Frederick Wiseman (January 1, 1930 — February 16, 2026) was an American filmmaker, documentarian, and theatre director. As a documentarian, Wiseman has been noted for his ability to capture the nuances of life in American institutions such as prisons, hospitals, welfare offices, and high schools. He started out in 1963 by producing a narrative feature, The Cool World, an examination of the lives of Harlem teenagers. In the beginning, Wiseman was a staunch social reformist, and his films were calls for change.
Titicut Follies, his first documentary, is an exposé of life in a prison for the criminally insane in Bridgewater, MA. It was controversial and left Wiseman with the reputation of being a muckraker. His four subsequent documentaries were all exposés of other tax-supported institutions designed to show the ineffectiveness of the bureaucracy that not only threatens to destroy them, but also dehumanizes the people they were meant to serve. Wiseman toned down his message and began focusing more on American culture to point out the symbolism of daily activities in his film Primate (1974).
In the 1980s, he began examining institutions as they relate to ideology. Unlike other documentaries, Wiseman’s work does not progress chronologically; rather, the segments are arranged thematically, like an essay, and are linked via rhetorical devices such as comparison and contrast to create a patterned structure. His films are never narrated, thereby forcing viewers to make connections between the sequences themselves. Wiseman has occasionally returned to fictional films, albeit in a non-fiction performance style, as with Seraphita’s Diary (1982) and La Derniere Lettre (2002).
| 2023 | Menus-Plaisirs, les Troisgros - Director |
| 2023 | Menus-Plaisirs, les Troisgros - Editor |
| 2023 | Menus-Plaisirs, les Troisgros - Producer |
| 2023 | Menus-Plaisirs, les Troisgros - Writer |
| 2022 | Un Couple - Director |
| 2022 | Un Couple - Editor |
| 2022 | Un Couple - Writer |
| 2020 | City Hall - Director |
| 2020 | City Hall - Editor |
| 2020 | City Hall - Producer |
| 2018 | Monrovia, Indiana - Director |
| 2018 | Monrovia, Indiana - Editor |
| 2018 | Monrovia, Indiana - Producer |
| 2018 | Monrovia, Indiana - Sound |
| 2017 | Ex Libris: The New York Public Library - Director |
| 2017 | Ex Libris: The New York Public Library - Editor |
| 2017 | Ex Libris: The New York Public Library - Producer |
| 2017 | Ex Libris: The New York Public Library - Sound |
| 2015 | In Jackson Heights - Director |
| 2015 | In Jackson Heights - Editor |
| 2015 | In Jackson Heights - Producer |
| 2015 | In Jackson Heights - Sound Director |
| 2014 | National Gallery - Director |
| 2014 | National Gallery - Editor |
| 2014 | National Gallery - Producer |
| 2014 | National Gallery - Sound |
| 2014 | National Gallery - Writer |
| 2013 | At Berkeley - Director |
| 2013 | At Berkeley - Editor |
| 2013 | At Berkeley - Producer |
| 2013 | At Berkeley - Sound |
| 2011 | Crazy Horse - Director |
| 2011 | Crazy Horse - Editor |
| 2011 | Crazy Horse - Producer |
| 2010 | Boxing Gym - Director |
| 2010 | Boxing Gym - Editor |
| 2010 | Boxing Gym - Sound |
| 2009 | La danse - Le ballet de L'Opéra de Paris - Director |
| 2009 | La danse - Le ballet de L'Opéra de Paris - Editor |
| 2009 | La danse - Le ballet de L'Opéra de Paris - Producer |
| 2009 | La danse - Le ballet de L'Opéra de Paris - Sound Director |
| 2009 | La danse - Le ballet de L'Opéra de Paris - Writer |
| 2009 | Haiku - Director |
| 2007 | State Legislature - Director |
| 2007 | State Legislature - Editor |
| 2007 | State Legislature - Producer |
| 2005 | The Garden - Director |
| 2002 | La dernière lettre - Director |
| 2002 | La dernière lettre - Editor |
| 2002 | Domestic Violence 2 - Director |
| 2002 | Domestic Violence 2 - Editor |
| 2002 | Domestic Violence 2 - Producer |
| 2001 | Domestic Violence - Director |
| 2001 | Domestic Violence - Editor |
| 2001 | Domestic Violence - Producer |
| 1999 | Belfast, Maine - Director |
| 1999 | Belfast, Maine - Editor |
| 1999 | Belfast, Maine - Producer |
| 1997 | Public Housing - Director |
| 1997 | Public Housing - Editor |
| 1997 | Public Housing - Producer |
| 1996 | La Comédie-Française ou L'amour joué - Director |
| 1996 | La Comédie-Française ou L'amour joué - Editor |
| 1996 | La Comédie-Française ou L'amour joué - Producer |
| 1995 | Ballet - Director |
| 1995 | Ballet - Editor |
| 1995 | Ballet - Producer |
| 1994 | High School II - Director |
| 1994 | High School II - Editor |
| 1993 | Zoo - Director |
| 1993 | Zoo - Editor |
| 1993 | Zoo - Producer |
| 1993 | Zoo - Sound |
| 1991 | Aspen - Director |
| 1991 | Aspen - Editor |
| 1991 | Aspen - Producer |
| 1990 | Central Park - Director |
| 1990 | Central Park - Editor |
| 1990 | Central Park - Producer |
| 1989 | Near Death - Director |
| 1989 | Near Death - Editor |
| 1989 | Near Death - Producer |
| 1988 | Missile - Director |
| 1988 | Missile - Editor |
| 1988 | Missile - Producer |
| 1986 | Multi-Handicapped - Director |
| 1986 | Multi-Handicapped - Editor |
| 1986 | Multi-Handicapped - Producer |
| 1986 | Adjustment & Work - Director |
| 1986 | Adjustment & Work - Editor |
| 1986 | Adjustment & Work - Producer |
| 1986 | Deaf - Director |
| 1986 | Deaf - Editor |
| 1986 | Deaf - Producer |
| 1986 | Blind - Director |
| 1986 | Blind - Editor |
| 1986 | Blind - Producer |
| 1985 | Racetrack - Director |
| 1985 | Racetrack - Editor |
| 1985 | Racetrack - Producer |
| 1983 | The Store - Director |
| 1983 | The Store - Editor |
| 1983 | The Store - Producer |
| 1982 | Seraphita's Diary - Director |
| 1981 | Model - Director |
| 1981 | Model - Editor |
| 1981 | Model - Producer |
| 1979 | Manoeuvre - Director |
| 1979 | Manoeuvre - Editor |
| 1979 | Manoeuvre - Producer |
| 1978 | Sinai Field Mission - Director |
| 1978 | Sinai Field Mission - Editor |
| 1978 | Sinai Field Mission - Producer |
| 1977 | Canal Zone - Director |
| 1977 | Canal Zone - Editor |
| 1977 | Canal Zone - Producer |
| 1977 | Canal Zone - Writer |
| 1976 | Meat - Director |
| 1976 | Meat - Editor |
| 1976 | Meat - Producer |
| 1975 | Welfare - Director |
| 1975 | Welfare - Editor |
| 1975 | Welfare - Producer |
| 1974 | Primate - Director |
| 1974 | Primate - Editor |
| 1974 | Primate - Producer |
| 1973 | Juvenile Court - Director |
| 1973 | Juvenile Court - Editor |
| 1973 | Juvenile Court - Producer |
| 1972 | Essene - Director |
| 1972 | Essene - Editor |
| 1972 | Essene - Producer |
| 1972 | Essene - Writer |
| 1971 | Basic Training - Director |
| 1971 | Basic Training - Editor |
| 1971 | Basic Training - Producer |
| 1971 | Basic Training - Writer |
| 1971 | Nedostaje mi Sonja Henie - Director |
| 1970 | Hospital - Director |
| 1970 | Hospital - Editor |
| 1970 | Hospital - Producer |
| 1969 | High School - Director |
| 1969 | High School - Editor |
| 1969 | High School - Producer |
| 1969 | High School - Writer |
| 1969 | Law and Order - Director |
| 1969 | Law and Order - Editor |
| 1969 | Law and Order - Producer |
| 1969 | Law and Order - Writer |
| 1967 | Titicut Follies - Director |
| 1967 | Titicut Follies - Editor |
| 1967 | Titicut Follies - Producer |
| 1967 | Titicut Follies - Writer |
| 1963 | The Cool World - Producer |
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