EXCLUSIVE: Documentary+, the free streaming service launched by non-fiction studio XTR, has launched its latest slate of original feature docs.
The service is launching three new films in October and November in addition to The Sentence of Michael Thompson, which is coming to the service after its debut on MSNBC, and When The LAPD Blows Up Your Neighborhood, which was the service’s first original.
Crypto Farmers, which launches on November 8, comes from director Nick Aldrige, who helmed Hillsong Church: God Goes Viral that aired on the BBC Storyville strand.
It examines the unlikely relationship between a young cryptocurrency entrepreneur and struggling farmers in rural Wales. As farms in Britain continue to shut down due to unprofitability, Crypto Farmers follows a group of Britons as they build hydro, solar, and manure-powered crypto mining rigs to both bolster crypto’s environmental reputation and preserve the farmers’ way of life.
Directed by Nick Aldridge and produced by Natasha Coleman and exec produced by XTR’s Bryn Mooser, Kathryn Everett, Abazar Khayami and Justin Lacob.
Mala Onda, which launches on October 27, comes from Danilo Parra, who co-created and directed Vice’s Hamilton’s Pharmacopeia.
It investigates the mystery surrounding sudden animal deaths in Puerto Rico. From 1975 to the present, the stories of animals bled dry through small circular incisions captivated Puerto Rican towns and gave rise to rumors of vampires, aliens, and chupacabras. Through interviews with farmers, mediums, scientists, historians, and local witnesses, Mala Onda explores our collective obsession with the unexplained, while also showcasing the diversity of culture and thought in the affected Puerto Rican towns.
Directed by Parra, it is produced by Michael Biggam and exec produced by Matthew Clyde and XTR’s Bryn Mooser, Kathryn Everett, Abazar Khayami and Justin Lacob.
When The LAPD Blows Up Your Neighborhood, which was previously known as Fireworks, comes from Nathan Truesdell, who produced Oscar-nominated doc Ascension. It launches October 25.
It explores a botched LAPD operation that caused an explosive catastrophe in an LA neighborhood. In 2021, an LAPD bomb squad confiscated and attempted to safely detonate a large cache of illegal fireworks on a residential street in South LA. However, the squad underestimated the explosive power of the fireworks, and their detonation spiraled out of control, blowing up cars, houses, and the bomb squad vehicle itself.
It is directed and produced by Truesdell, and produced by Will Lennon and Kat Nguyen. It is exec produced XTR’s Bryn Mooser, Kathryn Everett, Abazar Khayami and Justin Lacob.
The Sentence of Michael Thompson is co-distributed by Documentary+ and MSNBC Films and launches on the former on November 1 after its MSNBC launch on October 30.
It tells the powerful story of the longest serving non-violent offender in Michigan history, and the legal battle surrounding his life sentence. Directed by Kyle Thrash and Haley Elizabeth Anderson, the film follows Michael’s daughter Rashawnda and his lawyer Kim during the fight for clemency, and examines both the harmful legacy of the war on drugs and the paths forward as national cannabis legalization becomes a reality.
Directed by Kyle Thrash and Haley Elizabeth Anderson, it is produced by Thrash and W. Ian Ross, and exec produced by Lydia Kives and William Crause and XTR’s Bryn Mooser, Kathryn Everett and Justin Lacob.
“Doc+ Originals is a huge step for the platform,” said co-founder Justin Lacob. “This is just the beginning of our rollout of original films and series, which will also include acquisitions of first-run titles straight from the world’s best film festivals. We have been thrilled with Documentary+’s success in bringing our viewers some of the world’s best nonfiction films and series, and we can’t wait for them to watch our original content.”
