Hollywood Mourns Participant, the Oscar-Winning Studio that Wanted to Save the World

variety.com:

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer End of an era, end of a business model, end of a gravy train, end of the world. There were plenty of mixed emotions this week in response to the closure of Oscar-winning production company Participant, and at the very least the industry has agreed something has come to an end.

When Variety broke the news Tuesday that billionaire Jeff Skoll’s 20-year-old company will shut down — after fetching 21 Oscars and introducing a business model that prioritized social impact a bit more than profits – many in the industry were rattled.

Not just that mid-level, standalone financier and producer had left the market, but what that means for the viability of movies and TV shows that ask vital questions about justice and the humanity’s future. “The end of Participant Media is devastating news to anyone who cares about documentaries,” director Julie Cohen wrote bluntly on X.

She’s the co-director behind notable nonfiction films like “RBG,” “Julia” and “My Name is Pauli Murray.” Participant ushered in the era of prestige docs in 2006 with “An Inconvenient Truth,” about Al Gore’s devotion to climate action, which won the Academy Award for best documentary.