Abby Ginzberg is an independent

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and producer and founder of Ginzberg Productions. For the past 30 years, Ginzberg has been creating films that tackle discrimination and the legal profession.

Career

She graduated from

UC Hastings College of the Law The University of California, Hastings College of the Law (UC Hastings) is a public law school in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1878 by Serranus Clinton Hastings, UC Hastings was the first law school of the University of California as ...

in 1975, and taught at

Boalt Hall School of Law The University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (commonly known as Berkeley Law or UC Berkeley School of Law) is the law school of the University of California, Berkeley, a public research university in Berkeley, California. It is one of 1 ...

from 1975 to 1976, and at New College School of Law from 1981 to 1985. In 2005, Ginzberg released the documentary ''Soul of Justice: Thelton Henderson’s American Journey'', which profiled federal district judge Thelton Henderson. Another film, ''A Tale of Two Cities'', discusses the difficulty of forming high-school education for disadvantaged juvenile youths. Her film, ''Doing Justice: The Life and Trials of Arthur Kinoy'', won a number of awards. She also directed the Peabody award-winning film, ''Soft Vengeance: Albie Sachs and the New South Africa.'' The documentary, which was supported by the Ford Foundation, chronicled the life of anti-apartheid freedom fighter and former Constitutional Court judge

Albie Sachs Albert "Albie" Louis Sachs (born 30 January 1935) is a South African lawyer, activist, writer, and former judge appointed to the first Constitutional Court of South Africa by Nelson Mandela. Early life and education Albie Sachs was born on ...

, who lost an arm and an eye in an attack by the

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

n security services in

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

in 1988. In 2015, Ginzberg collaborated with filmmaker

Frank Dawson Frederick Henry Herbert "Fred" Dawson (also known as Frankie) (23 June 1862 – 1938) was an English footballer who played as a left-half in the Football League for Aston Villa. He joined Aston Unity in 1879 and left the following year in 1880 ...

on ''Agents of Change'', a documentary that profiles the black student movement on college campuses in the late 1960’s that led to the creation of

Ethnic studies Ethnic studies, in the United States, is the interdisciplinary study of difference—chiefly race, ethnicity, and nation, but also sexuality, gender, and other such markings—and power, as expressed by the state, by civil society, and by indivi ...

departments at

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different b ...

and

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

. Ginzberg is a member of

Film Fatales Film Fatales is a non-profit which advocates for parity in the entertainment industry and supports a community of women feature film directors who meet regularly to mentor each other, collaborate on projects and share resources. History The group w ...

women directors of independent film.

Select awards

*NAACP Image Award for Best Documentary (2022); Best Director, Harlem International Film Festival, Best Documentary, American Film Festival (Poland), Barbara Lee:Speaking Truth to Power *

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

, ''Soft Vengeance: Albie Sachs and the New South Africa'' (2014) *

Silver Gavel Award The Silver Gavel Award (also known as the ABA Silver Gavel Awards for Media and The Arts) is an annual award the American Bar Association gives to honor outstanding work by those who help improve comprehension of jurisprudence in the United State ...

for Media and The Arts, 2006, ''Soul of Justice: Thelton Henderson's American Journey (2006) *

CINE Golden Eagle Ciné film or cine film is the term commonly used in the UK and historically in the US to refer to the 8 mm, Super 8, 9.5 mm, and 16 mm motion picture film formats used for home movies. It is not normally used to refer t ...

''Soul of Justice: Thelton Henderson's American Journey (2006)''

Filmography

''Everyday Heroes'' (Documentary, 2001) Director & Producer ''Soul of Justice: Thelton Henderson's American Journey'' (Documentary, 2005) Director & Producer ''Cruz Reynoso: Sowing the Seeds of Justice'' (2010) Director & Producer ''

The Barber of Birmingham ''The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement'' is a 2011 documentary film about James Armstrong, one of the unsung heroes of the Civil Rights Movement. Summary A World War II veteran and an original flag bearer for the 19 ...

: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement'' (Documentary short, 2011) Consulting Producer ''Soft Vengeance: Albie Sachs and the New South Africa'' (Documentary, 2014) Director & Producer ''Agents of Change'' (Documentary, 2016) Co-Director & Co-Producer ''And Then They Came for Us'' (Documentary, 2017) Co-Director & Producer ''Waging Change''(Documentary,2019) Director and Producer '’ Barbara Lee:Speaking Truth to Power”(Documentary, 2020) Director & Producer ''American Justice on Trial'' (Documentary short, 2022) Co-Producer

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ginzberg, Abby Year of birth missing (living people) Living people New College of California faculty UC Berkeley School of Law faculty University of California College of the Law, San Francisco alumni Film directors from California American documentary film directors Film producers from California American women documentary filmmakers American women academics 21st-century American women