Recent Projects
Data & Democracy (in production)
Co-produced with Arthur Beckman
Funded with a grant from the Rogovy Foundation
Data plays an increasingly vital role in our politics, enabling wide-scale voter manipulation as well as grassroots, democratic activism. This feature-length documentary uncovers the development of technologies and techniques across marketing and politics that have enabled the collection and analysis of political data, and its use – and misuse – by political campaigns and governments to win elections and maintain power. Through a series of stories about key figures in history, including George Gallup, Hermann Hollerith, and Ithiel de Sola Pool, we tell the story of how marketing techniques and technologies have allowed big data to reshape our democracy in ways that have both empowered and undermined popular governance.
F*** You, Mr. Rothman
Festival screenings: DOC NYC, NYSFF, BJFF, Rooftop Films
Murderers, rapists, drug dealers – defense attorney Frank Rothman has represented them all. The only person he cannot defend is his father, a small-time grifter and possible sociopath. This documentary short profiles Frank’s unusual path to the law, his struggles to disentangle himself from his father’s influence, and his ultimate unwillingness to let go. Screened at festivals around NYC and Boston, and reviewed in various publications including Tablet Magazine.
Motherhood and the Academy
Commissioned by Cornell Institute for Women in Science
Gender representation remains a problem in doctoral programs across America, particularly in the math-intensive sciences. The Cornell Institute for Women in Science has worked for more than a decade to deepen our understanding of the causes of under-representation, and to move the conversation beyond implicit bias to structural forces like tenure rules. This documentary short (15 minutes) profiles an Associate Professor at Queen’s University and young mother, Stanka Fitneva, and Professor at Cornell University, Elaine Wethington. Their stories, separated by two decades, reveal persistent challenges for women in STEM fields that exceed mere bias. With supporting commentary from David Dunning, Wendy Williams, and Steve Ceci.
Revolutionary Westchester
3-part educational film series commissioned by RW250
Most Americans haven’t heard the names of Molly Dobbs Sneeden, John Hurlbut, and John Jack Peterson. These three figures, along with countless others, played pivotal roles in the unfolding of events during the American Revolution. For more than ten years, RW250 has been committed to finding and telling stories about the unknown players in the Revolutionary Era, particularly those who were active in and around Westchester County, New York. This educational documentary series, narrated by child actors for a broad audience, tells three of those stories.
Nader Sadre is a filmmaker and video producer working in politics, law, and public life. His films have been supported by grant foundations and screened at festivals in New York and beyond.
His current project, Data and Democracy, examines political marketing and voter data, and is supported by the Rogovy Foundation. Prior work includes: F*** You, Mr. Rothman, which screened at DOC NYC, BJFF, and several other festivals, and commissioned projects, Motherhood and the Academy, Stereotypes and the Sciences, and the multi-part edu-doc series, Revolutionary Westchester.
Alongside his films, he has produced and directed content for local political campaigns, and has lectured at various colleges and universities on politics, ethics, and film. He holds a BA in Philosophy from NYU and a PhD in Politics from the CUNY Graduate Center.
