Cynthia Wade is an American television, commercial and

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

, producer and

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

based in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. She has directed documentaries on social issues including '' Shelter Dogs'' in 2003 about

animal welfare Animal welfare is the quality of life and overall well-being of animals. Formal standards of animal welfare vary between contexts, but are debated mostly by animal welfare groups, legislators, and academics. Animal welfare science uses measures ...

and '' Freeheld'' in 2007 about

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...

as well as television commercials and web campaigns. She has won over 40

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theater, cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online. Films may be of recent ...

awards, won an

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

in 2008, and was nominated for her second Oscar in 2013.

Background

Wade was born and raised in the New York City area and is the great-granddaughter of John Orr Young, the founder of

Young & Rubicam VMLY&R was an American marketing and Marketing communications, communications company specializing in advertising, Digital media, digital and social media, sales promotion, direct marketing and brand identity consulting, formed from the 2020 mer ...

, an advertising agency in Manhattan. She attended

Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smit ...

where she received her

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree, and

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

where she received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in Documentary Film Production. During college, Wade attended the National Theater Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut, where she studied directing. In 1999, she married Matthew Syrett. She taught advanced digital cinematography and film production in the graduate certificate program in Documentary Media Studies at

The New School The New School is a Private university, private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for p ...

and runs a film production company, Cynthia Wade Productions, Inc.

Work

lIn 1999, Wade's personal documentary ''Grist for the Mill'' aired on Cinemax. In 2003, Wade directed and produced '' Shelter Dogs'', a documentary about the

system in the United States and the

ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

animal euthanasia Animal euthanasia (euthanasia from ; "good death") is the act of killing an animal humanely, most commonly with injectable drugs. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditions or diseases, lack of resources to con ...

. For this film she won the Grand Prize at the Director's View Film Festival, the Audience Award at the

Newport International Film Festival Newport International Film Festival was an annual film festival in Newport, Rhode Island, established in 1998. The Newport Film Festival was generally held the first week in June and featured various international films at several local cinemas. ...

, the Best of the Fest award at the Northampton Film Festival and the Audience Award at the Orinda Film Festival. It was the 2004 debut special for HBO's series '' America Undercover''. In 2007, Wade directed and shot '' Freeheld'', a documentary telling the story of terminally ill

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

police officer Laurel Hester. Hester came to public attention when she appealed to her local authorities to change the policy that prevented her female

domestic partner A domestic partnership is an intimate relationship between people, usually couples, who cohabitation, live together and share a common domestic life but who are not marriage, married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partner ...

from receiving pension benefits upon Hester's death. While filming ''Freeheld'', Wade spent time living with Hester and her partner Stacie Andree in New Jersey. The film won 16 film awards including the Special Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, a Special Jury Prize at the

Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) is a film festival held annually in Seattle, Washington, United States, since 1976. It usually takes place in late May and/or early June. It is one of the largest festivals in the world, and feature ...

, the Audience Award at the Boston Independent Film Festival, the Audience Award at L.A. Outfest. Wade and producer Vanessa Roth won the

Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject) This is a list of films by year that have received an Academy Award together with the other nominations for best documentary short film. Following the Academy's practice, the year listed for each film is the year of release: the awards are announ ...

at the

80th Academy Awards The 80th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2007. The award ceremony took place on February 24, 2008, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. During t ...

for ''Freeheld'' in 2008. In 2008 and 2009 Wade directed the documentary ''Living the Legacy: The Untold Story of Milton Hershey School'' at Milton Hershey School in

Hershey, Pennsylvania Hershey is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Derry Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is home to the Hershey Company, which was founded by candy magnate Milton S. Hershey ...

, one of several films she has made for schools and non profit organizations. It aired on the Sundance Channel and the

Independent Film Channel IFC is an American basic cable channel owned by AMC Networks. Launched in 1994 as the Independent Film Channel, a spin-off of former sister channel Bravo, IFC originally operated as a commercial-free service, devoted to showing independent fi ...

. In January 2010, Wade's documentary ''Born Sweet'', about a Cambodian boy who is poisoned with

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol As and atomic number 33. It is a metalloid and one of the pnictogens, and therefore shares many properties with its group 15 neighbors phosphorus and antimony. Arsenic is not ...

, had its World Premiere at the

2010 Sundance Film Festival The 26th annual Sundance Film Festival was held from January 21, 2010, until January 31, 2010, in Park City, Utah, Park City, Utah. Awards *Grand Jury Prize: Documentary - ''Restrepo (film), Restrepo'' *Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic - ''Winter's Bone ...

where it was awarded Honorable Mention; it won 14 additional film festival awards, including prizes at Aspen, Palm Springs and the Hamptons Film Festivals. In 2011, Wade was Documentary Director for the Prime Time Emmy-Winning Sesame Street TV special "Growing Hope Against Hunger", about food insecurity in America, as told through four children's eyes in different parts of the country. In 2013, Wade was nominated for her second

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for her HBO documentary '' Mondays at Racine''. The documentary won 4 festival awards and an IDA Award Nomination. In 2014, during an event at the Sundance Film Festival, Wade released her short film "Selfie" in conjunction with the Sundance Institute and Dove (soap) dealing with how social media is changing the way women define beauty. "Selfie" is an installment of the ' Dove Campaign for Real Beauty. The Selfie project went viral and captured over 7.1 million views worldwide. It was awarded a

Clio In Greek mythology, Clio ( , ; ), also spelled Kleio, Сleio, or Cleo, is the muse of history, or in a few mythological accounts, the muse of lyre-playing. Etymology Clio's name is derived from the Greek root κλέω/κλείω (meaning ...

in 2014 for Best Short Form Film. In 2015, Wade directed and cast #EndMommyWars, a 7-minute documentary for

Similac Similac (for "similar to lactation") is a brand of infant formula that was developed by Alfred Bosworth of Tufts University and marketed by Abbott Laboratories. It was first released in the late 1920s, and then reformulated and concentrated in ...

as part of their #EndMommyWars campaign. The film followed real new moms over the course of a day, where they talked about how they judged other mothers and felt judged themselves. In 2015, the feature film '' Freeheld'', based on Wade's 2007 documentary, was released by

Lionsgate Lions Gate, Lion Gate or similar terms may refer to: Gates *Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the ancient Hittite city of Hattusa, now in Turkey *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the gardens of Hampton Court Pala ...

. Wade served as a lead producer on this film, which stars

Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress and children's author. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent ...

Elliot Page Elliot Page (formerly Ellen Page; born February 21, 1987) is a Canadian actor, producer, and activist. He is known for his leading roles across Canadian and American film and television, and for his outspoken work as an activist for LGBTQ righ ...

, Steve Carell and

Michael Shannon Michael Corbett Shannon (born August 7, 1974) is an American actor. Shannon received two Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nominations, for '' Revolutionary Road'' (2008), and '' Nocturnal Animals'' (2016). He received Screen Actors Guil ...

. It is directed by Peter Sollett. Wade co-directed in 2016 the feature documentary ''Generation Startup'' detailing six startups in Detroit launched through Andrew Yang's Venture for America (VFA) program. Wade co-directed the PBS POV Documentary in 2019 ''Grit''. The film is an account of the Lapindo Mud disaster in East Java, Indonesia, which premiered at HotDocs in 2018. In 2021, Wade directed ''Sproutland''. In 2022, directed three episodes of the TV Series, ''Gutsy'' featuring Chelsea and

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

. Wade then co-directed and co-produced '' The Flagmakers'' with Sharon Liese, a documentary that follows a factory making American flags whose employees are primarily immigrants.

Filmography

Director

*1983: '' America Undercover'' (TV series) *1995: ''Out of My Mind'' (Documentary Short) *1995: ''Almost Home'' (Documentary Short) *1999: ''Grist for the Mill'' (Documentary) *2003: '' Shelter Dogs'' (Documentary) *2007: ''Freeheld'' (Documentary Short) *2007: ''Freeheld: The Legacy of Laurel Hester'' (Documentary Short) *2009: ''Living the Legacy: The Untold Story of Milton Hershey School'' (TV Movie Documentary) *2010: ''Born Sweet'' (Documentary Short) *2011: ''Growing Hope Against Hunger'' (TV Movie Documentary) *2012: '' Mondays at Racine'' (Documentary Short) *2012: ''Wrestling the Monster: Living with Hepatic Encephalopathy'' (Documentary Short) *2015: ''Heart Felt'' (Documentary) *2015: ''#EndTheMommyWars'' (Documentary Short) *2016: ''Generation Startup'' (Documentary) *2017: ''Hep C Free'' (Documentary Short) *2018: ''Beyond Blue: Barbara's MPN Story'' (Documentary Short) *2018: ''Grit'' (Documentary) *2018: ''Gravity: Scott & Amy's MPN Story & Role of Caregiving'' (Documentary Short) *2018: ''Something So Rare: Four Unique MPN Stories'' (Documentary Short) *2018: ''Invisible: Taja's MPN Story'' (Documentary Short) *2021: ''Sproutland'' (Short) *2022: ''Gutsy'' (TV Documentary Series) *2022: '' The Flagmakers'' (Documentary Short, co-directed with Sharon Liese)

Producer

*1995: ''Almost Home'' *1998: ''Biography'' (TV Documentary Series) *1999: ''Grist for the Mill'' (Documentary) *2003: ''Shelter Dogs'' (Documentary) *2003: ''Buff Brides'' (TV Series) *2006: ''Gender Rebel'' (Documentary) *2007: ''Freeheld'' (Documentary Short) *2007: ''Freeheld: The Legacy of Laurel Hester'' (Documentary Short) *2009: ''Living the Legacy: The Untold Story of Milton Hershey School'' (TV Movie Documentary) *2010: ''Born Sweet'' (Documentary Short) *2012: ''Mondays at Racine'' (Documentary Short) *2015: ''The Gnomist'' (Documentary Short) *2015: '' Freeheld'' (Documentary Short) *2016: ''Out in Alabama'' (Documentary Short) *2018: ''Grit'' (Documentary) *2022: ''The Flagmakers'' (Documentary Short, co-produced with Sharon Liese)

Cinematographer

*1995: '' Out of My Mind'' (Documentary Short) *1995: ''Almost Home'' (Documentary Short) *1997: '' Ancient Mysteries'' (TV Documentary Series) *1998: ''Taken In: Lives of America's Foster Children'' *1999: ''Grist for the Mill'' *2000: ''Parole: Prison Without Bars'' *2002: '' The Collector of Bedford Street'' *2003: ''Shelter Dogs'' *2003: '' Risk/Reward'' *2004: ''Lookalike'' *2007: ''Freeheld'' *2008: '' In the Family'' *2008: ''P.O.V.'' (TV Documentary Series) *2009: ''Living the Legacy: The Untold Story of Milton Hershey School'' (TV Movie Documentary) *2010: ''Born Sweet'' (Documentary Short) *2010: ''Forget Me Nots'' (Documentary Short)

References

External links

Official site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wade, Cynthia American cinematographers Film producers from New York (state) Living people Film directors from New York City Smith College alumni Stanford University alumni American women cinematographers Year of birth missing (living people) American women film producers 21st-century American women