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Leap of Faith is in theaters now! Visit leapoffaithmovie.com for more info.

film, advisory, appearances by nicholas ma.

Nicholas Ma is an award-winning director, writer and producer based in Brooklyn. He produced the documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, about the life of Fred Rogers, which premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, and most recently the WNBA documentary Unfinished Business, which premiered
at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival.

His feature directorial debut, Mabel (San Francisco International Film Festival, 2024), which he co-wrote with Joy Goodwin, was awarded the Sloan Prize. Previously, he directed the award-winning short documentary Suite No. 1, Prelude (New York Film Festival, 2019).

Ma has been a DOC NYC fellow and Film Independent Fellow. Prior to his career in film, he covered global economic policy on the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, after working as a consultant in New York and Shanghai. He received his M.F.A. from NYU Tisch School of the Arts and is a graduate of Harvard College.

Follow Nicholas on Instagram @nicholas.h.ma

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leap of faith

director
2024

 

Twelve diverse Christian leaders find hope and fellowship at a series of boundary-breaking retreats in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Brought together by Michael Gulker of The Colossian Forum, five women and seven men struggle with some of today’s most contentious issues. The divisions between them become apparent and test both their common belief in the universal importance of love and kindness and the bonds they build over the course of a year.

Inspiring and provocative, LEAP OF FAITH explores whether we can disagree and still belong to each other in a divided world.

Heartland International Film Festival

mabel

director, producer
2024

Callie loves trees and plants and little else in Nicholas Ma’s warm debut feature. Surly with her parents and intolerant of people who don’t share her interest, she’s also unhappy about changing schools after her family relocates. But as luck would have it, substitute teacher Ms. G (Judy Greer) is starting a botany unit in science class, and Callie wangles her way in. Held rapt by Ms. G’s lectures and online speeches, Callie develops an experiment raising chrysanthemums in darkness and manages to lure Agnes, her ebullient younger neighbor, into working on the project with her. Precocious, determined, and wryly funny, Callie is a unique protagonist who leverages her love of botany to propel herself into adolescence.

San Francisco Film Fest 2024

won’t you be my neighbor

producer
2018

For over 30 years, Fred Rogers, an unassuming minister, puppeteer, writer and producer, was beamed daily into homes across America. In his beloved television program, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Fred and his cast of puppets and friends spoke directly to young children about some of life’s weightiest issues, in a simple, direct fashion. There hadn’t been anything like Mr. Rogers on television before and there hasn’t been since.

 

Directed by Morgan Neville
Produced by Morgan Neville, Caryn Capotosto, Nicholas Ma

Recognition
— Sundance Film Festival
— SXSW Film Festival
— Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards (2018) Best Documentary Feature and Best Director (Morgan Neville)
— Producers Guild of America Awards (2019) Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion Pictures
— National Board of Review (2018) Best Documentary
— American Film Institute (AFI) Named one of the Top 10 Films of the Year (2018)
— Directors Guild of America Awards (2019) Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary (Morgan Neville)

unfinished business

producer
2022

In 1997, the National Basketball Association made history by establishing its women’s division, the WNBA. The New York Liberty was the first team to be created in this new league, its ranks bolstered by stars such as Rebecca Lobo and Kym Hampton. Although their first year saw massive success, they, along with other fiercely athletic and accomplished WNBA teams, have faced major obstacles ranging from homophobia to sexism in their path to legitimacy. These obstacles to both the Liberty and the WNBA as a whole are brought to a new light as the new team begins its 2021 season.

Timely and staggering in more ways than one, Unfinished Business is an intimate look at the WNBA, interweaving the rich, untold quarter-century history of this groundbreaking league with the New York Liberty’s dramatic 2021 season. This documentary is essential in a time when women’s sports are fighting to become better recognized, compensated, and respected among a sports-loving public. —Cara Cusumano

suite no. 1, prelude

director, producer
2019

Yo-Yo Ma re-records, for the last time, the first piece he learned — the Prelude to Bach’s first cello suite.

Recognition
— New York Film Festival 2019

Picturehouse Acquires Nicholas Ma’s ‘Leap of Faith’ Documentary

Picturehouse has acquired Nicholas Ma’s documentary Leap of Faith, with a nationwide theatrical release beginning October 4, 2024. The film follows 12 Christian leaders navigating divisive issues through a series of retreats, exploring how faith and dialogue can heal deep divides. Yo-Yo Ma will make special in-theater appearances in select cities.

Read full article here

Leap of Faith: Bridging Divides Through Shared Values

Nicholas Ma, renowned writer, director, and producer, shares details about his upcoming documentary, Leap of Faith. This compelling film takes viewers on a transformative ride alongside 12 Christian pastors from diverse backgrounds. In conversation with Kristen Cambell, Executive Director of PACE, Ma explains the documentary’s purpose and the profound impact of embracing common ground to bridge divides.

A New Film About a Girl and Her Potted Friend Reimagines the Natural World

In ancient traditions, plants were viewed as sentient beings, a belief that modern science once dismissed but is now revisiting. Recent research shows that plants use electrical signals and chemical reactions to respond to their environment, exhibiting behaviors like learning and decision-making. Trees even communicate across species through underground fungal networks.

Nicholas Ma’s debut feature, Mabel, supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, explores these ideas through the story of a young girl’s friendship with her potted plant, blending science with a touching narrative.

Read more here