Jon Shenk

Directing

Jon Shenk

Born January 1, 1969 · Cincinnati, Ohio, USA (age 57)

Jon Shenk is an Emmy-winning and Oscar-nominated documentary film director and director of photography, known for his films Lead Me Home Athlete A, An Inconvenient Sequel, Audrie & Daisy, The Island President, Lost Boys of Sudan. He is the co-founder, with his wife Bonni Cohen, of Actual Films, a documentary film company based in San Francisco, CA. He co-directed (with Pedro Kos) and photographed …

Known For

An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to PowerAn Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power · 2017
An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power
6.62017
MovieDocumentary
A decade after An Inconvenient Truth brought climate change into the heart of popular culture comes the riveting and rousing follow-up that shows just how close we are to a real energy revolution. Vice President Al Gore continues his tireless fight, traveling around the world training an army of climate champions and influencing international climate policy. Cameras follow him behind the scenes—in moments private and public, funny and poignant—as he pursues the empowering notion that while the stakes have never been higher, the perils of climate change can be overcome with human ingenuity and passion.
The Beginning: The Making of Star Wars Episode IThe Beginning: The Making of Star Wars Episode I · 2001
The Beginning: The Making of Star Wars Episode I
7.32001
MovieDocumentary
The entire process of making Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) is shown here in this documentary. From pre-production through post-production, we get to see visual effects meetings, John Williams' music sessions, and even the storm that wiped out the pod-racers & props.
Athlete AAthlete A · 2020
Athlete A
7.52020
MovieDocumentary
Follow the Indianapolis Star reporters that broke the story about USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's abuse and hear from gymnasts.
From Puppets to Pixels: The Making of Star Wars Episode IIFrom Puppets to Pixels: The Making of Star Wars Episode II · 2002
From Puppets to Pixels: The Making of Star Wars Episode II
6.82002
MovieDocumentary
For Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002), there were to be many more visual effects than in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999). This documentary shows many VFX meetings between George Lucas and ILM. Many of these meetings focus around the creation of a completely digital Yoda, used for the first time in the Star Wars films.
Lead Me HomeLead Me Home · 2021
Lead Me Home
6.32021
MovieDocumentaryDrama
Poignant stories of homelessness on the West Coast of the US frame this cinematic portrait of a surging humanitarian crisis.
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone AnymoreMarlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore · 2025
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore
7.32025
MovieDocumentary
In 1987, Marlee Matlin became the first Deaf actor to win an Academy Award and was thrust into the spotlight at 21 years old. Reflecting on her life in her primary language of American Sign Language, Marlee explores the complexities of what it means to be a trailblazer.
The White House EffectThe White House Effect · 2024
The White House Effect
6.02024
MovieDocumentary
Exploring the dramatic origin story of the climate crisis and how a political battle in the George H.W. Bush administration changed the course of history.
Audrie & DaisyAudrie & Daisy · 2016
Audrie & Daisy
7.22016
MovieDocumentary
A documentary film about three cases of rape, that includes the stories of two American high school students, Audrie Pott and Daisy Coleman. At the time of the sexual assaults, Pott was 15 and Coleman was 14 years old. After the assaults, the victims and their families were subjected to abuse and cyberbullying.

Filmography

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Bird by Bird with Annie: A Film Portrait of Writer Anne LamottBird by Bird with Annie: A Film Portrait of Writer Anne Lamott · 1999
Bird by Bird with Annie: A Film Portrait of Writer Anne Lamott
8.01999
MovieDocumentary
From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Freida Lee Mock, ‘Bird by Bird with Annie’ offers an intimate portrait of a writer and her craft, interweaving the story of Anne Lamott's life—in itself a deeply moving tale of addiction and redemption, grief and joy, intellect and faith—with a year's worth of interviews, public lectures, and footage of the writer at work, focusing particularly on Lamott's candid, humorous, and disarmingly straightforward advice on the struggles and joys of writing. The author's reassurance and guidance concerning the process of writing—which has little resemblance to its glorified image—becomes a stirring call to action celebrating the potential of each individual, the silencing of our inner critics, and the courage to create something honest and meaningful. Poignant and inspirational, ‘Bird by Bird with Annie’ takes us deep into Anne Lamott's intoxicatingly brave world, one in which writing is a means of finding out who we are, how we live, and why we're here.

Assistant Camera