Jeanie Finlay (she/her) is a British documentary filmmaker and artist known for intimate, award-winning work that resonates globally. Her latest film, Your Fat Friend (2023), had its world premiere at Tribeca and its international premiere at Sheffield DocFest, where it won the audience award; the film has since reached audiences worldwide through a pioneering, creative distribution path. Jeanie has made films for HBO, BBC, and IFC, including four for the acclaimed BBC Storyville strand including The Great Hip Hop Hoax (2013), which was nominated for a British Independent Film Award and a Grierson award, and the British Independent Film Award-winning Orion: The Man Who Would Be King (2015).
Whether inviting audiences to share the (extra)ordinary journey of a British transgender man pregnant with his child (Seahorse, 2019), to go behind the scenes of Teesside’s last record shop in her home town (Sound It Out, 2011), or to step onto the set of Game Of Thrones (The Last Watch, 2019), Jeanie’s work is known for its emotional intimacy, pathos, and humour. These and other films have garnered Emmy, British Independent Film, and Grierson Awards and nominations. A champion of creative distribution, she’s a Chicken & Egg Award recipient with retrospectives at Criterion, BFI, and MOMI NYC, True Story, and Big Sky Documentary Film Festival. The recipient of an honorary Doctorate of Arts in recognition of her contribution to documentary, Jeanie is a member of AMPAS, BAFTA, and FWD-Doc and is currently making her tenth feature film.
Current Project
During her Chicken & Egg Award year, Jeanie will be launching her new film (title TBA) into the world and receiving creative support on the production of an untitled film about the place where she grew up–the northeast of England.
