Amy Ziering

Background

Amy Ziering was born in 1962. She is the daughter of Sigi Ziering, a Holocaust survivor and business executive, and Marilyn Ziering, a philanthropist. She grew up in Beverly Hills, California.

Education

She graduated from Amherst College before pursuing graduate work at Yale University, where she studied with Jacques Derrida.

Career

Martin Sheen narrated the film. Ziering then began work on Derrida (2002), a documentary about her former mentor, the French philosopher Jacques Derrida. She partnered with Kirby Dick, with whom she co-directed Derrida.

The film explores Derrida"s life and work while questioning the limitations of biography.

She next produced a feature narrative, The Memory Thief (2007), directed by Gil Kofman. The film chronicles the experiences of a young man who becomes involved in documenting the experiences of survivors of the Holocaust as his commitment turns into obsession and madness.

Ziering again collaborated with Kirby Dick on Outrage (2009), a documentary that examined the lives of closeted gay politicians who legislate against gay rights, as well as the mainstream media"s reluctance to report on this subject. The film received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Investigative Journalism.

The Invisible War

The film examines the epidemic of rape in the United States Armed Forces, and has been heralded for exposing a culture of sexual abuse at Marine Barracks Washington.

Several government officials have commented on the film"s influence on policy, including Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, who has stated that viewing the film convinced him to implement a wave of reforms designed to reduce the prevalence of military sexual assault. The film’s revelations have also been discussed in congressional hearings and spurred lawmakers to seek better safeguards for assault survivors. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand credits the film with inspiring her to introduce the Military Justice Improvement Acting, which would establish an independent judiciary to oversee accusations of sexual assault in the armed forces.

Personal life

They reside in Brentwood and have three daughters.

Achievements

• In 2013, she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Feature for producing The Invisible War. Her first film, Taylor"s Campaign (1998), directed by Richard Cohen, followed Ron Taylor, a homeless resident of Santa Monica, as he campaigned to win a seat on the Santa Monica city council. lieutenant won the Golden Gate Award at the 2002 San Francisco International Film Festival. In 2012, she premiered The Invisible War at the Sundance Film Festival where it received the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature. Among other honors, The Invisible War received a nomination for Best Documentary Feature at the 85th Academy Awards and won Emmy Awards for Best Documentary Feature and Outstanding Investigative Journalism.