Todd Wider
Encyclopedia
Todd Wider is an American
plastic surgeon and Emmy Award winning film
producer based in New York
, who is active in documentary
filmmaking.
in 1982, Princeton University
in 1986, and Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons
in 1990.
, mandating insurance coverage for breast cancer
reconstruction. He also was a volunteer surgeon for Victims Services, an organization providing surgery to victims of abuse, and was a volunteer surgeon at Ground Zero
after the September 11, 2001 attacks
in New York City.
(2006), a documentary about restorative justice in the Pennsylvania prison system that premiered on MSNBC, was featured on Oprah, and won a number of awards. Wider also produced What Would Jesus Buy?
(2007), a Morgan Spurlock
film about consumerism in the United States
that focuses on the performance artist Billy Talen. He is also an executive producer of Taxi to the Dark Side
(2007), a documentary about prisoner abuse directed by Alex Gibney
that won the Academy Award for Best Documentary of 2008. Taxi to the Dark Side also won an Emmy for Best Documentary of 2008. Wider also produced The Untyings (2006), a film about exorcism
in Romania
and A Dream in Doubt (2006), directed by Tami Yeager, a documentary about intolerance in the wake of the September 11 attacks that focuses on a Sikh
family in Arizona
. In addition, he produced Kicking It (2007), a documentary about the Homeless World Cup, an international tournament for the homeless football league, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival
in 2008, and features Colin Farrell
and the music of U2
. He also produced A Time to Stir which screened as a work-in-progress at the 2008 Toronto Film Festival and concerns the Columbia University
1968 student uprisings. He also produced "Client #9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer" (2010). Client 9 was shortlisted for Academy Award consideration for Best Documentary of 2010. Wider also produced Semper Fi, Always Faithful, about water contamination at the Camp Lejeune Marine base and one Marine's crusade to find justice for his daughter, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival 2011. "Semper Fi, Always Faithful" was shortlisted for Academy Award consideration for Best Documentary of 2011.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
plastic surgeon and Emmy Award winning film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
producer based in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, who is active in documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
filmmaking.
Education
He graduated from Ward Melville High SchoolWard Melville High School
Ward Melville High School is a public high school in the Three Village Central School District of Suffolk County, New York on Long Island, serving grades ten through twelve. It is fed by the two junior high schools in the district: Paul J...
in 1982, Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in 1986, and Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, often known as P&S, is a graduate school of Columbia University that is located on the health sciences campus in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan...
in 1990.
Medicine
As a surgeon, he was active in helping the passage of the Women's Health and Cancer Act of 1998, federal legislation signed into law by President Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, mandating insurance coverage for breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
reconstruction. He also was a volunteer surgeon for Victims Services, an organization providing surgery to victims of abuse, and was a volunteer surgeon at Ground Zero
Ground zero
The term ground zero describes the point on the Earth's surface closest to a detonation...
after the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
in New York City.
Films
As a film producer, Wider has produced, with his brother Jedd, Beyond ConvictionBeyond Conviction
Beyond Conviction is a feature documentary directed and produced by Rachel Libert that tells the story of three crime victims as they prepare to meet those that have committed these crimes...
(2006), a documentary about restorative justice in the Pennsylvania prison system that premiered on MSNBC, was featured on Oprah, and won a number of awards. Wider also produced What Would Jesus Buy?
What Would Jesus Buy?
What Would Jesus Buy? is 2007 a documentary film produced by Morgan Spurlock and directed by Rob VanAlkemade. The title is a play on the phrase "What would Jesus do?" The film debuted on the festival circuit on March 11, 2007, at the South By Southwest conference in Austin, Texas...
(2007), a Morgan Spurlock
Morgan Spurlock
Morgan Valentine Spurlock is an American documentary filmmaker, humorist, television producer, screenwriter and journalist best known for the documentary film Super Size Me...
film about consumerism in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
that focuses on the performance artist Billy Talen. He is also an executive producer of Taxi to the Dark Side
Taxi to the Dark Side
Taxi to the Dark Side is a 2007 documentary film directed by American filmmaker Alex Gibney, and produced by Eva Orner and Susannah Shipman, which won the 2007 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature...
(2007), a documentary about prisoner abuse directed by Alex Gibney
Alex Gibney
Alex Gibney is an American documentary film director and producer. In 2010, Esquire magazine said Gibney "is becoming the most important documentarian of our time."...
that won the Academy Award for Best Documentary of 2008. Taxi to the Dark Side also won an Emmy for Best Documentary of 2008. Wider also produced The Untyings (2006), a film about exorcism
Exorcism
Exorcism is the religious practice of evicting demons or other spiritual entities from a person or place which they are believed to have possessed...
in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and A Dream in Doubt (2006), directed by Tami Yeager, a documentary about intolerance in the wake of the September 11 attacks that focuses on a Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
family in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. In addition, he produced Kicking It (2007), a documentary about the Homeless World Cup, an international tournament for the homeless football league, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
in 2008, and features Colin Farrell
Colin Farrell
Colin James Farrell is an Irish actor, who has appeared in such film as Tigerland, Miami Vice, Minority Report, Phone Booth, The Recruit, Alexander and S.W.A.T....
and the music of U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
. He also produced A Time to Stir which screened as a work-in-progress at the 2008 Toronto Film Festival and concerns the Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
1968 student uprisings. He also produced "Client #9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer" (2010). Client 9 was shortlisted for Academy Award consideration for Best Documentary of 2010. Wider also produced Semper Fi, Always Faithful, about water contamination at the Camp Lejeune Marine base and one Marine's crusade to find justice for his daughter, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival 2011. "Semper Fi, Always Faithful" was shortlisted for Academy Award consideration for Best Documentary of 2011.