Kartemquin marks 60 years with Doc Talk spotlight
Gordon Quinn and Patricia Aufderheide join Deadline’s podcast to discuss the Chicago documentary nonprofit’s legacy and democratic mission.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
2 min read
Kartemquin Films is hitting 60, and Deadline’s Doc Talk is putting the Chicago nonfiction powerhouse in the chair for a look at six decades of documentaries built around civic life, conflict and social pressure.
The new episode features Kartemquin co-founder Gordon Quinn and author Patricia Aufderheide, whose book, Kartemquin Films: Documentaries on the Frontlines of Democracy, examines the organization’s history and mission. Aufderheide notes in the book that the nonprofit has been guided by the motto “Democracy through Documentary.”
Kartemquin was founded by Stan Karter, Jerry Temaner and Quinn. Deadline notes that the company’s name blends the founders’ last names.
The group has become one of the best-known American documentary outfits, with credits including Hoop Dreams, Minding the Gap, Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, The Interrupters, Edith+Eddie and the docuseries The New Americans.
A Chicago outfit with a national footprint
Kartemquin says on its website that its purpose is to support storytelling aimed at a more engaged and just society, with films that face major issues of the moment. Deadline’s episode frames that mission through the group’s long run of projects about politics, community and contested public life.
Quinn discusses several Kartemquin productions on the podcast, with particular attention to Hoop Dreams, the 1994 film directed by Steve James. James also directed other Kartemquin-linked works including Abacus, The Interrupters and Life Itself, according to Deadline.
On Doc Talk, Quinn describes how the success of Hoop Dreams appeared to create new opportunities in Hollywood for Kartemquin, while also carrying a catch that he details in the episode.
Aufderheide and Quinn also discuss how Kartemquin’s approach broke away from the Griersonian documentary tradition that Deadline says shaped much English-language nonfiction filmmaking in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, and continued to influence the field afterward.
Democracy on the mic
The episode also turns to the present political moment. Deadline says Quinn and Aufderheide address the role of an organization devoted to democratic values at a time when many people, Quinn among them, see grave pressure on representative government in the United States.
Doc Talk is hosted by Oscar winner John Ridley, whose credits include 12 Years a Slave and Shirley, alongside Matt Carey, Deadline’s senior documentary editor. The podcast is produced by Deadline and Ridley’s Nō Studios.
The Kartemquin anniversary episode is available through Deadline’s embedded player and on podcast platforms including Spotify, iHeart and Apple.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.