Documentarists-TOP 100

by quietgiant2 | created - 31 Dec 2010 | updated - 4 months ago | Public

Search to other famous documentarists: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Documentary_film_directors https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Documentary_filmmakers_by_nationality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:American_documentary_filmmakers

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:British_documentary_filmmakers

Related Lists: Conflictive 20th Century_https://www.imdb.com/list/ls052540815/ Presidents of Union and other Politicians https://www.imdb.com/list/ls052566115/

101. Leonardo DiCaprio

Actor | Inception

Few actors in the world have had a career quite as diverse as Leonardo DiCaprio's. DiCaprio has gone from relatively humble beginnings, as a supporting cast member of the sitcom Growing Pains (1985) and low budget horror movies, such as Critters 3 (1991), to a major teenage heartthrob in the 1990s,...

One of the finests producers

102. Jon Alpert

Producer | Baghdad ER

Jon Alpert was born on December 13, 1948 in Port Chester, New York, USA. He is a producer and director, known for Baghdad ER (2006), Cuba and the Cameraman (2017) and Independent Lens (1999).

103. Oskar Messter

Producer | Rapunzel

Oskar Messter was born on November 22, 1866 in Berlin, Germany. He was a producer and director, known for Rapunzel (1897), Das wandernde Licht (1916) and Tanz der Salome (1906). He was married to Antonie König and Margarete Wittmann. He died on December 7, 1943 in Tegernsee, Bavaria, Germany.

best remenbered as producer

104. Charles Guggenheim

Producer | Berga: Soldiers of Another War

Charles Guggenheim was born into a wealthy Cincinnati family (his father was a furniture manufacturer). While studying agriculture in college in 1943, Guggenheim was drafted into the army. Upon discharge from the service he decided against an agricultural career and moved to New York to pursue a ...

The eclectic Davis father

106. Chris Malloy

Director | 180° South

Chris Malloy is known for 180° South (2010), A Brokedown Melody (2004) and The Climb (2023).

107. Jerry Rothwell

Director | Deep Water

Jerry Rothwell is known for Deep Water (2006), How to Change the World (2015) and The Reason I Jump (2020).

A promise

108. Rachel Boynton

Producer | Big Men

Rachel Boynton is known for Big Men (2013), Our Brand Is Crisis (2005) and P.O.V. (1988).

A promise

109. Mark Cousins

Director | The First Movie

Mark Cousins was born on May 3, 1965 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK. He is a director and writer, known for The First Movie (2009), The Eyes of Orson Welles (2018) and What Is This Film Called Love? (2012).

A big theoretician in the nowdays

110. Jim Al-Khalili

Self | The Life Scientific

Professor Jameel Sadik "Jim" Al-Khalili OBE is a British theoretical physicist, Author, respected BBC presenter and frequent commentator about science in British media. He holds the position of Professor of Theoretical Physics and Chair in the Public Engagement in Science at the University of ...

A reputated face in scientific documentaries

111. James May

Self | Top Gear

James May was born in 1963 but his development was tragically arrested at the age of 12. A confessed 'complete waster' until the age of 42, May then took the decision to apply his talent for the pointless in the direction of television. His oeuvre includes a record for the world's longest train set...

Never forget Things You Need to Know (2012)

Conquering the audience

112. Haskell Wexler

Cinematographer | Medium Cool

Two-time Academy Award-winning cinematographer Haskell Wexler was adjudged one of the ten most influential cinematographers in movie history, according to an International Cinematographers Guild survey of its membership. He won his Oscars in both black & white and color, for Who's Afraid of ...

A talented photograher, he also showed his capacity to direct.

113. Uruphong Raksasad

Director | Sawan baan na

Uruphong Raksasad is known for Sawan baan na (2009), The Songs of Rice (2014) and Reanglao jak meangnue (2006).

Cinema-Man from Thailand

114. Kirsten Johnson

Producer | Dick Johnson Is Dead

Kirsten Johnson's "Dick Johnson is Dead" won the Jury Prize for Innovation in Nonfiction Storytelling at Sundance 2020. Kirsten went on to win a Primetime Emmy for Best Directing of the film, Critic's Choice Award for Best Documentary and the Cinema Eye Award for Best Directing. Listed on dozens of...

Cinema-Woman in action

115. Samir

Director | Baghdad in My Shadow

Samir was born in 1955 in Baghdad, Iraq. He is a producer and director, known for Baghdad in My Shadow (2019), Forget Baghdad: Jews and Arabs - The Iraqi Connection (2002) and Immer & ewig (1991).

Hardly working at Middle East

116. James Longley

Producer | Iraq in Fragments

James Longley was born on January 4, 1972 in Eugene, Oregon, USA. He is a producer and director, known for Iraq in Fragments (2006), Angels Are Made Of Light (2018) and Sari's Mother (2006).

Working Hardly at Middle East

117. Curt Morgan

Producer | That's It, That's All.

Curt Morgan is known for That's It, That's All. (2008), Wild Yellowstone (2015) and The Art of Flight (2011).

An artist of images

118. Jos de Putter

Producer | Het is een schone dag geweest

Jos de Putter was born in 1959 in Terneuzen, Zeeland, Netherlands. He is a producer and director, known for Het is een schone dag geweest (1993), See No Evil (2014) and Dans, Grozny dans (2002).

The Quiet Dutchman

119. David Douglas

Cinematographer | Pandas

David Douglas is known for Pandas (2018), Happy Birthday to Me (1981) and At the Max (1991).

A very solid carreer

120. Ezra Edelman

Producer | O.J.: Made in America

Ezra Edelman is known for O.J.: Made in America (2016), Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals (2010) and 30 for 30 (2009).

Sports Specialist

121. Julien Temple

Director | Crock of Gold: A Few Rounds with Shane MacGowan

Julien Temple was born on November 26, 1953 in London, England, UK. He is a director and writer, known for Crock of Gold: A Few Rounds with Shane MacGowan (2020), Vigo (1998) and Earth Girls Are Easy (1988).

The most prolific Brittish director

122. Kevin Macdonald

Director | The Last King of Scotland

Kevin Macdonald was born on October 28, 1967 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He is a director and producer, known for The Last King of Scotland (2006), The Mauritanian (2021) and How I Live Now (2013). He has been married to Tatiana Macdonald since July 2, 1999. They have three children.

Versatile Scottish director

123. Sean McAllister

Director | A Syrian Love Story

Sean McAllister was born in 1965 in Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, England, UK. He is a director and producer, known for A Syrian Love Story (2015), The Reluctant Revolutionary (2012) and Japan: A Story of Love and Hate (2008).

Poetry on Desgrace

124. Gianfranco Rosi

Director | Fuocoammare

Gianfranco Rosi was born on November 30, 1963 in Asmara, Eritrea. He is a director and cinematographer, known for Fire at Sea (2016), Notturno (2020) and Sacro GRA (2013).

Italian director in nature

125. Stevan Riley

Producer | Blue Blood

Stevan Riley is known for Blue Blood (2006), Listen to Me Marlon (2015) and Fire in Babylon (2010).

Detailed and intermittent

126. Lucy Walker

Director | The Crash Reel

Lucy Walker was born in London, England, UK. She is known for The Crash Reel (2013), Waste Land (2010) and Blindsight (2006).

Image and text

127. Robert Kramer

Director | Route One USA

Robert Kramer was born on June 22, 1939 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a director and writer, known for Route One USA (1989), À toute allure (1982) and Guns (1980). He was married to Erika Kramer. He died on November 10, 1999 in Rouen, Seine-Maritime, Haute-Normandie, France.

Several works, any very good

128. Kazuo Hara

Director | Yuki yukite, shingun

Kazuo Hara was born on June 8, 1945 in Yamaguchi, Japan. He is a director and cinematographer, known for The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On (1987), A Dedicated Life (1994) and Sennan Asbestos Disaster (2016).

few works

129. Franco Piavoli

Director | Al primo soffio di vento

Franco Piavoli was born on June 21, 1933 in Pozzolengo, Lombardy, Italy. He is a director and writer, known for Al primo soffio di vento (2002), The Blue Planet (1982) and Voices Through Time (1996). He is married to Neria Poli. They have one child.

no mistakes

130. José Luis Guerín

Director | Tren de sombras

José Luis Guerín was born in 1960 in Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. He is a director and writer, known for Tren de sombras (1997), The Academy of Muses (2015) and En construcción (2001).

Proud of Catalonia

131. Allan King

Director | Dying at Grace

Allan King was born on February 6, 1930 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He was a director and producer, known for Dying at Grace (2003), Warrendale (1967) and Avonlea (1990). He was married to Colleen Murphy. He died on June 15, 2009 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

A legacy through decades

132. Johan van der Keuken

Director | Face Value

Johan van der Keuken was born on April 4, 1938 in Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands. He was a director and editor, known for Face Value (1991), Amsterdam Global Village (1996) and The Eye Above the Well (1988). He was married to Noshka Van der Lely. He died on January 7, 2001 in Amsterdam, ...

Dutch Tradition

133. Sylvio Back

Director | Lost Zweig

Sylvio Back is a Brazilian filmmaker, poet, screen player, writer and producer. Born in 1937 at the city of Blumenau (Santa Catarina, South of Brazil), son of inmigrants: father Hungarian Jew and mother, German. Former journalist and film critic, he began motion picture direction in 1962. To date ...

Unmasking Brazilian myths

134. David Bradbury

Director | Chile: Hasta Cuando?

David Bradbury was born on May 7, 1951 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is a director and producer, known for Chile: Hasta Cuando? (1986), Raul the Terrible (2006) and Front Line (1979).

Merional Point View

135. Pierre Perrault

Director | Pour la suite du monde

Born in Montreal, Québec, Pierre Perrault went to law school before turning is attention to the cinema. Concerned more by real life then fiction, he makes movies in the 'cinéma direct' style. He filmed real people in real life situations listening to what they have to say and looking at how they do...

The Quiet Canadian

136. Michelangelo Antonioni

Writer | Blow-Up

Together with Fellini, Bergman and Kurosawa, Michelangelo Antonioni is credited with defining the modern art film. And yet Antonioni's cinema is also recognized today for defying any easy categorization, with his films ultimately seeming to belong to their own distinctive genre. Indeed, the ...

Lo sguardo di Michelangelo Gente del Po

137. Jean-Luc Godard

Director | Bande à part

Jean-Luc Godard was born in Paris on December 3, 1930, the second of four children in a bourgeois Franco-Swiss family. His father was a doctor who owned a private clinic, and his mother came from a preeminent family of Swiss bankers. During World War II Godard became a naturalized citizen of ...

Dans le noir du temps Histoire(s) du cinéma

138. Aleksandr Sokurov

Director | Russkiy kovcheg

He was born with a disability because of an anatomic defect of his leg, in 1951 in Podorvikha village in Siberian Russia. His father was a Red Army veteran of WW2. One of most important contemporary filmmakers, Sokurov worked extensively in television and later graduated from the prestigious film ...

Music and History

139. Victor Kossakovsky

Director | Sreda

Documentary film director. Born on July 19, 1961 in Leningrad. Since 1978 he worked at the Leningrad studio of Documentaries as assistant cameraman, assistant director and editor. In 1988 he finished the Higher Courses of Film Writers and Directors in Moscow. Laureate of the "Triumph" Prize, ...

140. Pedro Costa

Director | Cavalo Dinheiro

Pedro Costa was born on December 30, 1958 in Lisbon, Portugal. He is a director and writer, known for Horse Money (2014), Vitalina Varela (2019) and Colossal Youth (2006).

On Front of Manoel de Oliveira in documentaries

141. Wang Bing

Director | Jiabiangou

Wang Bing was born on November 17, 1967 in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. He is a director and cinematographer, known for The Ditch (2010), Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks (2002) and Three Sisters (2012).

Dead Souls

142. Jonas Mekas

Director | The Brig

Jonas Mekas, born December 24, 1922, Semeniskiai, Birzai, Lithuania, is a director, cinematographer, editor, writer, actor, poet, artist and publicist. More than 60 years of tireless work in film, arts and media has earned him the epithet "The Godfather of American Avant-Garde Cinema". In 1944 ...

He made his points

143. Kirby Dick

Director | On the Record

Kirby Dick is a two time Emmy-award winning and two-time Academy award-nominated documentary film director. His most recent film, The Hunting Ground (2015), a monumental exposé about sexual assault on college campuses, premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, was released by Radius/The ...

Rare and Hard Themes

144. Robert Kenner

Producer | Food, Inc.

Robert Kenner has won an array of awards and garnered rave reviews for his documentary work on a wide range of social and environmental issues. His latest film Command and Control opened theatrically to critical acclaim. His Academy Award-nominated film Food, Inc. had a monumental impact on how our...

Intersting questions

146. Anders Østergaard

Director | Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land

Anders Østergaard was born on March 14, 1965 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He is a director and writer, known for Burma VJ: Reporting from a Closed Country (2008), Gasolin' (2006) and Tintin et moi (2003).

147. Bo Boudart

Director | Oil on Ice

Bo Boudart is known for Oil on Ice (2004), Paying the Price for Peace (2018) and Power Paths (2008).

Ascending

148. Rebecca Cammisa

Producer | Sister Helen

Rebecca Cammisa is a two-time Oscar®-nominated and Emmy award-winning filmmaker.

Her first feature documentary film, "Sister Helen" aired on HBO, and won the 2002 Sundance Film Festival's Documentary Directing Award. "Sister Helen" also received an Emmy award nomination for Outstanding Cultural and ...

149. Andrea Nix

Producer | War Dance

Andrea Nix is an Oscar®, Emmy® and Peabody® award-winning director, producer, and writer. She is best known for her films Inocente (2012), which won the Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject), War/Dance (2007), which was nominated for Best Documentary at the Academy Awards, and the Emmy...

Ascending

150. Christian Frei

Producer | War Photographer

Christian Frei was born on September 16, 1959 in Schönenwerd, Switzerland. He is a producer and director, known for War Photographer (2001), The Giant Buddhas (2005) and Space Tourists (2009).

151. Bruce Neibaur

Director | The Ghosts of Dickens' Past

Bruce Neibaur is known for The Ghosts of Dickens' Past (1998), Friendship's Field (1995) and Journey to Mecca (2009).

Evolucionary Vision

153. Denis Delestrac

Director | Sand Wars

Denis Delestrac is known for Sand Wars (2013), Banking Nature (2015) and McCurry: The Pursuit of Colour (2021).

Une Revelation

154. Adam Bolt

Producer | Human Nature

Adam Bolt is known for Human Nature (2019), Years of Living Dangerously (2014) and Inside Job (2010).

155. Maite Alberdi

Director | La memoria infinita

Academy Awards® Nominee Director and Producer, she is the first Chilean women to be nominated to the Oscars. She has developed a particular style that is characterized by the intimate portrait of small worlds, her renowned label has led her to be one of the most important voices of Latin American ...

156. Leslie Iwerks

Producer | The Imagineering Story

Leslie Iwerks is an Oscar® and Emmy® nominated documentary director and producer, as well as the granddaughter of famed Disney animation legend and designer of Mickey Mouse, Ub Iwerks.

Iwerks is a graduate of the USC School of Cinema-Television and serves on the USC School of Cinematic Arts Alumni ...

157. David Darg

Director | You Cannot Kill David Arquette

David Darg is an Oscar nominated director and co-founder of RYOT Media and Arabia+. Named one of Esquire Magazine's "2012 Americans of the Year" and Details Magazine's "Hollywood Mavericks," David spent 15 years as a first responder and front line contributor for Reuters, the BBC and CNN, covering ...

Sportiv Eye

159. Ray Dalio

Producer | Years of Living Dangerously

Ray Dalio is known for Years of Living Dangerously (2014).

160. Michael Wood

Writer | River Journeys

Michael Wood was born on July 23, 1948 in Manchester, England, UK. He is a writer and director, known for River Journeys (1984), A Church to Yourself (1979) and The Great British Story: A People's History (2012). He has been married to Rebecca Dobbs since 1988. They have two children.

161. Chris Smith

Producer | Tiger King

Chris Smith was born in 1970. He is known for Tiger King (2020), Fyre (2019) and Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond (2017).

162. Simon Reeve

Writer | Simon Reeve's Return to Cornwall

Simon Reeve is a bestselling author and presenter of the acclaimed BBC TV travel series Tropic of Capricorn, Equator, Places That Don't Exist and Meet the Stans, for which he has traveled to scores of countries.

In the 2008 BBC TV series Tropic of Capricorn Simon traveled around the line marking the...

163. Pedro Andrade

Actor | The Companionist

Pedro Andrade is known for The Companionist (2008), Pedro pelo Mundo (2016) and 1st Look NY (2007).

164. Anthony Bourdain

Producer | Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations

Anthony Bourdain was born in New York City, to Gladys (Sacksman), an NYT staff editor, and Pierre Bourdain, a Columbia Records executive. He attended The Englewood School for Boys in New Jersey and Vassar College (for two years), and was a graduate of The Culinary Institute of America. He began his...

165. Richard Quest

Producer | Future Cities

Richard Quest was born on March 9, 1962 in Liverpool, England, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for Future Cities (2010), CNN Breaking News: Terror Attempt on U.S. Airliner (2009) and Quest Means Business (2009).

166. Irene Taylor

Producer | I Am: Celine Dion

Irene Taylor is an Oscar-nominated, multiple-Emmy, duPont and Peabody-winning director and producer.

Her most recent film Trees And Other Entanglements was released by HBO at the end of 2023 and explores of our human obsession with the arboreal world.

In 2022, Irene won a Columbia-duPont Award for ...

167. Sara Dosa

Producer | Fire of Love

Sara Dosa is an award-winning nonfiction filmmaker whose work centers on the human relationship with non-human nature. For her directing work, Dosa has won a Peabody and the Directors' Guild of America Awards, among others, and has been nominated for an Oscar, BAFTA and Independent Spirit Award. ...

168. Bryan Fogel

Producer | Icarus

Bryan Fogel is an American film director, producer, author, playwright, speaker and human rights activist, best known for the 2017 documentary Icarus, which won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 90th Academy Awards in 2018.

The New York Times described Fogel's film Icarus as "...

169. Freida Lee Mock

Producer | Return with Honor

Freida Lee Mock is known for Return with Honor (1998), Anita: Speaking Truth to Power (2013) and Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision (1994). She is married to Terry Sanders.

170. Jessica Yu

Director | Fosse/Verdon

Jessica Yu was born in 1966. She is a director and producer, known for Fosse/Verdon (2019), Billions (2016) and Maria Bamford: Old Baby (2017). She is married to Mark Salzman.

171. Gail Dolgin

Producer | Daughter from Danang

Gail Dolgin was born on April 4, 1945 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA. Gail was a producer and director, known for Daughter from Danang (2002), Cuba Va: The Challenge of the Next Generation (1993) and The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement (2011). Gail died on...

Pauca sed bona

172. Julia Reichert

Producer | American Factory

Julia Reichert has been called a godmother of the US independent film movement and is a three time Oscar-nominee. Her film Growing Up Female was the first feature documentary of the modern Women's Movement. It was recently chosen for inclusion on the National Film Registry.

Her films Union Maids and...

173. Steven Bognar

Producer | American Factory

Steven Bognar was born in 1963 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. He is a producer and director, known for American Factory (2019), A Lion in the House (2006) and Picture Day (2000). He was previously married to Julia Reichert.

174. Matthew O'Neill

Producer | Axios

Matthew O'Neill is an Emmy® Award winning and Academy Award ® nominated director whose been working with DCTV making documentaries for the last ten years. For the 2006 HBO documentary he directed with Jon Alpert, Baghdad ER, he earned a Columbia DuPont Award, a Peabody Award, an Overseas Press Club...

175. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy

Producer | Saving Face

Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy was born on November 12, 1978 in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. She is a producer and director, known for Saving Face (2012), A Journey of a Thousand Miles: Peacekeepers (2015) and A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness (2015). She is married to Fahd Kamal Chinoy. They have ...

176. Rob Epstein

Producer | The Celluloid Closet

Rob Epstein was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA as Robert P. Epstein. He is a producer and director, known for The Celluloid Closet (1995), Paragraph 175 (2000) and The Times of Harvey Milk (1984).

Rob has produced films that have screened worldwide, in cinemas, on television, home video and ...

LGBT themes

177. Rayka Zehtabchi

Director | Period. End of Sentence.

The first Iranian woman to win an Oscar, Rayka Zehtabchi is a director working in both documentary and fiction. Her documentaries "Period. End of Sentence." and "A Woman's Place" can be seen on Netflix and Hulu, respectively. Rayka is primarily drawn to simple stories that prioritize heart over ...

178. Byambasuren Davaa

Director | Die Höhle des gelben Hundes

Byambasuren Davaa was born in 1971 in Ulan Bator, Mongolia. She is a director and writer, known for The Cave of the Yellow Dog (2005), Veins of the World (2020) and Die Geschichte vom weinenden Kamel (2003).

180. Banksy

Director | Exit Through the Gift Shop

Banksy is known for Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010), Velvet Buzzsaw (2019) and History of the Wall (2017).

182. Andrew Graham-Dixon

Writer | The Art of France

Andrew Graham-Dixon was born on December 26, 1960. He is a writer and producer, known for The Art of France (2017), A History of British Art (1996) and The Art of Russia (2009). He has been married to Sabine Marie Pascale Tilly since August 8, 1985. They have three children.

I Loved Art of Spain https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1717990/

183. Morgan Neville

Producer | Best of Enemies

Morgan Neville was born on October 10, 1967 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is a producer and director, known for Best of Enemies (2015), Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018) and The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble (2015).

184. Robert Gordon

Producer | Best of Enemies

Emmy and Grammy Award winning filmmaker Robert Gordon is the producer/director of 8 feature documentaries and author of 6 books. He has focused on American popular culture-telling contemporary stories through historical music, art and politics.

Gordon's documentary, Best of Enemies, won an Emmy in ...

185. Alan Fàbregas

Director | This Is Opera

Alan Fàbregas is known for This Is Opera (2015), Òpera en texans (2011) and El foraster (2013).

186. Michio Kaku

Self | Accidental Truth: UFO Revelations

Expert in science fiction, futurist, bestselling author, acclaimed on-air personality, and popularizer of theoretical physics.

Dr. Kaku has starred in science programming for television including series for Discovery, Science Channel, BBC, ABC, and History Channel. Beyond his numerous New York Times...

Prestigious opinions



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