At their best, political documentaries make sense of complex issues. But getting them seen is more challenging than ever, given Hollywood’s preference for celebrity or true-crime nonfiction over anything that grapples with thorny, complicated issues or characters.
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That hasn’t stopped top documentarians from tackling such topics. Errol Morris’ “Separated,” a look at the Trump administration’s immigration policies at the U.S. border, is making its debut at the Venice Film Festival. Documentaries on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, gun control and anti-Semitism are also in the works and could land at fall festivals. There’s also talk of a documentary on Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
It’s not at all clear who will distribute these films, which follow in the footsteps of political documentaries like Michael Moore’s record-breaking “Fahrenheit 9/11” and Amazon Prime Video’s 2020 offering “All In: The Fight for Democracy,” directed by Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortés, given buyer reluctance. In recent years, Apple TV+, Netflix, Disney and Amazon have all steered clear of political, nonpartisan fare in favor of more commercial, communal documentaries that cover sports alongside celebrity and true crime.
Among the films left out in the cold: Rory Kennedy’s “Adrift,” which premiered at last year’s Mill Valley Film Festival to warm reviews. The film about the global refugee crisis has yet to find a distributor.
