Joe Brewster is an American psychiatrist and filmmaker who directs and produces fiction films, documentaries and new media focused on the experiences of communities of color. With partner Michèle Stephenson he founded Rada Studio to tell stories about communities that have been neglected by the mainstream media and contribute to the American narrative mosaic. Together, while raising a family in Brooklyn, New York, Brewster and Stephenson have directed and produced documentary and fiction films. In 2008, they directed Slaying Goliath, a documentary that follows 10 days in the life of their son's fifth grade basketball team from Harlem, New York as they experience culture clash at a national tournament in suburban Florida. Brewster and Stephenson also produced and directed Faces of Change, which follows five activists on five continents fighting racism in their communities.
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Biography from TMDB.
- Producer, director and writer, also actor
- 4 on MovieCove · 24 credits in all
What are Joe Brewster's films like?
Across their 5 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Morality.
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 5
Light 1 · Serious 2 · Dark 2
Grounded 3 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 0
Gentle 2 · Charged 2 · Intense 1
Steady 1 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0
Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 1 · Relentless 0
Casual 0 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 0
A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 2
Resolved 2 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet3
- Ambiguous2
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 Joe Brewster's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 4 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (2).
Subscription and free streaming for Joe Brewster'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
24 credits, 4 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.
Sons of Detroit (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)
The Age of Water (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)
Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films
Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)
Learning to Breathe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Elena (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Decolonizing Mental Health (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
The Changing Same - Episode 1: The Dilemma (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Stateless(2020)
Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all filmsDrawn to the Mat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)
The Changing Same (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)
A Mother's Dream (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)
A Conversation with Black Women on Race (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)
A Conversation With Latinos on Race (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)
A Conversation with White People on Race (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)
A Conversation About Growing Up Black (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)
American Promise(2013)
Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all filmsComing Home: The Dry Storm (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)
Slaying Goliath (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)
Faces of Change (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
The Killing Zone (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)
The Keeper(1995)
Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all filmsFreddie Gray Documentary (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Paul Robeson Documentary (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 24 titles, 22 of them dated from 1995 to 2025.
Awards
a Primetime Emmy and 2 other major awards from 7 major nominations, 1996–2024.
- Primetime Emmy, won · Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking
+1 other major body · 1 nomination
- Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Documentary
- Sundance award, won · Documentary
- Sundance award, won · Documentary
- Sundance award, nominated · Documentary
- Independent Spirit Award, nominated
- Sundance award, nominated · Dramatic
Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.
How do Joe Brewster's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 81st percentile, the median of all 4; across their 5 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 76th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up3
- 25th to 49th1
Shape of the crowd
1 of their 4 titles is Universally Loved.
- Universally Loved1
- Divisive1
- Crowd Pleaser1
- Mixed1
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 Joe Brewster work with?
People who share at least 2 of Joe Brewster's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Michèle Stephenson shares the most, 5.
Directors
- Michèle StephensonShared titles: Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project (2023), Subject (2022), Stateless (2020), American Promise (2013), The Keeper (1995)See all 5 shared titles with Michèle Stephenson
Cinematographers
- Alfredo AlcantaraShared titles: Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project (2023), American Promise (2013)See all 2 shared titles with Alfredo Alcantara
Producers
- Ayana Enomoto-HurstShared titles: Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project (2023), Stateless (2020)See all 2 shared titles with Ayana Enomoto-Hurst