Jeffrey Friedman (born August 24, 1951) is an American filmmaker. In 2021, he and

Rob Epstein Robert P. Epstein (born April 6, 1955), is an American director, producer, writer, and editor. He is known for directing numerous documentaries, several of them focusing on the LGBTQ community and has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards, an ...

won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for their work on the documentary film '' Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice''

Career

Jeffrey Friedman grew up in New York City, where his mother was an actor and his father taught undergraduate English literature and edited and published a small literary magazine. He began studying acting when he was nine, and at 12, he acted professionally in two off-Broadway productions. He played Emil in ''

Emil and the Detectives ''Emil and the Detectives'' () is a 1929 novel set mainly in Berlin, by the German writer Erich Kästner and illustrated by Walter Trier. It was Kästner's first major success and the only one of his pre-1945 works to escape Nazi censorship. The ...

'' and a schoolboy on the first day of integration in Little Rock, Arkansas in ''Black Monday'' by

Reginald Rose Reginald Rose (December 10, 1920 – April 19, 2002) was an American screenwriter. He wrote about controversial social and political issues. His realistic approach was particularly influential in the anthology programs of the 1950s. Rose w ...

. Friedman began his film training by apprenticing in the editing rooms of films such as ''

Marjoe ''Marjoe'' is a 1972 American documentary film produced and directed by Howard Smith (director), Howard Smith and Sarah Kernochan about the life of Pentecostalism, Pentecostal preacher Marjoe Gortner. It won the 1972 in film, 1972 Academy Award f ...

'' (Academy Award, Documentary Feature, 1972) and

William Friedkin William David Friedkin (; August 29, 1935 – August 7, 2023) was an American film, television and opera director, producer, and screenwriter who was closely identified with the "New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in doc ...

's ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on The Exorcist (novel), his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller (play ...

'' (1973). Other early credits include the pole-vault segment directed by

Arthur Penn Arthur Hiller Penn (September 27, 1922 – September 28, 2010) was an American filmmaker, theatre director, and producer. He was a three-time Academy Award nominee for Academy Award for Best Director, Best Director, and a Tony Awards, Tony Awa ...

and edited by

Dede Allen Dorothea Carothers "Dede" Allen (December 3, 1923 – April 17, 2010) This obituary incorrectly states that she was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, which was subsequently acknowledged in an online correction. was an American film editor. Allen edite ...

for ''

Visions of Eight ''Visions of Eight'' is a 1973 American documentary film offering a stylized look at the 1972 Summer Olympics. Produced by Stan Margulies and executive produced by David L. Wolper, it was directed by eight directors. It was screened out-of-compe ...

'' (1973) about the

1972 Munich Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

, and ''

Raging Bull ''Raging Bull'' is a 1980 American biographical sports drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Cathy Moriarty, Theresa Saldana, Frank Vincent and Nicholas Colasanto (in his final film role). The film ...

'' (Academy Award, Film Editing, 1980), edited by

Thelma Schoonmaker Thelma Schoonmaker (; born January 3, 1940) is an American film editor, best known for her collaboration over five decades with director Martin Scorsese. She has received numerous accolades, including three Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and ...

and directed by

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

. Friedman has been making films with

since 1987 when they formed the production company Telling Pictures in San Francisco, California. Friedman and Epstein's first film together was '' Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt'', inspired by the

NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, often abbreviated to AIDS Memorial Quilt or AIDS Quilt, is a memorial to celebrate the lives of people who have died of AIDS-related causes. Weighing an estimated 54 tons, it is the largest piece of communit ...

. Narrated by

Dustin Hoffman Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for Dustin Hoffman filmography, his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable charac ...

, ''Common Threads'' recounts the first decade of AIDS in America through stories of five individuals featured in the Quilt. The film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for ''Common Threads'' in 1990 as well as a Peabody Award. ''Common Threads'' was preserved by the

Academy Film Archive The Academy Film Archive is part of the Academy Foundation, established in 1944 with the purpose of organizing and overseeing the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' educational and cultural activities, including the preservation of mot ...

, in conjunction with

Milestone Films Milestone Film and Video is an independent film distribution company, founded in 1990 in the United States by Dennis Doros and Amy Heller. The company researches and distributes cinematographic material from around the world, including silent film, ...

and

Outfest Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...

, in 2019. Their film '' The Celluloid Closet'', based on the book by film historian

Vito Russo Vito Russo (; July 11, 1946 – November 7, 1990) was an American LGBT activist, film historian, and author. He is best remembered as the author of the book '' The Celluloid Closet'' (1981, revised edition 1987), described in ''The New York Ti ...

, depicts a 100-year history of homosexual characters in Hollywood movies. Narrated by

Lily Tomlin Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin (born September 1, 1939) is an American actress, comedian, writer, singer, and producer. Tomlin started her career in stand-up comedy and sketch comedy before transitioning her career to acting across stage and screen. ...

, ''The Celluloid Closet'' had its world premiere at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

and was featured at the Toronto, New York, and Sundance Film Festivals (at which it received the juried Freedom of Expression Award) and at numerous international festivals, including Berlin, Tokyo, and Sydney. It received a Peabody Award and a duPont-Columbia journalism award alongside a News & Documentary Emmy for directing. In 2000, they directed and produced ''

Paragraph 175 Paragraph 175, known formally a§175 StGBand also referred to as Section 175 in English language, English, was a provision of the Strafgesetzbuch, German Criminal Code from 15 May 1871 to 10 March 1994. It Criminalization of homosexuality, mad ...

'', a film that explores the untold history of homosexuals during the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

regime in Europe. Narrated by

Rupert Everett Rupert James Hector Everett (; born 29 May 1959) is an English actor. He first came to public attention in 1981 when he was cast in Julian Mitchell's play and subsequent film '' Another Country'' (1984) as a gay pupil at an English public scho ...

and filmed in Germany, France and Spain, it had its U.S. premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2000, where it was awarded the documentary Grand Jury Prize for directing, followed by a European premiere at the Berlin Film Festival in February, where it won a FIPRESCI award (

Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI, short for ''Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique'') is an association of national organizations of professional Film criticism, film critics and film journalists from ...

). They wrote, directed, and co-produced ''

Howl Howl most often refers to: * Howling, an animal vocalization in many canine species * "Howl" (poem), a 1956 poem by Allen Ginsberg Howl or The Howl may also refer to: Film * '' The Howl'', a 1970 Italian film * ''Howl'' (2010 film), a 2010 Am ...

'' (2010), starring James Franco as the poet

Allen Ginsberg Irwin Allen Ginsberg (; June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he began friendships with Lucien Carr, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of th ...

. ''Howl'' premiered on opening night at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

, followed by the

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and

London International Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October. In 2016, the BFI estimated that around 240 fe ...

s. ''Howl'' received a 2011 Freedom of Expression Award from the

National Board of Review The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered the first major harbinger of the film awards season that ...

. In 2013, the duo directed ''Lovelace'', starring

Amanda Seyfried Amanda Michelle Seyfried ( ; born December 3, 1985) is an American actress and singer. She began acting at 15, with a recurring role as Lucy Montgomery in the CBS soap opera ''As the World Turns'' (1999–2001). She came to prominence for he ...

and

Peter Sarsgaard John Peter Sarsgaard (; born March 7, 1971) is an American actor. He studied at the Actors Studio, before rising to prominence playing atypical and sometimes villainous roles in film and television. He made his film debut with '' Dead Man W ...

, and it premiered at the Sundance and Berlin International Film Festival. In 2019, their documentary short '' End Game'' was nominated from an

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 ...

, and two additional documentaries were released, first with the '' State of Pride'' premiering at

South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

followed by '' Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice'' premiering the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Enterprises. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. The festival ...

.''Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice'' won a

for Best Musical Film in 2021. In 2023, they released the concert film '' Taylor Mac's A 24-Decade History of Popular Music''. The film premiered at

Tribeca Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Enterprises. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. The festival ...

, and was released on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

and

Max Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

Filmography

All films jointly with Rob Epstein: *1989: '' Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt'' — director, producer, writer *1993: ''Where Are We? Our Trip Through America'' — director, producer *1995: '' The Celluloid Closet'' — director, producer, writer *1999: ''Xtreme: Sports to Die For'' — director, producer (TV) *2000: ''

'' — director, producer *2002: ''Underground Zero'' — director (segment "Isaiah's Rap") *2002:

Crime & Punishment ''Crime & Punishment'' is a 2002 reality nontraditional court show spin-off of the ''Law & Order'' franchise. It premiered on NBC on June 16, 2002, and ran through the summers of 2002, 2003, and 2004. The show was produced by Bill Guttentag, wh ...

— director, producer (TV series aka "Law & Order: Crime & Punishment") *2006: ''Ten Days That Unexpectedly Changed America: Gold Rush'' — director (TV) *2007: ''Save Me'' — executive producer *2009: ''Sex in '69: The Sexual Revolution in America'' — executive producer *2010: ''

'' — director, producer, writer *2013: '' Lovelace'' — director *2013: ''The Battle of amfAR'' — director, producer *2014: ''And the Oscar Goes to...'' — director, producer, writer *2016: ''Killing the Colorado'' — executive producer (TV) *2018: '' End Game'' — director *2019: '' State of Pride'' — director, producer *2019: '' Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice'' — director, producer *2023: '' Taylor Mac's A 24-Decade History of Popular Music'' – director

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Friedman, Jeffrey Film producers from Los Angeles Living people 1951 births American documentary film directors Directors of Best Documentary Feature Academy Award winners Grammy Award winners American LGBTQ artists GLAAD Media Awards winners LGBTQ Jews Jewish American film people