Peter Spirer, founder of Rugged Entertainment, is an Academy and Emmy Award-Nominated director and producer whose films have been official selections at
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 46,66 ...
.
Peter has directed over 20 feature films with worldwide distribution on multiple platforms including ''
Rhyme & Reason,
BEEF,'' ''Tupac Shakur: Thug Angel'' and ''Notorious B.I.G: Bigger Than Me.'' His latest films are ''The Legend of 420'' which explores the legalization of cannabis; ''Spirit Game: Pride of a Nation'' an insider's look into the Iroquois Nationals lacrosse team - with the first-ever international championship held on sovereign land; and ''Sacheen'', about Native American activist
''Sacheen Littlefeather's'' life and that fateful night at the 1973
Oscars.
Currently in production is ''Sign O’ The Times'' — a documentary about the legendary rock ‘n’ roll billboards of the Sunset Strip in their heyday from the 1960s-80s as told by artists, managers, record company executives, art directors, and photographers.
Films and Productions
In 1993, Spirer's short documentary ''Blood Ties: The Life and Work of Sally Mann'' was nominated for an
Academy Award.
Spirer's documentary ''Rhyme and Reason''(1997) made
Rolling Stone's 40 Greatest Rock Documentaries list.
In 2003 he was the winner of the Jury Award for the Ojai Film Festival for his debut narrative feature film ''Dunsmore''.
Spirer has produced a number of musician-focused documentary films, including ''Rhyme and Reason,
Beef I-III, Tupac: Thug Angel, and Notorious B.I.G.: Bigger Than Life.'' Many of his films play regularly on cable television networks. His films, ''Kiss and Tail: The Hollywood Jump Off,'' and ''Black and Blue: Legends of the Hip-Hop Cop,'' were in rotation on
Showtime.''
''
Spirer's films have twice been screened at the
Sundance Film Festival.
In 2009 he produced and directed the feature film ''Just Another Day,'' starring ''
Wood Harris'' and ''
Jamie Hector'' (both from
HBO's The Wire), which was distributed by
Image Entertainment.
''Smash'' (2009 and rereleased in 2020) gives a look inside a biannual school bus race in Florida, a harrowing event where carnage and collisions are most definitely encouraged.
''Rhyme and Punishment'' (2011) takes an in-depth look at the role of prison in hip-hop culture and reveals the side of the story that is not being covered by the news and popular media. Featuring intimate and compelling interviews with convicted rappers ''
Beanie Sigel
Dwight Equan Grant (born March 6, 1974), better known by his stage name Beanie Sigel, is an American rapper from South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He first became known for his association with Jay-Z and Roc-A-Fella Records, releasing his debut ...
,
Prodigy,
Cassidy
Cassidy may refer to:
Personal names
* Cassidy (given name)
* Cassidy (surname)
People
* Cassidy (musician) (born 1979), lead singer of Antigone Rising
* Cassidy (rapper) (born 1982), American rapper
* DJ Cassidy (born 1981), New York DJ
* Jame ...
,
Project Pat,
Immortal Technique,
Slick Rick,'' and many more. These artists who were at the top of their game when they got locked up explain the details of the crimes that led to their arrests, and document their struggles to deal with the shocking brutality of incarcerated life.
''Soulja Boy: The Movie'' (2011) follows the young and charismatic yet polarizing entrepreneur who offers an all-access glimpse into his life, his music, and his fascinating career.
In 2016, Spirer was the executive producer of the film ''Queen Mimi.'' The documentary looks into the life of Mimi, an unhoused woman who went from living in a laundromat to walking down the red carpet with ''
Zach Galifianakis
Zachary Knight Galifianakis (born October 1, 1969) is an American actor and comedian. He appeared in ''Comedy Central Presents'' special and presented his show ''Late World with Zach'' on VH1.
Galifianakis has starred in films including ''Th ...
''.
First premiering on ''
STARZ
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consist ...
,'' ''Spirit Game: Pride of the Nation'' (2017) offers an insider's look into the
Iroquois Nationals lacrosse team; the first-ever international lacrosse championship held on sovereign land. Spirer produced the film which won Best Documentary at the
Red Nation Film Festival.''
''
''The Legend of 420'' (2017) Explores the controversial use of marijuana and the evolution of mainstream society, from a dangerous narcotic listed as a Schedule 1 Drug substance since the 1970s, to the rush to decriminalize it today. What has changed and why? What will the cannabis industry look like in five years? Will it retain its integrity as a homegrown industry or be co-opted by Big Business? Experts, growers, celebrities, and politicians weigh in on the future of Canna-business.
''Michael Des Barres: Who do you want me to be?'' (2020) Spirer is an Executive Producer. The doc focuses on the son of a junkie aristocrat and a schizophrenic showgirl who becomes the master of reinvention on a 50+ year journey through rock and roll, TV, and film.
The documentary ''Sacheen''
(2021) which Spirer directed and produced is a short documentary film that offers Sacheen Littlefeather, a 71-year-old White Mountain Apache and Yaqui elder, actress, activist, dancer, educator, and writer, living in Northern California, the opportunity to share her own story, in her own words. As we revisit one of the most memorable and controversial moments in the history of the
Academy Awards, Sacheen’s voice will finally be joined together with today’s brave women, who are determined to make their voices heard around the world.
This documentary won two awards: Best Documentary Short at the
American Indian Film Festival
The American Indian Film Festival is an annual non-profit film festival in San Francisco, California, United States. It is the world's oldest venue dedicated solely to Native American/First Nations films and prepared the way for the 1979 formati ...
and the Audience Choice Award for Documentary at the
Beverly Hills Film Festival
The Beverly Hills Film Festival (BHFF) is a film festival in the United States founded in 2001 by independent filmmaker Nino Simone. The festival is an international competition dedicated to showcasing the art and talent of emerging filmmakers a ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spirer, Peter
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people