HBO is tapping into #BlackLivesMatter.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, HBO Documentary Films president Sheila Nevins has ordered a documentary surrounding Black Lives Matter in the midst of wide-spread controversy surrounding the lack of diversity in the Academy Award nominations.
Sheila Nevins shared what prompted her to focus on telling the #BlackLivesMatter story saying,
“The morning of the Oscar nominations. I noticed that all the [documentary] films that were up there, there was almost nothing about America, and my heart broke because I realized that documentary filmmakers are not looking in their own backyard.” said Nevins. “And if they are, they’re not being recognized for it. The fact that there was no documentary about Black Lives Matter at a time when this is such a critical American issue … was unbelievable. I said to my colleague here, ‘Call [a director she declined to name in case a deal doesn’t transpire]. See how much it would cost to do a big documentary about what’s been happening in this country.’ You have to do it.”
There is no further information on the documentary at this time.