The Oscar for Best Original Score is an odd below-the-line category line-up. It includes one of the most nominated artists of all time; a recent winner; a couple of newcomers; and a late, great rock pioneer receiving his very first nomination. If all five of these composers were sat down at the same table, what on earth would they talk about? Music, obviously.
“American Fiction”
Laura Karpman
Karpman has mainly been scoring Marvel series like “Ms. Marvel” and “What If…?” as well as Nia Da Costa‘s feature film “The Marvels” as of late, but she’s an incredibly prolific composer who has been scoring television, films and even video games since the early ’90s. She has also been nominated for eight Primetime Emmys, winning one for “Why We Hate” in 2020. Her nomination in this category may have been a surprise, since she was going up against much bigger and...
“American Fiction”
Laura Karpman
Karpman has mainly been scoring Marvel series like “Ms. Marvel” and “What If…?” as well as Nia Da Costa‘s feature film “The Marvels” as of late, but she’s an incredibly prolific composer who has been scoring television, films and even video games since the early ’90s. She has also been nominated for eight Primetime Emmys, winning one for “Why We Hate” in 2020. Her nomination in this category may have been a surprise, since she was going up against much bigger and...
- 2/27/2024
- by Edward Douglas
- Gold Derby
“Black Mirror” Renewed at Netflix
The future is now for “Black Mirror.” The hit Netflix sci-fi series has received a Season 7 renewal after its much-anticipated return this year.
Created by Charlie Brooker, “Black Mirror” consists of standalone drama episodes “that tap into the collective unease about the modern world,” exploring technoparanoia and the “intended and unintended consequences of new technologies and the effect they have on society and individuals.” After a four-year hiatus, it returned for a sixth season this past June and reached the Top 10 in 92 countries’ viewing records.
Watch the trailer for Season 6 of “Black Mirror” below:
Casting has yet to be announced for Season 7. The five-part Season 6 featured a host of A-listers, including Salma Hayek, Annie Murphy, Aaron Paul, Josh Hartnett, and Paapa Essiedu
Sign Up $6.99+ / month netflix.com Max Announces Holiday Collection
It’s the most wonderful time of the year at Max! The streamer’s...
The future is now for “Black Mirror.” The hit Netflix sci-fi series has received a Season 7 renewal after its much-anticipated return this year.
Created by Charlie Brooker, “Black Mirror” consists of standalone drama episodes “that tap into the collective unease about the modern world,” exploring technoparanoia and the “intended and unintended consequences of new technologies and the effect they have on society and individuals.” After a four-year hiatus, it returned for a sixth season this past June and reached the Top 10 in 92 countries’ viewing records.
Watch the trailer for Season 6 of “Black Mirror” below:
Casting has yet to be announced for Season 7. The five-part Season 6 featured a host of A-listers, including Salma Hayek, Annie Murphy, Aaron Paul, Josh Hartnett, and Paapa Essiedu
Sign Up $6.99+ / month netflix.com Max Announces Holiday Collection
It’s the most wonderful time of the year at Max! The streamer’s...
- 11/22/2023
- by Ashley Steves
- The Streamable
Paramount+ today announced that the documentary series Born In Synanon will premiere exclusively on the service, beginning Tuesday, December 12. Directed by Geeta Gandbhir (Why We Hate), the four-part series chronicles one woman’s journey to discover the truth about Synanon, the experimental community that turned into a full-blown cult. Cassidy Arkin was born into Synanon. Her earliest memories are of a happy place with extended family, a portrait that stands in stark contrast to the abusive hierarchical society into which it evolved and that her peers vividly recall. What began as a successful drug-and-alcohol treatment program would become a fully established, racially inclusive utopian ... Read more...
- 11/18/2023
- by Thomas Miller
- Seat42F
A version of this story about Laura Karpman and “Ms. Marvel” first appeared in the Down to the Wire: Drama and Limited Series issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine.
The lead character in “Ms. Marvel” is Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Pakistani-American girl from New Jersey who happens to be a huge fan of the Avengers and who develops special powers and becomes a superhero herself. Obviously, that gave composer Laura Karpman a lot to think about when she wrote her Emmy-nominated score (and theme music) for the series, which stars Iman Vellani as the title character.
“We wanted it to have a young, hip sound at times,” said Karpman, a Juilliard-trained composer whose other work includes the movies “Paris Can Wait” and “Resort to Love” and the TV series “Lovecraft Country” and “Why We Hate,” for which she won an Emmy in 2020. “We wanted it to have a recognizable kind of Marvel sound.
The lead character in “Ms. Marvel” is Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Pakistani-American girl from New Jersey who happens to be a huge fan of the Avengers and who develops special powers and becomes a superhero herself. Obviously, that gave composer Laura Karpman a lot to think about when she wrote her Emmy-nominated score (and theme music) for the series, which stars Iman Vellani as the title character.
“We wanted it to have a young, hip sound at times,” said Karpman, a Juilliard-trained composer whose other work includes the movies “Paris Can Wait” and “Resort to Love” and the TV series “Lovecraft Country” and “Why We Hate,” for which she won an Emmy in 2020. “We wanted it to have a recognizable kind of Marvel sound.
- 8/23/2023
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
An array of high-profile documentarians have come on board “The Conspiracy,” exploring the history of anti-Semitism and archaic conspiracies against the Jewish people, Variety has learned exclusively.
“The Conspiracy” will explore various myths and inaccuracies that have plagued Jewish people and the Jewish religion through the centuries, and which have given rise to a unique prejudice that persists to this day. This documentary seeks to showcase the manner in which one of the most pervasive deceptions about Judaism of all time — that a dangerous group of powerful Jewish people equipped with mysterious powers control the world — can be traced through cataclysmic and violent events toward Jewish people throughout history and into the present. This film includes a mixture of animation and archival footage as it shows the evolution of these lies via the stories of different Jewish families throughout history.
The film is in production and is directed by Sundance award-winning filmmaker Maxim Pozdorovkin,...
“The Conspiracy” will explore various myths and inaccuracies that have plagued Jewish people and the Jewish religion through the centuries, and which have given rise to a unique prejudice that persists to this day. This documentary seeks to showcase the manner in which one of the most pervasive deceptions about Judaism of all time — that a dangerous group of powerful Jewish people equipped with mysterious powers control the world — can be traced through cataclysmic and violent events toward Jewish people throughout history and into the present. This film includes a mixture of animation and archival footage as it shows the evolution of these lies via the stories of different Jewish families throughout history.
The film is in production and is directed by Sundance award-winning filmmaker Maxim Pozdorovkin,...
- 12/10/2020
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Three-time Emmy winner Sam Pollard has been selected for the career achievement award by the International Documentary Association.
He will be honored at the 36th annual Ida Documentary Awards’ digital ceremony in January. The nominees for all categories will be revealed on Nov. 24.
Pollard won two Emmys for “When The Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts” and another for “By the People: The Election of Barack Obama.” He received an Oscar nomination in the documentary category for “4 Little Girls.” His most recent film “MLK/FBI” premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. Pollard has also edited Spike Lee’s “Mo’ Better Blues,” “Jungle Fever” and “Bamboozled.”
His credits include “Slavery by Another Name,” “August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand,” “Two Trains Runnin,’” and “Sammy Davis Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me.” Pollard co-directed the six-part series “Why We Hate” and 2020 HBO series “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children.
He will be honored at the 36th annual Ida Documentary Awards’ digital ceremony in January. The nominees for all categories will be revealed on Nov. 24.
Pollard won two Emmys for “When The Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts” and another for “By the People: The Election of Barack Obama.” He received an Oscar nomination in the documentary category for “4 Little Girls.” His most recent film “MLK/FBI” premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. Pollard has also edited Spike Lee’s “Mo’ Better Blues,” “Jungle Fever” and “Bamboozled.”
His credits include “Slavery by Another Name,” “August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand,” “Two Trains Runnin,’” and “Sammy Davis Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me.” Pollard co-directed the six-part series “Why We Hate” and 2020 HBO series “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children.
- 11/10/2020
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
The 72nd annual Primetime Emmy Awards are in the books and HBO topped all other platforms with 30 total wins. It’s Regina Kinda-led limited series “Watchmen” took home 11 statuettes, the most of any show nominated this year.
In a distant second to HBO was Netflix with 21 victories. Pop TV came in third place with 10 golden ladies, nine of which went to the final season of Dan Levy and Eugene Levy’s “Schitt’s Creek,” making that show the second-biggest winner of the night among programs.
Other networks/streaming services near the top of the winners list were Disney+ and NBC, which tied at No. 4 with 8 wins apiece. In fifth place was VH1 with six statuettes, followed by a tie for sixth between ABC and National Geographic, with both channels picking up five wins.
In the series race, behind winner “Watchmen” and runner-up “Schitt’s Creek” were Disney+’s live-action “Star Wars” series...
In a distant second to HBO was Netflix with 21 victories. Pop TV came in third place with 10 golden ladies, nine of which went to the final season of Dan Levy and Eugene Levy’s “Schitt’s Creek,” making that show the second-biggest winner of the night among programs.
Other networks/streaming services near the top of the winners list were Disney+ and NBC, which tied at No. 4 with 8 wins apiece. In fifth place was VH1 with six statuettes, followed by a tie for sixth between ABC and National Geographic, with both channels picking up five wins.
In the series race, behind winner “Watchmen” and runner-up “Schitt’s Creek” were Disney+’s live-action “Star Wars” series...
- 9/21/2020
- by Steve Pond and Jennifer Maas
- The Wrap
The Primetime Emmys take place on September 20 and air live coast-to-coast on ABC. But the majority of awards are handed out at the five Creative Arts Emmy ceremonies that take place in the week leading up to TV’s biggest night. The Creative Arts trophies will be awarded at five events on: September 14 (reality and nonfiction; Sept. 15 (variety); Sept. 16; Sept. 17 and Sept. 19 (mix). The first four of these will stream live on Emmys.com while the last will air on Fxx.
Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has forced TV productions, film shoots and entertainment events to shut down all year to slow the spread of the easily transmitted disease, all of this year’s Emmy ceremonies will be held virtually. While Jimmy Kimmel emcees just one show — the Emmys next Sunday — Best Reality Host nominee Nicole Byer (“Nailed It”) has been tapped to preside over all five of the Creative Arts awards.
Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has forced TV productions, film shoots and entertainment events to shut down all year to slow the spread of the easily transmitted disease, all of this year’s Emmy ceremonies will be held virtually. While Jimmy Kimmel emcees just one show — the Emmys next Sunday — Best Reality Host nominee Nicole Byer (“Nailed It”) has been tapped to preside over all five of the Creative Arts awards.
- 9/20/2020
- by Paul Sheehan, Marcus James Dixon, Joyce Eng, Daniel Montgomery and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross now have an Emmy to add to their Oscar and Grammy awards, having won Thursday night for their score for HBO’s “Watchmen.”
The Reznor-Ross team were previously honored with an Academy Award for “The Social Network” and a Grammy for their score for “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
Accepting remotely — as did all of this week’s Emmy winners — Reznor said: “We’re very proud to be involved with a show that’s relevant, smart and daring. We were changed and affected by working on this, and it’s great to see it resonate with the world at large.” He thanked creator Damon Lindelof for “providing us such a broad canvas to paint on.”
Six of the seven Emmy music categories were awarded over the first four Creative Arts Emmy installments this week. Also winning Thursday night was British singer-songwriter Labrinth, who was...
The Reznor-Ross team were previously honored with an Academy Award for “The Social Network” and a Grammy for their score for “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
Accepting remotely — as did all of this week’s Emmy winners — Reznor said: “We’re very proud to be involved with a show that’s relevant, smart and daring. We were changed and affected by working on this, and it’s great to see it resonate with the world at large.” He thanked creator Damon Lindelof for “providing us such a broad canvas to paint on.”
Six of the seven Emmy music categories were awarded over the first four Creative Arts Emmy installments this week. Also winning Thursday night was British singer-songwriter Labrinth, who was...
- 9/18/2020
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
IFC Films said Tuesday that it acquired North American rights to MLK/FBI, the Sam Pollard-directed documentary that premiered today at the Toronto Film Festival and will play at the New York Film Festival too. IFC Films will release the film on January 15, 2021, ahead of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday and the hope is to factor in the Oscar race.
MLK/FBI is the first film to uncover the extent of the FBI’s surveillance and harassment of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Based on newly discovered and declassified files, utilizing a trove of documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act and unsealed by the National Archives, as well as revelatory restored footage, the documentary explores the government’s history of targeting Black activists, and the contested meaning behind some of our most cherished ideals. Featuring interviews with key cultural figures including former FBI director James Comey, MLK...
MLK/FBI is the first film to uncover the extent of the FBI’s surveillance and harassment of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Based on newly discovered and declassified files, utilizing a trove of documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act and unsealed by the National Archives, as well as revelatory restored footage, the documentary explores the government’s history of targeting Black activists, and the contested meaning behind some of our most cherished ideals. Featuring interviews with key cultural figures including former FBI director James Comey, MLK...
- 9/15/2020
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
If you were watching Monday’s live stream of the 2020 Creative Arts Emmys (and we were — watch our reactions here), then you definitely heard the name “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness” a lot. But not when it came to the winners. Indeed, Netflix’s behemoth docu-series lost five Emmys at the virtual ceremony: directing, music composition, picture editing, sound editing and sound mixing. However, there’s still hope on the horizon as the big prize — Best Documentary or Nonfiction Series — doesn’t get handed out until Saturday, September 19.
See‘Tiger King’ directors Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin give update on possible Season 2 [Exclusive Video Interview]
During Saturday’s upcoming ceremony, “Tiger King” will face off against ESPN’s “The Last Dance,” Hulu’s “Hillary,” PBS’s “American Masters” and HBO’s “McMillion$.” None of these contenders took home any Emmys on Monday night, so it’s an even playing field heading into...
See‘Tiger King’ directors Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin give update on possible Season 2 [Exclusive Video Interview]
During Saturday’s upcoming ceremony, “Tiger King” will face off against ESPN’s “The Last Dance,” Hulu’s “Hillary,” PBS’s “American Masters” and HBO’s “McMillion$.” None of these contenders took home any Emmys on Monday night, so it’s an even playing field heading into...
- 9/15/2020
- by Marcus James Dixon
- Gold Derby
A main title sequence is often the only part of a show in which music can take center stage, and usually for just a minute. But it can also be the biggest challenge for a composer, who must somehow encapsulate the ideas, the story, the characters and the milieu of a series. This year, the Television Academy nominated six main title themes by five different composers. They range from big-band jazz to serious symphonic composition, from theater organ to analog synth sounds and even classic hip-hop.
Carnival Row
(Amazon)
A few years ago, composer Nathan Barr found, bought and lovingly restored a 1928 Wurlitzer pipe organ that had once occupied the 20th Century Fox scoring stage. With “Carnival Row,” the Victorian-era fantasy about mythical creatures fleeing war and prejudice, Barr found the perfect vehicle to showcase the instrument. “The filmmakers were constantly telling me to add more organ because they loved its grand and unusual sound,...
Carnival Row
(Amazon)
A few years ago, composer Nathan Barr found, bought and lovingly restored a 1928 Wurlitzer pipe organ that had once occupied the 20th Century Fox scoring stage. With “Carnival Row,” the Victorian-era fantasy about mythical creatures fleeing war and prejudice, Barr found the perfect vehicle to showcase the instrument. “The filmmakers were constantly telling me to add more organ because they loved its grand and unusual sound,...
- 8/27/2020
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
As Emmy voting draws to a close, the 2020 music nominations span rookies to regulars. Martin Phipps landed his sixth nomination overall for the dramatic score to Netflix’s “The Crown.” Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor and his scoring partner Atticus Ross nabbed a nomination for their first series, HBO’s “Watchmen.” Emmy fave “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” grabbed another music supervision nom, while composers Thomas Mizer and Curtis Moore landed their first for music and lyrics.
There is a wealth of music nominated across different sounds and genres. Variety breaks it all down in the annual Emmy chart.
Music Composition for a Series
"The Crown" (Netflix)
Composer: Martin Phipps
Pedigree: Six previous nominations
“Aberfan”
Vibe: Solo horn for a grieving Elizabeth; choir for mourning Welsh village
"Euphoria" (HBO)
Composer: Labrinth
Pedigree: First nomination (two this year)
“’03 Bonnie and Clyde”
Vibe: Contemporary sounds complement teen sex-and-drugs drama
"The Mandalorian" (Disney Plus...
There is a wealth of music nominated across different sounds and genres. Variety breaks it all down in the annual Emmy chart.
Music Composition for a Series
"The Crown" (Netflix)
Composer: Martin Phipps
Pedigree: Six previous nominations
“Aberfan”
Vibe: Solo horn for a grieving Elizabeth; choir for mourning Welsh village
"Euphoria" (HBO)
Composer: Labrinth
Pedigree: First nomination (two this year)
“’03 Bonnie and Clyde”
Vibe: Contemporary sounds complement teen sex-and-drugs drama
"The Mandalorian" (Disney Plus...
- 8/26/2020
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
“Can you believe that’s an online orchestra?” asks composer Laura Karpman.
She’s talking about the musical score of HBO’s new “Lovecraft Country,” which debuted Sunday night and is believed to be the first post-pandemic series to be entirely scored, from first episode to last, by musicians recording remotely from their homes.
Together with musical partner Raphael Saadiq, Karpman scored the 10-part series in which three African-Americans drive across 1950s America experiencing not only prejudice but also hideous monsters out of the imagination of pulp writer H.P. Lovecraft.
Creator Misha Green told her composers (who collaborated with her on Wgn’s slavery series “Underground”) that she wanted “gothic, orchestral R&b” to accompany her journey into terror. And while that combination of musical genres might seem confusing or impossible, Karpman and Saadiq have pulled it off.
Using 30 musicians, all playing by themselves in their home studios, Karpman has...
She’s talking about the musical score of HBO’s new “Lovecraft Country,” which debuted Sunday night and is believed to be the first post-pandemic series to be entirely scored, from first episode to last, by musicians recording remotely from their homes.
Together with musical partner Raphael Saadiq, Karpman scored the 10-part series in which three African-Americans drive across 1950s America experiencing not only prejudice but also hideous monsters out of the imagination of pulp writer H.P. Lovecraft.
Creator Misha Green told her composers (who collaborated with her on Wgn’s slavery series “Underground”) that she wanted “gothic, orchestral R&b” to accompany her journey into terror. And while that combination of musical genres might seem confusing or impossible, Karpman and Saadiq have pulled it off.
Using 30 musicians, all playing by themselves in their home studios, Karpman has...
- 8/17/2020
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
Pharrell Willliams, Labrinth (pictured) and Isabella Summers of Florence & The Machine could all wind up with Emmys this year. So, for that matter, could Ingrid Michaelson, Nine Inch Nails founder Trent Reznor and veteran pop producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.
All were among nominees in the music categories as the Television Academy announced the nominations for the 72nd annual Primetime Emmy Awards for work in TV during the 2019-20 season.
This year’s crop was the most diverse in memory. More than one-fourth of all the music nominees are people of color, and more than half are first-time nominees for television’s highest honor.
Said Academy governor Rickey Minor, who’s nominated twice this year for his music direction of “The Oscars” and “The Kennedy Center Honors”: “Living through this time in our history, has made us all awaken to the truth that we — as a humanity — are all the same.
All were among nominees in the music categories as the Television Academy announced the nominations for the 72nd annual Primetime Emmy Awards for work in TV during the 2019-20 season.
This year’s crop was the most diverse in memory. More than one-fourth of all the music nominees are people of color, and more than half are first-time nominees for television’s highest honor.
Said Academy governor Rickey Minor, who’s nominated twice this year for his music direction of “The Oscars” and “The Kennedy Center Honors”: “Living through this time in our history, has made us all awaken to the truth that we — as a humanity — are all the same.
- 7/28/2020
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
This year’s Emmy nominees in the seven music categories include such familiar scoring names as Ludwig Göransson, Pinar Toprak, Nicholas Britell, Mark Isham and Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross as well as figures from the pop world like Pharrell Williams, Dawes’ Taylor Goldsmith, Ingrid Michaelson, Sheila E and the RZA.
Labrinth joined Reznor and Ross in being nominated in both song and score categories. The latter Nine Inch Nails members (and Oscar winners for “The Social Network”) are up for scoring “Watchmen” as well as contributing an original 1940s-themed song (“The Way It Used to Be”) to the HBO limited series. Labrinth’s two noms are for Showtime’s “Euphoria,” which earned him both a series dramatic score nomination and a song nod (“All for Us”).
Nathan Barr has the most nominations in the music categories, with three. He’s up against himself in the main title theme category,...
Labrinth joined Reznor and Ross in being nominated in both song and score categories. The latter Nine Inch Nails members (and Oscar winners for “The Social Network”) are up for scoring “Watchmen” as well as contributing an original 1940s-themed song (“The Way It Used to Be”) to the HBO limited series. Labrinth’s two noms are for Showtime’s “Euphoria,” which earned him both a series dramatic score nomination and a song nod (“All for Us”).
Nathan Barr has the most nominations in the music categories, with three. He’s up against himself in the main title theme category,...
- 7/28/2020
- by Chris Willman
- Variety Film + TV
The Washington Post’s report on The Afghanistan Papers, which tells the secret history of the war in the country, is set to be turned into a documentary series and a scripted drama after Amblin Television acquired the rights.
The television division of Steven Spielberg’s production company has closed a deal with the Amazon-owned newspaper for the rights to At War with the Truth, the paper’s investigation into the six-part report.
It has tied with Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney, who runs Jigsaw Productions, to develop the project as both a limited documentary series and limited scripted series.
The report was the result of a three-year investigation and a battle between the news organization and the U.S. government to have the documents released under the Freedom of Information Act. It tells the secret history of the war in Afghanistan, exposing behind-the-scenes frustrations, concerns, and blunt acknowledgements of...
The television division of Steven Spielberg’s production company has closed a deal with the Amazon-owned newspaper for the rights to At War with the Truth, the paper’s investigation into the six-part report.
It has tied with Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney, who runs Jigsaw Productions, to develop the project as both a limited documentary series and limited scripted series.
The report was the result of a three-year investigation and a battle between the news organization and the U.S. government to have the documents released under the Freedom of Information Act. It tells the secret history of the war in Afghanistan, exposing behind-the-scenes frustrations, concerns, and blunt acknowledgements of...
- 1/30/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
This year has brought more evidence to cement Alex Gibney’s reputation as the hardest working man in documentary film.
His six-part documentary series Why We Hate, executive-produced with Steven Spielberg, debuted on Discovery Channel last month. Earlier this year his documentary The Inventor: Out For Blood in Silicon Valley—about disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes—hit HBO. And his latest documentary, Citizen K, opens in theaters this Friday. All in all, an active 2019.
Citizen K tells the story of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a “Russian oligarch-turned dissident,” who built a vast fortune in the years of “Wild West capitalism” that flourished after the Soviet Union’s collapse. Some estimates put his net worth at its height at $15 billion.
“He became Russia’s richest man,” Gibney notes, “one of the richest men in the world.” Khodorkovsky collected his first pile of rubles in the banking business, then leveraged that wealth to acquire ever more valuable enterprises.
His six-part documentary series Why We Hate, executive-produced with Steven Spielberg, debuted on Discovery Channel last month. Earlier this year his documentary The Inventor: Out For Blood in Silicon Valley—about disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes—hit HBO. And his latest documentary, Citizen K, opens in theaters this Friday. All in all, an active 2019.
Citizen K tells the story of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a “Russian oligarch-turned dissident,” who built a vast fortune in the years of “Wild West capitalism” that flourished after the Soviet Union’s collapse. Some estimates put his net worth at its height at $15 billion.
“He became Russia’s richest man,” Gibney notes, “one of the richest men in the world.” Khodorkovsky collected his first pile of rubles in the banking business, then leveraged that wealth to acquire ever more valuable enterprises.
- 11/18/2019
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Why We Hate is a six-part documentary series that aired this October on Discovery Channel, and is an exploration into why human beings hate and how, if at all possible, we can overcome it. Directed by Geeta Gandbhir and Sam Pollard, this Stephen Spielberg produced series is both harrowing, depressing and terribly frightening, whilst also presenting hopeful points, images and stories of human empowerment, of fighting back against hatred, and of building bridges rather than walls.
I watched Why We Hate in just two sittings, and it wasn’t easy. Not because it was boring, or tedious, not because I was disinterested, but because of how heavy it is, how full-on it confronts the hatred of our cultures, of our history and of our current climate. It doesn’t shy away from the political walls being built, figuratively and literally, and how history should be learned form but seemingly isn’t.
I watched Why We Hate in just two sittings, and it wasn’t easy. Not because it was boring, or tedious, not because I was disinterested, but because of how heavy it is, how full-on it confronts the hatred of our cultures, of our history and of our current climate. It doesn’t shy away from the political walls being built, figuratively and literally, and how history should be learned form but seemingly isn’t.
- 10/30/2019
- by Chris Cummings
- Nerdly
The Discovery Channel on Sunday evening debuts a six-part series, Why We Hate, that looks at the scientific and evolutionary links to hate by looking at some of the most recent examples of racial and religious violence and discrimination.
Discovery CEO David Zaslav, on a recent visit to Washington, D.C. to screen the first part at Atlantic Live, said that the project was originally conceived with executive producer Steven Spielberg five years ago. But he said that at the time, they did not envision the resurgence of hate, whether it be in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017, or in European countries as they grapple with immigration.
“We were going to be looking retrospectively, and try to understand better,” Zaslav said. “But we never imagined that as you look around the world now, the rise of hate — hate for immigrants, for Jews, for Mexicans, for African-Americans, for Hispanics, hate for ‘the other.
Discovery CEO David Zaslav, on a recent visit to Washington, D.C. to screen the first part at Atlantic Live, said that the project was originally conceived with executive producer Steven Spielberg five years ago. But he said that at the time, they did not envision the resurgence of hate, whether it be in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017, or in European countries as they grapple with immigration.
“We were going to be looking retrospectively, and try to understand better,” Zaslav said. “But we never imagined that as you look around the world now, the rise of hate — hate for immigrants, for Jews, for Mexicans, for African-Americans, for Hispanics, hate for ‘the other.
- 10/13/2019
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
The political state of the world today has made the upcoming docuseries “Why We Hate” relevant in a way that its producers, Steven Spielberg and Alex Gibney, hardly expected when they began developing the project five years ago, Discovery president and CEO David Zaslav said Thursday.
“Things are much more of a challenge and hate is significantly on the rise,” Zaslav said. “Hate of immigrants, hate of skin color, hate of different people for their religious beliefs.”
That has made getting to the roots of such hostility all the more important – a question that fascinates Spielberg, the director of “Schindler’s List” and founder of the USC Shoah Foundation in 1994 to record stories from the Holocaust. “Why We Hate,” a six-part investigation, begins airing on Discovery next month.
Spielberg told Variety last year that “getting to the root of the human condition is something I find not only fascinating, but...
“Things are much more of a challenge and hate is significantly on the rise,” Zaslav said. “Hate of immigrants, hate of skin color, hate of different people for their religious beliefs.”
That has made getting to the roots of such hostility all the more important – a question that fascinates Spielberg, the director of “Schindler’s List” and founder of the USC Shoah Foundation in 1994 to record stories from the Holocaust. “Why We Hate,” a six-part investigation, begins airing on Discovery next month.
Spielberg told Variety last year that “getting to the root of the human condition is something I find not only fascinating, but...
- 9/19/2019
- by Henry Chu
- Variety Film + TV
Discovery head David Zaslav used his keynote talk at the Royal Television Society's annual Cambridge Convention in the U.K. to introduce the media giant's upcoming docuseries Why We Hate, a collaboration with Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment and Alex Gibney's Jigsaw Productions.
Zaslav revealed that the origins of the six-part series – described as an "exploration into the human condition for hatred and how we can overcome it" – began with a conversation he had with Spielberg five years ago.
"I said to him, 'What's the story you want to tell? What's ...
Zaslav revealed that the origins of the six-part series – described as an "exploration into the human condition for hatred and how we can overcome it" – began with a conversation he had with Spielberg five years ago.
"I said to him, 'What's the story you want to tell? What's ...
- 9/19/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Discovery Channel has set Oct. 13 as the global premiere date for Steven Spielberg’s and Alex Gibney’s docuseries, “Why We Hate,” TheWrap has learned exclusively. We’ve also got your first look at the six-part investigation into the motivation behind hatred.
“Why We Hate” hails from Spielberg’s Amblin Television and Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions in association with Escape Artists for Discovery Channel, and went into production earlier this year. Sam Pollard (“Sammy Davis Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me”) and Geeta Gandbhir (“Love the Sinner”) co-direct the multi-part documentary.
The Discovery Go platform gets “Why We Hate” one week ahead of cable TV, boasting an Oct. 6 debut, we’re told. Linearly, the docuseries airs Sundays at 10 p.m.
Also Read: 'Flip or Flop' Star Tarek El Moussa on Why He and Ex-Wife Christina Agreed to Do Another Season
Watch TheWrap’s exclusive sneak peek via the video above.
“Why We Hate” hails from Spielberg’s Amblin Television and Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions in association with Escape Artists for Discovery Channel, and went into production earlier this year. Sam Pollard (“Sammy Davis Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me”) and Geeta Gandbhir (“Love the Sinner”) co-direct the multi-part documentary.
The Discovery Go platform gets “Why We Hate” one week ahead of cable TV, boasting an Oct. 6 debut, we’re told. Linearly, the docuseries airs Sundays at 10 p.m.
Also Read: 'Flip or Flop' Star Tarek El Moussa on Why He and Ex-Wife Christina Agreed to Do Another Season
Watch TheWrap’s exclusive sneak peek via the video above.
- 8/26/2019
- by Tony Maglio
- The Wrap
Amblin Television has acquired the rights to Akira Kurosawa’s acclaimed film “Rashomon” with plans to develop it as an anthology series.
Each season of the 10-episode series would focus on a singular event told from multiple points of view where each of the main characters provides a unique and different perspective of the event based on their specific and subjective point of view. Only by watching each of the episodes, and seeing the differing character’s perspectives, will the audience come away with the truth behind the mystery.
Amblin TV’s Co-Presidents, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey, will executive produce along with Atmosphere’s Mark Canton and David Hopwood, with Leigh Ann Burton from Opus 7 also executive producing
“We couldn’t be more excited to adapt this extraordinary film as the foundation for a new dramatic mystery thriller series,” said Frank and Falvey. “It will explore the boundaries of...
Each season of the 10-episode series would focus on a singular event told from multiple points of view where each of the main characters provides a unique and different perspective of the event based on their specific and subjective point of view. Only by watching each of the episodes, and seeing the differing character’s perspectives, will the audience come away with the truth behind the mystery.
Amblin TV’s Co-Presidents, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey, will executive produce along with Atmosphere’s Mark Canton and David Hopwood, with Leigh Ann Burton from Opus 7 also executive producing
“We couldn’t be more excited to adapt this extraordinary film as the foundation for a new dramatic mystery thriller series,” said Frank and Falvey. “It will explore the boundaries of...
- 12/18/2018
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
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