"We are excited to kick off the sixth year of our Documentary Lab and to continue to deepen our connection to the documentary filmmaking community," said Film Independent Director of Artist Development, Jennifer Kushner. "There is such profound and groundbreaking work being done in documentary today, and we are thrilled to be able to bring together this dynamic and inclusive group of filmmakers and creative advisors in support of great storytelling." 

Documentary filmmakers Lucy Walker ("The Crash Reel"), Jeff Malmberg and Chris Shellen ("Marwencol") and Peter Nicks ("The Waiting Room") are this year’s Documentary Lab Advisors. Guest Speakers include Doug Blush (Editor, "20 Feet From Stardom"), Laura Gabbert ("City of Gold"), Jennifer Arnold ("Tig," "A Small Act"), Chris Perez ("Legal Issues for Documentarians") and Glenn Kiser, Director of the Dolby Institute.

The Documentary Lab is supported by Artist Development Lead Funder Time Warner Foundation and is sponsored by Netflix, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television, and the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional support provided by Dolby Laboratories, Inc.

The full list of 2016 Documentary Lab projects and Fellows follows:

– "Inbetween Nowhere," Aslihan Unaldi – director/producer
Inbetween Nowhere is an intimate portrait of three young Syrian revolutionaries, who came of age during the war and who are now living in exile in Turkey.

– "Larry Flynt for President," Nadia Szold – director/producer
In 1983, battle wounded from an assassination attempt on his life, Larry Flynt re-emerges with a vengeance and announces his run for President from his golden wheel chair.

– "Marriage Brokers," Smriti Mundhra, Sarita Khurana – director/producers
In a modern India still weighed down by tradition, three young women must put their lives and dreams on pause to have arranged marriages.

– "Olympic Pride, American Prejudice," Deborah Riley Draper – director/producer
In 1936, 18 African-American athletes won hearts and medals the Berlin Olympic Games, defying Aryan theories. History forgot all except one. This is the story of the other 17.

– "Shot in the Dark," Dustin Nakao Haider – director, Daniel Dewes and Derek Doneen – producers 
Deep within Chicago’s notoriously violent Westside, the Orr Academy Spartans must band together – not only to win a championship, but to survive.

– "United Skates," Tina Brown, Dyana Winkler – director/producers
United Skates follows an underground subculture growing inside our country’s last standing roller rinks. Through the eyes of two unassuming leaders, Reggie and Phelicia, they battle in a racially charged environment, to save a movement still undiscovered by mainstream America.

Congratulations to them all, and I look forward to eventually seeing these films when they’re finally completed.

For more information on Film Independent’s Artist Development programs, visit filmindependent.org.