According to Deadline, Whoopi Goldberg’s (The Little Rascals, Sister Act) documentary has entered production. The announcement was made by Message Pictures and Imagine Documentaries. The film is a broader version of Goldberg’s memoir Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother and Me. Goldberg’s One Hoe Productions company will also be producing the documentary.
A release has revealed that the documentary focuses on, “Goldberg’s own words and drawing from an extraordinary trove of archival tapes, performance footage, and personal materials. The film offers an intimate look into the life of Goldberg née Caryn Elaine Johnson, the private, introverted, and deeply observant woman behind the audacious, boundary-breaking legend.”
“Tracing Goldberg’s rise along with unadorned, observational verité of her today, through a window into her world never before granted. In the documentary, Goldberg takes us behind the scenes as she reimagines her groundbreaking 1984 Broadway debut one-woman show The Whoopi Monologues for Lincoln Center while balancing work with her producing partner of more than 30 years Tom Leonardis, developing new theater projects, spending time with her family and her new great-grandbaby, and building a quieter parallel life in Italy.” The release closes out.
The director for the documentary is American filmmaker Geeta Gandbhir (Prison Dogs, Family Tree). She has two Oscar nominations this year for the films The Devil Is Busy for Best Documentary Short and The Perfect Neighbor for Best Documentary Feature. She included her own words to the documentary, “Whoopi Goldberg is a brilliant and groundbreaking storyteller who has shaped the landscape of entertainment for years. I, along with my partners Sam Pollard and Alisa Payne at Message Pictures, Whoopi’s long-time producing partner Tom Leonardis, President of Whoop, Inc, and Imagine Documentaries are honored to bring her story to life in this documentary.”
President of Imagine Documentaries Sara Bernstein stated, “Imagine is thrilled to reunite with my friend and longtime collaborator the exceptional Geeta Gandbhir, Tom Leonardis and Message Pictures on this extraordinary opportunity to celebrate the singular icon that is Whoopi Goldberg. The world needs more Whoopi!”
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