Jeremy Levine

Director of Production

Biography

Jeremy S. Levine’s films explore race, class, and the power of parental bonds through highly cinematic and formally rigorous films. An Emmy award-winning filmmaker and two-time Sundance Institute fellow, his work has screened at over one hundred film festivals around the world including the Berlinale, Tribeca, and Sundance, streamed on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Sundance Now, Starz, and Hulu, broadcast nationally in nine countries, and received 25 festival awards.

His last feature documentary, For Ahkeem, is a love story set against the backdrop of the Ferguson uprising and the school-to-prison pipeline. For Ahkeem played as an official selection of over 60 film festivals and won 12 awards, including 8 “Best Documentary Awards.” The film was named in the Top 10 Lists by both Entertainment Weekly and People and was included on the “Unforgettables” List by the Cinema Eye Honors, a list that IndieWire wrote “helped to define documentary cinema in 2017.”

He recently released The Panola Project, a short film that chronicles how an often-overlooked rural Black community came together in creative ways to survive the pandemic. The Panola Project was an official selection of over 35 festivals including Sundance, Hot Docs, and the DOC NYC Shortlist. The film received six Jury Prizes, three Audience Awards, and two Grand Jury Prizes, including the Oscar-qualifying Best Documentary Short Award at the Florida Film Festival. The film was released with The New Yorker, featured on MSNBC’s Morning Joe and The Last Word, and written about in over 50 publications.

In 2006, Levine co-founded the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective (BFC), a community of professional filmmakers dedicated to collaboration and mutual support. He is currently in production on a feature film highlighting the deep bond between two men who met in prison. He’s an Assistant Professor of film production as Suffolk University.

Selected Publications

The Return (2024, Documentary Short, Director/Producer): An intimate portrait of boyhood interrupted, an exploration of the bonds of family across borders, and a celebration of the resilience of a father and son who dream of returning home. Filmed over six years. Commissioned by the Witness program on Al Jazeera. Currently in consideration for festivals, with invitations from AmDocs, DocUtah International Documentary Film Festival, Carborro Film FestSalem Film Festival, and the Thomas Edison Film Festival, where it was awarded a Jury’s Choice Award ahead of its 2025 touring festival season.

The Panola Project (2021, Documentary Short, Director/Producer): The story of how an often-overlooked rural Black community came together in creative ways to survive the pandemic. Released with The New Yorker, featured on MSNBC's The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell and Morning Joe. Official selection of over 35 festivals including Sundance, Hot Docs, BlackStar, Full Frame, Palm Springs International ShortFest, and the DOC NYC Shortlist.

For Ahkeem (2017, Feature Documentary, Director/Co-Producer): The coming-of-age story of a black teenage girl fighting to provide a better life for herself and her family in north St. Louis. Premiered at Berlinale and Tribeca, played over 60 international film festivals, received 10 festival awards, and streamed on Starz, PBS, Sundance Now, AMC ALLBLK, and Amazon Prime.

Am I Next (2014, Documentary Short, Director/Co-Editor): A teenage boy navigates the streets of the Ferguson protests following the shooting of Michael Brown. Featured on the Time homepage, Upworthy, Dazed Magazine, and selected as a Vimeo Staff pick with over 500K combined views.

Good Fortune (2009, Feature Documentary, Producer/Editor): Two Kenyans battle to save their homes from large-scale development organizations in this Emmy award-winning expose of Western arrogance. Official selection of IDFA, CPH:DOX, AFI Silverdocs, Human Rights Watch, and over 40 international film festivals. Received an Overseas Press Club Award, broadcast on POV on PBS, and streamed on Netflix.

Walking the Line (2005, Mid-Length Documentary, Director/Producer/Editor): A harrowing view of the chaos, absurdity, and senseless deaths along the U.S.-Mexico border through private citizens who are taking the law into their own hands. Broadcast nationally in five countries, streamed on Hulu, and nominated for a regional Student Academy Award.

Honors/Awards

• Jury’s Choice Award, Thomas Edison Film Festival, The Return, 2025
• Best Documentary Short Jury Awards, The Panola Project: Florida Film Festival, Lakefront Film Festival, Seattle Black Film Festival, Health in Focus Film Festival, 2022-2023
• Ruth Landfield Award, The Panola Project, Fargo Film Festival, 2023
• Audience Award, The Panola Project: GlobeDocs Film Festival, Sidewalk Film Festival, Footcandle Film Festival, 2021-2022
• Spirit of Sidewalk Award, The Panola Project, Sidewalk Film Festival, 2021
• Gold Award, Best Documentary Feature, For Ahkeem, University Film and Video Association, 2019
• Cinema Eye Honors “Unforgettables” List, For Ahkeem, 2017
• Best Feature Documentary Grand Jury Prizes, For Ahkeem: Stockholm International Film Festival, Independent Film Festival Boston, Indie Memphis Film Festival, and Tacoma Film Festival, 2017
• Overseas Press Club Carl Spielvogel Award, Good Fortune, 2010
• National News & Documentary Emmy, Good Fortune, 2010
• Witness Award for Best Social Issue Film, Good Fortune, AFI Docs, 2009

Education

MFA, Hunter College

BA, Ithaca College