CNN Films

CNN Films

Type	Division of CNN
Industry	Motion picture Film distribution
Founded	2012
Headquarters	United States
Products	Films
Owner	Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner)
Parent	CNN
Website	cnn.com/cnnfilms

CNN Films is a motion picture division of CNN, originally launched in 2012.^[1] Its first film Girl Rising premiered in spring 2013 in the United States.^[2][3]

History

On October 8, 2012, CNN announced the creation of CNN Films. CNN says that it will acquire and commission original feature-length documentaries that will "examine an array of political, social, and economic subject matters." It also signed development deals with documentary directors Alex Gibney and Andrew Rossi.^[4][5] Since its creation, it already acquired the rights for Girl Rising, a 100-minute documentary narrated by Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Kerry Washington, and Selena Gomez.^[6]

While the documentaries will initially air on CNN, the network reportedly plans to enter them in film festivals and distribute them to theaters as well.

At the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, CNN announced the acquisition of three documentaries. It acquired the rights to air Life Itself, a film adaptation of Roger Ebert's 2011 memoir, in television. The project will be directed by Steve James and executive produced by Martin Scorsese and Steven Zaillian. It is scheduled to air in 2014.^[7] The two other untitled projects are expected to air on CNN in 2013. One, from directors Michael Tucker and Petra Epperleini, centers on 9/11 and reconstructs the events at Ground Zero; the other, from director Andrew Rossi, focuses on the transformation of higher education, examining the costs and relevance of college.^[8]

CNN Films bought the television rights of Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare which premiered on March 10, 2013 on CNN. The film was directed by Matthew Heineman and Susan Froemke. The film premiered on January 19, 2012 at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and was theatrically released on October 5, 2012.^[9][10]

It recently acquired Penny Lane's Our Nixon. CNN plans to premiere the film in August, while Cinedigm will release it theatrically.^[11][12][13] The network has also then acquired the domestic television broadcast rights of the Sundance film selection Robert Stone's Pandora's Promise and is slated to air on CNN on November while it will be theatrically released on June 12.^[14][15]

Filmography

Title	Release date	Director(s)	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Ref(s)
Girl Rising	June 16, 2013	Richard E. Robbins	Aminatta Forna Edwidge Danticat Maaza Mengiste Zarghuna Kargar Marie Arana Mona Eltahawy Manjushree Thapa Sooni Taraporevala Loung Ung	Martha Adams Richard E. Robbins Tom Yellin	[6]
Blackfish	January 19, 2013	Gabriela Cowperthwaite	Gabriela Cowperthwaite Eli B. Despres	Manny Oteyza Gabriela Cowperthwaite	[16]
Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare	March 10, 2013	Matthew Heineman Susan Froemke	Matthew Heineman Susan Froemke	Matthew Heineman Susan Froemke	[9]
The Flag	September 4, 2013	Michael Tucker Petra Epperlein
Our Nixon	August 1, 2013	Penny Lane	N/A	Brian L. Frye Penny Lane	[11]
Pandora's Promise	November 7, 2013	Robert Stone	TBA	Jim Swartz Susan Swartz	[14]
An Unreal Dream: The Michael Morton Story	December 5, 2013	Al Reinert
Sole Survivor	January 9, 2014	Ky Dickens	Ky Dickens	Susan Aurinko Alexis Jaworski Amy McIntyre
41ON41	June 15, 2014	Lisa Lax Nancy Stern Winters		Lisa Lax Nancy Stern Winters
Documented	June 29, 2014	Jose Antonio Vargas Ann Lupo	Jose Antonio Vargas	Jose Antonio Vargas
Lady Valor: The Kristin Beck Story	September 4, 2014	Mark Herzog Sandrine Orabona		Mark Herzog Christopher Cowen
Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger	September 18, 2014	Joe Berlinger		Joe Berlinger Caroline Suh
More than a Game	October 24, 2014	Kristopher Belman	Kristopher Belman Brad Hogan	Kristopher Belman Harvey Mason, Jr. Kevin Mann Matthew Perniciaro
Ivory Tower	November 20, 2014	Andrew Rossi	Andrew Rossi	Andrew Rossi Kate Novack
Dinosaur 13	December 11, 2014	Todd Douglas Miller	TBA	Todd Douglas Miller
Life Itself	January 4, 2015	Steve James	TBA	Garrett Basch	[17]
Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me	June 28, 2015	James Keach	N/A	James Keach Trevor Albert
Évocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie	August 20, 2015	Seth Kramer Daniel A. Miller Jeremy Newberger	Daniel A. Miller	Seth Kramer Daniel A. Miller Jeremy Newberger
Fresh Dressed	September 3, 2015	Sacha Jenkins	Sacha Jenkins	Nasir Jones Marcus A. Clarke	[18]
The Hunting Ground	November 22, 2015	Kirby Dick	Kirby Dick	Amy Ziering
Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine	January 3, 2016	Alex Gibney	Alex Gibney	Alex Gibney
Sunshine Superman	January 17, 2016	Marah Strauch	Marah Strauch	Marah Strauch Eric Bruggemann
Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent	2016	Lydia Tenaglia	N/A	Susan Porretta

References

1. "CNN To Start Documentary Film Unit". The Huffington Post. October 8, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
2. Benzine, Adam (October 8, 2012). "CNN launches feature docs division with "Girl Rising"". Real Screen. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
3. "CNN Announces Creation Of CNN Films". Foxtel. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
4. Lieberman, David (October 8, 2012). "CNN Creates Unit To Acquire Documentary Films For Theaters And TV". Deadline.com. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
5. Flint, Joe (October 8, 2012). "CNN's creation of film unit is step in right direction". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
6. Raftery, Liz (October 8, 2012). "Girl Rising to Help Launch CNN Films". TV Guide. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
7. Patten, Dominic (January 18, 2013). "Sundance: CNN Films Makes Buying Debut; Announces Trio Of Documentaries". Deadline.com. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
8. Miller, Daniel (January 18, 2013). "Sundance 2013: CNN Films Announces Three Documentaries". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
9. Patten, Dominic (March 1, 2013). "CNN Films Acquires ‘Escape Fire’ U.S. TV Rights; Healthcare Doc To Air In March". Deadline.com. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
10. "CNN Films: ‘Escape Fire’ Debuts on CNN on March 10 at 8pm ET". CNN. March 1, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
11. Guthrie, Marisa (April 24, 2013). "CNN Films Snaps Up Richard Nixon Documentary (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
12. Fleischer, Matthew (April 24, 2013). "CNN Films acquires SXSW doc 'Our Nixon' to air on the network in August". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
13. "CNN Films and Cinedigm Acquire ‘Our Nixon’". CNN. April 24, 2013. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
14. Fleischer, Matthew (April 30, 2013). "CNN continues acquisition spree with 'Pandora's Promise'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
15. "CNN Films Announces Acquisition of ‘Pandora’s Promise’ for Fall 2013 Broadcast". CNN. April 30, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
16. Kaufman, Amy (January 25, 2013). "'Blackfish' has SeaWorld in hot water". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
17. Koziarki, Ed M. (February 5, 2013). "James starts doc production on Roger Ebert’s memoir". Reel Chicago. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
18. "Sacha Jenkins Talks Art, Culture and 'The Burning of Kingston'". The Boom Box. July 8, 2014. Retrieved December 11, 2014.

External links

• Official website
• CNN Films on Twitter
• CNN Films at the Internet Movie Database