubs commentary shall be coming soon. Here are the entire list of nominees for the 2013 Film Independent Spirit Awards:

Best Feature:

Beasts of the Southern Wild – Producers: Michael Gottwald, Dan Janvey & Josh Penn

Bernie – Producers: Liz Glotzer, Richard Linklater, David McFadzean, Dete Meserve, Judd Payne, Celine Rattray, Martin Shafer, Ginger Sledge, Matt Williams

Keep the Lights On – Producers: Marie Therese Guirgis, Lucas Joaquin, Ira Sachs

Moonrise Kingdom – Producers: Wes Anderson, Jeremy Dawson, Steven Rales, Scott Rudin

Silver Linings Playbook – Producers: Bruce Cohen, Donna Gigliotti, Jonathan Gordon

Best Director

Wes Anderson – Moonrise Kingdom

Julia Loktev – The Loneliest Planet

David O. Russell...

Nominations for the 28th Film Independent Spirit Awards were announced today and were led by Moonrise Kingdom and Silver Linings Playbook with five nominations each followed closely by fellow Best Feature nominees Beasts of the Southern Wild and Keep the Lights On as well as Ava DuVernay's Middle of Nowhere, each with four nominations. Richard Linklater's Bernie was the fifth Best Feature nominee while Middle of Nowhere found its four nominations largely in the acting categories with Emayatzy Corinealdi, David Oyelowo and Lorraine Toussant all being nominated and the fourth for the John Cassavetes Award, which goes to the "best" film made for under $500,000. Looking over the list of nominees I can't help but shrug at the screenplay nomination for Ruby Sparks (a film I loathed), but it's nice to see some First Time Feature love for Colin Trevorrow's Safety Not Guaranteed and Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower,...

Having taken home the Best Picture award at last night’s Gotham Independent Film Awards, Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom finds itself nominated in the same category in the upcoming Independent Spirit Awards, with the full list of nominations announced tonight.

Anderson’s latest film has been nominated in a healthy five categories – Best Feature, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Male, and Best Cinematography – with David O. Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook also racking up an impressive five nominations, adding Best Female Lead and Best Male Lead to Best Feature, Director, and Screenplay.

Also coming in as strong contenders are Jacques Audiard’s Rust and Bone; Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the Best Female Lead category for her performance in Smashed; Colin Trevorrow in the Best First Feature category for Safety Not Guaranteed, and Derek Connolly in the Best First Screenplay for the same film; director Benh Zeitlin and Beasts of the Southern Wild...

Actors Anna Kendrick, Zoe Saldana and Common presented the nominees for the 28th Film Independent Spirit Awards in a press conference on Tuesday, November 27 at 10:00 am at The W Hotel in Hollywood.

Both "Silver Linings Playbook" and "Moonrise Kingdom" lead the nominations including best picture where they will compete with "Beasts of the Southern Wild," "Bernie," and "Keep the Lights On."

Directors Wes Anderson ("Moonrise Kingdom") and David O. Russell ("Silver Linings Playbook") are also nominated in the best director category along with Julia Loktev ("The Loneliest Planet"), Ira Sachs ("Keep the Lights On"), and Benh Zeitlin ("Beasts of the Southern Wild").

And actor Matthew McConaughey's transformation is now complete. He is nominated for both best actor ("Killer Joe") and best supporting actor ("Magic Mike").

Winners of the 28th Film Independent Spirit Awards will be announced on February 23, 2013 when they will hold their traditional Saturday afternoon awards show...

The nominations for the 2013 Film Independent Spirit Awards were announced this morning by actors Anna Kendrick, Zoe Saldana, and Common. Nominees for Best Feature include Beasts Of The Southern Wild, Bernie, Keep The Lights On, Moonrise Kingdom, and Silver Linings Playbook. Starlet was selected to receive the annual Robert Altman Award, which is given one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast.

Winners will be announced at the Spirit Awards on Saturday, February 23, 2013. The awards ceremony will be held as a daytime luncheon in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica, and the premiere broadcast will air later that evening at 10:00 pm Et/Pt on IFC.

2013 Film Independent Spirit Award Nominations

Best Feature (Award given to the Producer, Executive Producers are not awarded)

Beasts of the Southern Wild Producers: Michael Gottwald, Dan Janvey & Josh Penn Bernie Producers: Liz Glotzer, Richard Linklater, David McFadzean, Dete Meserve, Judd Payne,...

In the battle of the Andersons, it was Wes who beat P.T for Best Feature at the 2012 Gotham Awards. Moonrise Kingdom would go 1 for 2 as Lynn Shelton’s Your Sister’s Sister easily among the year’s the best, for its natural, on-screen chemistry was handsomely awarded the Best Ensemble Performance prize. Making it an almost all Sundance Film Festival takes Gotham kind of year, in the Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You it’s Terence Nance’s An Oversimplification of Her Beauty which gets an extra boost for theatrical play. Pic was produced by Andrew Corkin who is lining up Jim Mickle’s We Are What We Are for festival play next year.

The heavy favorite in all categories combined was Beasts of the Southern Wild‘s Benh Zeitlin as Best Breakthrough Director and Audience award, while in the Breakthrough Actor category, it’s Emayatzy Corinealdi...

Bernie, Middle of Nowhere, Moonrise Kingdom and Beasts of the Southern Wild each received a pair of nominations for the 22nd Gotham Independent Film Awards, but the big surprise has to be the Best Picture snub of Benh Zeitlin’s Sundance and Cannes winner. The jury of five favored Moonrise Kingdom, Bernie, Middle of Nowhere, The Loneliest Planet and The Master over other well-received truly indie titles such as Craig Zobel’s Compliance and James Ponsoldt’s Smashed. The awards will be handed out on November 26th.

Best Feature

Bernie

Richard Linklater, director; Richard Linklater, Ginger Sledge, Celine Rattray, Martin Shafer, Liz Glotzer, Matt Williams, David McFadzean, Judd Payne, Dete Meserve, producers (Millennium Entertainment)

The Loneliest Planet

Julia Loktev, director; Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, Helge Albers, Marie Therese Guirgis, producers (Sundance Selects)

The Master

Paul Thomas Anderson, director; Joanne Sellar, Daniel Lupi, Paul Thomas Anderson, Megan Ellison, producers (The...

This morning, the Gotham Awards nominations were announced (indeed tweeted), and in a very competitive field, Benh Zeitlin’s Beasts of the Southern Wild, Richard Linklater’s Bernie, Ava DuVernay’s Middle of Nowhere and Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom lead the way, each earning two nominations.

Commenting on the nominations, IFP’s executive director Joana Vicente said, “From master film artists to richly talented newcomers, this year’s nominees comprise a diverse group of filmmakers and actors that defines the spectrum of independent film today. In addition to celebrating the work and the community, we also hope that the Gotham Award attention will encourage more audiences to explore the range of vibrant, entertaining, challenging, and innovative films represented here.”

As previously announced, this year the Gothams will honor actors Matt Damon and Marion Cotillard, director David O. Russell and Participant Media founder Jeff Skoll.

Below are the nominations in...

New York, NY – The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), the nation’s oldest and largest organization of independent filmmakers announced today the nominees for the Gotham Independent Film Awards™. Signaling the kick-off to the film awards season, IFP’s Gotham Independent Film Awards™ nominations were given to a total of 26 films across six competitive categories for Best Feature, Best Documentary, Breakthrough Director, Breakthrough Actor, Best Ensemble Performance, and Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You.

The Gotham Awards ceremony will be held on Monday, November 26th at Cipriani Wall Street. In addition to the competitive awards, actors Marion Cotillard and Matt Damon, director David O. Russell, and Participant Media founder Jeff Skoll will each be presented with a career tribute.

As the first major awards ceremony of the film season, the Gotham Independent Film Awards™ provide critical early recognition and media attention to worthy independent films. Previous winners...