Imagine’s Sara Bernstein Reveals Backing for ‘Cusp’ Filmmakers, Shines Light on New Documentary Talent, Predicts Rise in Theatrical Docs

variety.com:

Ben Croll Imagine Documentaries, the non-fiction branch of Ron Howard and Brian Grazer’s Imagine Entertainment, is looking to boost a new generation of documentary talent.

Speaking at a panel at Rome’s MIA Market, Imagine Documentaries president Sara Bernstein revealed that her company has signed a development deal with filmmakers Isabel Bethencourt and Parker Hill, whose teenagers-in-Texas portrait “Cusp” premiered to critical acclaim at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, while praising director Jackie Jesko, whose three-part, true-crime doc “Savior Complex” premiered on HBO last month. “It’s important to champion and make room for the next generation,” said Bernstein, heralding Bethencourt and Hill’s film as “one of the best cinema verité style docs I’d seen in a long time.” “I thought it was incredibly riveting,” Bernstein continued. “[And] we’re always looking at those filmmakers… [because] it’s exciting to think about the next generation, to ask who’s up and coming.” Boasting a first-look deal with the Washington Post, Imagine is also looking to the funny pages when sourcing non-fiction content that could cut through the din. “When we talk to commissioners [they always ask,] will this be a universal story?

Will this resonate worldwide?,” Bernstein explained. “Because in today’s marketplace, [prizes and acclaim] are less and less important.

What’s more important is will your film or series grab an audience?” On that front, Bernstein suggested a people-first approach for documentarians covering the ongoing, heart-wrenching conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine. “The more you can allow a person, an audience, a viewer, to walk in someone else’s shoes, the more empathy they’re going to have,” said Bernstein.