Biography
Stanley Earl Nelson Jr. (born June 7, 1951) is an American documentary filmmaker and a MacArthur Fellow known as a director, writer and producer of documentaries examining African-American history and experiences. He is a recipient of the 2013 National Humanities Medal from President Obama. He has won three Primetime Emmy Awards. Among his notable films are Freedom Riders (2010), Wounded Knee (2009), Jonestown: The Life & Death of People's Temple (2006), Sweet Honey in the Rock: Raise Your Voice (2005), A Place of Our Own (2004), The Murder of Emmett Till (2003), and The Black Press: Soldiers without Swords (1998).
Directed
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Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool (2019) — Director
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Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple (2006) — Director
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Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy (2021) — Director
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The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution (2015) — Director
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30 for 30 (2009) — Director
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Attica (2021) — Director
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We Want the Funk! (2025) — Director
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Freedom Riders (2010) — Director
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Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities (2017) — Director
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Freedom Summer (2014) — Director
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The Murder of Emmett Till (2003) — Director
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Tulsa Burning: The 1921 Race Massacre (2021) — Director
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Vick (2020) — Director
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Becoming Frederick Douglass (2022) — Director
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Harriet Tubman: Visions of Freedom (2021) — Director
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The Black Press: Soldiers Without Swords (1999) — Director
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Sound of the Police (2023) — Director
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BOSS: The Black Experience in Business (2019) — Director
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Black Panthers (2020) — Director
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A Place of Our Own (2004) — Director
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Marcus Garvey: Look for Me in the Whirlwind (2001) — Director
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San Juan Hill: Manhattan’s Lost Neighborhood (2024) — Director
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Critical Condition: Health in Black America (2025) — Director
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We Shall Remain (2009) — Director
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The Story of Access (2018) — Director
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Beyond Brown: Pursuing the Promise (2004) — Director
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Two Dollars and A Dream: The Story of Madame C.J. Walker (1987) — Director
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Focus Forward: Short Films, Big Ideas (2012) — Director