Daniel Lombroso | |
|---|---|
 Lombroso premiering his film at Sundance 2023 | |
| Born | New Rochelle, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Director, producer, journalist |
| Years active | 2020–present |
Daniel Lombroso is an American documentary filmmaker and journalist. [1] [2] He is known for embedding inside of extremist groups to capture their influence on modern politics. [3] [4] [5] His films White Noise , American Scar , and Nina & Irena have received critical acclaim. [6] [7] [8]
Lombroso was born in New Rochelle, New York, the grandson of two Holocaust survivors. [8] [9] After graduating from McGill University, where he studied political science, he began working for The Atlantic and The New Yorker . [10] [2] While on staff at those magazines, Lombroso's films explored Russian espionage, Israel's settlement movement, plastic surgery addiction, and the Holocaust, and were recognized with major journalism awards. [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]
In 2020, Lombroso directed his first documentary feature, White Noise , for which he spent four years embedded inside the so-called alt-right movement. [3] During the production of the film, he exposed Vice co-founder Gavin McInnes for sexual harassment and captured alt-right members embracing Nazi ideology. [19] [20] The film was named one of the top documentaries of 2020 by Vox and The Boston Globe . [21] [22]
In 2021, Lombroso's documentary short on the US-Mexico border, American Scar , won a Special Jury Mention at DOC NYC and was nominated for the National Magazine Awards. [23] [24] In 2023, he directed Nina & Irena about his grandmother's survival in the Holocaust. It was Executive Produced by Errol Morris. [8] He was named to the 2023 Forbes 30 under 30 list in the Media category. [25] In 2024, he co-directed the documentary short Denial with Paul Moakley, which premiered worldwide on September 09, 2024 via The New Yorker . [26]
In April 2025, Lombroso and Kerry Mack founded Outerboro Films in Brooklyn. Its projects include You’ll Be Happier, a documentary about a Texas businessman’s efforts to normalize penis enlargement, which is in post-production for a 2026 release with backing from World of Wonder and Penny Lane. [27]
| Year | Title | Contribution | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | White Noise | Director, cinematographer and producer | Documentary |
| 2021 | American Scar | Director and producer | Documentary short |
| 2022 | Liturgy of Anti-Tank Obstacles | Producer | Documentary short |
| 2023 | Nina & Irena | Director | Documentary short |
| 2024 | Denial | Director | Documentary short |
| 2026 | You’ll Be Happier | Director | Documentary |
| Year | Result | Award | Category | Work | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Won | Raindance Film Festival | Best Documentary Film | White Noise | [28] |
| Won | Jacksonville Film Festival | Best Documentary Feature | [29] | ||
| Nominated | Livingston Award | National Reporting | [30] | ||
| 2022 | Nominated | American Film Institute | Documentary Short Film | American Scar | [31] |
| Won | Doc NYC | Special Mention | [23] | ||
| Nominated | National Magazine Awards | Best Video | [24] | ||
| Won | Doc NYC | Special Mention | Liturgy of Anti-Tank Obstacles | [32] | |
| 2023 | Nominated | Big Sky Documentary Film Festival | Best Mini Doc | [33] | |
| Nominated | International Documentary Association | Best Short Documentary | [34] | ||
| Nominated | Flickerfest | Best Documentary Short | [35] | ||
| Won | Sonoma International Film Festival | Best Short Film | Nina & Irena | [36] | |
| Won | Brooklyn Film Festival | Spirit Award | [37] | ||
| Won | Mountainfilm | Best Short Film | [38] | ||
| Nominated | National Magazine Awards | Best Video | [39] | ||
| Nominated | Montclair Film | Documentary Shorts Competition | [40] | ||
| 2025 | Nominated | Livingston Award | National Reporting | Denial | [41] |