Brett Morgen

Brett D. Morgen (born October 11, 1968) is an American documentary filmmaker. His directorial credits include The Kid Stays in the Picture, Crossfire Hurricane (2012), Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (2015), Jane (2017), and Moonage Daydream (2022).

Early life Morgen was born October 11, 1968, in Los Angeles, California. According to Morgen, he was an avid movie fan from a young age, and knew he wanted to be a filmmaker. He attended the Crossroads School in Santa Monica, California.

Career Morgen made Ollie's Army while a student at New York University. The film focuses on the exploits of the James Madison University College Republicans during Oliver North's senatorial campaign of 1994.

On the Ropes was nominated for an Academy Award in 2000 for Best Documentary. The boxing documentary was directed by Morgen and Nanette Burstein, and examined the lives of three aspiring prizefighters and their coach. The film won Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary by the Directors Guild of America.

The Kid Stays in the Picture is a documentary biopic about film producer Robert Evans, focusing on his major hits, like The Godfather, and his tumultuous personal life. Once again, Morgen teamed with Nanette Burstein.

Chicago 10 is a film about the Chicago Eight. The film uses animation and celebrity voice-overs from Hank Azaria, Dylan Baker, Nick Nolte, Mark Ruffalo, Roy Scheider, Liev Schreiber, James Urbaniak, and Jeffrey Wright.

June 17th, 1994 aired on ESPN as an episode of 30 for 30 and featured on-air commentary by Morgen. It was the only 30 for 30 episode to date that included no interviews or voice-overs, consisting solely of the actual TV footage on June 17, 1994. This was the date of the O. J. Simpson slow-moving police chase, and the other important sports stories of that day that were mostly ignored, due to the American public's fascination with Simpson.

Next, Morgan directed Crossfire Hurricane (2012), a documentary on The Rolling Stones, followed by the Kurt Cobain documentary film Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (2015). His next film was Jane (2017), which follows the life of primatologist Jane Goodall, produced by National Geographic.

Morgen began working on the David Bowie documentary Moonage Daydream in 2017. The heart attack resulted in Morgen being in a coma for a week, but he survived. In a 2022 interview, Morgen attributed his heart attack to years of smoking, stress, and lack of exercise. Moonage Daydream (2022)

Television series On Tour (1997) Say It Loud (2001) "Nimrod Nation" (2007) Won Peabody Award (2008) Marvel's Runaways (2017)

Awards and nominations Year Title Award Result

Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program Outstanding Sound Editing for a Nonfiction or Reality Program (Single or Multi-Camera) Grammy Award for Best Music Film

BAFTA Film Award for Best Documentary Cinema Eye Audience Choice Award Copenhagen International Documentary Festival Politiken's Audience Award Gold Derby Award for Best Documentary Feature International Online Cinema Award for Best Documentary OFTA Best Documentary Picture Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming Primetime Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking Producers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival WWF Award Writers Guild of America Award for Best Documentary Screenplay

Awards Circuit Community Award for Best Documentary Feature BFI London Film Festival Grierson Award for Best Documentary Zelda Penzel Giving Voice to the Voiceless Award Philadelphia Film Festival Student Choice Award

American Cinema Editors Eddie Award for Best Edited Documentary Feature Cinema Eye Audience Choice Award Cinema Eye Honors Award for Outstanding Achievement in Editing -' Seattle Film Critics Award Writers Guild of America Award for Best Documentary Screenplay

International Documentary Association Creative Recognition Award for Best Editing Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming 2013 Crossfire Hurricane FOCAL Award for Best Use of Footage in a Production Featuring Music

Writers Guild of America Award for Best Documentary Screenplay

SLFCA Award Best Animated Film

International Online Cinema Award for Best Documentary OFTA Film Award

Academy Awards Best Documentary Feature Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary Film Independent Spirit Truer Than Fiction Award

Silver Spire Award for Film & Video - Society and Culture Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize for Documentary Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize for Documentary Taos Talking Picture Festival Land Grant Award Urbanworld Film Festival Jury Prize for Best Documentary 1996 Ollie's Army UFVA Film Festival First Prize