"Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa" profiles the woman who holds a world record for climbing Mount Everest. But her story is much bigger than that, overcoming innumerable hardships. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews director Lucy Walker about following Lhakpa on her quest to summit Everest for her tenth time and her hope to inspire other women, especially her daughters. Lucy describes how her earlier film "Blindsight" (2006) about a group of blind Tibetan youths trying to climb Everest gave her the confidence to tell Lhakpa's story."Mountain Queen" is now streaming on Netflix.Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Two years ago, Sonya Childress and Sarah Driver founded Color Congress to support documentary organizations led by people of color in the United States. They serve over 100 organizations that have long been overlooked and underfunded. Color Congress has given out grants, convened a conference, and is preparing to launch a new distribution initiative. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews Sonya and Sahar about how Color Congress is filling a void and what they've learned about building allies in fractious times.They also discuss a new existential threat from a right-wing movement that is targeting organizations that serve people of color. Sonya points to the recent legal case of the Fearless Fund as a cautionary tale.Sonya was previously interviewed on PN episode 139.Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

"Skywalkers: A Love Story" (on Netflix) profiles the couple Ivan Beerkus and Angela Nikolau who attempt to climb the second tallest building in the world. It's both illegal and highly dangerous. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews filmmaker Jeff Zimbalist about how he and co-director Maria Bukhonina captured this adventure like a heist movie. Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

“Sorry / Not Sorry” reexamines the case of Louis C.K. In 2017, the New York Times reported that five women accused him of sexual harassment. He responded "these stories are true." Nine months later, he returned to performing and started to reshape his story. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers talks to filmmakers Caroline Suh and Cara Mones about what they learned when they dug deeper into his story. In the film, they speak to Jen Kirkman, Abby Schachner, and Megan Koester — who spoke up about his sexual misconduct — as well as Comedy Cellar owner Noam Dworman and others."Sorry / Not Sorry" premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and is now released in theaters and VOD by Greenwich Films.Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

"Copa 71" tells the story of an international women's soccer competition held in 1971, two decades before FIFA sanctioned an official Women's World Cup. Taking place in Mexico City's massive Azteca stadium, it was the largest live audience for any women's sporting event ever. But it was erased from history. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews filmmakers Rachel Ramsay and James Erskine about how they found the participants who waited 50 years to tell their story.Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

ESPN’s 30 for 30 broke the formula of sports documentaries by enlisting independent filmmakers. Now the series celebrates its 15th anniversary. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers recently moderated a live conversation at the DGA Theater in New York City to look at three new 30 for 30 titles. We hear from:- The Luckiest Guy in the World director Steve James and producer Marquis Daisy- Minister of Defense directors Ken Rodgers and Courtland Bragg- The Great Heisman Race of 1997 producer Carolyn Hepburn- ESPN Films executive producer Marsha CookeSubscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Pure Nonfiction partnered with The Ankler for a live event in Los Angeles that highlighted documentary projects eligible for this year’s Emmys. On this episode, host Thom Powers interviews the teams behind five different feature docs:- Sarah Gibson and Erin Lee Carr on Stormy- Lance Oppenheim and Kathleen Lingo on Spermworld- Justin Wilkes, Lisa Henson, and Brian Henson on Jim Henson Idea Man- Bao Nguyen on The Greatest Night in Pop - Alex Gibney on In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul SimonWhether or not you’ve seen these projects, the interviews bring insight into a wide variety of filmmaking styles. On our previous episode, we heard from the filmmakers behind five documentary series that are Emmy contenders.Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Pure Nonfiction partnered with The Ankler for a live event in Los Angeles that highlighted documentary projects eligible for this year’s Emmys. On this episode, host Thom Powers interviews the teams behind five different episodic series:- Andrew Jarecki on The Jinx - Part Two- Prentice Penny on Black Twitter: A People’s History- Sam Lipman-Stern and Adam Bhala Lough on Telemarketers- Jasha Klebe on Our Planet II- Fisher Stevens on BeckhamWhether or not you’ve seen these projects, the interviews bring insight into a wide variety of filmmaking styles. On the next episode, we hear from the filmmakers behind five Emmy contenders in the categories for feature documentary.Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

"Flipside" is a personal essay film in which director Chris Wilcha grapples with middle age by trying to document the New Jersey record store where he worked as a teenager. In the process, he returns to multiple other documentary projects that never came to fruition - interweaving interviews with jazz photographer Herman Leonard, TV writer David Milch, radio host Ira Glass, writer Starlee Kine, director Judd Apatow, comedian Uncle Floyd, and others.This subject hits close to home for Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers who was once was featured in the New York Times article Untold Stories, Abandoned Films about his own unfinished films.Flipside is now playing in theaters from Oscilloscope Laboratories.Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Indian documentary film has been gaining world renown with Peabody Awards, Oscar nominations and other recognition. A key trailblazer for this movement is Anand Patwardhan who has grappled with India's most hot button political issues in films such as "Reason" and "Father, Son and the Holy War." Now in his 70s, he's releasing his most personal film "The World is Family." He profiles his parents whose lives were intertwined with India's fight for independence.Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviewed Anand at the Toronto International Film Festival where "The World is Family" made its debut. Anand's next festival stop is the New York Indian Film Festival on June 1. See this article in Indiewire where esteemed Indian directors including Shaunak Sen and Vinay Shukla pay tribute to Anand.For more coverage of the documentary scene, subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices.On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1