Episodes

Director Alexandria Stapleton discusses her Netflix series "Sean Combs: The Reckoning," backed by executive producer Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews Stapleton about each episode of the series and the participants who overcame years of fear and intimidation to finally speak out. Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices. On Instagram: @purenonfiction@thompowers1

"Apocalypse in the Tropics" explores the tumultuous battle to save democracy in Brazil. It reveals striking parallels to politics in the United States. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers speaks with director Petra Costa and producer Alessandra Orofino. Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices. On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Host Thom Powers interviews the film teams behind five projects that are qualified for the Oscars: MY MOM JAYNE (director Mariska Hargitay, producer Trish Adlesic, editor J.D. Marlow) exploring the life of Hollywood star Jayne Mansfield through the eyes of her daughter. PUT YOUR SOUL ON YOUR HAND AND WALK (director Sepideh Farsi) profiling the Gaza photographer Fatma Hassona. CHILD OF DUST (director Weronika Mliczewska, producr Bao Nguyen) follows the lifelong dream of a man in Vietnam to mee...

Hear the filmmakers behind four of this year's most acclaimed documentaries: director Tamara Kotevska ("Honeyland") and cinematographer Jean Dakar on "The Tale of Silyan"; first time director Beth Lane on "UnBroken"; co-director Mohammedreza Eyni on "Cutting Through Rocks"; director David Osit and producer Jamie Goncalves on "Predators." These talks were recorded before a live audience in Los Angeles at our Documentary Spotlight event in partnership with The Ankler. Subscribe to our Substack ne...

Recorded live in Los Angeles, we partnered with The Ankler to bring you conversations covering four new documentaries: producer Jessica Hargrave (pictured) on “Come See Me in the Good Light”; director Dan Farah on “The Age of Disclosure”; producer Alisa Payne on “The Perfect Neighbor”; and directors Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman on “The Alabama Solution.” Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices. On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Thom Powers interviews "Songs from the Hole" director Contessa Gayles about her career path from working inside CNN to going independent.

Heidi Ewing's and Rachel Grady's latest film Folktales follows three teens in Norway learning outdoor survival skills at a folk high school where they bond with sled dogs.

Our Emmy contender conversations conclude with a look at three stand out biographies. Host Thom Powers interviews these directors: R.J. Cutler on "Martha" (Netflix) David Gelb with cinematographer Adam Bricker on "Chef's Table: Legends" (Netflix) Laurent Bouzereau on "Music By John Williams" (Disney+) Recorded live in Los Angeles at Documentary Spotlight, co-presented by The Ankler. Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices. On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Thom Powers hosts conversations on three Emmy contenders: "Will & Harper", "Social Studies" and "Chimp Crazy".

Recorded live in New York City, Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews the filmmakers behind four Emmy contenders.

Live from New York City, Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews the directors behind several projects contending for Emmy nominations: Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson on "Ladies and Gentlemen...50 Years of SNL Music" from Peacock; and "Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)" from Hulu Reginald Hudlin on "Number One on the Call Sheet" from Apple TV+ David Tedeschi on "Beatles ‘64" from Disney+ Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices. On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

Kenya's Sam Soko is a prominent figure in the rising wave of African documentary. In this interview recorded at CPH:DOX, he explains there's a new crisis for African documentary. In this interview recorded at CPH:DOX, he explains there's a new crisis for African documentary.

"Blue Road: The Edna O'Brien Story" profiles the Irish novelist who broke taboos both in her writing and her personal life. Her early novels were denounced by the Catholic Church and banned by the Irish Censor Board. This stunning film puts her legacy into a new perspective. "Blue Road" premiered at TIFF and is now playing in theaters in Ireland and the UK, but hasn't yet found U.S. distribution. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews director Sinead O'Shea whose previous films include "Pra...

“Secret Mall Apartment” tells the story of a group of artists who found a hidden space a Rhode Island mega mall that they occupied for four years while evading security. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews Jeremy Workman about how he convinced the artists to tell their story after they had turned down other documentary makers for over 15 years. He also discusses his day job editing movie trailers; and what he learned from his father, the filmmaker Chuck Workman. Subscribe to our Substac...

Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews Frederick Wiseman at age 95 about how he maintained his independence for over five decades.

Four interviews about films on the Oscars Shortlist for Documentary Feature: supervising editor David Teague and animator Renata Galindo on FRIDA; co-director Angela Patton on DAUGHTERS; producer Rafael Marmor on WILL & HARPER; director Shiori Ito on BLACK BOX DIARIES. Recorded live in New York City on January 5, 2025 at Documentary Spotlight, co-presented by Pure Nonfiction and The Ankler, and moderated by Thom Powers. Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices. On Instagram: @purenonfic...

Three interviews about films on the Oscars Shortlist for Documentary Feature: Stephen Maing and Brett Story on UNION; Laurie Anderson and Gary Hustwit on ENO; Slava Leontyev, Paula Dupre' Pesman, and Joe Berlinger on PORCELAIN WAR. Recorded live in New York City on January 5, 2025 at Documentary Spotlight, co-presented by Pure Nonfiction and The Ankler, and moderated by Thom Powers. Subscribe to our Substack newsletter Doc Voices. On Instagram: @purenonfiction @thompowers1

"Queendom" profiles the non-binary Russian performance artist Jenna Marvin. We watch her challenge Russia's repressive laws against the LGBTQ+ community and protest the country's war on Ukraine, putting herself at great risk. Pure Nonfiction host Thom Powers interviews director Agniia Galdanova and producer Igor Myakotin about what motivated them on this project despite the inherent dangers. "Queendom" is on the Oscars Shortlist for Documentary Feature and available on video on demand. Subscrib...

Egyptian filmmaker Ibrahim Nash'at embedded himself in Afghanistan and documented how the Taliban took control of over $7 billion worth of U.S. military equipment.

Adam Kinzinger was the first Republican Congressman to call for the impeachment of Donald Trump after the Jan 6 insurrection. That caught the attention of the Hollywood comedy writer and director Steve Pink ("Hot Tub Time Machine"). Although Pink is liberal and Kinzinger is conservative they shared a sense of humor and an opposition to Trump. "The Last Republican" follows Kinzinger over a year as he served on the Congressional committee to investigate Jan 6. The film is opening at New York's Fil...