Erin Lee Carr

Erin Lee Carr
Erin Lee Carr at SXSW
Born (1988-04-15) April 15, 1988
Minneapolis, Minnesota U.S.
EducationUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison
OccupationsDocumentary filmmaker
Writer
Years active2010–present
ParentDavid Carr
Websiteerinleecarr.com

Erin Lee Carr (born April 15, 1988)[1] is an American documentary film director and producer. Her documentaries include Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop (2015), Mommy Dead and Dearest (2017), I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth vs. Michelle Carter (2019), At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal (2019),[2] as well as the 2021 Netflix documentary Britney vs Spears.[3][4]

She is also an author for VICE and her memoir called All That You Leave Behind: A Memoir.[5]

Early life and education

Carr was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota to The New York Times media columnist David Carr and Anna Lee.[1][6][7][8]

Carr and her twin sister, Meagan Carr, were born two and a half months early. Their parents lost custody of the twins because of their drug addiction. Carr and her sister went into foster care for a summer. When their father got out of rehab, he regained physical custody of the girls and in 1994 married Jill Rooney, who became Carr's step-mother.[1][9]

In addition to her twin sister Meagan,[8] Carr has a half-sister named Maddie.[1][7] The family lived in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and then New Jersey.[10]

In 2010, Carr graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Madison with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts.[11] In the Spring of 2010, Carr attended FAMU in Prague in the Czech Republic.[12]

Career

2009-2014

In the summer of 2009, Carr was an intern at Fox Searchlight Pictures, working in the public relations department.[13] In the fall of 2009, Carr worked as a Media Assistant at the Instructional Media Center in the Communication Arts Department at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.[12] In November 2010, she worked as an office production assistant on Lena Dunham's TV show, Girls.[5][12]

Carr worked as a college intern at VICE. In 2010, she got a full-time job at VICE where she worked up to an Associate Producer position for Vice Media's Motherboard,[14] In 2011, Carr co-produced the documentary Free The Network for Motherboard.[15] The film depicted the efforts of the Free Network Foundation to provide Occupy Wall Street protestors in Zuccotti Park with Internet connectivity.[16]

In 2012, Carr developed Spaced Out for Motherboard.[17] Spaced Out had twelve videos, nine of which Carr helped create.[18][19][17] In 2013, Carr developed My Life Online for VICE's Motherboard.[20][21][22] Carr also produced a documentary for VICE called Click. Print. Gun. about Cody Wilson, the owner of Defense Distributed.[23] The film shows how 3D-printing is creating new issues with gun production.[23] The documentary won a 2014 Webby Award.[24]

In June 2013, she left VICE for Vox Media's The Verge to produce long and short stories.[25][13][16] In November 2013, Carr became a freelance director for HBO Documentary Films.[2][16]

2015-2021

In 2015, Variety included Carr as one of its "10 Documakers To Watch".[26] Carr's first documentary for HBO, Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop premiered at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival.[27][28] The documentary received positive reviews[29][30] and was a finalist for the 2016 Cinema Eye Honors in the non-fiction film for television category.[31]

In May 2017, Carr's documentary film Mommy Dead and Dearest was released.[32][33] It was an official selection for SXSW,[34] Hot Docs and DocAviv and was one of the most-watched documentaries on HBO in 2017.[10] In 2018, Carr directed an episode of the Netflix documentary series Dirty Money called "Drug Short" which examines how big pharmaceutical companies exploit patients seeking life saving drugs.[35] Carr made the 2018 Forbes 30 under 30 list.[36]

In 2019, Carr's two-part HBO documentary I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth Vs. Michelle Carter premiered at SXSW.[37][38][39] It was also an official selection at Hot Docs[40] and the Montclair Film Festival.[41] Carr's film At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal, premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival,[42][43]

Carr directed the limited series, How to Fix a Drug Scandal, that was released on Netflix on April 1, 2020.[44][45][46][47][48]

After the February 2021 release and public reaction to Framing Britney Spears, a New York Times presentation on FX, Bloomberg announced that Carr was working on an additional documentary to be streamed on Netflix.[4] Carr directed and produced the documentary Britney vs Spears about the Spears family and Britney Spears's attempts to challenge her 13-year conservatorship by her father Jamie Spears and former business manager Lou M. Taylor.[3]

2022-present

In 2023, Carr directed and produced The Ringleader: The Case of the Bling Ring.[49][50]

In 2024, Carr directed and produced I Am Not a Monster: The Lois Riess Murders.[51]

Carr, along with Lena Dunham, was the executive producer of Orgasm Inc: The Story of OneTaste, released on Netflix in November 2022.[52] The film came out to mixed reviews and controversy, including hundreds of women and men claiming that that film used their image against their consent, filing a lawsuit against Netflix to disallow the film, signing petitions, and creating viral videos protesting the violation.[53][54][55]

In 2024, Carr served as an executive producer on Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini.[56] In the first week of the series release, 3.6 million viewers watched the series, making it Hulu's most viewed documentary.[57] That same year, Carr directed and produced Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara.[58] In 2025, Carr was an executive producer on Trophy Wife: Murder on Safari.[59]

Carr was creator and executive producer on the scripted series Murdaugh: Death in the Family starring Jason Clarke and Patricia Arquette.[60][61][62]

Bibliography

In April 2019, Carr published a memoir called All That You Leave Behind: A Memoir for Random House.[63] All That You Leave Behind started out as a self-published Medium article called Still Rendering that Carr wrote a year after her father's death.[5] The book describes Carr's growth in her career as a documentary filmmaker and is a celebration of her father, David Carr, that includes emails and GChat and other records that documented her relationship with him.[13][64]

  • Carr, Erin Lee (July 28, 2011). "Growing a New Eye (With a Little Help From Technology and You)". VICE.
  • Carr, Erin Lee (August 22, 2011). "The Rules of Modern Day Attraction". Motherboard. VICE.
  • Carr, Erin Lee (October 24, 2011). "In the Uncensored Internet Age, There's Nothing Scarier Than A Hot Mic". VICE.
  • Anderson, Brian; Carr, Erin Lee (November 18, 2011). "Who Smashed the Laptops from Occupy Wall Street? Inside the NYPD's Lost and Found". VICE.
  • Carr, Erin Lee (November 21, 2011). "Video Essay: Free the Network". Sisyphus. 2012 (3).

Personal life

Carr lives in New York City.[10] Carr has discussed her struggles with alcohol and becoming sober.[8] Erin is an openly queer artist. [65]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Director Producer Notes
2012 Free the Network: Hackers Take Back the Web[66] No Yes Documentary
First Animal to Survive in Space[19] No Yes Documentary
The World's Hottest Taxidermist[67] No Yes Documentary
2012 Click. Print. Gun.[23] No Yes Documentary
Picnic Table No Yes Short
2015 Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop Yes Yes Documentary
Remembering David Carr No No Documentary; self; special thanks
2017 Mommy Dead and Dearest Yes Yes Documentary
Whirlybird No Yes Documentary
2019 I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth V. Michelle Carter Yes Yes Documentary
At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal Yes Yes Documentary
2021 Britney vs Spears[4] Yes Yes Documentary
2023 The Ringleader: The Case of the Bling Ring Yes Yes Documentary
2024 Stormy[68] No Yes Documentary
Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara Yes Yes Documentary
2025 Trophy Wife: Murder on Safari No Yes Documentary

TV series

Numbers in directing credits refer to number of episodes.

Year Title Director Executive
Producer 		Notes
2013 My Life Online[21][22] No Producer Documentary series
Spaced Out[17][18] No Producer Documentary series
2018 Dirty Money: Drug Short Yes (1) Yes Documentary series
2020 How to Fix a Drug Scandal[69] Yes (4) Producer Documentary series
2022 Undercurrent: The Disappearance of Kim Wall Yes (2) Producer Documentary series
The Girl from Plainville No Consulting Scripted series
2024 Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini No Yes Documentary series
I Am Not a Monster: The Lois Riess Murders Yes (2) Producer Documentary series
2025 Murdaugh: Death in the Family Yes (1) Yes Scripted series; also co-creator

References

  1. ^ a b c d Carr, David (July 20, 2008). "Magazine: Me and My Girls". The New York Times.
  2. ^ a b Rose, Becca (April 13, 2015). "Tribeca 2015 Women Directors: Meet Erin Lee Carr – 'Thought Crimes'". IndieWire.
  3. ^ a b Sarrubba, Stefania (February 16, 2021). "Britney Spears' Netflix Doc Director Is Behind This Famous True Crime Film". TheThings. Archived from the original on February 16, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c Shaw, Lucas (February 14, 2021). "Netflix Is Working on Its Own Documentary About Britney Spears". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on February 15, 2021. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c Flax-Clark, Aiden; Coates, Ta-Nehisi; Carr, Erin Lee (May 26, 2019). "NYPL Library Talks: Erin Lee Carr and Ta-Nehisi Coates Remember David Carr" (Podcast audio interview; includes transcript). New York Public Library.
  6. ^ Carr, Erin Lee (November 21, 2011). "Video Essay: Free the Network". Sisyphus. 2012 (3).
  7. ^ a b Weber, Bruce; Southall, Ashley (February 12, 2015). "David Carr, Times Critic and Champion of Media, Dies at 58". The New York Times.
  8. ^ a b c Gross, Terry; Carr, Erin Lee (April 30, 2019). "David Carr's Daughter On The 'Grand Caper' Of Life, And The Grief Of Loss" (Audio interview; includes transcript). Fresh Air. NPR.
  9. ^ "David M Carr, Minnesota Marriage Index, 1958-2001". FamilySearch. September 17, 1994.
  10. ^ a b c "Erin Lee Carr, Filmmaker". Forbes. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
  11. ^ Kirkby, Sean (September 25, 2013). "From UFO seekers to Wall Street occupiers, Carr documents it". University of Wisconsin–Madison.
  12. ^ a b c Carr, Erin Lee (October 2011). "Erin Lee Carr" (PDF). Turn It Up to 11.
  13. ^ a b c Stelter, Brian; Carr, Erin Lee (April 11, 2019). "Erin Lee Carr" (Podcast audio interview). Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter. iHeartMedia.
  14. ^ Carr, Erin Lee (August 22, 2011). "The Rules of Modern Day Attraction". Motherboard. VICE.
  15. ^ Carr, Erin Lee (March 28, 2012). "Free The Network". Motherboard. VICE.
  16. ^ a b c "Erin Lee Carr, Filmmaker". Bird. 2017.
  17. ^ a b c Carr, Erin Lee (January 16, 2013). "Using the Sun to Make Music" (YouTube playlist). Motherboard. VICE.
  18. ^ a b Carr, Erin Lee (November 27, 2012). "Spaced Out: The Satellite Hunter". VICE.
  19. ^ a b Carr, Erin Lee (September 4, 2012). "Meet the Guy Who Hunts Space Bears in Rural Virginia". VICE.
  20. ^ McCabe, Heather (April 5, 2013). "Gun Control Gets a Closer Look in a New Documentary". ELLE.
  21. ^ a b Carr, Erin Lee (April 8, 2013). "The Story of Karl Welzein, According to @Dadboner Creator Mike Burns". VICE.
  22. ^ a b Carr, Erin Lee (March 22, 2013). "Jerome LOL on Remixing the Internet and the Ageless Beauty of Web 1.0". VICE.
  23. ^ a b c Carr, Erin Lee (March 25, 2013). "Click, Print, Gun: The Inside Story of the 3D-Printed Gun Movement". VICE.
  24. ^ "Mommy Dead and Dearest". American Film Festival. 2018.
  25. ^ Bloomgarden-Smoke, Kara (June 12, 2013). "Erin Lee Carr Leaves Vice for The Verge". Observer.
  26. ^ "Variety's 10 Documakers To Watch". Variety. April 14, 2015.
  27. ^ Weiser, Benjamin (April 16, 2015). "Gilberto Valle, Ex-New York Police Officer, Talks About His Cannibalism Fantasies in Film". The New York Times.
  28. ^ Gregorian, Dareh (April 15, 2015). "'Cannibal cop' tale served up at Tribeca Film Festival". New York Daily News.
  29. ^ Genzlinger, Neil (May 10, 2015). "Review: 'Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop' on HBO". The New York Times.
  30. ^ Hoffman, Jordan (April 17, 2015). "Thought Crimes review – is it a criminal act to think about committing a crime?". The Guardian.
  31. ^ "Finalists for 2016 Nonfiction Film for Television Award Announced" (Press release). Cinema Eye Honors. June 16, 2015.
  32. ^ Lowry, Brian (May 12, 2017). "HBO's 'Mommy Dead and Dearest' is true crime at its best". CNN.
  33. ^ Genzlinger, Neil (May 14, 2017). "Review: The Bizarre Case of 'Mommy Dead and Dearest'". The New York Times.
  34. ^ Linden, Sheri (March 11, 2017). "SXSW 2017: 'Mommy Dead and Dearest': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
  35. ^ Shoemaker, Allison (January 26, 2018). "Netflix's "Dirty Money" Sheds Light on Financial Darkness". RogerEbert.com.
  36. ^ "30 Under 30 2018: Media". Forbes. January 2018.
  37. ^ "I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth Vs. Michelle Carter". SXSW. 2019.
  38. ^ Zimmerman, Amy (March 11, 2019). "The Troubled Teen Who Encouraged Her Lover's Suicide". The Daily Beast.
  39. ^ Ng, Alan (March 10, 2019). "I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth vs. Michelle Carter". Film Threat.
  40. ^ "Hot Docs Adds "One Child Nation," "I Love You, Now Die," & More to Special Presentations Lineup". Women and Hollywood. 2019.
  41. ^ Martin, Julia (2019). "Erin Lee Carr documentary 'I Love You, Now Die' debuts at Montclair Film Festival". North Jersey Record. USA Today.
  42. ^ Schager, Nick (May 5, 2019). "Tribeca Film Review: 'At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal'". Variety.
  43. ^ Abele, Robert (May 2, 2019). "Review: 'At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal' demands attention". Los Angeles Times.
  44. ^ Horton, Adrian (April 1, 2020). "How to Fix a Drug Scandal: behind a staggering Netflix crime docuseries". The Guardian.
  45. ^ Lavoie, Denise (March 4, 2014). "Inspector General: Dookhan 'Sole Bad Actor' In State Drug Lab Scandal". CBS Boston.
  46. ^ McDonald, Danny (September 25, 2019). "24,000 charges tossed because they were tainted by former Amherst lab chemist's misconduct". The Boston Globe.
  47. ^ Trahan, Erin (April 9, 2020). "Netflix's 'How To Fix A Drug Scandal' Elevates Process Over Personality". WBUR.
  48. ^ Wilkinson, Alissa (April 1, 2020). "How to Fix a Drug Scandal is the staggering true story of justice gone very wrong". Vox.
  49. ^ Batey, Eve (September 21, 2023). "The Bling Ring's Supposed Leader Finally Speaks Out". Vanity Fair. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  50. ^ "HBO Original Documentary THE RINGLEADER: THE CASE OF THE BLING RING Debuts October 1". Warner Bros. Discovery. September 21, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  51. ^ "HBO Original Two-Part Documentary I'M NOT A MONSTER: THE LOIS RIESS MURDERS Debuts October 15". Warner Bros. Discovery. October 4, 2024. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  52. ^ "What the Makers of Orgasm Inc. Want You To Know About the Controversial Company". Netflix Tudum. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2025.
  53. ^ "OneTaste founder Nicole Daedone says she plans to testify at her trial". NBC News. November 13, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2025.
  54. ^ People for Privacy (October 28, 2022). Hey Netflix I am not for sale. Retrieved January 23, 2025 – via YouTube. {{cite AV media}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  55. ^ Dillon, Nancy (November 3, 2022). "Orgasm 'Students' Sue Netflix to Block Release of OneTaste Documentary". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 23, 2025.
  56. ^ Maglio, Tony (June 6, 2024). "Hulu Leaves No Stone Unturned in Trailer for Sherri Papini Docuseries". IndieWire. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  57. ^ Hailu, Selome (June 28, 2024). "'Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini' Hits 3.6 Million Views in One Week, Biggest Hulu Docuseries Ever (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved July 30, 2024.
  58. ^ Carey, Matthew (July 30, 2024). "Hulu Orders 'Fanatical: The Catfishing Of Tegan and Sara,' About Scheme That Reeled In Followers Of Queer Indie Rock Band – Part "Thriller, Caper, Whodunnit"". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 30, 2024.
  59. ^ Paul, Larisha (July 16, 2025). "Convicted Killer Phones in From Prison in "Trophy Wife: Murder on Safari" Docuseries Trailer". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 18, 2025.
  60. ^ Cordero, Rosy (September 6, 2024). "Patricia Arquette To Star In Hulu Limited Series Based On Murdaugh Murders". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  61. ^ Cordero, Rosy (December 2, 2024). "Jason Clarke Cast As Alex Murdaugh In Hulu Limited Series Based On Real-Life Murder Case". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  62. ^ Otterson, Joe (November 11, 2022). "'Murdaugh Murders' Scripted Series in Development at Hulu From Michael D. Fuller, Erin Lee Carr, Nick Antosca". Variety. Retrieved July 30, 2024.
  63. ^ Carr, Erin Lee (2019). All That You Leave Behind: A Memoir. New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 978-0-399-17898-6. OCLC 1096328675.
  64. ^ Hobson, Jeremy; Carr, Erin Lee (April 16, 2019). "Video: A Conversation With Author and Filmmaker Erin Lee Carr" (Video interview). WBUR-FM.
  65. ^ Marsh, Steve (December 22, 2024). "In Conversation with Erin Lee Carr". Mpls.St.Paul Magazine. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
  66. ^ Carr, Erin Lee (March 29, 2012). "Free the Network: Hackers Take Back the Web". VICE.
  67. ^ Carr, Erin Lee (November 16, 2012). "Brooklyn's Fashionable Taxidermist Takes Cashcats to Another Level: Video". VICE.
  68. ^ Shafer, Ellise (February 5, 2024). "Stormy Daniels Documentary From 'Orgasm Inc' Director Set at Peacock". Variety. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  69. ^ How to Fix a Drug Scandal (TV Mini-Series 2020) - IMDb, retrieved April 14, 2020
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