FILMS THAT MATTER
In the films of Peter Sanders converge a commitment to social justice and refined communication skills that, over the years, have translated into iconic interviews. Most consequential among the hundreds of interviews he has conducted for over two dozen films are the incisive questions with which he challenged members of the military who were responsible for the disappearance of thousands of dissenters during the so-called Dirty War in Argentina (1976–1983), which he documented in The Disappeared (2008), a film in which Sanders follows the journey of one kidnapped child whose parents were murdered by the dictatorship. His inquisitive range extends to the intimacies of family, which are displayed in Altina (2014), a film about his paternal grandmother that exposes his ability to capture the whimsical character of a woman who was an inventor, sculptor, pioneer feminist, and one-time Oscar-nominated filmmaker.
Most recently, his interest in exploring all fields of human endeavor has focused on wondrous innovations in orthopedic medicine, as masterfully interwoven in On the Shoulders of Giants: The History of NYU Langone Orthopedics (2023). Followed by 35 sequels on specific topics for archival use, the film covers the expressive range of scientific achievement through an array of interviews with some of the most prestigious surgeons and clinicians who have shaped the field of orthopedics practiced at that hospital, from its humble beginnings in Jewish philanthropy (1905) to a burgeoning and diverse institution that supports research and teaching committed to offering the most advanced patient care.
FILMS BY PETER SANDERS:
ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS
The History or NYU Langone Orthopedics. On the Shoulders of Giants: The History of NYU Langone Orthopedics captures the history of scientific achievement by the pioneers who helped develop the field of orthopedics.
ALTINA
A sheltered heiress who grew up cloistered in one of New York City's most historic mansions, kept under lock and key with her sisters Altina (1907-1999) became a proto-feminist visionary who broke wildly free of her constraints to forge a free-spirited, civically active, and creatively prolific life.
THE disappeared
"The Disappeared" relives the horrors of Argentina's Dirty War (1976-83) through the experience of Horacio Pietragalla, a young man raised by the maid of the officer who kidnapped him after the military brutally murdered his parents. The film follows Horacio as he reconstructs the cause for which his real parents gave their lives, and, through this search, reclaims his true identity.