stanley nelson

The Autotune Effect

Focus Forward, an innovative new series of 30 three-minute stories about innovative people who are reshaping the world through action or invention, enlisted Stanley Nelson to produce a short film about a topic of his choosing. The result is a tuneful look at the unlikely origins of the world’s favorite pitch-modulation audio software and the ways in which its creative impact has been felt by musical artists and listeners worldwide called The Autotune Effect. Watch here: https://www.focusforwardfilms.com/films/43/.

New Promo Reel for the Producers' Lab

Do you want to learn more about the Producers' Lab? Check out our exciting new promo reel! This brief video includes interviews with Lab members, footage from Producers' Lab events, a special interview with Emmy Award-winning editor Lewis Erskine, and short clips from several Lab participants' films.

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CRITICS GIVE "JESSE OWENS" THUMBS UP!

JESSE OWENS aired on PBS on May 1st. Jesse Owens is a Firelight Films production for the PBS series American Experience. The film examines the life and legacy of the African-American sprinter, a sharecropper's son, who triumphed over adversity to win four gold medals in the face of Hitler's Aryan nation at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games.

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Interview with Director Laurens Grant on New Film "Jesse Owens"

JESSE OWENS is a Firelight Films production for the PBS series American Experience. It centers on the African American track and field star, Jesse Owens, who triumphed at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin amidst the rise of Nazi propaganda. This is the first feature-length documentary directed by Laurens Grant for PBS. The film is also produced and written by veteran filmmaker Stanley Nelson with whom Laurens has worked with on a number of projects, including Freedom Riders, which garnered three Emmy Awards. JESSE OWENS aired on PBS on May 1, 2012.

Laurens is also a participant in the Firelight Media Producers' Lab where she is working on another film Rokia: Voice of a New Generation. Check out our exciting interview with Laurens below.

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Stanley Nelson Speaks About Creating Nonfiction Cinema

Last week, in anticipation of the Full Frame Docuemtary Festival in Durham, North Carolina, Stanley Nelson spoke about his beginnings and life-long career creating documentaries with NewsObserver.com. He stated: “I wanted something with a learning curve that was never-ending.” He decided to pursue documentaries after seeing the 1971 feature The Murder of Fred Hampton. “I liked that I was affected by (the Hampton) film,” he said. “It was different from what I had known about documentaries, the films they brought into your school class that were boring. This was telling stories that were true to life.” Click here to read the whole article.

The Full Frame Festival honored Nelson for his work with a multi-day Tribute.

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JESSE OWENS AT IFC IN NYC TUES, APRIL 17 @ 8:00 PM

The Black Documentary Collective partners with Stranger Than Fiction to show JESSE OWENS at IFC Tuesday night!

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FREE SCREENING OF JESSE OWENS - Wednesday, April 11th @7:30 PM!

Join the Black Documentary Collective for a FREE screening of the new film JESSE OWENS at Harlem Stage.*

Wednesday, April 11th 7:30 PM
Moderated discussion and Q&A to follow
Location: Harlem Stage
150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street
New York, NY 10031

To RSVP: boxoffice@harlemstage.org or call 212-281-9240 ext. 19 or 20
For more details go to: http://harlemstage.org/calendar/eventlist#205:jesse-owens

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Firelight Spring 2012 Calendar

Upcoming Events

Join us at these upcoming events featuring films and staff from Firelight.

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JESSE OWENS TO PREMIERE AT FULL FRAME

The World Premiere of the new film JESSE OWENS, directed by Laurens Grant, is scheduled for the opening night at this year's Full Frame Film Festival. As the Opening Night Film, JESSE OWENS will screen Thursday, April 12 in Fletcher Hall at the historic Carolina Theatre. The festival will take place April 12-15 in Durham, North Carolina.

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Recap from the POV & Firelight Media Summit: Sustaining a Career as a Public Media Maker

The following blog post first appeared on POV's blog thanks to our very own Shoshone Johnson! In this post, Shoshone shares highlights of the “Sustaining a Career as a Public Media Maker” summit co-hosted by Firelight Media's Producers' Lab and POV last Friday.

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