Cory Stillman
In late December of 2023, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced their shortlists in 10 different categories for this year’s Oscars. It was likely a joyous day for all those who were recognized, but only documentary filmmakers Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson can claim to have been shortlisted in two separate categories.
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project is one of 15 documentaries vying for a nomination in Best Documentary Feature Film, while Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games is among the 15 films shortlisted in Best Documentary Short Film.
“This is a competition where some of the best filmmakers in the country are competing. And I’m thinking ‘Wow, how did I get there? How did I get in this club?’,” says Brewster. “But then when you get in twice in the same year, you can’t ask yourself that question. You have to get real.”
Brewster and Stephenson admit that the recognition via the Academy’s shortlists is highly validating, but the married couple refer to a bit of wisdom from their son when contextualizing this exciting juncture in their career.
“He said ‘you’ve already won’, explains Stephenson. “I try to tell myself that in a mantra every day, as my competitive side emerges.”
Indeed, the success of both Going to Mars and Black Girls Play can be felt in not just the quality of each film, but in the incredible impact both films have had upon the communities they represent. Both documentaries identify and uplift the cultural contributions that Black women have made throughout history. In the case of Going to Mars, poet and activist Nikki Giovanni welcomes viewers into a darkly humorous, often somber excavation of her mind. And in the case of Black Girls Play, a range of scholars and practitioners trace a complete history of hand games in America, identifying the role that young Black girls have played in cementing such childhood traditions. The latter film is an ESPN 30 for 30, a particularly exciting collaboration as Brewster and Stephenson worked with the network to expand their definition of what sports and play can be.
“We couldn’t have asked for a better partner on this story,” says Stephenson. “And I think it has to do with some of the shifting that programming is doing, really looking to its new leadership to broaden the definition of play and bring in other viewers, beyond what one might think are the typical ESPN+ viewers.”
Challenging norms around documentary storytelling has always been of paramount importance to Brewster and Stephenson, who kickstarted their filmmaking careers with American Promise, a decade-spanning documentary following their own son’s rise through the American education system. Going to Mars may mark one of their most innovative films yet, allowing its subject’s poetic voice to carry the film to new and unexpected places.
“We wanted it all to be in her voice, and we wanted it to be a travel through her mind and her work,” says Stephenson. “And that had to do with the fact that I sometimes found myself frustrated by watching certain films or documentary profiles about artists that I deeply admire, and I feel like I don’t get enough of them, because I have too many other people who knew them who are talking about them.”
Brewster adds that “documentaries, and more specifically biopics, are not one-size-fits-all.” When the duo first began shooting the film seven years ago, Giovanni informed them that she was experiencing seizures which impacted her memory. “So we designed a visual aesthetic that took advantage of that, so that became part of the storytelling.”
Early on in Going to Mars, Brewster and Stephenson establish the nonlinear nature of their film, helping audiences understand the documentary’s experimental traversal through time and space.
Or is it really experimental at all?
“You may call it experimental, but you have to ask yourself ‘What does that mean?’ when you vary from a form that is getting less and less interesting everyday,” says Brewster. “All of the documentaries follow the same form…I can’t watch that documentary.”
As Brewster and Stephenson look towards the announcement of the official Oscar nominations on January 23rd, they can rest easy knowing their work has furthered the artform they so clearly love.
In that sense, they’ve already won.
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project is streaming now on Max, while Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games is available on ESPN+.
Listen to my full interview with Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson below!
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