SURVIVORS nominated for Outstanding Social Issue Emmy!

The SURVIVORS team had a wonderfully inspiring trip to New York for the News & Documentary Emmy Awards where our film was nominated for Outstanding Social Issue Documentary. While we didn’t come away with a statue, we are returning full of gratitude and so proud that we accomplished our mission and beyond.  Nobody could express how we are feeling better than our film’s director and the co-manager of the WeOwnTV Freetown Media Centre, Arthur Pratt. We wanted to share his heartfelt words: 

“When we set out to make SURVIVORS, it was merrily to ensure that we as Africans tell our own story without the normal third party influence. Little did we ever imagine that the film about the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone would go so far. From participating in Competition in nearly every film festival we screened, to being nominated for the prestigious Peabody Award, and now the The Emmy Award, I am left with surprise as the film continues to make strides and historical marks not only for its makers, but also because it positions Sierra Leone as a nation of storytellers. Let me use this opportunity to say thank you very much to all those who have supported this film and the WeOwnTV Freetown Media Centre.” 

Thank you to our generous supporters: POV | American Documentary, Justin Nagan, Chris White, ITVS, PBS, Sundance Documentary Film Program, Kristin Feeley, Tabitha Jackson, Catapult Film Fund, Lisa Kleiner Chanoff, Bonni Cohen, Megan Gelstein, Beadie Finzi, Bertha Foundation, Chicken & Egg Pictures, MacArthur Foundation, Tribeca Film Institute, Creative Capital, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Kenneth Rainin Foundation and everyone else who championed us along the way. 

In other news, our SURVIVORS team is proud to have contributed to Doc Society's Impact Field Guide. Arthur and Banker were interviewed about the WeOwnTV program for sections on Filmmaking as Emancipatory Practice. Among other topics of discussion, Arthur and Banker discussed ways to make film collaborations more sustainable and equitable. To access the Impact Field Guide, click on this link here.

Survivors team at Emmy’s Award night

Justine Nagan (POV), Arthur Pratt, Barmmy Boy, Banker White, anna Fitch, David EIsenberg (ITVS)