Roy Ackerman

As Producer and Executive Producer, Roy has won major awards for feature documentaries, unscripted series, hit international unscripted formats and dramas based on true stories. He has won multiple major prizes, including 2 Sundance Grand Jury Prizes, 4 Emmy Awards, a Peabody and NAACP Image Award, 4 BAFTAs, Prix Italia, 6 Royal TV Society, 5 Broadcast Awards, one Grierson and a shortlist for the Academy Award. His latest series, Paid in Full: The Battle for Payback with Idris Elba recently aired on BBC, CBC and global networks.

As a Managing and Creative Director, he transformed two independent production companies – Diverse Productions and Jamie Oliver’s Fresh One - into profitable, international producers known for outstanding programmes, with a growing raft of strategic clients and relationships, built the unscripted division of Pulse Films before its sale to Vice and moved Zinc Media into premium unscripted. He moved to New York in 2022 to take on the role of Head of Documentary Film at Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer’s acclaimed indie documentary company The Othrs. He works as a creative EP, format developer and writer/ consultant to independent producers in the US and Europe. 

DOCUMENTARY/FEATURE DOCUMENTARY
· Richard Pryor Omit the Logic (Showtime – Dir. Marina Zenovich) NAACP Award
· The House I Live In; Why We Fight; Reagan: American Idol, The King - 2 Sundance Grand Jury Awards, Emmy, Peabody
· The Trials of Henry Kissinger; Gonzo, Hunter S Thompson – (dir. Alex Gibney)
· Black in Space, Breaking the Color Barrier: Smithsonian Channel 2021. Telly Award
· David Harewood, Psychosis and Me: BAFTA Best Documentary Nominee – 2021
· How Racist is the Church: Award winner, BBC, 2021
· Idris Elba’s Paid in Full: The Battle for Payback – BBC, CBC
HIT FORMATS
· Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution (ABC): Emmy winner, Emmy Nominee
· Dream School – Sundance TV/Channel Four: 2 seasons. UK, China, South Africa. RTS Award Winner
· Man vs Wild with Bear Grylls: the show that launched Bear Grylls
· Shalom in the Home: hit format for TLC, two seasons
SCRIPTED
· Spies of Warsaw – BBC, BBC America, France TV
· Mrs Mandela – with David Harewood, Sophie Okonedo; BBC, PBS, BAFTA Nominee
MUSIC
· Idris Elba: How Hip Hop & How Clubbing Changed the World: Award-winning specials
· Operatunity, Musicality, Ballet Changed My Life, Orchestra United, How to be a Composer, Don’t Stop the Music – hit music formats, sold globally
· The Sound of Musicals, Sound of TV, Sound of Movie Musicals – Limited series