LANA WILSON is an Emmy-winning and two-time Independent Spirit Award-nominated director and writer whose work is distinguished by its intimate, cinematic storytelling and unflinching exploration of complex human experiences. Her films have screened at leading festivals and institutions worldwide, including Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, BFI London, True/False, Eye Filmmuseum, and the Museum of the Moving Image.
Her latest film, Look Into My Eyes (2024), was made with A24 and premiered at Sundance to critical acclaim. A hypnotic and tender meditation on grief, belief, and human connection, it was a New York Times Critic’s Pick, nominated for three Cinema Eye Honors, including Best Nonfiction Feature and Best Directing, and named one of the five best documentaries of the year by the National Board of Review. Look Into My Eyes was theatrically released by A24 and is now streaming on Max.
Wilson’s previous documentary, the two-part series Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields (2023), premiered at Sundance and was nominated for multiple Primetime Emmys, including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series and Best Directing. Pretty Baby was a New York Times Critic’s Pick, Critic’s Choice Award nominee, and Cinema Eye Honors winner for Best Broadcast Editing. It broke viewership records when it launched globally on Hulu and Disney+.
Wilson’s Miss Americana (2020), the critically acclaimed portrait of Taylor Swift, opened the Sundance Film Festival and became a global cultural phenomenon. A New York Times Critic’s Pick and IndieWire Critic’s Pick, the film was named one of the Top Five Documentaries of the Year by the National Board of Review and is now streaming worldwide on Netflix.
Her 2017 film The Departure (2017) premiered at Tribeca and went on to earn an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Documentary. A poetic and profound portrait of a former punk musician turned suicide prevention counselor in Japan, The Departure was theatrically released in over 30 U.S. cities, with the San Francisco Chronicle calling it “a work of art” and the Washington Post declaring it “a genuinely spiritual experience.”
Wilson’s debut feature, After Tiller (2013), co-directed by Martha Shane, premiered at Sundance and won an Emmy Award for Best Documentary. A fearless and compassionate look at the only remaining doctors in the United States openly providing third-trimester abortions, the film was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary, four Cinema Eye Honors, and the Ridenhour Prize. After Tiller was theatrically released by Oscilloscope in over 50 U.S. cities and was named one of the “50 Best Documentaries of All Time” by Flavorwire.
Wilson has also worked in television and short-form filmmaking, creating and directing A Cure for Fear (SXSW 2019), which was nominated for the IDA Award for Best Short-Form Series, as well as other short-form works. She has received artist fellowships from the Sundance Institute, MacDowell, Yaddo, and Film Independent and was a recipient of the Chicken & Egg Pictures Award in 2019.
In 2024, the Museum of the Moving Image (New York) presented Come Alive: The Films of Lana Wilson, a retrospective of her work.
Before becoming a filmmaker, Wilson was the Film and Dance Curator at Performa, the New York biennial of new visual art performance. She is a graduate of Wesleyan University and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
