Matthew Heineman
Director, producer, cinematographer and editor · Born November 30, 1983 (42) · Washington, D.C., USA
Matthew Heineman (born June 6, 1983) is an American documentary filmmaker, director, and producer. His inspiration and fascination with American history led him to early success with the documentary film Cartel Land, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film, a BAFTA Award for Best Documentary, and won three Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2009, Heineman founded his New York–based production company Our Time Projects, Inc., which would later release Our Time, his first documentary film about what it's like to be young in America, which he shot in the lower 48 states while travelling in an RV with three of his friends after graduating from college. His 2021 film The First Wave received the Pare Lorentz Award from the International Documentary Association, was shortlisted for an Academy Award, and was nominated for seven Emmy Awards, winning Best Documentary, Best Cinematography, and Best Editing. The 2022 film Retrograde was nominated for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing at the Producers Guild of America Awards and won Outstanding Editing at the News and Documentary Emmy Awards. Description above from the Wikipedia article Matthew Heineman, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- November 30, 1983 (42)
- Washington, D.C., USA
- Director, producer, cinematographer and editor
- 13 on MovieCove · 20 credits in all
What are Matthew Heineman's films like?
Across their 12 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Survival.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 9
Light 1 · Serious 2 · Dark 6
Grounded 9 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0
Gentle 0 · Charged 4 · Intense 5
Steady 2 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 3
Straight-faced 9 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0
Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0
Casual 2 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 1 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 7
A split, not a type: Resolved 5 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet7
- Ambiguous5
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Matthew Heineman's films?
As of October 24, 2026, all 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Prime Video (5).
- Curiosity Stream
Subscription and free streaming for Matthew Heineman's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
20 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page.
One Battle After Another(2025)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
American Symphony(2023)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
Transition(2023)
Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films
Retrograde (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)
The First Wave(2021)
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
Tiger(2021)
Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all shows
The Boy from Medellín(2020)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
A Private War(2018)
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films
When Lambs Become Lions(2018)
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films
The Trade(2018)
Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all shows
City of Ghosts(2017)
Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films
The Third Man (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)
Cartel Land(2015)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films
Our Time (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)
The Alzheimer's Project(2009)
Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all showsOvercoming the Storm (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
The Savant (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Untitled Maria Felix Biopic (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Untitled Paradise Camp Fire Project (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 19 titles, 16 of them dated from 2006 to 2025.
Biggest box office
A Private War (2018)
Highest rated
Cartel Land (2015)
Most popular right now
A Private War (2018)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Matthew Heineman's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 84th percentile, the median of all 10; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 85th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up9
- 50th to 74th4
Shape of the crowd
8 of their 13 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Divisive1
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser8
- Mixed3
Reviewers score the atmosphere 75/100 and the pacing 59/100 in their films, across 9 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Matthew Heineman work with?
People who share at least 2 of Matthew Heineman's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Joedan Okun shares the most, 8.
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- H. Scott SalinasShared titles: The First Wave (2021), Tiger (2021), The Boy from Medellín (2020), A Private War (2018), The Trade (2018), City of Ghosts (2017), Cartel Land (2015)See all 7 shared titles with H. Scott Salinas
- Matthew HamachekShared titles: Tiger (2021), The Trade (2018), City of Ghosts (2017), Cartel Land (2015)See all 4 shared titles with Matthew Hamachek
- Pax WassermannShared titles: The Boy from Medellín (2020), The Trade (2018), City of Ghosts (2017), Cartel Land (2015)See all 4 shared titles with Pax Wassermann
- Matt PorwollShared titles: Tiger (2021), The Trade (2018), Cartel Land (2015), Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare (2012)See all 4 shared titles with Matt Porwoll
Producers
- Joedan OkunShared titles: American Symphony (2023), Transition (2023), The First Wave (2021), Tiger (2021), The Boy from Medellín (2020), A Private War (2018), The Trade (2018), City of Ghosts (2017)See all 8 shared titles with Joedan Okun
- Andrew PetrilakShared titles: American Symphony (2023), The First Wave (2021), The Boy from Medellín (2020)See all 3 shared titles with Andrew Petrilak
- Monica VillamizarShared titles: Transition (2023), The First Wave (2021), The Trade (2018)See all 3 shared titles with Monica Villamizar
- Nina Sing FialkowShared titles: American Symphony (2023), The First Wave (2021), City of Ghosts (2017)See all 3 shared titles with Nina Sing Fialkow
Mixed roles
- Sebastian HernandezShared titles: Transition (2023), The Boy from Medellín (2020)See all 2 shared titles with Sebastian Hernandez
