Latest news with #GiannaToboni
Forbes
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
Why One Inmate Fought To Die—And What Gianna Toboni Found
TBD Gianna Toboni has stood face-to-face with ISIS fighters in Iraq, walked into prisons teeming with drug cartel hitmen, and followed a trail of corruption through global war zones. But her most harrowing investigation unfolded not on foreign soil but in a U.S. prison cell. In The Volunteer: The Failure of the Death Penalty in America and One Inmate's Quest to Die with Dignity [Atria Books] The Nevada Department of Corrections photo shows the execution chamber at Ely State Prison in Ely, ... More Nevada where Scott Dozier was on death row. (Nevada Department of Corrections via AP, File) Toboni, already celebrated for her fearless reporting on sex trafficking in the Philippines, government surveillance in Russia, and Guantanamo Bay's censorship, describes The Volunteer as her most intense project yet. 'Dozier was unexpected in almost every way,' she shared in writing. 'He wasn't pleading his innocence. He wasn't particularly sympathetic. And he was volunteering for execution.' This defiance of the expected is what drew Toboni to the story. Initially reaching out to Dozier in 2017 for a VICE on HBO documentary, she never intended to become one of his closest confidantes. But as Nevada's attempts to execute him stalled, first over drug procurement and later over legal entanglements, the story began to spiral into something much deeper: an exposé on the American state's inability to carry out the very punishment it legislates. 'There was a lot of excitement around the story from the very beginning,' says Nicole Bozorgmir, a longtime producer and director who worked closely with Toboni at VICE News. 'It wasn't the quintessential death row story and it really called the bluff of the system.' 'Gianna would dig in on the 'big' story,' adds Subrata De, former Executive Vice President of VICE News, 'whether it was the SCOTUS decision that reversed Roe v. Wade or, in this case, the continued use of the death penalty in some U.S. states." De continues by pointing out these are the kinds of stories that define the political culture of the country, but often prove daunting. 'Her big takes, these deep dives into big issues,' De says, "helped inform not only the audience, but also the newsroom.' Only about 15% of those sentenced to death in America are ever executed. 'Even though Dozier and the state of Nevada shared the same goal — execution — the state couldn't find a way to pull it off,' Toboni says. 'That, to me, was an underreported and powerful representation of how broken this system is.' The book alternates between Dozier's tumultuous life — his Vegas meth empire, his time as a stuntman, and his time as an Army Ranger — and the greater dysfunctions of America's death penalty. In one of the most gut-wrenching turns, Toboni recounts how, after his execution was stayed, Dozier was placed on suicide watch and isolated for months. 'He wasn't allowed books, a radio, or even a pencil,' she says. 'The lights were left on 24/7. He was going insane.' 'Gianna handled a really difficult, often controversial subject with amazing nuance and depth,' former VICE producer Bozorgmir adds. 'She leaned into a story that many other reporters might have shied away from — and that's reflective of who she is as a journalist.' NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 21: VICE correspondent Gianna Toboni discusses "VICE on HBO" with the Build ... More Series at Build Studio on February 21, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Roy Rochlin/FilmMagic) Toboni details the bizarre lengths states go to in order to carry out executions. With major pharmaceutical companies refusing to sell lethal injection drugs to prisons, states have turned to black-market tactics. 'There are parking lot drug deals between prison officials,' Toboni says. 'In some cases, the DEA has confiscated illegal imports from India. These scenes read like [television series] Breaking Bad, but the dealers are our own government employees.' Toboni believes the U.S. refusal to abandon capital punishment stems from more than policy inertia — it reflects a national obsession. 'There's a deep addiction to crime and punishment in this country,' she says. One of the most profound tensions in The Volunteer is Toboni's own struggle to humanize Dozier, a man convicted of murder and dismemberment. 'Dozier once asked me, 'Do you think you can kill someone and still be a good person?'' she recalls. 'Gianna is incredibly focused on the human at the center of any story,' says Subrata De. 'Whether it's international or domestic, her focus is the person and the people. From that, the storytelling flows.' Toboni's years covering global crises — from ISIS strongholds to cartel-run prisons — shaped her ability to empathize even with those society deems irredeemable. 'They, too, are people,' she says. 'And they, too, are entitled to dignity.' 'Gianna creates an environment where people feel not just comfortable, but drawn to open up,' Bozorgmir adds. 'There's an authenticity about her — what you see is what you get.' Can the system be reformed? 'Until it becomes politically damaging to be pro-death penalty, it will persist,' Toboni says. From a newsroom leadership perspective, De emphasizes Toboni's integrity: 'We never embarked on a story without a full risk assessment for the team, and a full discussion on the risk the reporting could possibly pose to the story subjects as well.' In the end, Toboni doesn't ask readers to feel sorry for Scott Dozier. She asks them to pay attention — to the bureaucracy, the brutality, and the moral contradictions that define capital punishment in America. With The Volunteer, Gianna Toboni doesn't just deliver an exposé. She delivers a reckoning.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Just Kids' Review: Tender and Informative Doc Examines Impact of Gender-Affirming Care Bans Sweeping the U.S.
Just Kids, Gianna Toboni's commanding documentary, follows a handful of trans children and their families as they navigate a United States increasingly hostile to trans rights and gender-affirming care. The film, which premiered at Tribeca, is an informative and emotionally potent take on a politically salient issue. Toboni spent an early part of her career as a producer for Vice, the documentary series that ran from 2013 until 2021, and elements of Just Kids bear a resemblance to the now sunsetted program. The director's mostly fly-on-the-wall approach to filming these families (cinematography by Daniel Hollis, Love on the Spectrum) lends the doc a gritty realism and an unexpected propulsiveness. More from The Hollywood Reporter 'Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything' Review: Hulu Doc Offers a Solid Overview, but Limited Depth, on the Television Pioneer 'Charliebird,' 'Happy Birthday,' 'Natchez' Top Tribeca Festival Award Winners 'Tow' Review: Rose Byrne's Committed Performance Grounds a Compassionate Portrait of Homelessness But these aesthetic choices never sensationalize the realities of these participants, instead underscoring the harrowing stakes of their experiences. Crucially, Just Kids has a tender core: Its heart lies not in the trauma faced by trans kids trying to get gender-affirming care, but in their resilience and the love that persists in the face of state-sanctioned antagonism. Just Kids opens with an interview with the historian Susan Stryker, one of a handful of talking heads featured in the doc, who offers an overview of the issues facing transgender people in the United States. She talks about the recent waves of gender-affirming care bans and how much information exists about trans people. The issue has become a 'low-hanging fruit' for people hoping to influence elections and drive public policy in a more conservative direction. Conversations with Stryker are stitched alongside those with Kelli Parker, a writer and advocate, to build a sturdy narrative on which the rest of the film relies. They talk about how the advances of the last 20 years — from the election of Barack Obama to the legalization of gay marriage — riled up right-wing groups in the U.S., who declared themselves marginalized as a result of losing these so-called culture wars. They took action in the form of big spending, influencing public officials through elections and think tanks like the Heritage Foundation to take more conservative positions. 'They want the government to reflect them and their ideas,' says Parker of this coalition, 'and so they are passing these laws in an effort to inch this agenda forward.' The results of this aggressive mobilization has been felt in all sectors of American life, particularly when it comes to bodily autonomy. Restrictive policies on abortions go hand-in-hand with hostile policies against trans people. In both cases, the government encroachment is deemed necessary as a way to protect the children. Just Kids asks: Which ones? A central thesis of Toboni's doc concerns how these policies decide which children deserve to exist. It's a heartbreaking point that's underscored by Rae, Alazaiah and Tristan, three trans teenagers trying to survive in conservative parts of the country (South Carolina and Texas). Toboni also interviews their family members, who are supportive of their right to be trans. These parents and siblings are a surprising group, figures subverting expectations of who supports trans rights. Eric, a veteran and second-amendment enthusiast, has a love of country that extends to protecting the rights of his trans son, Rae. Just Kids is filled with scenes of Eric and his wife, Jessica, traveling to different state legislature hearings and testifying against proposed gender-affirming care bans. Zach and Raymond, Alazaiah's brothers, took her in after the death of the 17-year-old's mother so she didn't end up homeless. Together, their testimonies form an inspiring portrait of strength. Toboni complements interviews with these family members with footage of the trans children just living their lives — from Alazaiah excitedly posting to her followers on her TikTok feed and thrifting for new clothes (pink is a requirement) to Rae getting a haircut that makes him feel confident. But the stories also highlight the challenges these families and teens face in accessing state resources and medical care in parts of the country that criminalize their support. For these sections, Toboni talks to Andrea Jenkins, a member of the Minneapolis City Council, and Dr. Elizabeth Mack, the president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, to explore how trans kids face a disproportionate risk of homelessness as well as how many people fundamentally do not understand what constitutes gender-affirming care. Mack's interviews are particularly clarifying because she defines this particular care as any change that makes trans kids feel more like themselves. That explanation hopefully clarifies the fact that all of us affirm our gender every day, from our clothes and haircuts to pills we take to correct hormonal imbalances. In one disheartening scene, Tristan and her mother, Crystal, listen as their doctor tells them that recent laws have forced her to leave Texas and she can no longer provide medical care. Although she was able to write a year-long prescription for estrogen before departing, the abrupt termination leaves Tristan and her mother in a vulnerable situation. They must now consider whether or not to relocate. But the decision is marred by financial precarity: At the moment, Crystal doesn't have enough money to move to a state with more amenable laws. Their story underscores how not everybody can just find a new place to live when facing dehumanizing legislation. Just Kids falls in the category of recent docs like Preconceived and Zurawski v Texas, which premiered at Telluride, that survey how the right has effectively mobilized to dismantle the civil rights progress of the last 50 years. Like these other films, Toboni's feature takes a straightforward approach to uncovering details that will be illuminating for many viewers. One only hopes that it gets in front of the audiences who need to hear its message the most. Best of The Hollywood Reporter 13 of Tom Cruise's Most Jaw-Dropping Stunts Hollywood Stars Who Are One Award Away From an EGOT 'The Goonies' Cast, Then and Now
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Gianna & Jacqueline Toboni Launch Production Company Mother Media
EXCLUSIVE: Journalist and two-time Emmy-winning documentarian Gianna Toboni and her sister, actress and producer Jacqueline Toboni (The L Word: Generation Q), have announced the launch of Mother Media, a new bi-coastal production company dedicated to producing deeply personal, zeitgeist-defining content across both scripted and unscripted formats. With a slate that ranges from death row documentaries to celebrity biopics, Mother Media aims to explore the human condition through narratives that resonate on both an emotional and cultural level. More from Deadline 'SNL' Cast Unpacks Season 50 Including Miss Eggy, Chloe Fineman's Big Dumb Line, Straight Bowen Yang & Sarah Sherman Nearly Getting "Jacked" Octavia Spencer Returning For Blumhouse's 'Ma' Sequel Russell Simmons Hits HBO With $20M Defamation Suit Over 2020 Documentary Alleging Rape 'Our mission at Mother Media is to tell stories that feel both intensely personal and undeniably relevant,' said Gianna. 'Whether we're inside a prison cell or on a Hollywood set, we want to bring audiences closer to the truth of a person's experience—and by extension, the truth of our time.' Added Jacqueline: 'We've always been drawn to complex characters and stories that challenge the status quo. With Mother Media, we're creating a space where those stories can come to life in honor of our mother, the greatest storyteller we know.' Mother Media's debut project is a documentary titled Just Kids, which will premiere at the Tribeca Festival on Saturday. The film follows three families living in states that have banned gender-affirming care as they navigate the emotional, legal, and political stakes of their situation. As misinformation and fear dominate headlines, the film re-centers the human cost — and resilience— of those most impacted. The doc was just awarded a $25,000 grant from Subject Matter that will help support the filmmakers' impact, outreach, and distribution efforts. Mother Media is currently in production on a celebrity biopic, with several more scripted and unscripted projects in active development. A primary focus going forward will be to leverage unscripted IP for narrative adaptations. Gianna Toboni gained prominence as a senior correspondent and producer for Vice News, where she contributed to over 50 films that aired on platforms like HBO, Showtime, Hulu, and Vice. Her investigative work has taken her to more than 30 countries, including Iraq, Somalia, Nigeria, Mexico, and Saudi Arabia. She was among the first journalists to interview ISIS fighters on the frontlines in Iraq and has reported on issues such as cartel violence in Mexico, political corruption, and the plight of women escaping oppressive regimes. Before joining Vice, she worked as a correspondent for Al Jazeera and as a producer for ABC News. Jacquelin Toboni has been seen starring on shows like Doctor Odyssey, The L Word: Generation Q, Easy, and Grimm, with additional appearances in a number of indies. Mother Media is represented by CAA. Best of Deadline 'Nine Perfect Strangers' Season 2 Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes Come Out? 'Stick' Release Guide: When Do New Episodes Come Out? List Of Hollywood & Media Layoffs From Paramount To Warner Bros Discovery To CNN & More
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Good Burger,' ‘Hairspray' and ‘Rear Window' Among Vidiots Summer Matinee Series – Film News in Brief
Movie Den, a teen-centric matinee repertory series held in the MUBI microcinema, will run June 16 through August 27 at Vidiots. With programming focused on 'Engaging, delighting, and inspiring the next generation of film lovers,' screenings offered as part of the series include 'Rear Window,' 'Good Burger,' 'The Half of It' and 'Hairspray' (1988). 'As a Mom to teens, and a member of a community that has been through so much this year, it was important to me and our team, that we try to make what we know will be a hard Summer for so many a little easier by expanding programming with an intention to get us out of the house, off devices, and reconnected,' said Vidiots programming director Amanda Salazar. 'When I was a teenager, the movies were my sanctuary, and our kids (and their grown-ups) need that now more than ever. We can't wait to welcome you all to Movie Den.' More from Variety Criterion Collection's Mobile Closet Comes to Los Angeles Vidiots Sets Official Opening for New Theater, Bar and Video Store in June Vidiots Still Planning Eagle Rock Theater Opening as City Hearing Looms Movie Den screenings will be offered Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons at 1PM, with tickets priced at $2 and free popcorn. Parallel programming offering teens 'Expanded opportunities to learn about Vidiots' will be offered before and after screenings. Movie Den is supported by Vidiots Founding Members MUBI and Golden Globe Foundation. A full schedule and ticketing information can be found at Gianna Toboni's film 'Just Kids' has been selected to receive a $25,000 grant from Subject Matter at the 2025 Tribeca Festival. Subject Matter has provided funds and resources for documentary films that highlight social issues and support nonprofits tackling featured projects since its launch in 2022. The nonprofit has awarded $484,000 in grants to twelve social issue documentaries, with 'Just Kids' being its latest project added to its roster. 'Just Kids' is a film that examines the nationwide bans on gender-affirming healthcare for transgender individuals. The film follows three families navigating the bans and illustrates how the laws and rhetoric surrounding the social issue have become politicized by targeting marginalized communities. Subject Matter will also award a corresponding $25,000 grant to the Campaign for Southern Equality's Trans Youth Emergency Project. The Campaign for Southern Equality provides logistical and financial support, as well as individual patient navigation services to identify unimpacted healthcare providers and emergency grants for travel expenses through their Trans Youth Emergency Project. Additionally, Subject Matter will further support their initiatives by collaborating with the Tribeca Film Festival to raise additional funding for the LGBTQ+ organization. Subject Matter will be onsite at the Tribeca Film Festival screenings for 'Just Kids,' rallying audiences to join them in donating to the Campaign for Southern Equality's Trans Youth Emergency Project. The non-profit organization will match donations up to $5,000. Best of Variety What's Coming to Netflix in June 2025 New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts?
