Biography

Lana Wilson is an Emmy-winning and two-time Spirit Award-nominated writer and director known for intimate, cinematic storytelling and unflinching explorations of complex human experiences. Her films have premiered at leading festivals worldwide, including Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, BFI London, and True/False.

Her latest film, Look Into My Eyes (2024) (2024), produced by A24, premiered at Sundance to critical acclaim and was named one of the Top Five Documentaries of the Year by the National Board of Review. It was theatrically released by A24, became a Top 10 streaming title on Max, and received multiple Cinema Eye Honors nominations.

Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields (2023) (2023), her two-part series, premiered at Sundance and was nominated for multiple Primetime Emmys, including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. Pretty Baby was a New York Times Critic's Pick and broke viewership records when it launched globally on Hulu and Disney+.

Miss Americana (2020) (2020), the portrait of Taylor Swift, opened the Sundance Film Festival and became a global Netflix hit. A New York Times Critic's Pick, it was named one of the Top Five Documentaries of the Year by the National Board of Review and is now streaming on Netflix.

Wilson's earlier films include The Departure (2017) (2017), which premiered at Tribeca to rave reviews and earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination. A poetic portrait of a former punk musician turned suicide prevention counselor, The Departure (2017) was praised for its depth and fiction film-like sensibility and was theatrically released in over 30 U.S. cities.

After Tiller (2013) (2013), co-directed with Martha Shane, won an Emmy Award for Best Documentary and was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award. A powerful and compassionate look at the only doctors in the U.S. publicly providing third-trimester abortions, it was theatrically released by Oscilloscope and was named one of Flavorwire's "50 Best Documentaries of All Time."

Wilson has also worked in television and short-form filmmaking, including directing the IDA Award-nominated A Cure for Fear (2018) (2019), and has received artist fellowships from the Sundance Institute, MacDowell, and Yaddo. She is a graduate of Wesleyan University and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In 2024, the Museum of the Moving Image presented "Come Alive: The Films of Lana Wilson," a retrospective of her work.
- IMDb mini biography by: Anonymous