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Quick Answer: ‘Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero’ will be released on January 27th and can be streamed on Max, or Hulu with a Live TV plan.

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Last week, Lil Nas X announced the release of his new documentary, Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero, only days after releasing his controversial music video “J-Christ.” “The problem is y’all judge everything at face value.

Roger Ross Williams is having quite the year. So far, the Oscar-winning director has released his first fiction film, Amazon Studios’ “Cassandro”; the HBO documentary “Love to Love You, Donna Summer”; AppleTV+ docuseries “The Super Models”; and Hulu miniseries “The 1619 Project.”

Joining Williams’ impressive output this year is Netflix’s “Stamped From the Beginning,” an adaptation of the eponymous bestselling book by Ibram X. Kendi about the history of racism and anti-Blackness in the U.S. The film has its European premiere at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam on Tuesday.

To have “Stamped From the Beginning” play at the festival is special to the American director, who now lives in the Dutch capital. “Amsterdam is my home, I love the city so much. IDFA is such an important festival for the Dutch community but it’s also an important festival for me, personally, being a Dutch resident married to a Dutch person,...

"I love all of the things that Blackness have given America, whether or not America acknowledges it." Ooh yes, say it. Speak it. Netflix has revealed an official trailer for a documentary film called Stamped From the Beginning, arriving in theaters and for streaming on Netflix later in November this fall. It premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, with stops at AFI Fest and Doc NYC. Directed and produced by Roger Ross Williams, Stamped From the Beginning is executive produced by Dr. Kendi and NAACP Image Award winner Mara Brock Akil. Oscar-winning director Williams brings Dr. Ibram X. Kendi's best-selling book titled Stamped From the Beginning to life, using vivid animations and leading female scholars to explore the history of anti-Black racist ideas. Described in rave reviews as "an important & eye-opening film that should be seen by everyone everywhere as it challenges conventional thought on the relationship between Black people and America.

There are a few documentarians who dabble in feature filmmaking: R.J. Cutler (“If I Stay”), Matt Heineman (“A Private War”), even Werner Herzog (there are many). To their ranks we can now add Oscar-winner Roger Ross Williams (“Music By Prudence”), and he’s all in on making it work.

At Telluride, Williams screened his well-reviewed Sundance feature “Cassandro”; saw the world premiere of “Stamped from the Beginning” at the Toronto International Film Festival; and Apple TV+ will air his four-part docuseries “The Super Models” September 20.

It’s an eclectic and vibrant collection of work and none of it was straightforward or easy. “Cassandro” is based on the true story of Luchador Saúl Armendáriz (Gael García Bernal in a career-best performance) who finds his true identity as the cross-dressing El Exotico on the Mexico wrestling circuit. Williams met his subject on the Amazon documentary short “The Man Without a Mask” (2016).

“I knew that story inside out,...

Filmmaker Roger Ross Williams is known for capturing moments of intimacy and awe in documentaries like God Loves Uganda and the Oscar-nominated Life, Animated. With Cassandro, a portrait of gay lucha libre wrestling star Saúl Armendáriz (Gael García Bernal), Williams has brought that sense of warmth and showmanship to his first scripted feature. The film, which arrives in theaters Sept. 15 and on Prime Video Sept. 22, is just one of a bumper crop of Williams projects that are landing in 2023, from HBO’s Love to Love You, Donna Summer, which premiered in May, to the AppleTV+ docuseries The Super Models, due Sept. 20, to his hybrid doc feature on the history of racism, Stamped from the Beginning, set to be released by Netflix in November.

At the Telluride Film Festival earlier this month, Williams spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about making the leap to scripted fare, the trip to Juarez, Mexico that...

Polygram Entertainment, the film and television division of Universal Music Group, has announced that Daniel Inkeles will become the new senior vice president of film and television development and production.

Prior to his promotion, Inkeles was the vice president of scripted film and television for Umg. In that role he served as executive producer of NBC’s musical comedy “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.” During the series’ two-season run, it was nominated for seven Emmys, winning one for Outstanding Choreography for Scripted Programming. Inkeles was also an executive producer for Alison Ellwood’s Critics Choice-winning documentary “The Go-Go’s,” which centered around the American rock band of the same name, as well as the 2019 film, “Billie,” James Erskine’s documentary about Billie Holiday.

Inkeles is based in Los Angeles and will report to David Blackman, the executive vice president and head of film and television development and production for Umg.

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More than ever, rock stars were TV stars in 2023 — in the form of subjects for television documentaries — and so were their brethren in pop, hip-hop, K-pop and Latin music. Some of these TV films or docuseries were vanity projects used to promote new albums, of course; others started off as “making of” projects and ended up catching a star in a moment of real psychological crisis. It wasn’t all cinema verité; historical overviews capturing the full breadth of an artist’s career or even a genre still had their place in the pop-doc landscape.

Four films or limited series stand out in the subgenre of docs that were initially commissioned to capture an album or tour and, through circumstances, evolved into something deeper or darker. “Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me” (Apple TV+) was going to be a tour documentary, but then, when an emotional breakdown caused her to pull off the road,...

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Donna Summer is to this day considered the Queen of Disco thanks to her chart-topping hits throughout the 1970s, famous for her commanding stage presence, dramatic makeup and voluptuous curls. But a new documentary “Love to Love You, Donna Summer,” released on HBO Max on May 22, pulls back the glamorous mask that the singer hid behind throughout her fame to reveal her most intimate moments.

The film, co-directed by filmmaker Roger Ross Williams and Brooklyn Sudano (Summer’s daughter), pulls together home movies and archival footage from Summer’s life in order to tell a captivating story about her rise to fame and the internal troubles she consistently went back to when she left the stage. Clips from her performances — in which she effortlessly shimmies to songs like “On...

Donna Summer is best known for beloved hits like “Last Dance,” “Hot Stuff” and “She Works Hard for the Money.” But fans likely don’t know the intimate details of the singer’s life. “Love to Love You,” the new documentary coming to HBO Max on Saturday, May 20 aims to change that. It takes viewers on an intimate journey behind-the-scenes of Summer’s live, showing how she created some of her most beloved songs. You can watch with a 7-Day Free Trial of Max.

How to Watch 'Love to Love You, Donna Summer' When: Saturday, May 20, 2023 Where: Max Stream: Watch with a 7-Day Free Trial of Max. 7-Day Free Trial$9.99+ / month Max via amazon.com

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About 'Love to Love You, Donna Summer'

Shaped by Summer’s own reflections, the memories of close family, friends and colleagues, and filled with...

The breakdown of the Writers Guild of America’s contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers could benefit the documentary industry. Especially those documentary filmmakers with projects seeking distribution.

At least that’s the hope.

Like film and television scribes worried about the survival of screenwriting as a viable profession, hundreds of nonfiction filmmakers with independently made docus are grappling with the streamers’ new distribution landscape, which, for the most part, no longer includes acquiring titles that aren’t commissioned.

If the writers strike lasts for several months, the thought is that not only broadcast networks but also streaming companies will begin to face holes in their narrative content, which could, in turn, lead to the purchase of indie docus to fill the void.

At the Hot Docs film festival in Toronto, documentary producers, programmers and filmmakers are not only celebrating independently made fare but also...

Donna Summer and disco are synonymous. She became known as the “Queen of Disco” and had hits like “She Works Hard for The Money,” “Love to Love You, Baby,” and “I Feel Love,” among many others. And while her disco hits and her work with super producer Giorgio Moroder did make her the reigning queen of disco in the 1970s, she was also a bonafide global pop star and became the first video from a Black female artist to debut on MTV.

Continue reading ‘Love To Love You, Donna Summer’ Trailer: HBO Gives A Disco Superstar Her Due On May 20 at The Playlist.

Still No. 1 on the Netflix charts, “The Diplomat” got a second season renewal from the world’s largest streaming service this week. The sophomore season is expected to arrive in 2024, WGA strike implications notwithstanding. Keri Russell stars as the American ambassador to the United Kingdom — who is also secretly being groomed to be the next vice president — when she finds herself having to prevent Wwiii. She’s always been great in war zones, now she’s dealing with critical issues on the world stage — all while dealing with a difficult husband (played by Rufus Sewell).

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“The Morning Show” has been renewed for a fourth season by Apple TV+ in advance of the Emmy-winning drama’s Season 3 premiere slated for this fall. The hit show stars Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston as TV anchors coping with scandals, rivalries, and potential takeovers. John Hamm joins season 3 alongside Julianna Marguiles,...

"There's too much fire in me..." HBO has revealed an official trailer for a music biopic documentary titled Love to Love You, Donna Summer, arriving for streaming and viewing this May. The film premiered at the 2023 Berlin Film Festival, and also stopped by SXSW, Cph:dox, Hot Docs, Iff Boston. Love to Love You, Donna Summer is a deeply personal portrait of the Queen of Disco. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Roger Ross Williams, along with Brooklyn Sudano, daughter of Donna Summer, the documentary explores the highs & lows of fame, offering an intimate glimpse at the artist’s life on and off stage. The film pulsates with the beats and significance of Summer's music, including her early hits with Giorgio Moroder, which invoked a sexuality that became a hallmark of Summer's wildly popular stage persona at the time; and "She Works Hard for The Money," which paid tribute to the working woman...

HBO Original documentary Love To Love You, Donna Summer, directed by Oscar® and Emmy®-winning filmmaker Roger Ross Williams and Brooklyn Sudano, daughter of Donna Summer, debuts Saturday, May 20 (8:00-10:00 p.m. Et/Pt) on HBO and will be available to stream on HBO Max. The documentary had its international premiere at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival and its domestic premiere at SXSW.

Synopsis: Shaped by Summer’s own reflections, the memories of close family, friends and colleagues, and filled with the sounds of Summer’s songs, Love To Love You, Donna Summer is an in-depth look at the iconic artist as she creates music that takes her from the avant-garde music scene in Germany, to the glitter and bright lights of dance clubs in New York, to worldwide acclaim, her voice becoming the defining soundtrack of an era. A deeply personal portrait of Summer on and off the stage,...

In “Spinning Gold,” a sketchy but adoring if not outright devotional biopic about Neil Bogart, the upstart ’70s music-industry mogul who founded Casablanca Records, there’s a pivotal moment that spins around the story of how Bogart, at a party he was throwing, played the 3-minute-and-20-second single version of Donna Summer’s “Love to Love You Baby.” He played it over and over again because his guests kept asking for it. That’s when the lightbulb went on. Bogart realized that the song needed to be longer, much longer — long enough to have sex to. (It ended up being 16 minutes and 50 seconds.) This is a rather famous anecdote. So we assume that we’re going to see Bogart meet with Giorgio Moroder, the song’s composer and producer, and change music history.

It happens that way…sort of. Bogart tells Moroder that he wants a longer version of the song.

Oscar winner and Academy member Roger Ross Williams is saying publicly what many in the documentary community have stewed over privately – that the sums of money being spent on Oscar documentary campaigns has “gotten insane.” And Williams, a former Academy Governor representing the Doc Branch, says something may be done about it.

“We in the Academy, in the Doc Branch, have a campaign finance reform committee… to sort of try to work through that and figure out solutions to that. It’s gotten insane. It’s gazillions of dollars to get seen and heard,” he said, “and that’s so troubling because it should be on the merit of the films.”

Director Roger Ross Williams (rt) and Thom Powers converse at Cph:dox in Copenhagen, Wednesday, March 22, 2023

His remarks, less than two weeks after the Academy Awards, came in a discussion with documentary programmer and Pure Nonfiction podcaster Thom Powers at Cph:dox in Copenhagen.

During a talk at Copenhagen’s Cph:dox on Wednesday, Oscar-winning director Roger Ross Williams spoke about a wide variety of topics, including his latest documentary, “Love to Love You, Donna Summer,” how insanely expensive it is to garner a doc Oscar nomination, and why the racial reckoning that occurred in the nonfiction community after George Floyd’s murder is over.

Despite celebrity-driven docs being all the rage, Williams admitted that he usually rejects them.

“I have so many celebrities who come to me about making a documentary (about their life),” the helmer told moderator Thom Powers. “It’s never worked out because if they are a living celebrity, who is very popular, they are all about control. It’s a piece of propaganda about their image and their career. It’s not a documentary.”

But when it came to making a docu about Summer, who passed away in 2012, Williams didn...

Sometimes, when a documentary has a great subject, it can explore that subject with an intimacy that’s arresting, only to treat other aspects of the story with a kind of cavalier casualness. “Love to Love You Donna Summer” is that kind of documentary. Co-directed by Roger Ross Williams and Brooklyn Sudano (who is Summer’s daughter), it’s full of home movies and photographs and archival footage of Donna Summer, and it creates an eye-opening portrait of the ambitious yet deeply disconsolate woman she was. We see her when she was growing up in Boston, where she sang gospel in church and felt a gift passing through her, knowing that she was going to be famous, or when she moved to Munich in 1968, at 19, to be in the German production of “Hair”, or later on, after she’d become a pop star, at home with her daughters, lost in the empty mirror of fame.