Doug Pray is an American

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...

director,

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

, and editor who often explores unique subcultures in his films. His work includes ''

Surfwise ''Surfwise'' is a 2007 American documentary film about the 11-member Doc Paskowitz family, which was directed by Doug Pray. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 11 September 2007 and had its U.S. premiere on 9 May 2008. ...

'' (2008), a portrait of the nomadic, 11-member

Doc Paskowitz DOC, Doc, doc or DoC may refer to: In film and television * ''Doc'' (2001 TV series), a 2001–2004 PAX series * ''Doc'' (1975 TV series), a 1975–1976 CBS sitcom * "D.O.C." (''Lost''), a television episode * ''Doc'' (film), a 1971 Wester ...

family (often referred to as the "first family of surfing"); '' Big Rig'' (2008), a documentary about

truck driver A truck driver (commonly referred to as a trucker, teamster, or driver in the United States and Canada; a truckie in Australia and New Zealand; a HGV driver in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the European Union, a lorry driver, or driver in ...

s;
Infamy
' (2005), a documentary about

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

culture; '' Red Diaper Baby'' (2004) a solo-performance film starring Josh Kornbluth; '' Scratch'' (2001), a documentary about

turntablism Turntablism is the art of manipulating sounds and creating new music, sound effects, mixes and other creative sounds and beats, typically by using two or more turntables and a cross fader-equipped DJ mixer. The mixer is plugged into a PA sy ...

and DJ culture; and his first feature, '' Hype!'' (1996), a documentary about the explosion and exploitation of the

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

grunge scene of the early 1990s. His most recent films are ''

Levitated Mass ''Levitated Mass'' is a 2012 large-scale public art sculpture by Michael Heizer at Resnick North Lawn at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The installation consists of a 340-ton boulder sculpture placed above a 456-foot viewing pathway to ac ...

'', (2013) a film about the creation of Michael Heizer's massive sculpture at the

Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Page Museum). LACMA was founded in 196 ...

, and the

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

-winning '' Art & Copy'', a film about advertising and creativity that premiered at the 2009

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,6 ...

, and was distributed by PBS. From 2014 to 2017, Doug Pray was Executive Producer, Writer, and Editor of the four-part HBO docu-series
The Defiant Ones
', directed by

Allen Hughes Allen Hughes (28 December 1921 – 16 November 2009) was an American dance and music critic. Born in Brownsburg, Indiana, Hughes started his career as a critic in 1950 when he joined the staff of ''Musical America''. In 1955, he became a music c ...

, which chronicles the legendary careers and partnership of music producers Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine. It premiered in the U.S. on July 9, 2017, and was nominated for 5

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

, won Best Limited Series at th
International Documentary Association (IDA) Awards
and won the 201
Grammy Award
for Best Music Film. In addition to his documentaries, Doug Pray has directed a number of non-fiction style commercials and commissioned short films for such brands as

Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ...

, Adidas,

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

, and Doc Martins. In 2006, he won an Emmy Award for an advocacy campaign about HIV-AIDS awareness. Doug Pray was born in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

and grew up in Madison, WI. He has a BA in sociology from

Colorado College Colorado College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was founded in 1874 by Thomas Nelson Haskell in his daughter's memory. The college enrolls approxi ...

and an MFA from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...

's School of Film and Television. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America and the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motion ...

. He lives in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

with his wife, Diana Rathe Pray, with whom he has two children.

Filmography (director)

*'' Hype!'' (1996) *'' Scratch'' (2001) *''

Sundance 20 A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada *Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States *Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated plac ...

'' (2002) *'' Veer'' (2004) *'' Red Diaper Baby'' (2004) *'' Infamy'' (2005) *'' Big Rig'' (2008) *''

'' (2008) *'' Art & Copy'' (2009) *''

'' (2013) *Love, Lizzo (2022)

External links

* *
Art & Copy

Surfwise

Big Rig

Infamy

SWINDLE Magazine article on the making of "Big Rig"

a film about ''Levitated Mass'' by Michael Heizer
The Defiant Ones
American documentary filmmakers American film directors Year of birth missing (living people) Living people {{US-film-director-stub