Top Docs: Award-Winning Documentary Filmmakers

How much do you really know about Reality Winner, the veteran and NSA contractor who shared a document regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election with “The Intercept”, and then subsequently served several years in Federal prison as a consequence?     Sonia Kennebeck’s (Enemies of the State, National Bird) “Reality Winner” melds a host of timelines–before the arrest & after; during the FBI interrogation in her home; from the viewpoint of family as well as others who have bucked the national security state–to tell a broader story than the one you may have heard.  What was the actual reason Reality shared the document?  What really constitutes National Defense Information?  How common is it for the US Government to imprison people for sharing a single document?  How much is “The Intercept" to blame for revealing her as their source? Should we celebrate Trump’s conviction under the WWI-era Espionage Act?  Your views on these questions and much more may be complicated by Kennebeck’s deep dive into Reality’s story:  Her putative crime, her treatment by the government, as well as her personal ambitions, past and current.   Hidden Gem:  Q   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @soniakennebeck on Instagram and twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter

Joining us for the third year in a row, Variety’s Senior Awards Editor Clayton Davis breaks down this year’s Oscar races for Best Documentary Feature and Best Documentary Short and offers his predictions for who will be victorious at the 96th Academy Awards on March 10th. With the feature doc category taking on a very international flavor this year, what does Clayton think of how the process unfolded from the shortlist to the nominations? How might Netflix’s late acquisition of “To Kill a Tiger” affect the outcome? In what is considered a very tight race, what might tip the balance?   With his encyclopedic knowledge of the Oscars (you’ll even catch a reference to “How Green Was My Valley” in the pod) and his finger-on-the-pulse of the overall Awards season, Clayton takes us through each of the nominees and gives you his unique insights into the process.   Also, be sure to catch our “Top Docs” interviews with all of the Oscar-nominated directors in the documentary feature and shorts categories.   Clayton Davis is Variety’s Senior Awards Editor. He is also one of the hosts of the "Variety Awards Circuit Podcast" and the video web series, "The Take." He's been an awards, film and television analyst and critic for more than 15 years and has co-hosted the Oscars Pre-Show on ABC. Clayton is also co-founder and president of the Latino Entertainment Journalists Association and is a board member of the Critics Choice Association.   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @ByClaytonDavis on Instagram and twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   Oscar Nominees: Features: 20 Days in Mariupol Bobi Wine:  The People’s President Eternal Memory Four Daughters To Kill a Tiger   Shorts: The ABCs of Book Banning The Barber of Little Rock The Last Repair Shop Island In Between Nǎi Nai and Wài Pó (Grandma & Grandma)   Other recent documentaries discussed: Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie American Symphony Beyond Utopia Apolonia, Apolonia Dick Johnson is Dead Every Body Little Richard: I am Everything Flea

We’ve saved the last of our live, in-person interviews at Sundance 2024 for the winners of the Sundance U.S. Documentary Competition Audience Award and overall Festival Favorite, the incredibly moving, tear-jerking, and, hopefully, policy-shifting documentary “Daughters”. Directors Angela Patton and Natalie Rae join Ken to discuss their world premiere screening and the life-changing organization “Girls For a Change” that Angela founded.   Over the course of the film, we meet Lashawn (5), Diamond (10), Unita (11), Sherita (15), and their families. Missing from their home lives are their fathers who are all incarcerated in a Washington, DC prison and who long to have some physical contact with their daughters, which is prohibited by prison policy. As the film unfolds, we learn about the “Date with Dad” program, a father-daughter dance which represents the only opportunity for these fathers and daughters to experience a so-called “touch visit”. When the “date” finally arrives, the hugs are tight, the emotions raw and the tears flow — both on-screen and off.   “Daughters” will be released later this year on Netflix.   Thanks to Amos Cochran of Edit/Score for hosting our 2024 Sundance interviews.  Edit/Score is a new music library with an innovative approach to finding music for your film. Listen to the library and learn more at editscoremusic.com    The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @sistah_angela, @natalieraerobison, and @daughtersdocumentary on IG @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter

A gripping documentary follows Ranjit's quest for justice after his daughter's assault in rural India, navigating legal challenges and cultural norms. The film showcases the clash between national legislation empowering victims and village customs seeking reconciliation. Through emotional testimonies and resilient determination, the family shines a light on the complexities of seeking justice in a traditional society.

Continuing our coverage of Academy Award-nominated shorts, Mike speaks with Sean Wang about his loving tribute to his grandmothers.  As he describes the film:  “Nǎi Nai is my grandma. Wài Pó is my grandma. Together they are a grandma super team that dances, stretches, and farts their sorrows away.”  Despite its seeming insularity, and its general mood of fun and mischief, the film opens up to become as well a profound meditation on mortality.   You can watch “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó (Grandma & Grandma)” on Disney+.   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @seanswang on Instagram @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   Hidden Gem:  The Scared is Scared

Continuing our coverage of Academy Award-nominated shorts, Mike speaks with Kris Bowers (previously nominated for “A Concerto is a Conversation”)  and Ben Proudfoot (an Academy-Award winner for “The Queen of Basketball”) , directors of “The Last Repair Shop”.     The film sketches the stories–both representative of the Los Angeles workforce, as well as fascinating in their own right–of 4 repair workers who fix the instruments of students from the LAUSD.  Lyrical in presentation, and symphonic in structure, the film can be seen not only as a paean to the redemptive powers of music, but a call for reconciliation in a time of deep polarization.   You can watch “The Last Repair Shop” on Disney+.   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @krisbowersmusic on Instagram and twitter  @bgproudfoot on Instagram and twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter   Hidden Gems:   The Act of Killing The Sentence of Michael Thompson

The island of Kinmen is a small island with a potentially big problem. Situated just off the coast of China, but part of Taiwan, Kinmen would likely be the first line of defense should the Chinese government decide to invade Taiwan. Emmy-nominated director S. Leo Chiang, who was born in Taiwan, worked in China and also lived for years in the U.S., explores the complex relationship between place, identity and politics in his insightful and masterfully crafted documentary short “Island in Between”.   Joining Ken on the pod, Leo and producer Jean Tsien delve into the backstory of Kinmen — a flashpoint between Taiwan, China and the U.S. going back to the Chinese Civil War —and its present day role as a tourist spot, military base and home to thousands of people who live betwixt and between. Leo and Jean also illuminate how their personal backstories of growing up in Taiwan informed the making of the film and what makes their creative partnership so special.   “Island in Between” has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Documentary Short. It can be streamed on The New York Times Op-Docs site.   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @SLeoChiang on Instagram and twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter

The fact that Arlo Washington, featured as the main protagonist in John Hoffman and Christine Turner’s inspiring documentary “The Barber of Little Rock”, is, indeed, a barber is almost beside the point. From owning one and then multiple barber shops, to founding the Washington Barber College and starting People Trust Credit Union, the first minority-owned financial institution in Arkansas, Arlo is a force of nature. He’s always thinking of new ways to address issues of equity in the Black community and create generational wealth.    Joining Ken on the podcast, John Hoffman describes not only Arlo’s big picture ideas but also his deep compassion for those in need and his unique ability to truly listen to others. Once Arlo mastered the arcane details of Community Development Financial Institutions, he was off-and-running, creating the only bank in a Black neighborhood that previously had none. A single bank won’t reverse decades of discrimination, but one barber has made a remarkable head start.   “The Barber of Little Rock” has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Documentary Short. It can be streamed on newyorker.com.   Hidden Gem: “Audible”   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @story_syndicate on Instagram and @storysyndicate_ on twitter @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter

A children’s book about Rosa Parks. A graphic adaptation of “The Diary of Anne Frank”. A Pulitzer Prize-winning book by a Nobel Laureate. These are but a few of the books that have been restricted, challenged, and banned in dozens of states across the U.S. In the new documentary “The ABCs of Book Banning” (directed by Sheila Nevins, produced and co-directed by Trish Adlesic, and co-directed by Nazenet Habtezghi), the filmmakers go to the source: a fourth grade class in Jacksonville, FL to hear what the students themselves have to say about this latest wave of book banning in America.   Producer and co-director Trish Adlesic joins Ken to discuss what’s at stake in school and public libraries and why it is so critical that we listen to young people about what is being denied to them when books are taken off the shelves.   “The ABCs of Book Banning” has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Documentary Short. It can be streamed on Paramount +.   Hidden Gems: Trish Adlesic: “Camp Courage”, “American Symphony” Sheila Nevins: “Last Song from Kabul”, “American Symphony”   The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @thesheilanevins on Instagram and twitter and @trishadlesic on Instagram @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter

Toward the end of this year’s Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winning documentary “Porcelain War”, one of the directors and main subjects of the film, Slava Leontyev, says, “Ukraine is like porcelain. Easy to break but impossible to destroy.” Slava, along with his wife, Anya, create beautifully crafted “porcelain beasts” that used to be their main professional focus. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Slava has served with the Ukrainian Special Forces and Anya dodges landmines in the fields near their home.   Joining Ken for a live, in-person interview at Sundance 2024, directors Slava Leontyev and Brendan Bellomo describe the unlikely circumstances that brought them together and the unique creative process that resulted in this remarkable film. Amidst the constant battle against the Russian invaders, Slava, Anya, and their friend Andrey Stevanov (the film’s DP) see a world around them that is broken, but, through the courage of their resistance, cannot be destroyed.   Thanks to Amos Cochran of Edit/Score for hosting our 2024 Sundance interviews.  Edit/Score is a new music library with an innovative approach to finding music for your film.   Listen to the library and learn more at editscoremusic.com    The Presenting Sponsor of "Top Docs" is Netflix.   Follow: @brendanbellomo and @anyaslavaporcelain on Instagram @topdocspod on Instagram and twitter