By Bruce Shipkowski
TRENTON, NJ (AP) --Bruce Sinofsky, an Oscar-nominated and Emmy-award winning documentary filmmaker who gained prominence for his works that shined a spotlight on a child murder case in a small Arkansas town, has died. He was 58.
Sinofsky died at his Montclair, New Jersey, home on Saturday, the eve of the Oscars, a spokesman for Hugh M. Moriarty Funeral Home said Sunday.
Sinofsky's longtime collaborator, director Joe Berlinger, said on Twitter that Sinofsky died of complications from diabetes.
Sinofsky and Berlinger drew praise and attention for their "Paradise Lost" trilogy, a series of films about the case of three teenage boys convicted in 1994 of killing three boys in West Memphis, Arkansas. The films, released in 1996, 2004 and 2011, raised questions about evidence used to convict the teens, who became known as the West Memphis Three.
The teens each spent 18 years in prison, but in 2011 they were allowed to enter a plea in which they asserted their innocence while acknowledging there was enough evidence to possibly convict them. The initial film in the trilogy, "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills," won an Emmy, while the final film, "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory" was nominated for an Academy Award.
Sinofsky and Berlinger also collaborated on the critically acclaimed "Brother's Keeper," which documented the case of an elderly man accused of killing his brother, and on "Metallica: Some Kind of Monster," a documentary of the renowned heavy metal band.
"We lost a valued member of our family … as award winning filmmaker Bruce Sinofsky passed away," the members of Metallica wrote in a statement posted on the band's website. "Smart, funny and dedicated, Bruce was with us almost every day in the early 2000's and was an integral part of helping us to navigate the rough waters during those times. Although not very welcomed at times, he was there through some of the darkest times of Metallica."
Born in Boston, Sinofsky graduated from the Tisch School of the Arts of New York University in 1978. He and Berlinger eventually formed their own production company, Creative Thinking International, in 1991.
“Heretic” and “Maria” Set As Red Carpet Premieres At AFI Fest
The American Film Institute (AFI) has announced that Heretic, the psychological thriller starring Hugh Grant, and Maria, based on the life of opera singer Maria Callas starring Angelina Jolie, will round out the Red Carpet Premieres section at this year’s AFI Fest. The Heretic Gala Screening will take place on Thursday, October 24, and the Maria Gala Screening will be held on Saturday, October 26. The complete Red Carpet Premieres section includes the world premieres of Music By John Williams, Robert Zemeckis’ Here, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl and Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2. All Red Carpet Premieres will take place at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre. The full lineup for AFI Fest 2024 will be unveiled on October 1.
“At the heart of AFI Fest is an unwavering dedication to celebrating the best in global cinema--together,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI president and CEO. “We look forward to uniting artists and audiences once again to be inspired by the art form in a powerful sense of community.”
Heretic follows two young missionaries (Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East) who are forced to prove their faith when they knock on the wrong door and are greeted by a diabolical Mr. Reed (portrayed by Grant), becoming ensnared in his deadly game of cat-and-mouse. The film is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods and produced by Stacey Sher, Beck, Woods, Julia Glausi and Jeanette Volturno. The film will be released nationwide by A24 on November 8.
Directed by Pablo Larraín, Maria presents a tumultuous and beautiful depiction of one of the world’s most renowned artists and reimagines the legendary soprano in her final days in Paris, as Callas (Jolie)... Read More