SLATE TO INCLUDE TWO FALL PREMIERES FROM OSCAR®-WINNING FILMMAKERS:
THE NIGHT CRAWLERS From Academy Award-Winning Producer Joanna Natasegara (“The White Helmets,” “Virunga” and “The Edge of Democracy”) and First-Time Director Alexander A.
Mora LOST AND FOUND From Academy Award-Winning Director Orlando von Einsiedel (“The White Helmets” and “Virunga”)(Aug. 20, 2019, Washington, D.C.) – On the heels of the announcement that the world premiere of its latest feature documentary, The Cave, from Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Feras Fayyad (“Last Man in Aleppo”), will take place at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 5, National Geographic Documentary Films announced today that it will expand the Oscar®-and Emmy®-winning banner to include documentary shorts.
The debut slate will include the documentary shorts Lost and Found from Academy Award-winning director Orlando von Einsiedeland The Nightcrawlers from Academy Award-winning producer Joanna Natasegara and first-time director Alexander A. Mora.”We have seen incredible momentum and critical acclaim since the launch of National Geographic Documentary Films two-and-a-half years ago.
It feels like the logical, next step to expand our presence in the documentary film landscape with documentary shorts,” says Carolyn Bernstein, EVP, global- scripted content and documentary films, National Geographic. “National Geographic has always been committed to telling globally relevant and engaging stories that deepen audiences’ understanding of the world and their role in it.
By growing our film banner to include short films, we can give a voice to more timely and impactful stories that need to be told. “In addition to the two films this fall, National Geographic Documentary Films has more than a dozen short and feature films in development or production.National Geographic Documentary Films has achieved remarkable success in a very short time.
Most recently, the critically acclaimed film Free Solo won both the Academy Award and the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary Feature – in addition to CAS, MPSE, Critics’ Choice and Cinema Eye wins. In 2017, two films released under the Documentary Films banner, Jane and LA 92, made the Oscar® shortlist for Best Documentary Feature, and both won Emmys®: LA 92 for Special Merit and Jane for Best Director and Best Cinematography.
SHORT FILMS ROLLOUT: After upcoming festival premieres, both The Nightcrawlers and Lost and Found will open for a week at the Metrograph in New York City before premiering on the National Geographic Channel in October, followed by a wide digital release. Details on each film:
LOST AND FOUND (Rideback, Grain Media and The Nobel Prize)
From Academy Award-Winning Director Orlando von Einsiedel (“The White Helmets,” “Virunga”)Separating thousands of families from loved ones along the way, a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing and violence perpetrated by the Myanmar military has driven more than 700,000 Rohingya from their homes.
Lost and Found, directed by Academy Award-winner Orlando von Einsiedel (“The White Helmets,” “Virunga”), is an inspiring story of humanity and heroism in the world’s largest refugee camp; it follows Kamal Hussein, a Rohingya refugee who has dedicated his life to reuniting children with their parents.
Lost and Found is produced by Rideback and Grain Media for National Geographic Documentary Films in association with The Nobel Prize. For Grain Media, Harri Grace is producer. For Rideback, Dan Lin and Mark Bauch are producers. For The Nobel Prize, Laura Sprechmann is executive producer. For National Geographic Documentary Films, Carolyn Bernstein and Ryan Harrington are executive producers.
THE NIGHTCRAWLERS (Genius Loki Films and Violet Films)
From Academy Award-winning Producer Joanna Natasegara (“The White Helmets,” “Virunga,” “The Edge of Democracy”) and First-time Director Alexander A. MoraWith unprecedented access, The Nightcrawlers, directed and filmed by Alexander A. Mora, is an unflinching exposé of Filipino President Duterte’s war on drugs, in which some claim over 20,000 people have been killed. R.L., a former staff photographer for a prominent newspaper, leads the Manila Nightcrawlers, a small group of determined photojournalists on a mission to expose the true cost of the violent campaign.
In covering both sides of the conflict, The Nightcrawlers reveals a harrowing twist behind Duterte’s deadly crusade.The Nightcrawlers is produced by Genius Loki Films and Violet Films for National Geographic Documentary Films. For Genius Loki Films, Doireann Maddock is producer.
For Violet Films, Joanna Natasegara and Abigail Anketell-Jones are producers; For the Bertha Foundation Rebecca Lichtenfeld is an executive producer, For Doc Society/ the BFI Lisa Marie Russo and Sandra Whipham are executive producers. For National Geographic Documentary Films, Carolyn Bernstein and Ryan Harrington are executive producers.
# # #About National Geographic Documentary FilmsNational Geographic Documentary Films is committed to bringing the world premium feature documentaries that cover timely, provocative and globally relevant stories from the very best documentary filmmakers in the world. National Geographic Documentary Films is a division of National Geographic Partners, a joint venture between Disney and the National Geographic Society.
Furthering knowledge and understanding of our world has been the core purpose of National Geographic for 131 years, and now we are committed to going deeper, pushing boundaries, going further for our consumers … and reaching millions of people around the world in 172 countries and 43 languages every month as we do it.
NGP returns 27 percent of our proceeds to the nonprofit National Geographic Society to fund work in the areas of science, exploration, conservation and education. For more information visit natgeotv.com or nationalgeographic.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.
