Nicole Newnham: Last News

Addie Morfoot Contributor Oscar-nominated filmmaker Nicole Newnham (“Crip Camp”) is at work on her next documentary — “Tunnel 29,” about a secret escape tunnel built under the Berlin Wall in 1962. The film, co-produced by NBC News Studios and Story Force Entertainment, will chronicle the story of a group of students who risked their lives and defied the Iron Curtain by digging a tunnel under the Berlin Wall, enabling 29 East Germans to escape to the West. “‘Tunnel 29’ will cinematically immerse the audience in the fraught and tense time when the world grappled with the trauma and consequences of the Wall and the Cold War — a time that bears an astonishing resemblance to today,” says Newnham.

The 2024 Sundance Film Festival awards ceremony honoring the best of this year’s lineup in Park City is in progress right now at the Ray Theatre. Refresh frequently as the winners are announced.

The 2024 Sundance Film Festival has set 16 alums from past editions to serve on its Competition Jury, also announcing the set of five set as jurors for the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize.

The groundwork was laid for Nicole Newnham’s Oscar-contending documentary The Disappearance of Shere Hite back when the director was just a girl.

Oscar-contending documentary The Disappearance of Shere Hite will be making an appearance in cinemas in the U.K. and Ireland within weeks, courtesy of Dogwoof.

IDFA – the largest documentary film festival in the world — has just wrapped its 36th edition, and it was a memorable one by every definition. Two hundred and fifty films screened in Amsterdam, representing work from across the globe –the Middle East to Africa, Asia, North and South America, and Europe.

Addie Morfoot Contributor Warner Bros. Unscripted Television, DC and R.J. Cutler’s production hub This Machine are developing a documentary about the iconic Mad magazine.

Ava Duvernay‘s Origin and Matthew Heineman‘s American Symphony were among the top winners at the Virginia Film Festival, the four-day Charlottesville event that ran from Oct. 25-29.

Famed sex researcher Shere Hite’s 1976 best-selling book “The Hite Report” was a pioneering study of women’s sexuality that sold millions and liberated the idea of the female orgasm. But, in what doesn’t seem like much of a surprise considering today’s political climate—and to that end, how little has changed— the book triggered a ferocious backlash, especially from the political right and establishment in America.

EXCLUSIVE: IFC Films and Sapan Studios today announced they have acquired North American rights to The Disappearance of Shere Hite, a feature documentary on the famed sex researcher whose pioneering study of women’s sexuality sold millions but triggered a ferocious backlash.

Addie Morfoot Contributor Oscar nominated director Nicole Newnham (“Crip Camp”) was at Hot Docs with her latest film “The Disappearance of Shere Hite,” a portrait of a feminist pioneer. The helmer was also in Toronto to participate in a Hot Docs Industry storytelling masterclass. During the hour-long talk Newnham revealed how she tackles three of the trickiest aspects of documentary filmmaking. How to make a subject feel comfortable: “Geeky curiosity is my authentic M.O. and that also is disarming to people. It puts them at ease. If you genuinely are fascinated by (a subject) and you aren’t after a soundbite, but just exploring, people realize that about you. I will say that in terms of embarking on complicated, long, multi-year documentaries with people, that’s a little different. In that case, I will usually try to get to know the person pretty well before filming or interviewing starts. I try to look for the Venn diagram overlap between what I’m interested in and what their interest in having the story told is, and I assure them of my partnership with them around that.”

Addie Morfoot Contributor Davis Guggenheim’s “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” will open the eighth edition of Chicago’s Doc10 documentary film festival on May 4.About Fox’s life, career and work as a public advocate for Parkinson’s research, “Still: A Michael J.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Toronto’s Hot Docs, North America’s largest documentary festival, has added 12 films to its Special Presentations program. The first tranche of titles was announced March 14. The festival runs April 27 to May 7. World premieres include Canadian journalist Michelle Shephard’s “The Man Who Stole Einstein’s Brain,” the uncovering of the story behind the pathologist who stole the genius’ brain in 1955; “The Rise of Wagner,” a chilling exposé on the collusion between Wagner Group mercenaries and the Kremlin, which has resulted in secret killings and countless human rights violations; “We Are Guardians,” the story of the Indigenous guardians of the Brazilian Amazon, struggling to protect their territories from the ravages of extractive industries, deforestation, corrupt politicians and profit hungry global corporations; “Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law?,” a chronicle of dissident Hong Kong politician and activist Nathan Law’s fight for democracy; and director Barry Avrich’s “Without Precedent: The Supreme Life of Rosalie Abella,” a portrait of Canada’s first Jewish Supreme Court judge, a passionate advocate for the disabled community and visible minorities.

Charna Flam Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s “The Beasts” (Spain), Lilo and Camilo Vilaplana’s “Plantadas” (U.S.), Hansel Porras Garcia’s “Febrero” (U.S., Cuba), Chandler Levack’s “I Like Movies” (Canada) and Pavel Giroud’s “The Padilla Affair” (Cuba, Spain) were among the winners at the 40th edition of Miami Dade College’s Miami Film Festival, which ran March 3-12. “The Beasts,” won the festival’s top awards, including the top jury prize, the $25,000 Knight Marimbas trophy and the Rene Rodriguez Critics nod. In addition to the two awards, “The Beasts” composer, Oliver Arson was recognized for his soundtrack and awarded the Alacran Music in Film Award, he was selected by Art of Light (Composer) Award honoree Nicholas Britell.

On September 11, 2020, The New York Times published an obituary for Shere Hite, the renowned sex researcher and author, noting that her work “helped awaken women to their sexual power and advance the Second Wave of feminism.”

EXCLUSIVE: Award-winning actress Dakota Johnson and her producing partner at TeaTime Pictures, Ro Donnelly, have joined The Disappearance of Shere Hite as executive producers ahead of the documentary’s world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.

Addie Morfoot ContributorDawn Porter and Nicole Newnham’s four-part docuseries “37 Words,” debuting June 21 on ESPN, celebrates the 50th anniversary of Title IX while also exploring the current struggle to maintain and evolve the 1972 law that forbids discrimination based on gender.Prior to 1972, gender discrimination was commonplace in education and athletics. Physical activity for girls and women was cast as unfeminine, and while schools poured money and other resources into programs for male students, budding female athletes were left to fend for themselves.

Addie Morfoot ContributorIn conjunction with International Women’s Day, ESPN has revealed details about its month-long “Fifty/50” initiative celebrating the 50th anniversary of Title IX in June.ESPN is programming a series of short and long-form documentaries directed and produced by women to commemorate the landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any educational institution that receives federal funding and gives women the equal opportunity to play.“This is an important milestone for Title IX and we wanted to find creative ways to celebrate it across ESPN and the Walt Disney Company,” says Jimmy Pitaro, Chairman, ESPN and Sports Content.Debra OConnell, president of Networks for Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution, called Fifty/50 a significant initiative for the company and its affiliates, adding, “the breadth of content is a reflection of the progress that has occurred over the last 50 years and how much more is still to be done.” In addition to a previously announced four-part docuseries from Dawn Porter (“John Lewis: Good Trouble”) and Nicole Newnham (“Crip Camp”) titled “37 Words,” ESPN revealed that the network will kick off Title IX 50th anniversary programming on June 1 with “Fifty/50 Shorts.” The series will consist of five stand-alone short nonfiction docus that examine stories of women in sports and battle for equality.”All five docs in the series were helmed and executive produced by women. The creators include directors Allison Glock (executive producer “Fifty/50”) and Kate T.

Addie Morfoot ContributorDocumentary filmmaker Dawn Porter (“John Lewis: Good Trouble,” “The Way I See It”) considers Title IX, anti-gender discrimination legislation passed by Congress in 1972, as “one of the most misunderstood civil rights laws” and is setting out to change that with “Fifty/50,” a four-part ESPN docuseries that she is executive producing and co-directing.On Oct.

EXCLUSIVE: NBC News Studios has enlisted Nicole Newnham, co-director of the Oscar-nominated documentary Crip Camp, to helm a feature non-fiction project about the life and work of Shere Hite, whose research on female sexuality drew widespread attention, and controversy, in the 1970s and 80s, ultimately leading to her self-exile to Europe.

“I’m a blue jeans and T-shirt kind of guy, so this is quite the moment for me,” says Jim LeBrecht, who along with Nicole Newnham co-directed Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution, nominated at the 93rd Academy Awards for best documentary feature. An inspiring story of Camp Jened, a Catskills summer camp for the disabled, Crip Camp is also partly LeBrecht’s story; he has spina bifida and uses a wheelchair, and first visited Camp Jened as a teenager in 1971.