Obit. (Vanessa Gould, 2017)

“One of the few great films I’ve seen about writing.”—Filmmaker Magazine

Every day, obituary writers deposit the details of extraordinary lives into the cultural memory—with each individual’s story spun amid the daily beat of war, politics, and football scores. Directed by the Peabody Award–winning Vanessa Gould, the fascinating Obit. is the first documentary to explore the world of these remarkable writers and their subjects, focusing on a small team at the New York Times who approach their work with journalistic rigor and narrative flair. With full access to the Times obituaries desk, Gould captures the joys and challenges of some of the most creative work that journalism produces while inviting some of life’s most essential questions. What do we choose to remember? And what never dies? (95 mins., DCP)