Pure Nonfiction: Inside Documentary Film
If you love documentary films, hear from the top storytellers on Pure Nonfiction. Host Thom Powers is well-connected in this world as a documentary curator for the Toronto International Film Festival, DOC NYC, and SundanceNow Doc Club. He leads conversations that are frank, funny and revealing. Listen to interviews with Oscar-winning filmmakers Barbara Kopple, Alex Gibney, and Roger Ross Williams; as well as the directors of “Making a Murderer,” “Weiner” and “OJ: Made in America.” Often the stories behind the scenes are as dramatic as what’s on the screen. On Twitter, Facebook, Instagram: @purenonfiction. Subscribe now.
- Update frequency
- every 11 days
- Average duration
- 38 minutes
- Episodes
- 230
- Years Active
- 2016 - 2025
PN 68: Policing in “Flint Town”
Netflix’s new 8-part series “Flint Town” follows the city’s police department as they cope with a depressed economy, high crime and a water crisis over the course of 2016. Pure Nonfiction host Thom P…
00:37:16 |
Fri 02 Mar 2018
PN 67: “Control Room” Revisited with Josh Rushing
Fifteen years ago as America prepared to make war on Iraq, filmmaker Jehane Noujaim embedded herself at the U.S. military’s CENTCOM media headquarters in Doha, Qatar. She and cinematographer Hani Sal…
00:30:36 |
Fri 23 Feb 2018
PN 66: Attorney Gloria Allred on “Seeing Allred”
The lawsuit "Summer Zervos v. Donald Trump" is among the high profile cases handled by attorney Gloria Allred. The Netflix film “Seeing Allred,” directed by Sophie Sartain and Roberta Grossman, explo…
00:29:01 |
Thu 15 Feb 2018
PN 65: Sam Pollard on Sammy Davis Jr, Spike Lee & St. Clair Bourne
Sam Pollard reflects on collaborating with Spike Lee, Henry Hampton and St. Claire Bourne; and on directing his latest film “Sammy Davis Jr: I Gotta Be Me.” Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interview…
00:30:55 |
Thu 08 Feb 2018
PN 64: First Person Documentary with Yance Ford, Bryan Fogel & Jeff Orlowski
Directors Yance Ford ("Strong Island”), Bryan Fogel (“Icarus”) and Jeff Orlowski ("Chasing Coral”) each put themselves on camera in different ways. The three filmmakers sat down with Pure Nonfiction …
00:35:34 |
Thu 01 Feb 2018
PN 63: Tabitha Jackson + 2018 Sundance Preview
The Sundance Film Festival is always a great place for documentary discoveries. This year features new films about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Fred Rogers, Imagine Dragons, Kronos Quartet and more. Pure Non…
00:52:59 |
Tue 16 Jan 2018
PN 62: Errol Morris, Brett Morgen & Ceyda Torun on Documentary Style
From “Wormwood” to “Jane” to “Kedi,” documentary directors are making bold stylistic choices. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers led a discussion titled “Finding the Style For the Story” at the DOC NYC…
00:40:39 |
Thu 11 Jan 2018
PN 61: Jennifer Brea on “Unrest”
The Oscar Documentary Feature Short List of 15 films includes the underdog entry “Unrest” by first time director Jennifer Brea. Her film explores the disease commonly known as “chronic fatigue syndro…
00:28:15 |
Thu 21 Dec 2017
PN 60: Alex Gibney & Blair Foster on "Rolling Stone”
John Lennon, Tina Turner, Hunter Thomspon and Annie Leibovitz are among the many figures covered in the new 2-part HBO documentary “Rolling Stone: Stories from the Edge.” Filmmakers Alex Gibney and B…
00:42:58 |
Fri 15 Dec 2017
PN 59: Yance Ford on "Strong Island"
Winner of the Gotham Awards for Best Documentary, “Strong Island” investigates the 1992 killing of filmmaker Yance Ford’s brother William in Long Island. With a black victim and a white shooter, race…
00:33:45 |
Thu 30 Nov 2017
PN 58: Brett Morgen on Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall is the subject of the new documentary “Jane” that draws upon rediscovered footage from the 1960s capturing her early work with chimpanzees. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers talks to “Jan…
00:45:51 |
Mon 06 Nov 2017
PN 57: DOC NYC Preview
Eric Clapton, Susan Sarandon, Dan Rather are among over 300 special guests coming to the 8th annual DOC NYC festival, running from November 9-16. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers is the festival’s ar…
00:40:01 |
Thu 26 Oct 2017
PN 56: Agnès Varda & JR on “Faces Places”
Winner of the Cannes Golden Eye Documentary Award, “Faces Places” is a wondrous collaboration between the 89-year-old Agnès Varda and the 34-year-old street artist known as JR. In the film, they visi…
00:42:26 |
Thu 19 Oct 2017
PN 55: Frederick Wiseman - From "Titicut Follies" to "Ex Libris”
“Ex Libris - The New York Public Library” is that latest film from documentary master Frederick Wiseman. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of his first film “Titicut Follies” set at the Bridg…
00:48:53 |
Wed 06 Sep 2017
PN 54: TIFF 2017 Documentary Preview Part 2 of 2
Agnes Varda, Drake, and Cary Grant all get name-checked as Thom Powers and Dorota Lech continue their discussion of documentaries at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). They preview …
00:31:58 |
Fri 01 Sep 2017
PN 53: TIFF 2017 Documentary Preview Part 1 of 2
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) takes place September 7-17, 2017. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers is the festival’s documentary programmer. On this episode, he’s joined by his colleag…
00:37:34 |
Wed 30 Aug 2017
PN 52: Playwright Dominique Morisseau on “Detroit '67," “Pipeline," “Shameless" & more
While Detroit is in the headlines for the 50th anniversary of its darkest days, we focus on one of its brightest new storytellers, playwright Dominique Morisseau. Pure Nonfiction host (and Detroit na…
00:31:47 |
Thu 27 Jul 2017
PN 51: Errol Morris & Elsa Dorfman on “The B-Side”
Portrait photographer Elsa Dorfman has worked for several decades on Polaroid’s rare 20" x 24” format camera. She had a loyal clientele in Cambridge, Massachusetts, but was hardly known outside. Now …
00:36:37 |
Thu 13 Jul 2017
PN 50: D.A. Pennebaker on "Monterey Pop" at 50
Otis Redding, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and The Who are among the classic acts captured by D.A. Pennebaker in "Monterey Pop.” Now for the 50th anniversary of the concert, the film is being released …
00:36:40 |
Thu 22 Jun 2017
PN 49: Steve James From "Hoop Dreams" to "Abacus"
New York's Chinatown is the backdrop for Steve James' latest documentary "Abacus: Small Enough to Jail." He follows a David vs Goliath legal tale about the Chinese-American family behind a small bank…
00:44:45 |
Thu 18 May 2017
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