Alex Gibney

Bruin Alex Gibney’s acclaimed documentary Taxi to the Dark Side came out on top at the 80th Academy Awards on Feb. 24, winning the Oscar in the Documentary Feature category. The film tracks the Bush administration’s alleged use of illegal detainment and torture in prison camps.

The documentary opens with the mysterious murder of a young Afghan taxi driver at the Bagram Air Force Base, an American detention center in Afghanistan for prisoners who were captured after the invasion of the country. After examining the puzzling death of the taxi driver, the film launches an investigation of the questionable detention and interrogation methods approved by the Bush administration. The documentary highlights allegations of torture, violations of the Geneva Convention, and other illegitimate interrogation methods. 

For 18 months, Gibney researched photos and video footage from Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and an airbase in Afghanistan. He also analyzed and compiled testimonies of American soldiers and former Bush administration officials. Gibney’s film was described the Los Angeles Times as “an unflinching look at the Bush administration’s global war on terror.”

Taxi to the Dark Side was Gibney’s second Oscar nomination. His documentary Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room was nominated for Best Documentary, Feature in 2006.  That film tracks the corruption of top executives in the Enron Corporation through a selected mix of interviews, archive footage, news stories and company videotapes, and is one of the top grossing documentaries of all time. 

Gibney attended the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television before founding Jigsaw Productions, which is responsible for productions such as Martin Scorsese’s Emmy- and Grammy-winning multi-part television series The Blues. Gibney’s newest documentary Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson was featured at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, where he spared a few minutes to discuss his work.