Oscar winner Kirk Simon has died

The Pulitzer At 100 director was 63

by Anne-Katrin Titze

‪The Pulitzer at 100 director and Oscar-winner for Strangers No More, Kirk Simon, has died.
‪The Pulitzer at 100 director and Oscar-winner for Strangers No More, Kirk Simon, has died. Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

The Pulitzer At 100 director and Oscar-winner for Strangers No More, Kirk Simon, died at the age of 63 on April 14 in New York.

For his most recent documentary, Kirk assembled a grand cast (Helen Mirren, John Lithgow, Martin Scorsese, Natalie Portman, Yara Shahidi, and Liev Schreiber) plus authors, journalists, composers and photographers (including Paula Vogel, Toni Morrison, David Remnick, Wynton Marsalis, Tony Kushner, Carl Bernstein, John Adams, Nicholas Kristof, Thomas Friedman, Jeffrey Eugenides, Michael Chabon, Michael Cunningham, John Adams, Martin Baron, Junot Díaz, Ayad Akhtar, Robin Givhan, Sheri Fink, John Filo, Nick Ut, and Robert A. Caro) who have won Pulitzers, to create a vivid portrait of the importance of Joseph Pulitzer's brilliant idea to establish the School of Journalism at Columbia University and award prizes.

Kirk Simon documented Jane Goodall's work in Chimps: So Like Us
Kirk Simon documented Jane Goodall's work in Chimps: So Like Us Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Kirk Simon documented Jane Goodall's work in Chimps: So Like Us, Ingmar Bergman's muse Liv Ullmann in The Sealed Orders Of Liv Ullmann and in 2011 won the Best Documentary Short Oscar with Karen Goodman for Strangers No More, which focused on a school in Tel Aviv that had students, many of them refugees, from 48 countries.

In the summer of 2017, I spent an hour with Kirk Simon at his office on the Upper West Side of Manhattan to talk with him on ‪The Pulitzer At 100‬.

Inside the Pulitzers with Kirk Simon:-

Read what Kirk Simon had to say on Natalie Portman, Liev Schreiber, Toni Morrison, Jeffrey Eugenides and Nick Ut.

Read what Kirk Simon had to say on Paula Vogel, Thomas Friedman, Nicholas Kristof, Michael Cunningham and Tony Kushner in The Pulitzer At 100.

Read what Kirk Simon had to say on John Lithgow, Helen Mirren, Martin Scorsese, Carl Bernstein, Michael Chabon, and Martin Baron sharing the spotlight.

Share this with others on...
News

The serpent's call Composer Stephen Lukach on creating tension and awe in Beware Boiúna

Care and community Mike Leigh and the Tender Loving Care cast on humanity and looking out for one another

The aftermath Jorge Thielen Armand on returning to Venezuela to make Death Has No Master

Making magic Gregg Bishop on witches, inspiring actors, instinctive filmmaking and The Heretiks

The road to The Guests Cristina Diz and Stefan Butzmühlen on working together on their latest film

Beyond Saturn Tina Gharavi, Tala Calil and Assaad Bouab on Shadows Of Beirut

Puppy love Brad Pitt on the 'moving' Heart Of The Beast shoot thanks to furry co-star Odin

More news and features

Interact

Don't forget that you can follow us on YouTube for trailers of festival films and more. You can also find us on Mastodon and Bluesky.


It's a busy time for festivals and here's the latest:


San Sebastian Golden night for Tender Loving Care


Toronto La Bola Negra wins People's Choice award


San Sebastian Naomi Watts dedicates Donostia Award to Lynch


San Sebastian Werner Herzog honoured


Dinard Full programme announced


LFF Full programme announced