Directed credits
32
Prolific
Very extensive directing filmography.
Director
Sam Pollard
Directing
Career Snapshot
ExplainedThese indicators come from TMDB. They are relative signals, not review ratings.
TMDB popularity
0.9
Low visibility
TMDB internal trend index. Higher usually means more searches and page activity now.
Directed movies: 22Directed series: 10All crew credits: 86
TMDB ID: 18747
IMDb ID: nm0689498
Known for: Directing
Born: April 20, 1945
Age: 81
Place of birth: Harlem, New York, USA
Gender: Male
Adult content flag: No
Career span: 1973 - 2026
Years active: 54
Average TMDB rating: 6.64
Wikidata: Q3471205
Also known as
Samuel D. Pollard • Samuel Pollard
Frequent jobs
Director (32)Editor (26)Executive Producer (13)Consulting Producer (5)Producer (4)Editorial Consultant (2)Additional Editing (1)Assistant Editor (1)Co-Producer (1)
Biography
Samuel D. Pollard (born 20 April, 1945; Harlem) is an American documentary director, producer and editor. His films have garnered numerous awards such as Peabodys, Emmys, and an Academy Award nomination. In 2020, the International Documentary Association gave him a career achievement award. Spike Lee, whose films Pollard has edited and produced, described him as being "a master filmmaker." Henry Louis Gates Jr. characterizes his work in this way: "When I think about his documentaries, they add up to a corpus — a way of telling African-American history in its various dimensions."
Movies
Directed Movies
Movies directed by Sam Pollard.
The Lorraine
Director
2026 Movie
Tutu
Director
2026 Movie
I Was Born This Way
Director
2025 Movie
Ol' Dirty Bastard: A Tale of Two Dirtys
Director
2024 Movie
South to Black Power
Director
2023 Movie
The League
Director
2023 Movie
Lowndes County and the Road to Black Power
Director
2022 Movie
Citizen Ashe
Director
2021 Movie
Black Art: In the Absence of Light
Director
2021 Movie
MLK/FBI
Director
2020 Movie
Mr. SOUL!
Director
2018 Movie
Maynard
Director
2017 Movie
Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me
Director
2017 Movie
Acorn and the Firestorm
Director
2017 Movie
The Talk: Race in America
Director
2017 Movie
Two Trains Runnin'
Director
2016 Movie
August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand
Director
2015 Movie
Slavery by Another Name
Director
2012 Movie
Zora Neale Hurston: Jump at the Sun
Director
2008 Movie
John Ford/John Wayne: The Filmmaker and the Legend
Director
2006 Movie
The Making of 'Bamboozled'
Director
2001 Movie
Goin' Back to T-Town
Director
1993 Movie
Series
Directed Series
Series directed by Sam Pollard.
Photographer
Director • 1 eps
2024 Series
Bill Russell: Legend
Director • 2 eps
2023 Series
Hostages
Director • 2 eps
2022 Series
Atlanta's Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children
Director • 2 eps
2020 Series
Why We Hate
Director • 6 eps
2019 Series
The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow
Director • 4 eps
2002 Series
Independent Lens
Director • 1 eps
1999 Series
American Experience
Director • 3 eps
1988 Series
Eyes on the Prize
Director • 2 eps
1987 Series
American Masters
Director • 4 eps
1986 Series
Series
Upcoming Series
Next announced series projects with Sam Pollard.
Nov 16
Crime and Punishment in America
Executive Producer • 1 eps
2026 Series
Movies
Top Rated Movies
Highest rated movies linked with Sam Pollard.
Inside Man
Additional Editing
2006 Movie
Juice
Editor
1992 Movie
The Perfect Neighbor
Executive Producer
2025 Movie
Clockers
Editor
1995 Movie
Mo' Better Blues
Editor
1990 Movie
Jungle Fever
Editor
1991 Movie
Bamboozled
Editor
2000 Movie
Surviving the Game
Editor
1994 Movie
Private Resort
Editor
1985 Movie
Girl 6
Editor
1996 Movie
Movies
Most Popular Movies
Most viewed movie titles linked with Sam Pollard.
Inside Man
Additional Editing
2006 Movie
Jungle Fever
Editor
1991 Movie
The Perfect Neighbor
Executive Producer
2025 Movie
Mo' Better Blues
Editor
1990 Movie
Juice
Editor
1992 Movie
Private Resort
Editor
1985 Movie
Surviving the Game
Editor
1994 Movie
Clockers
Editor
1995 Movie
Bamboozled
Editor
2000 Movie
D. Wade: Life Unexpected
Producer
2020 Movie
I Was Born This Way
Director
2025 Movie
Ol' Dirty Bastard: A Tale of Two Dirtys
Director
2024 Movie
Series
Most Popular Series
Most viewed series linked with Sam Pollard.
American Experience
Director • 3 eps
1988 Series
Independent Lens
Director • 1 eps
1999 Series
American Masters
Director • 4 eps
1986 Series
The Blues
Producer • 1 eps
2003 Series
The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow
Director • 4 eps
2002 Series
Bill Russell: Legend
Director • 2 eps
2023 Series
Why We Hate
Director • 6 eps
2019 Series
Katrina: Come Hell and High Water
Executive Producer • 3 eps
2025 Series
Eyes on the Prize
Director • 2 eps
1987 Series
Photographer
Director • 1 eps
2024 Series
Hostages
Director • 2 eps
2022 Series
Atlanta's Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children
Director • 2 eps
2020 Series
Movies
Other Crew Work in Movies
Additional movie credits for Sam Pollard.
Full Circle: The First All Black Everest Ascent
Executive Producer
2026 Movie
Natchez
Executive Producer
2026 Movie
Teaching America
Executive Producer
2025 Movie
The Perfect Neighbor
Executive Producer
2025 Movie
This Is Not a Drill
Consulting Producer
2025 Movie
Keeper
Executive Producer
2024 Movie
Black Table
Executive Producer
2024 Movie
Carlos
Producer
2023 Movie
LIFT
Executive Producer
2023 Movie
Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes
Producer
2023 Movie
The Picture Taker
Editorial Consultant
2022 Movie
Outta the Muck
Executive Producer
2022 Movie
Hold Your Fire
Consulting Producer
2021 Movie
A Crime on the Bayou
Consulting Producer
2021 Movie
Civil War (Or, Who Do We Think We Are)
Executive Producer
2021 Movie
D. Wade: Life Unexpected
Producer
2020 Movie
Series
Other Crew Work in Series
Additional series credits for Sam Pollard.
Nov 16
Crime and Punishment in America
Executive Producer • 1 eps
2026 Series
Katrina: Come Hell and High Water
Executive Producer • 3 eps
2025 Series
Tiger
Executive Producer • 2 eps
2021 Series
If God Is Willing and da Creek Don't Rise
Editor • 2 eps
2010 Series
The Blues
Producer • 1 eps
2003 Series
Movies
Acting Appearances in Movies
Movie cast credits for Sam Pollard.
Subject
as Self
2023 Movie