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Alison Klayman

Alison Klayman

Director, producer and cinematographer, also editor and writer · Born January 1, 1984 (42)

Sundance award winner · Directors Guild Award nominee

Alison Klayman (born 1984) is an American filmmaker and journalist best known for her award-winning 2012 documentary Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry.

Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 1, 1984 (42)
Works as
Director, producer and cinematographer, also editor and writer
Titles
12 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 157 days to Oct 28Up 43% in 30 days

What are Alison Klayman's films like?

Across their 12 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Power and Society.

Themes

share of theme weight
Power
31%
Society
31%
Morality
15%
Survival
12%
Self
5%
Bonds
4%
Ideas
2%
Oppression4 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFreedom4 titles, browse their movies with this themeLegacy2 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception2 titles, browse their movies with this themePrejudice2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 12 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 1 · Serious 5 · Dark 6

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 11 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 1 · Charged 8 · Intense 3

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 7 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 2

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 11 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 1

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

A split, not a type: Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 1

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 2 · Engaged 9 · Full focus 1

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 5 · Open-ended 7 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Contemplative
10
Tense
9
Melancholic
4
Hopeful
4
Dread
2
Other
3

How their films linger

Thought-provoking8 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteInfuriating2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Bittersweet4
  • Ambiguous8

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 Alison Klayman's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 12 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Netflix (5).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Alison Klayman'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

22 credits, 12 with a MovieCove page.

  • Turning Point: Generation 9/11(2026)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • Scenes From The Divide (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Director · Cinematographer · Producer

  • Coexistence, My Ass!(2025)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • A Life Illuminated (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Executive Producer

  • Take Your Pills: Xanax(2022)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 45th percentile of all films

  • Unfinished Business(2022)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch(2022)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • Jagged (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Director · Cinematographer · Producer

  • Flower Punk (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Director

  • The Brink(2019)

    Director · Cinematographer · Editor · Producer

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • On Her Shoulders(2018)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • People's Republic of Desire(2018)

    Consulting Producer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Enhanced (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    Show 1 episode · Director

  • Take Your Pills(2018)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • 11/8/16(2017)

    Director · Cinematographer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • Welcome to the Idea Economy Ft. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Director

  • Hooligan Sparrow(2016)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • The Night Witch (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Director

  • The 100 Years Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Director

  • An Attack on Equality (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director

  • Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry(2012)

    Director · Cinematographer · Co-Editor · Producer · Sound · Writer

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Who's Afraid of Ai Wei Wei? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Producer · as Narrator

Career shape

A full career of 22 titles from 2011 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry (2012)

$882K worldwide

Highest rated

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry (2012)

Midcredits 94th

Most popular right now

Turning Point: Generation 9/11 (2026)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 22: 0 only acting, 1 with another roleDirecting14 of 22: 8 only directing, 6 with another role · typical Midcredits score54thProducing14 of 22: 7 only producing, 7 with another role · typical Midcredits score71stCinematography4 of 22: 0 only cinematography, 4 with another roleEditing1 of 22: 0 only editing, 1 with another roleOther crew1 of 22: 0 only other crew, 1 with another role

22 titles, 7 with more than one role — directing and producing overlap on 6 of them.

By decade

2010s14 · 1 acting · 14 crew2020s8 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

1 major award from 3 major nominations, 2012–2013.

WinNomination
  1. 2013
    • Directors Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary
  2. 2012
    • Sundance award, won · Documentary
    • Sundance award, nominated · Documentary

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 Alison Klayman's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 54th percentile, the median of all 12; across their 12 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 59th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

59thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Approval · how many liked their films

49thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Reach · how many have seen their films

53rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Midcredits score across 12 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up4
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th4

Shape of the crowd

5 of their 12 titles are Mixed.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Divisive1
  • Crowd Pleaser3
  • Broadly Agreed2
  • Mixed5

Most divisive · director, producer

Unfinished Business (2022)

95th percentile spread · 41% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, writer, producer, cinematographer, editor

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry (2012)

Midcredits 94th · 84% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 65/100 and the pacing 52/100 in their films, across 12 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

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 Alison Klayman work with?

People who share at least 2 of Alison Klayman's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Brian Goetz shares the most, 4.

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers