Wikipedia

Davis Guggenheim

Not to be confused with David Guggenheim.

Philip Davis Guggenheim is an American screenwriter, director, and producer.

Davis Guggenheim
Guggenheim in 2009
Born
Philip Davis Guggenheim

(1963-11-03) November 3, 1963 (age 61)
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
EducationBrown University
Occupations
  • Director
  • writer
  • producer
Years active1991–present
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1994)​
Children3
ParentCharles Guggenheim (father)

Active in television and film's directions and productions since the 1990s, from 2006 Guggenheim has specialized in making documentaries,[1] ranking the top 100 highest-grossing documentaries of all time with three works: An Inconvenient Truth, It Might Get Loud, and Waiting for "Superman".[2][3]

Guggenheim's cinematographic projects received severals awards and nominations, including the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film for An Inconvenient Truth, the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Documentary Feature for He Named Me Malala and two nominations at the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program.

His credits include NYPD Blue, ER, 24, Alias, The Shield, Deadwood, and the documentaries It Might Get Loud, The Road We've Traveled, Waiting for "Superman", Inside Bill's Brain: Decoding Bill Gates.[4]

Early life

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Philip Davis Guggenheim was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Marion Davis (née Streett) and filmmaker Charles Guggenheim.[5] His father was Jewish, whereas his mother was Episcopalian.[6][7][8] He graduated from the Potomac School, Sidwell Friends School and Brown University.

Career

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Guggenheim joined the HBO Western drama Deadwood as a producer and director for the first season in 2004. The series was created by David Milch and focused on a growing town in the American West. Guggenheim directed the episodes "Deep Water",[9] "Reconnoitering the Rim",[10] "Plague"[11] and "Sold Under Sin".[12] He left the show at the end of Season 1.

The documentary An Inconvenient Truth was produced and directed by Davis Guggenheim. An Inconvenient Truth won the Academy Award in 2007 for Best Documentary Feature. The film, released in 2006, featured former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and his international slideshow on global warming.

Then-candidate Barack Obama's biographical film, which aired during the Democratic National Convention in August 2008, was directed by Guggenheim. Their infomercial, which was broadcast two months later, on October 29, 2008, was "executed with high standards of cinematography", according to The New York Times.[13] In 2012, he released The Road We've Traveled, a 17-minute short film on the president.[14]

Guggenheim directed and was an executive producer of the 2009 pilot for Melrose Place.

In 2008, he released It Might Get Loud, a documentary that glimpses into the lives of guitarists Jimmy Page, The Edge, and Jack White.

Guggenheim's 2010 documentary Waiting for "Superman", a film about the failures of American public education sparked controversy and debate. Guggenheim knew his film would lead to this and said, "I know people will say this movie is anti-this or pro-that. But it really is all about families trying to find great schools".[15] This film received the Audience Award for best documentary at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. Its public release was in September 2010.

A documentary film about the band U2 directed by Guggenheim titled From the Sky Down opened the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival in September.[16]

In 2013, he directed The Dream is Now, a 30-minute documentary about four undocumented students in the United States as they deal with the U.S. immigration system.

In 2015, he directed a documentary film He Named Me Malala about Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, who was targeted by Taliban gunmen, shot in the head and left wounded.[17]

In 2019, he created and directed a documentary miniseries titled Inside Bill's Brain: Decoding Bill Gates. The series explores the mind and motivations behind the captain of industry and philanthropist Bill Gates, the rise of Microsoft, and the past and current pursuits of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

In 2020, Guggenheim and Jonathan King launched production company Concordia Studio.[18]

In 2023, the documentary Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie, directed by Guggenheim, was released on Apple TV+. Featuring read excerpts from Michael J. Fox's own books, the biopic stars Fox himself as both interviewee and narrator, recounting his career and experience contending with Parkinson's disease. The feature received seven Emmy Nominations.[19]

Personal life

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Guggenheim married actress Elisabeth Shue in 1994. They have three children together.[20][21][better source needed] He is the first cousin of actress Patty Guggenheim.[citation needed]

Accolades

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Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2006 Gotham Independent Film Awards Best Documentary An Inconvenient Truth Nominated [22]
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards Best Documentary/Non-Fiction Film Won [23]
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards Best Documentary Feature Won [24]
2007 Academy Awards Best Documentary Feature Film Won [25]
2010 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary Waiting for "Superman" Won [26]
2011 Critics' Choice Movie Awards Best Documentary Feature Won [27]
Directors Guild of America Awards Outstanding Directing – Documentaries Nominated [28]
San Diego Film Festival Best Documentary Won [29]
Audience Award for Best Documentary Won
2015 Adelaide Film Festival Best Documentary He Named Me Malala Nominated [30]
2016 British Academy Film Awards Best Documentary Nominated [31]
Cinema for Peace awards Most Valuable Documentary of the Year Nominated [32]
Critics' Choice Awards Best Documentary - Feature Nominated [33]
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming Nominated [34]
San Diego Film Festival Audience Choice Award Won [35]
Satellite Awards Best Documentary Film Nominated [36]
2023 Critics' Choice Documentary Awards Best Director Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie Won [37]
2024 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Directing For A Documentary/Nonfiction Program Won [38]

References

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  1. ^ "Davis Guggenheim". Vogue Italia (in Italian). January 20, 2011. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  2. ^ "Documentary Movies at the Box Office". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved December 8, 2011.
  3. ^ "IDA Conversation Series: Davis Guggenheim". International Documentary Association. August 16, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  4. ^ Welch, Alex (May 11, 2023). "'He's Got Nothing to Hide': Davis Guggenheim on Revealing a New Side of Michael J. Fox (Exclusive)". A.frame. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  5. ^ Who's who in entertainment: Volume 1. Marquis Who's Who. 1989. p. 256. ISBN 0837918502.
  6. ^ "In Dual-Faith Families Children Sturggle [sic] For a Spiritual Home". The New York Times. August 18, 1988.
  7. ^ "New on the big screen, Bad news, good news, Passings | j. the Jewish news weekly of Northern California". Jweekly.com. October 7, 2010. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
  8. ^ "In 'He Named Me Malala,' Guggenheim Finds Normal in Extraordinary" by Penelope Poulou, Voice of America, 9 October 2015
  9. ^ Davis Guggenheim (director), Malcolm MacRury (writer) (March 28, 2004). "Deep Water". Deadwood. Season 1. Episode 2. HBO.
  10. ^ Davis Guggenheim (director), Jody Worth (writer) (April 4, 2004). "Reconnoitering the Rim". Deadwood. Season 1. Episode 3. HBO.
  11. ^ Davis Guggenheim (director), Malcolm MacRury (writer) (April 25, 2004). "Plague". Deadwood. Season 1. Episode 6. HBO.
  12. ^ Davis Guggenheim (director), Ted Mann (writer) (June 13, 2004). "Sold Under Sin". Deadwood. Season 1. Episode 12. HBO.
  13. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (October 29, 2008). "The Ad Campaign: An Obama Infomercial, Big, Glossy and Almost Unavoidable". The New York Times. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  14. ^ Zakarin, Jordan (March 9, 2012). "Obama Documentary 'The Road We've Traveled' By Davis Guggenheim Reveals Trailer (Video)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 9, 2012.
  15. ^ Ripley, A. (2010). A Call to Action for Public Schools. (Cover story). Time, 176(12), pp. 32–42.
  16. ^ "U2 documentary to open Toronto Film Festival". BBC News. July 27, 2011. Retrieved July 28, 2011.
  17. ^ Gerard, Jeremy (March 30, 2015). "Fox Searchlight Picks Up 'He Named Me Malala' About Youngest Nobel Winner". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  18. ^ "'An Inconvenient Truth' Director Davis Guggenheim Launches Concordia, a Documentary and Nonfiction Studio". January 20, 2020.
  19. ^ "Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie". Television Academy. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  20. ^ "Davis Guggenheim". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  21. ^ "Elizabeth Shue". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  22. ^ "Past Recipients". IFP Gotham Awards. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  23. ^ Brooks, Brian (December 11, 2006). "New York Critics Pick "United 93" and "Letters from Iwo Jima" Top Choice in LA". IndieWire. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  24. ^ "2006 WAFCA Awards". WAFCA press release. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
  25. ^ "The 79th Academy Awards (2007) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. AMPAS. Archived from the original on October 14, 2014. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
  26. ^ "'Winter's Bone,' 'Restrepo' Lead Sundance Award Winners - indieWIRE". January 23, 2011. Archived from the original on January 23, 2011. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  27. ^ "At the Critics' Choice Awards: Winners Are Social Network, Inception, Firth, Portman, Leo, Bale | Thompson on Hollywood". April 26, 2012. Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  28. ^ McNary, Dave (January 12, 2011). "DGA names documentary award nominees". Variety. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  29. ^ "Award Winners". April 29, 2012. Archived from the original on April 29, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  30. ^ McGowan, Mark. "Adelaide Film Festival Program Launches Today". Adelaide Film Festival website. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  31. ^ Brown, Mark; Ellis-Petersen, Hannah (February 14, 2016). "Baftas 2016: The Revenant and Mad Max maul competition as Carol snubbed". The Guardian. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  32. ^ "Cinema for Peace Foundation". Archived from the original on April 11, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  33. ^ "Critics' Choice Awards Nominations: 'Mad Max' Leads Film; ABC, HBO, FX Networks & 'Fargo' Top TV". Deadline Hollywood. December 14, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  34. ^ "Creative Arts Emmys: 'Murderer' & 'Grease Live' Lead The Field On Night 2". Deadline Hollywood. September 11, 2016. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
  35. ^ "San Diego Announces the 2015 Award Winners! | San Diego International Film Festival". October 20, 2015. Archived from the original on April 17, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
  36. ^ "Satellite Awards (2015)". International Press Academy. IPA. December 2, 2015. pressacademy.com. Retrieved December 2, 2015.
  37. ^ Thompson, Anne (October 16, 2023). "Jon Batiste Profile 'American Symphony' Leads Critics Choice Documentary Award Nominations". IndieWire. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  38. ^ "75th Emmy Awards Complete Nominations List" (PDF). Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
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