Neil Barrett is a British director of photography who has worked on more than 30 broadcast documentary films for National Geographic, BBC, PBS, Discovery, The History Channel, NBC, ABC and CNN.
With an academic background in visual anthropology, Neil enjoys focusing on films that explore the paradoxes of cultural difference. Recent favorites are a film for National Geographic on a polygamous community living in Canada, and a film for Discovery that profiled the growing survivalist movement in the United States.
His films have been shown at the Sundance, Tribeca, Toronto, Fullframe, SilverDocs, Jackson Hole and Los Angeles Film Festivals. Three of his feature documentaries—The Woodmans (2010), The Other City (2009), and Kicking it (2008)—have been released theatrically in the United States.
Neil also enjoys working in the nonprofit sector based in Washington, DC. He frequently shoots PSAs and fundraising films for many large NGO organizations. Clients include the ONE campaign, Women for Women international, The US Peace Corps, The Roosevelt Foundation and the Lyndon Johnson Foundation.
His work has won several awards including a Columbia Dupont award for excellence in journalism, the Edward R. Murrow award for a documentary on the civil war in Liberia, four Cine Golden Eagle Awards, a Tribeca award for best US Documentary, and an Emmy nomination.
Recent Featured Work
Cameraman Solid Ground films (2011)
The Last Mountain:A feature documentary on the ecological impact of mountain top mining. (Sundance film festival, Tribeca film festival). Theatrical Release 2011
Director of Photography Discovery 2011)
Maya Apocaplypse: the relationship between Mayan history and apocalyptic thought.
Director of Photography PBS “Independent Lens” (2010)
The Woodmans: Portrait of a family of artists pushing the limits of creative parenting.
(Winner best US documentary--Tribeca film festival, Silverdocs. Theatrical release 2011).
Director of Photography National Geographic (2010)
Inside Polygamy: life inside a fundamentalist Mormon community that practices polygamy.
Director of Photography Showtime (2009)
The Other City: Feature documentary on the growing AIDS crisis in Washington DC.
(Tribeca Film festival, Silverdocs Film festival. Theatrical release 2010)
Director of Photography PBS “Nova” (2008)
The Shadow Factory: The technology behind the National Security Agency. (Emmy nominated)
Director of Photography ESPN Films (2008)
Kicking It: Feature documentary on the Homeless World Cup in South Africa.
(Sundance, Tribeca, Silverdocs film festivals. Theatrical Release 2008)
Director of Photography PBS “Nova” (2007)
Astrospies: The secrets of a covert American space program started in 1960’s.
Director of Photography PBS (2007)
African-American Lives: The genealogical roots of America’s most famous African-Americans.
Cameraman Blue Vinyl Productions (2007)
Everything’s Cool: A feature documentary on the growing risks of global warming.
(Sundance, Toronto, Fullframe, SXSW, Telluride film festivals. Theatrical release 2007)
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