Matthew Heineman

Known For

Directing

Birthday

November 30, 1983 (41 years old)

Place of Birth

Washington, D.C., USA

Matthew Heineman

Biography

Matthew Heineman (born November 30, 1983; Washington) is an American documentary filmmaker, director, and producer. His inspiration and fascination with American history led him to early success with the documentary film Cartel Land, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film, a BAFTA Award for Best Documentary, and won three Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2009, Heineman founded his New York–based production company Our Time Projects, Inc., which would later release Our Time, his first documentary film about what it's like to be young in America, which he shot in the lower 48 states while traveling in an RV with three of his friends after graduating from college. His 2021 film The First Wave received the Pare Lorentz Award from the International Documentary Association, was shortlisted for an Academy Award, and was nominated for seven Emmy Awards, winning Best Documentary, Best Cinematography, and Best Editing. The 2022 film Retrograde was nominated for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing at the Producers Guild of America Awards and won Outstanding Editing at the News and Documentary Emmy Awards.

Known For

  • A Private War

    A Private War

    2018

  • Cartel Land

    Cartel Land

    2015

  • The Boy from Medellín

    The Boy from Medellín

    2020

  • City of Ghosts

    City of Ghosts

    2017

  • American Symphony

    American Symphony

    2023

  • The First Wave

    The First Wave

    2021

  • Tiger

    Tiger

    2021

  • Retrograde

    Retrograde

    2022

  • Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare

    Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare

    2012

  • The Trade

    The Trade

    2018

  • When Lambs Become Lions

    When Lambs Become Lions

    2018

  • Transition

    Transition

    2023

  • The Third Man

    The Third Man

    2016

  • Our Time

    Our Time

    2009

  • The Savant

    The Savant

    2025