Neville has been nominated for five additional Grammys for films including Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story, Muddy Waters: Can’t Be Satisfied, Johnny Cash’s America, and The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble. Neville’s other films include The Cool School, Shotgun Freeway, Keith Richards: Under the Influence, and, as producer, Miss Americana, Beauty Is Embarrassing, and Crossfire Hurricane.
Neville was born in Los Angeles, California, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and originally worked as a journalist in New York City and San Francisco[3] before moving into film production in 1993. He founded Tremolo Productions in 1999 and continues to run it today.
Neville's films focus on culture, and especially on music. Speaking about his 2016 film The Music of Strangers, Neville said "The best thing about it for me as a filmmaker ... is that not only do I get to indulge my musical love, but that music is, to me, the most amazing Trojan horse to tell any other kind of story. The best music films are not about music ... Music is just the language we're speaking to tell a story about culture."[4]
Since finding success with his music-related documentaries, Neville has focused on other aspects of culture, such as politics and media. In a 2014 blog post on the International Documentary Association's website, Neville wrote that he is drawn to "how a smaller story can be a perfect window into conflicts within the human condition."[5] His 2015 film Best of Enemies examines the televised debates between Gore Vidal and William F. Buckley and serves as a timely investigation into politics and media. His film Won't You Be My Neighbor, about legendary television host Fred Rogers, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to rave reviews, and focuses on the power that kindness and understanding can have in a community, whether real or imagined.
Personal life
Neville lives in Pasadena, California with his wife and two children.[citation needed]
Filmography
Feature-length films
Shotgun Freeway: Drives Through Lost L.A. (1995)
Brian Wilson: A Beach Boy's Tale (1999)
Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock'n'Roll (2000)
