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SLAWOMIR GRÜNBERG
Producer/Director/Cinematographer
Slawomir Grünberg is an Emmy Award Winning documentary producer, director, cameraman, and editor born in Lublin, Poland. He is a graduate of the Polish Film School in Lodz, where he studied cinematography and directing. He emigrated from Poland to the US in 1981, and has since directed and produced over 40 television documentaries. School Prayer: A Community at War premiered on PBS in the 1999 POV season, received a National Emmy Award, and won at many film festivals around the world. It also won The Jan Karski Competition, a competition designed to recognize and award outstanding television documentaries produced on the theme of moral courage. Another one of Slawomir’s films and funded by ITVS, Fenceline: A Company Town Divided premiered on PBS in the POV season of 2002 and received, among others, an award at the 2002 San Francisco International Film Festival and Vermont International Film Festival. This film also received a 2003 Environmental Media Association Award (EMA). The EMA Awards honor films and television productions that increase public awareness of environmental problems and inspire personal activism. Borderline: People vs. Eunice Baker received Best Documentary Award on a Theme on Disability at the Picture This…Festival in Calgary, Canada. The most recent of Grünberg’s films are two Holocaust related stories: The Legacy of Jedwabne - awarded at the Crossroads Film Festival, Lublin, Poland and Saved by Deportation - the Audience Award at the Washington Jewish Film Festival and Portraits of Emotion, a film about autism - an Expression Award at Brazil’s Disability Film Festival
In 2004, Slawomir received the DreamCatcher Award at the Hope and Dreams Film Festival. This award was to recognize his commitment to documentary filmmaking. Slawomir’s independent works focus on critical social, political, and environmental issues and have won him international recognition. Chelyabinsk: The Most Contaminated Spot on the Planet, which he produced and directed, was awarded the Grand Prix at the International Nature & Environmental Film Festival, in Grenoble, France in 1996. In 1998, another documentary that deals with environmental issues, From Chechnya to Chernobyl, was awarded a Grand Prix at the International Environmental Film Festival in Prague, Czech Republic and also received a prestigious Golden Cine Award in the US. In 1997, Shtetl, the epic film that Slawomir photographed and served as second unit producer for, was awarded the Silver Baton for Excellence in Radio/Television Journalism by Dupont-Columbia University, and also the Grand Prix at the Cinema du Reel Film Festival in Paris, France in 1996.
His director of photography credits include among others: Legacy, which received an Academy Award Nomination for the best documentary feature in 2001, and Sister Rose’s Passion, which won the Best in Documentary Short at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2004 and received an Academy Award Nomination for the best documentary short in 2005. As a principal director of photography, he has shot over 50 documentaries, four of which received Emmy Nominations. Slawomir has also been a contributing director of photography and editor for the PBS series: Frontline, AIDS Quarterly, American Masters, NOVA, Health Quarterly, Inside Gorbachev's USSR with Hedrick Smith and People's Century as well as Lifetime and HBO.
A recipient of Guggenheim, New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) and Soros Justice Media Fellowships, Grünberg has received multiple grants from National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the New York Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Documentary films by Slawomir Grünberg have been screened at various prestigious theaters, including Lincoln Center's Walter Reade Theater, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and The Museum of Modern Art in New York City and also at festivals in
Iran, France, Germany, Korea, Australia, Brazil, Russia, Canada, Slovakia, Portugal, Czech Republic, Belarus, Tunisia and Poland.
His films are in the permanent collections of many film societies, festivals and libraries.
SELECTED CREDITS
Coming Out in Poland (Director/Producer/Director of Photography) What does it mean to be gay or lesbian in Poland today? In the Life/PBS 2008, 18 min
Portraits of Emotion: The Sory of an Autistic Savant (Director/Producer/Director of Photography) This film follows over the course of four years, the life of 14-year-old Jonathan Lerman, an artistic prodigy who is diagnosed with autism, an Expression Award at Brazil’s Disability Film Festival, 2007, 56 and 79 min
Saved by Deportation - An Unknown Odyssey of Polish Jews (Director/Co-Producer/Director of Photography) The first feature length documentary film to tell the dramatic story of Polish Jews who escaped the Holocaust through their deportation to the Soviet Union.
The Audience Award, Washington Jewish Film Festival, 2006, 56 and 79 min.
Plonacy Facet “Burning Man” (Co-Director/Producer/Director of Phoptography) On the 20th anniversary of Burning Man my camera followed several Polish artists, who became participants of this biggest festival of art in the open. HDV, Polish TV 1, 2006. 52 and 90 min.
Borderline: The People v. Eunice Baker (Director/Producer/Director of Photography) A documentary that tells the story of Eunice Baker, a borderline mentally retarded woman who was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison for murdering a young child, despite evidence that the death was accidental. PBS, Link TV, Free Speech TV, Danish TV 2, Planete Poland, 2005, 56 and 77 min.
The Legacy of Jedwabne (Director/Producer/Director of Photography) A feature-length documentary that tells the story of a pogrom in 1941 in Jedwabne, Poland and explores the implications of the past for present constructions and negotiations of personal, national and religious identity. Special Award at the Crossroads Film Festival, Lublin 2007; PBS, Link TV, Free Speech TV, Danish TV 2, Planete Poland, Polish TV Kultura, Al Jezeera TV, 2005. 56 and 75 min.
Sister Rose’s Passion (Director of Photography/Line Producer) The film talks about Christian-Jewish relations and Sister Rose Thering passion to educate Christians about the Jews. Oren Jacoby - Director, Best Documentary Short at the Tribeca Film Festival, Academy Award Nomination for the best documentary short in 2005, HBO, 2005
Omar and Pete (Director of Photography) Two years study of the life outside the Baltimore prison system. Tod Lending – Director. HDCam. EMMY nomination, PBS/POV 2005
Michael and Svetlana (Producer/Director/Director of Photography) A fascinating transatlantic love affair journey and a documentary about an American who subscribed to matchmaking service to find himself a Russian bride. Warsaw International Film Festival. 2005. 56 and 93 min.
Wygnancy – Exiles (Co-Director/Director of Photography) A story of Solidarity activists, who immigrated to US. Three part series, TV Polonia, 2005
Waging a Living (Director of Photography) In-Depth study of four low-wage workers who are seeking to lift their families out of poverty. Roger Weisberg – Director. 2004
Aging Out (Director of Photography). Leaving foster care system and what next. Shot over two years. Roger Weisberg – Director. 2004
Shakespeare Sessions (Director of Photography). Royal Shakespeare founders: John Barton and Sir. Peter Hall travel to America for series of workshops. PBS. 2003. 57 minutes.
B&B Guestbook 9/11 (Producer/DP) Reactions of B&B guests to the September
11 terrorist attacks and their aftermath.2003. PBS, 26 minutes.
Green Card Gamble (Director/DP) 1.5 year of life of three Polish families who won an
American green card, as a result of winning visa lottery, PTV 2, Poland, 2003, 31x25 minutes.
Fenceline: A Company Town Divided (Co-Producer/Director/DP). Film depicts the struggle
of an African-American community in Louisiana s cancer alley to be relocated from under the shadow of a Shell refinery.
EMA Award. ITVS/POV 2002, 57 minutes.
Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light (Director of Photography) for WNET/Thirteen - American
Masters. An intimate documentary portrait of one of the greatest artists. 2000. 57 minutes.
Legacy (Co-Director of Photography) for HBO. Filmed over five years lives of three generations
of African-American family. Academy Award Nomination for the best documentary feature in 2001. 90 minutes.
School Prayer: A Community at War (Co-Producer/Director/DP) Lisa Herdahl, a Mississippi
mother of five, is forced to sue her School District in order to remove the Bible from her children s classrooms. ITVS/
P.O.V. 1999. 57 minutes. Emmy Award 2000
From Chechnya to Chernobyl (Producer/Director/Co-Photography) Fleeing civil war refugees
seek safety outside Chernobyl. Golden Eagle, Cine Award, RVU Holland, 1997. 45 minutes.
Shtetl (Second Unit Producer/DP) for PBS-Frontline. Memories of Jewish life in a small
town in Poland and a bold look at Jewish/Polish relationship. 1996. 3 hours
No Time To Be a Child (Director of Photography) for PBS Growin Up Not A Child series.
Children s views on innercity violence. 1995, 57 min. EMMY nomination 1996.
When Billy Broke his Head and Other Tales of Wonder (Director of Photography) for ITVS
- PBS Special. How does it feel to be disabled in America. 1995, 57 minutes. EMMY nomination 1996
Diamonds in the Snow (Co-Director of Photography) for WDR Germany and PBS Special. A
story of three children who survived the Nazi Holocaust, one of them the filmmaker.
1995. 57 minutes
Chelyabinsk - The Most Contaminated Spot on the Planet (Producer/Director/DP) for NHK
Japan, NOS Holland, SWF Germany, TVP Poland. A journey into the horror of nuclear contamination in the Ural region
of Russia. 1994, 60 minutes
Adopting Olya (Co-Producer/Director/DP) for Discovery - Great Britain, Denmark TV, TVP
Poland. A couple from California travels to Russia to adopt a 4-year old girl. 1994, 30 minutes
With a Song to Russia (Producer/Director/DP) for WETA - PBS Special. The Washington Choral
Arts Society with Slava Rostropovich s National Symphony Orchestra tour to Russia in the midst of its 1993 political
turmoil. 1994, 30 minutes
Mysterious Crash of Flight 201 (Co-Director of Photography) for PBS-NOVA. 1993. 57 min.
After Gorbachev s USSR (Editor) for PBS-Frontline, 1992. 57 min.
Betting on the Lottery (Director of Photography/Editor) for PBS-Frontline. 1990. 57 min.
Looking for Perestroika - Inside Gorbachev s USSR series (Editor) for PBS-Frontline. 1990
AIDS in Poland (Director of Photography) for PBS AIDS Quarterly with Peter Jennings.
A look at the AIDS crises in Poland. 1990. 30 minutes
When the Family Gets AIDS (Producer/Director/DP) for WNET Independent Focus and Nippon
TV - Japan. The impact of AIDS on one American family. 1989. 30 minutes
Messenger to Poland (Co-Producer/DP) for WTTW s Journal - PBS. EMMY award (local) 1989.
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SELECTED AWARDS
2007
Special Award at the Crossroads Film Festival, Lublin: The Legacy of Jedwabne
2006
The Audience Award at the Washington Jewish Film Festival: Saved by Deportation: An Unknown Odyssey of Polish Jews
Best Documentary Award on a Theme on Disability at the Picture This…Festival in Calgary, Canada: Borderline: People vs. Eunice Baker
Golden Cine Award: Omar and Pete
2005
Best Documentary Short at the Tribeca Film Festival: Sister Rose’s Passion
Academy Award Nomination for the best documentary short: Sister Rose’s Passion
EMMY nomination: Omar and Pete
2004
DreamCatcher Award at the Hope and Dreams Film Festival
2003
EMA Award (Environmental Media Association Award) Best in Documentary Feature, Los Angeles : Fenceline: A Company Town Divided
Best in Category of Environmental Issues, Vermont International Film Festival: Fenceline: A Company Town Divided
Soros Justice Media Fellowship: Borderline: People vs. Eunice Baker
San Francisco International Film Festival, Certificate of Merit, Best in the Environmental category: Fenceline: A Company Town Divided
Big Muddy Film Festival, John Michaels Memorial Award: Fenceline: A Company Town Divided
Platinum Award in the News & Documentary category, Worldfest, Houston: Fenceline: A Company Town Divided
2002
P.O.V. Fenceline: A Company Town Divided selected for 2002 POV/PBS season
New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship
Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation - Production Grant: Saved by Deportation
NYSCA Electronic Media Grant: Fenceline: A Company Town Divided
Academy Award Nomination for the best documentary feature Legacy
Generoso Pope Foundation Journalism Award:Borderline
New York State Council on the Arts - Production Grant: Borderline
NEH Planning Grant: Saved by Deportation
2001
Academy Award Nomination for the best documentary feature: Legacy
EMMY nomination: Legacy
2000
National Emmy Award - School Prayer: A Community At War
The Jan Karski Award - Winner for School Prayer: A Community at War
The Independent Television Service - Funding: Cancer Alley: Louisiana
New York State Council on the Arts - Production Grant: Through the Eyes of Albert Maysles
Gold Award : WorldFest, Houston- School Prayer: A Community At War
1999
P.O.V. School Prayer: A Community at War selected for 1999 POV/PBS season
Best of the Festival: Hope and Dreams Film Festival: School Prayer: A Community at War
Coup de Coeur: Environmental Film Festival, Grenoble, France: From Chechnya to Chernobyl
Silver Apple: National Educational Media Network: From Chechnya to Chernobyl
Bronze Plaque: The Columbus International Film Festival: School Prayer: A Community at War
Bronze Award: The Flagstaff International Film Festival: School Prayer: A Community at War
1998
Grand Prix: International Environmental Film Festival, Prague: From Chechnya to Chernobyl
Golden Cine Award: From Chechnya to Chernobyl
Bronze Plaque: The Columbus International Film Festival: From Chechnya to Chernobyl
1997
Guggenheim Fellowship in documentary Film Making
The Independent Television Service - Funding: School Prayer: A Community at War
Silver Baton for Excellence in Radio/Television Journalism - duPont-Columbia University: Shtetl
1996
The Soros Documentary Fund - Production Grant: School Prayer:A Community at War
New York State Council on the Arts - Grant: School Prayer:A Community at War
Grand Prix: International Nature & Environmental Film Festival, Grenoble, France:
Chelyabinsk: The Most Contaminated Spot on the Planet
Grand Prix: Cinema du Reel Film Festival, Paris, France: Shtetl
First Prize: Jerusalem Film Festival, Israel: Shtetl
Best Journalistic Achievement: Okomedia - International Environmental Film Festival, Germany:
Chelyabinsk: The Most Contaminated Spot on the Planet
1994
Award for Best Documentary: International Festival of Environmental Films, Paris:
Chelyabinsk: The Most Contaminated Spot on the Planet
Best of the Environment Category: Vermont International Film Festival: Chelyabinsk:
The Most Contaminated Spot on the Planet
Felissimo Art Award: The New York Foundation on the Arts: Chelyabinsk: The Most Contaminated Spot
on the Planet
1990
Emmy Award: Messenger to Poland
1989
First Prize: Sinking Creek Film Celebration, When the Family Gets AIDS
First Prize: Athens International Film Festival, When the Family Gets AIDS
First Prize: New York Expo of Short Film and Video, When the Family Gets AIDS
Selected Screening: Global Village Documentary Festival, When the Family Gets AIDS
1988
Media Bureau Finishing Grant: When the Family Gets AIDS
Gerontology Grant: Ithaca College, Aging in America
Honorable Mention: Journal of Nursing Festival, Is This Life Worth Living?
1987
National Endowment for the Arts - Production Grant: A Tower of Babel - USA series
Lodestar Grant: Ithaca College, Kids with AIDS
1985
National Endowment for the Arts: Fellowship
1983
Ohio Arts Council: Fellowship
1980
First Prize: International Film Festival, Cracow, Poland: A Sunday
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