We have produced several television series for primetime: Citizen Nation, What Happens Next and Retro Report on PBS.
Feature-length documentaries include the Emmy-nominated Enemies of the People, American Reckoning, Crisis on Campus, Facing Eviction, Forever Prison and Massacre in El Salvador. How Saba Kept Singing was voted an audience favorite at its world premiere at Hot Docs in Toronto 2022.
Retro Report’s work has won and been nominated for one Peabody Award, 13 News & Documentary Emmy Awards, 11 Edward R. Murrow Awards, three Mirror Awards and many others.
Retro Report Films
We unearth stories that demand to be told
Free Joan Little
“Free Joan Little” tells the story of the landmark 1975 murder trial of the first woman in U.S. history to be acquitted for using deadly force to resist sexual assault. Her case brought together activists including Angela Davis and Rosa Parks, and catalyzed a national conversation about sexual assault and racial justice. Little’s fight for freedom remains a defining moment in American legal and social history.
Citizen Nation
“Citizen Nation,” a four-part Retro Report series, is an inspiring coming-of-age story that follows teenagers from across the U.S. with diverse personal and political backgrounds as they come together to compete in the nation’s premier civics competition. “Citizen Nation” aired in October of 2024 on PBS.
Silence in Sikeston
The story of how the 1942 lynching of Cleo Wright – and the subsequent failure of the first federal attempt to prosecute a lynching – continues to haunt the small city of Sikeston, Missouri. “Silence in Sikeston” explores the necessary questions about history, trauma, silence and resilience over 78 years.
Crisis On Campus
An examination of how outrage ignited by the devastating October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and the catastrophic war in Gaza has deeply divided American college campuses. This hour was produced in collaboration with PBS Frontline.
How Saba Kept Singing
Musician David Wisnia always told his grandson Avi that he had survived the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz by entertaining the guards with his singing. Avi suspects there is more to the story, and together they embark on a journey that leads them into the mystery of David’s past. “How Saba Kept Singing” premiered at Hot Docs and was nominated for an Emmy Award.
Enemies of the People
“Enemies of the People” is a candid and dramatic journey behind the scenes of the 2016 election. This two-time Emmy Award-nominated film, which aired on Vice TV, chronicles the reflections of journalists who covered Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, the mistakes they made, and the decline of public trust in news.
American Reckoning
Who killed Wharlest Jackson Sr.? In investigating the unsolved 1967 murder of a local N.A.A.C.P. leader, this feature documentary from executive producer Dawn Porter uncovers an untold story of the civil rights movement and Black resistance. The documentary, which aired on PBS Frontline, was nominated for a News & Documentary Emmy Award and a George Foster Peabody Award.
Facing Eviction
Why have some American families struggled to keep their homes during the Covid pandemic, despite a federal ban on evictions? The Wall Street Journal called this feature-length documentary “exhilarating, disturbing.” “Facing Eviction” which aired on PBS Frontline, offers an intimate look at the United States’ affordable housing crisis through the eyes of tenants, landlords, judges and law enforcement.
Extremism in America
“Extremism in America” is a five-part digital series that explores key turning points in the growth of the extremist movement, from the 1980s to present day, and the missed opportunities to stop that movement before it spread. “Extremism in America” is the winner of an Eppy, Webby and Online Journalism Award.
Forever Prison
“Forever Prison” explores the little-known history of how Guantánamo Bay prison became a place where the government claimed it could hold people beyond the reach of U.S. law It appeared as part of PBS Frontline’s Guantánamo Files investigation.
Massacre in El Salvador
The story of the worst massacre in recent Latin American history and why a final reckoning is at risk. This documentary was produced in partnership with ProPublica and aired on PBS Frontline.
Retro Report on PBS
An eight-episode series that connects headlines of the present to the stories in the past. Celeste Headlee and Masud Olufani are hosts, with New Yorker humorist Andy Borowitz adding his signature wit.
What Happens Next
This three-part series explores radical transformations coming to central aspects of life in the near future, told through the experiences of people already living them out. Winner of a Gerald Loeb business award.
