Documentary+, a global nonfiction streaming platform, launched this month of January 2020 to serve as the preeminent home for feature-length and short documentary films. With a large curated collection, the Documentary+ film library ranges from Academy Award-winners to festival darlings and is available to audiences for a premium viewing experience on any device. Documentary+ is a joint venture between nonfiction studio XTR and the late Tony Hsieh.
Founded in 2019 by two-time Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Bryn Mooser, XTR – or XTR — based on a true story, as its creators like to refer to it – is a premium nonfiction film and television studio serving the booming documentary film space. Led by an award-winning executive team who share the common goal of cultivating the best talent, supporting amazing filmmakers, and giving them the resources they need to tell their stories.
Fueled by the documentary revolution, it fosters and supports a growing community of nonfiction filmmakers, ensuring their stories are seen by a larger audience. XTR helps develop, fund and produce nonfiction films and series, investing over 40 documentaries since inception, including You Cannot Kill David Arquette, Feels Good Man, 76 Days, Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets, Us Kids and more.
The Documentary+ collection is going to grow as the platform is at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, looking at potential acquisitions to add to their expansive library. In fact, Mooser’s documentary studio XTR has eight films premiering, making up 60% of all the documentaries in the U.S. competition, which this year has moved part of its events online, due to the pandemic.
Documentary+ launches with a highly curated selection of critically-acclaimed films and features award-winning and nominated filmmakers including Spike Jonze, Kathryn Bigelow, Terrence Malick, Brett Morgen, Andrea Nevins, Roger Ross Williams, Zana Briski, Davis Guggenheim, and Werner Herzog. The list does not stop there, and also included are filmmakers as Lana Wilson (Miss Americana), Ramona S. Diaz (A Thousand Cuts), Nanfu Wang (One Child Nation), Clay Tweel (Gleason), Kareem Tabsch (Mucho Amor), and Laura Gabbert (Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles).
From Cory Booker to Janis Joplin
The library includes classics like The Imposter, Born into Brothels, Cartel Land, My Best Fiend, and Life, Animated, and features pop culture icons like Michael Jordan (One Man and His Shoes), Christian Dior (Dior and I), Evel Knievel (Being Evel), Janis Joplin (Festival Express), and Pearl Jam (Hype!) alongside important political and historical figures like Cory Booker (Street Fight), Elian Gonzalez (Elian), and Neil Armstrong (Armstrong).
“There has never been a more exciting time for nonfiction — we’re seeing visionary new directors emerge and streaming has given documentary films wide new global audiences,” said Bryn Mooser, co-founder of Documentary+ and CEO of XTR. “With Documentary+, not only are we building a home for some of the best documentary films of our time, but we’re giving filmmakers another option for distribution as competition continues to increase. The COVID pandemic created this great digital acceleration and we are building Documentary+ to be a key cornerstone in the future of the industry.”
Documentary+ is available for free on all streaming platforms including Apple TV, Amazon and Roku, mobile devices and www.docplus.com. It’s a good suggestion for those staying home lots of time – who isn’t, there days? – and a link to add to any Favorites list, as an option to watch some serious stuff that deserves to be shared with more people. And yes, you can also watch the docs using a smartphone, so… why wait?