Judith Ehrlich (born 1948/1949) is an American film director, writer, and producer. Her work includes co-directing the 2009 documentary ''

The Most Dangerous Man in America ''The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers'' is a 2009 documentary film directed by Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith. The film follows Daniel Ellsberg and explores the events leading up to the 1971 publication o ...

'', which was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the

82nd Academy Awards The 82nd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2009 and took place on March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p. ...

, won the Special Jury Award at the IDFA, won a

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 ...

, and was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for Exceptional Merit In Nonfiction Filmmaking.

Biography

After working as a teacher and curriculum developer, Ehrlich began creating documentaries in the 1980s. In the 1990s, she began work for

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

that included research into American history with a focus on

pacifism Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace camp ...

. Some of this research was incorporated into the documentary ''The Good War and Those Who Fought It'', about

conscientious objectors A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to objecti ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, that she wrote and directed with Rick Tejeda-Flores. The documentary features several conscientious objectors, including Stephen Cary, Bill Sutherland,

David Dellinger David T. Dellinger (August 22, 1915 – May 25, 2004) was an American pacifist and an activist for nonviolent social change. He achieved peak prominence as one of the Chicago Seven, who were put on trial in 1969. Early life and schooling Delli ...

, and

Lew Ayres Lewis Frederick Ayres III (December 28, 1908 – December 30, 1996) was an American actor whose film and television career spanned 65 years. He is best known for starring as German soldier Paul Bäumer in the film ''All Quiet on the Western Fro ...

, is narrated by

Ed Asner Eddie Asner (; November 15, 1929 – August 29, 2021) was an American actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. He is best remembered for portraying Lou Grant during the 1970s and early 1980s, on both ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' a ...

and includes archival footage. The film was completed in 2000 and broadcast on PBS in January 2002. For the 2009 documentary ''

'', Ehrlich and her co-director Rick Goldsmith have said they began speaking with

Daniel Ellsberg Daniel Ellsberg (born April 7, 1931) is an American political activist, and former United States military analyst. While employed by the RAND Corporation, Ellsberg precipitated a national political controversy in 1971 when he released the '' Pen ...

in 2004 about the development of a film, and then spent several years conducting research and obtaining access to archival footage before they began filming in 2007. In 2020, she released her documentary, ''The Boys Who Said No'', about activism in the 1960s and 1970s in opposition to the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

References

External links

Official web site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ehrlich, Judith Living people American women film directors Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American women