About this item
PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
This new documentary by Academy Award-winning director Kirk Simon celebrates the centenary of the Pulitzers the revered national award for excellence in journalism and the arts. The Pulitzers have had an immeasurable impact on American sensibility and beyond over the past 100 years. The riveting tales of the winning artists give an insiders view of how these pinnacles of achievement are selected and how the award has the power to change lives and communities. The diverse stories explored in the film relate to immigration, race, gender, and above all freedom of speech all issues that are ever more relevant in America today.
Featuring interviews with notable prize recipients including authors, journalists, playwrights and musicians such as Toni Morrison, Michael Chabon, Junot Díaz, Tony Kushner, Paula Vogel, Carl Bernstein, Robert Caro, Nicholas Kristof, Thomas Friedman, David Remnick and Wynton Marsalis, the film also brings Pulitzer-winning works to life through readings by Martin Scorsese, Helen Mirren, Natalie Portman, Liev Schreiber, John Lithgow and others.
Interwoven with the stories and readings is the history of the man who created it. Joseph Pulitzer, who came to America to fight as a mercenary in the Civil War, left money to Columbia University upon his death in 1911. A portion of his bequest was used to found the School of Journalism, not only to elevate the profession but also to establish the Pulitzer Prizes, which were first awarded in 1917. Today, the iconic prizes represent the highest standards of integrity and excellence in the arts.
REVIEW
Slick new doc......dazzling us with appearances by luminaries of journalism, belles lettres, and music. --The Village Voice
An enlightening new documentary. The bottom line in THE PULITZER AT 100 is the importance of the free press and the fact that, at its core, investigative journalists hold individuals accountable for their actions. To quote Robert Caro, journalism may be directly connected to getting at the truth. The only remedy for injustice, he observes, is to expose it... --WAMC Radio
Must-see. What can I say? I m a print journalism sentimentalist. Yes, even now. Maybe especially now. So how can director Kirk Simon s documentary about the creation and history of journalism s greatest nod not inspire? --Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post
Learn more on imdb
Learn more on MovieDB
About the Author
Toni Morrison was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993. She is the author of several novels, including The Bluest Eye, Beloved (made into a major film) , and Love. She has received the National Book Critics Circle Award and a Pulitzer Prize. She is the Robert F. Goheen Professor at Princeton University.
