Exclusive: Action megastar Keanu Reeves has partnered with Academy Award winner Fisher Stevens to co-produce a documentary on the life story of Benny “The Jet” Urquidez, the iconic athlete who introduced mixed martial arts to the world.
Titled The Jet, the film is currently in production under the direction of Emmy-nominated sports documentary editor turned filmmaker Jennifer Tiexiera. Its financiers are Chris Quintos Cathcart and Tyler Boehm of the newly formed Unapologetic Projects, a company dedicated to working with underrepresented creators. Maura Anderson and Zak Kilberg of Stevens’ recently launched production company Highly Flammable will also serve as producers along with John Scalise and his Faya Project. Nancy Weisler, Brian Maya and Chris Quintos Cathcart & Tyler Boehm of Unapologetic serve as executive producers on the project slated for release in 2025.
Nicknamed for his explosive spinning back kick, Sensei Benny “The Jet” Urquidez had a profound impact on martial arts in mainstream culture,...
Titled The Jet, the film is currently in production under the direction of Emmy-nominated sports documentary editor turned filmmaker Jennifer Tiexiera. Its financiers are Chris Quintos Cathcart and Tyler Boehm of the newly formed Unapologetic Projects, a company dedicated to working with underrepresented creators. Maura Anderson and Zak Kilberg of Stevens’ recently launched production company Highly Flammable will also serve as producers along with John Scalise and his Faya Project. Nancy Weisler, Brian Maya and Chris Quintos Cathcart & Tyler Boehm of Unapologetic serve as executive producers on the project slated for release in 2025.
Nicknamed for his explosive spinning back kick, Sensei Benny “The Jet” Urquidez had a profound impact on martial arts in mainstream culture,...
- 3/28/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: WME has signed Fisher Stevens and his production company Highly Flammable, which he launched last spring alongside producers Maura Anderson and Zak Kilberg. They’ll rep the Academy Award-winning multi-hyphenate, going forward, across all scripted and documentary projects.
The move comes less than a week after Stevens’ Beckham docuseries was released on Netflix, debuting as the streamer’s most-watched English-language series of the week. The four-parter, on which he teamed with Oscar and Emmy-winning producer John Battsek (Searching for Sugar Man), tells the inside story of the global football star and cultural icon, offering unprecedented access not only to Beckham, but also to his wife Victoria, his family, his friends and his teammates.
Fisher’s scripted directing credits include the ex-convict drama Palmer, starring Justin Timberlake, which remains one of Apple TV+’s top 10 most popular films; the comedic thriller Stand Up Guys, starring Al Pacino, Christopher Walken, Alan Arkin,...
The move comes less than a week after Stevens’ Beckham docuseries was released on Netflix, debuting as the streamer’s most-watched English-language series of the week. The four-parter, on which he teamed with Oscar and Emmy-winning producer John Battsek (Searching for Sugar Man), tells the inside story of the global football star and cultural icon, offering unprecedented access not only to Beckham, but also to his wife Victoria, his family, his friends and his teammates.
Fisher’s scripted directing credits include the ex-convict drama Palmer, starring Justin Timberlake, which remains one of Apple TV+’s top 10 most popular films; the comedic thriller Stand Up Guys, starring Al Pacino, Christopher Walken, Alan Arkin,...
- 10/12/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Oscar winner Fisher Stevens has today announced the launch of Highly Flammable, a new director-led production company that will focus on setting up premium unscripted stories for streamers across various series and feature formats, operating out of both New York and Los Angeles.
Joining Stevens as Partners at the company are Emmy nominated director-producer Maura Anderson (Menudo: Forever Young) and producer Zak Kilberg of Social Construct. Iz Web and Caitlin Lawrie are also on board to support the company as part of the development team.
We Are Guardians
Highly Flammable is premiering its first feature doc, We Are Guardians, at the Hot Docs Film Festival on May 3rd, with UTA to handle sales. The company is completing editorial on a documentary about New Orleans’ Zulu Club, directed by Matthew Henderson, with Impact Partners and Terry Douglas/Rhea Films, and is also in production with Exile Content and Muck Media...
Joining Stevens as Partners at the company are Emmy nominated director-producer Maura Anderson (Menudo: Forever Young) and producer Zak Kilberg of Social Construct. Iz Web and Caitlin Lawrie are also on board to support the company as part of the development team.
We Are Guardians
Highly Flammable is premiering its first feature doc, We Are Guardians, at the Hot Docs Film Festival on May 3rd, with UTA to handle sales. The company is completing editorial on a documentary about New Orleans’ Zulu Club, directed by Matthew Henderson, with Impact Partners and Terry Douglas/Rhea Films, and is also in production with Exile Content and Muck Media...
- 5/3/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Summer of Soul is picking up steam as awards season accelerates.
The documentary directed by Amir “Questlove” Thompson, which showcases the long-forgotten music-powered Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969, earned a leading four nominations for the International Documentary Association Awards today, a day after winning the top prize at the Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards. The IDA recognition came for Best Documentary Feature, Best Director, Best Music Documentary and Best Editing.
Earning three IDA nominations apiece were Faya Dayi, director Jessica Beshir’s poetic evocation of Ethiopia, where she spent part of her youth, and Not Going Quietly, director Nicholas Bruckman’s documentary about liberal activist Ady Barkan, who was diagnosed with Als in 2016. Bruckman and Beshir will compete for Best Director with Thompson, Jacinta’s Jessica Earnshaw and Flee’s Jonas Poher Rasmussen. Jacinta and Flee also scored Best Documentary nominations [see full list of nominations below].
Ten films were nominated for Best Feature,...
The documentary directed by Amir “Questlove” Thompson, which showcases the long-forgotten music-powered Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969, earned a leading four nominations for the International Documentary Association Awards today, a day after winning the top prize at the Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards. The IDA recognition came for Best Documentary Feature, Best Director, Best Music Documentary and Best Editing.
Earning three IDA nominations apiece were Faya Dayi, director Jessica Beshir’s poetic evocation of Ethiopia, where she spent part of her youth, and Not Going Quietly, director Nicholas Bruckman’s documentary about liberal activist Ady Barkan, who was diagnosed with Als in 2016. Bruckman and Beshir will compete for Best Director with Thompson, Jacinta’s Jessica Earnshaw and Flee’s Jonas Poher Rasmussen. Jacinta and Flee also scored Best Documentary nominations [see full list of nominations below].
Ten films were nominated for Best Feature,...
- 11/15/2021
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
The 2021 International Documentary Association (IDA) Awards has revealed the nominations for Best Feature and Best Short. In a year crowded with festival hits and critically hailed nonfiction (see the Critics Choice Documentary Award winners), with more debuts unspooling at Doc NYC, every reputable nonfiction awards group helps to curate the sprawling list of eventual Oscar contenders, and the IDA is no exception.
A number of films, including nominations leader “Summer of Soul” (four nominations), “Faya Dayi” and “Not Going Quietly” (three) and animated Danish Oscar submission “Flee” (two), keep turning up on early awards lists. But top dog NatGeo’s high-profile, well-reviewed titles “The Rescue,” “Becoming Cousteau,” and “Fauci” were left out in favor of an international selection of less-hyped titles. (“First Wave” scored the Pare Lorentz award plus a cinematography nomination.) PBS earned 14 nominations across its programming strands, followed by Netflix and Hulu each with seven nominations and HBO with six nominations.
A number of films, including nominations leader “Summer of Soul” (four nominations), “Faya Dayi” and “Not Going Quietly” (three) and animated Danish Oscar submission “Flee” (two), keep turning up on early awards lists. But top dog NatGeo’s high-profile, well-reviewed titles “The Rescue,” “Becoming Cousteau,” and “Fauci” were left out in favor of an international selection of less-hyped titles. (“First Wave” scored the Pare Lorentz award plus a cinematography nomination.) PBS earned 14 nominations across its programming strands, followed by Netflix and Hulu each with seven nominations and HBO with six nominations.
- 11/15/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
The 2021 International Documentary Association (IDA) Awards has revealed the nominations for Best Feature and Best Short. In a year crowded with festival hits and critically hailed nonfiction (see the Critics Choice Documentary Award winners), with more debuts unspooling at Doc NYC, every reputable nonfiction awards group helps to curate the sprawling list of eventual Oscar contenders, and the IDA is no exception.
A number of films, including nominations leader “Summer of Soul” (four nominations), “Faya Dayi” and “Not Going Quietly” (three) and animated Danish Oscar submission “Flee” (two), keep turning up on early awards lists. But top dog NatGeo’s high-profile, well-reviewed titles “The Rescue,” “Becoming Cousteau,” and “Fauci” were left out in favor of an international selection of less-hyped titles. (“First Wave” scored the Pare Lorentz award plus a cinematography nomination.) PBS earned 14 nominations across its programming strands, followed by Netflix and Hulu each with seven nominations and HBO with six nominations.
A number of films, including nominations leader “Summer of Soul” (four nominations), “Faya Dayi” and “Not Going Quietly” (three) and animated Danish Oscar submission “Flee” (two), keep turning up on early awards lists. But top dog NatGeo’s high-profile, well-reviewed titles “The Rescue,” “Becoming Cousteau,” and “Fauci” were left out in favor of an international selection of less-hyped titles. (“First Wave” scored the Pare Lorentz award plus a cinematography nomination.) PBS earned 14 nominations across its programming strands, followed by Netflix and Hulu each with seven nominations and HBO with six nominations.
- 11/15/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
The International Documentary Association has announced nominations for its 37th annual awards, with “Summer of Soul” picking up four noms and “Not Going Quietly” nabbing three.
Winners will be announced Feb. 5 at the awards ceremony at Paramount Studios.
“Summer of Soul,” Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s look at 1969’s Harlem Cultural Festival, picked up nominations for Thompson for director in addition to best feature, best music doc and best editing. “Not Going Quietly,” about healthcare activist Ady Barkan, received noms for Nicholas Bruckman for best director along with best feature and best writing.
IDA members may vote online for the best feature and best short categories starting Dec. 13.
PBS earned 14 nominations, followed by Netflix and Hulu with seven nominations each and HBO with six. This year’s submissions included 314 documentary features, 137 shorts, 172 series, 54 student films, 29 music docs and 41 audio documentaries or podcasts.
Here’s the full list of 2021 nominees:
Best Feature...
Winners will be announced Feb. 5 at the awards ceremony at Paramount Studios.
“Summer of Soul,” Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s look at 1969’s Harlem Cultural Festival, picked up nominations for Thompson for director in addition to best feature, best music doc and best editing. “Not Going Quietly,” about healthcare activist Ady Barkan, received noms for Nicholas Bruckman for best director along with best feature and best writing.
IDA members may vote online for the best feature and best short categories starting Dec. 13.
PBS earned 14 nominations, followed by Netflix and Hulu with seven nominations each and HBO with six. This year’s submissions included 314 documentary features, 137 shorts, 172 series, 54 student films, 29 music docs and 41 audio documentaries or podcasts.
Here’s the full list of 2021 nominees:
Best Feature...
- 11/15/2021
- by Pat Saperstein
- Variety Film + TV
Karen O & Danger Mouse’s “Lux Prima” is one of the year’s best albums so far — but it’s more than an album. “An Encounter with Lux Prima – The Art of Collaboration,” a short documentary chronicling the 18-month development of their multisensory art installation “An Encounter With Lux Prima” premieres today exclusively on Variety. Watch the piece — directed by Luisa Conlon and Max Knight, produced in partnership with Dropbox and featuring interviews with many of the installation’s collaborators —below.
“An Encounter with Lux Prima” is described as “an immersive, communal listening experience intended to be the living nucleus” of the album, which was released in March on BMG (and received a rave review in Variety); the pair also gave a Times Talk about the album with a brief performance.
The show premiered last month at Los Angeles’ Marciano Art Foundation, with an opening gala attended by David Lynch,...
“An Encounter with Lux Prima” is described as “an immersive, communal listening experience intended to be the living nucleus” of the album, which was released in March on BMG (and received a rave review in Variety); the pair also gave a Times Talk about the album with a brief performance.
The show premiered last month at Los Angeles’ Marciano Art Foundation, with an opening gala attended by David Lynch,...
- 5/23/2019
- by Jem Aswad
- Variety Film + TV
“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,...
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,...
- 10/24/2018
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
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...
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...
- 10/24/2018
- by Kristopher Tapley
- Variety Film + TV
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...
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...
- 10/24/2018
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
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