EXCLUSIVE: Netflix has lined up a blockbuster slate of short documentaries heading into Oscar season, including the latest from two-time Academy Award winner Ben Proudfoot in collaboration with the Obamas’ production company.
The streamer announced four acquisitions today, beginning with The Turnaround, directed by Proudfoot and Kyle Thrash, a documentary that “tells the story of Philadelphia Phillies’ superfan Jon McCann, who helped inspire an unlikely 2023 standing ovation for Phillies shortstop Trea Turner, which helped turn the team around after hitting a major roadblock.” (Coincidence or otherwise, the Phillies have clinched the NL East division this year and are essentially tied with the L.A. Dodgers for the best record in baseball).
As Deadline reported in late August, Higher Ground, the production company founded by former Pres. Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama, came aboard The Turnaround. Higher Ground produces, along with Proudfoot’s Breakwater Studios, Cookie Jar & A Dream Studios (a DICK’s Sporting Goods company), and Major League Baseball. The documentary will premiere on Netflix on October 18.
Scroll for full details on the acquisitions announced on Wednesday.
‘Makayla’s Voice: A Letter to the World’
Netflix
Also joining the Netflix slate is Makayla’s Voice: A Letter to the World, directed by Julio Palacio. It’s a moving story of Makayla Cain, a teenage girl with a form of autism that left her nonverbal. Her parents worked to unlock the secret world of Makayla’s consciousness, with remarkable results.
Makayla’s Voice won Best Documentary Short at Tribeca Festival earlier this year, as well as the Jenni Berebitsky Legacy Award at the Indy Shorts International Film Festival, and awards at Slamdance and the Atlanta Film Festival. It premieres on Netflix on December 11.
Oscar-winning filmmaker Julia Reichert in ‘Julia’s Stepping Stones’
Netflix
Netflix likewise acquired Julia’s Stepping Stones, the final film from Oscar winner Julia Reichert, who won the Academy Award for American Factory, directed with her husband Steven Bognar. Julia’s Stepping Stones, directed by Reichert and Bognar, shares “the intimate story of [Reichert’s] own journey, from her youth as a working-class girl who dreamt of a larger life for herself to her discovery of documentary filmmaking and her own voice along the way.”
The short premieres on Netflix on December 18.
Leonard Bernstein with Orin O’Brien
Netflix
Rounding out the quartet of acquisitions is The Only Girl in the Orchestra, directed by Emmy winner Molly O’Brien. The film documents double bassist Orin O’Brien (Molly O’Brien’s aunt), a protégé of New York Philharmonic conduct Leonard Bernstein. She became the venerable institution’s first female musician when she joined the orchestra in the 1960s.
The Only Girl in the Orchestra bows on Netflix on December 4.
Netflix didn’t score any Oscar nominations in the short documentary category for the most recent Academy Awards, but it’s a traditional powerhouse in the space. Netflix short docs that have earned the Academy Award include The Elephant Whisperers (winner in 2023); Period. End of Sentence. (2019), and The White Helmets (2017).
Below are full details on the acquisitions announced on Wednesday.
The Turnaround
Directors: Kyle Thrash and Academy Award winner Ben Proudfoot (The Last Repair Shop, The Queen of Basketball)
Producers: Ben Proudfoot, Breakwater Studios’ Nicholas Ruff and Josh Rosenberg
Executive Producers: President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vinnie Malhotra and Ethan Lewis for Higher Ground Productions; Thrash and Jake Bloch for Breakwater Studios; Rebecca Covington and Mark Rooks for Cookie Jar & A Dream Studios; and Nick Trotta for MLB Studios
Logline: The documentary short tells the story of Philadelphia Phillies’ superfan Jon McCann, who helped inspire an unlikely 2023 standing ovation for Phillies shortstop Trea Turner, which helped turn the team around after hitting a major roadblock.
The Turnaround is the latest project in Netflix and Higher Ground’s creative partnership. Past films include Leave the World Behind, Rustin, American Symphony and Academy Award winner American Factory.
Festival Premiere: 2024 Telluride Film Festival
Release Date: On Netflix October 18, 2024
Makayla’s Voice: A Letter to the World
Director: Julio Palacio (Not the Science Type, The Crossing)
Executive Producers: Academy Award Winner Roger Ross Williams (Life Animated, Music by Prudence), Khari Cain, Mañana Cain, Rostam Zafari and Dylan Mulick
Producer: Sam Hanson, Sasha Levinson, Julio Palacio
Logline: Makayla, a teenage girl, who has spent her life grappling with a rare form of autism that rendered her essentially nonverbal. However, her parents, filled with unwavering belief in their daughter’s potential, embarked on a transformative journey to discover the true depth of Makayla’s inner world.
Festival Premiere: 2024 Slamdance Film Festival
Release Date: On Netflix December 11, 2024
Julia’s Stepping Stones
Directors: Academy Award winners Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar (American Factory)
Producer: Steven Bognar
Logline: Throughout her career, pioneering filmmaker, the late Julia Reichert, gave voice to the voiceless. In a final collaboration with her husband, Steven Bognar, Julia shares the intimate story of her own journey, from her youth as a working-class girl who dreamt of a larger life for herself to her discovery of documentary filmmaking and her own voice along the way.
Festival Premiere: Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
Release Date: On Netflix December 18, 2024
The Only Girl In The Orchestra
Director: Emmy Award winner Molly O’Brien
Producers: Molly O’ Brien (The Disappearance of Shere Hite, Separated) Lisa Remington (The Price of Everything, Foster, Disclosure)
Executive Producers: Academy Award WinnerErrol Morris (The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara, Gates of Heaven, The Thin Blue Line, Fast, Cheap & Out of Control)
Logline: Trailblazing double bassist Orin O’Brien was never one to seek the spotlight, but when Leonard Bernstein hired her in 1966 as the first female musician in the New York Philharmonic, she inevitably became the focus of media attention and, ultimately, one of the most renowned musicians of a generation.
Festival Premiere: DOC NYC
Release Date: On Netflix December 4, 2024
