Ron Davis (filmmaker)
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Ron Davis is an
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...
documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
director,
writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...
and producer. He is the founder of Docutainment Films.


Early life and career

Davis founded Docutainment Films in
Wellington, Florida Wellington is a village west of West Palm Beach in Palm Beach County and north of Miami. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area and the fifth largest municipality in Palm Beach County by population. As of the 2020 census, the village had a po ...
to produce his documentaries. Davis married Luis Rodriguez in 2017.


''Pageant''

In 2008 Davis released his directorial debut ''
Pageant Pageant(s) or The Pageant(s) may refer to: Events * Procession or ceremony in elaborate costume * Beauty pageant, or beauty contest * List of pageants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints * Medieval pageant, a narrative medieval pro ...
'', which featured the 2005
Miss Gay America Miss Gay America is a national pageant for Drag queen, female impersonators. Established in 1972, the pageant is based on the Miss America contest and follows a similar format. Each year, contestants compete at various city, state, and direct ...
female impersonator pageant. He co-wrote, co-produced and co-directed the feature-length documentary that followed five drag queens as they competed for the title. During its showings at film festivals the movie became "critically acclaimed", and was awarded festival prizes. ''Pageant'' received its television broadcast debut on the
Sundance Channel Sundance Channel can refer to: * Sundance TV, formerly known as Sundance Channel (United States). * Sundance Channel (Canada) * Sundance Channel (Netherlands) * Sundance Channel (Europe) Sundance Channel can refer to: * Sundance TV Sundance TV ...
after winning a total of ten awards from film festivals. Davis became a full-time documentary maker in 2010, two years after the release of ''Pageant''.


''Miss You Can Do It''

In 2013, Davis released his second directorial effort ''Miss You Can Do It'', an original
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documentary. The film featured Abbey Curran, who became
Miss Iowa USA The Miss Iowa USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Iowa in the Miss USA pageant. It is directed by Future Productions based in Savage, Minnesota since 2008. While Iowa has not been greatly successful ...
in 2008 and the first woman with a disability to compete in the
Miss USA Pageant Miss USA is an American beauty pageant that has been held annually since 1952 to select the entrant from United States in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operated both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA, until 2020. In ...
. ''Miss You Can Do It'' follows Curran as well as eight young women from around the US with special needs as they participate in the 2008 Miss You Can Do It Pageant in
Kewanee, Illinois Kewanee () is a city in Henry County, Illinois, Henry County, Illinois. "Kewanee" is the Ho-Chunk, Winnebago word for greater prairie-chicken, which lived there. The population was 12,509 in the 2020 census, down from 12,916 in 2010. Geography ...
. The film debuted at the Palm Beach International Film Festival Friday on April 5, 2013 and received its first television broadcast in June 2013.


Harry & Snowman

In 2015, Davis premiered his third feature documentary, ''Harry & Snowman'', at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival.
Snowman A snowman is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic snow sculpture of a man often built in regions with sufficient snowfall and is a common winter tradition. In many places, typical snowmen consist of three large snowballs of different sizes wit ...
was an old Amish plow horse that Dutch immigrant Harry deLeyer rescued off a truck that was bound for the meat and glue factory for only $80. Less than two years after he rescued Snowman, they rose to become the national show jumping champions and were the Cinderella story and media darlings of late 1950s and 1960s. The film won ten film festival awards, including the 2015 Nantucket Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary, the Woods Hole Film Festival, Best of the Fest Audience Award, the New Orleans Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary and the Prescott Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary. ''Harry & Snowman'' was released theatrically on September 30, 2016 by FilmRise. and went on to become one of the top grossing theatrical documentaries of 2016. The film was a NYT Critics' Pick, and the Los Angeles Times praised the film as "captivating".


''Life In The Doghouse''

In 2019 June, Netflix released Davis’ Life In the Doghouse, a
documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
that follows a couple, Danny Robertshaw and Ron Danta, running the Danny & Ron's Rescue from their own home, ever since
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made catastrophic landfall in the United States’ Gulf Coast in August 2005. With thirteen years operating the business and 10,000 dogs rescued, the documentary aimed to inspire viewers to do the same. The film won Best Documentary at the Tryon International Film Festival and Audience Award at The Rochester LGBT Film Festival. The documentary was also the Official Selection at the Frameline San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival, Provincetown Film Festival, and Newport Film.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Ron American documentary film directors American documentary film producers American male screenwriters Living people New York Film Academy alumni Year of birth missing (living people)