Erin Lee Carr. Founder, Director, Writer, and Executive Producer of CARR LOT PRODUCTIONS.
Erin Lee Carr is a two-time Emmy nominated filmmaker known for exploring criminal justice, femininity and virality. ELC currently has an unscripted first look deal with HBO and a scripted first look deal with studio UCP for Universal.
In 2022, Hulu announced that they were picking up Murdaugh Murders for development (Erin will serve as co-creator alongside Michael D. Fuller with Executive Producers Nick Antosca and Alex Hedlund with the studio UCP). The series is based on Mandy Matney’s hit podcast Murdaugh Murders which was named a "top five most shared podcast" by Apple in 2022 having hit #1 on Apple podcasts.
Erin’s most recent directorial work is The Ringleader: the Case of the Bling Ring that premiered on HBO on Sunday October 1st, 2023. It was the 3rd most watched documentary film on HBO Max’s platform for all of 2023. Prior to that, she immersed herself into the dynamic and high stakes world of Britney Spears and directed and produced Britney Vs Spears, which premiered on Netflix and was the #1 most-watched film on the platform in over 25 countries.
In March 2022, Erin’s docu-series Undercurrent: The Disappearance of Kim Wall premiered on HBO. Following the events surrounding the murder of journalist Kim Wall, this series seeks to re-center the narrative of the brutal crime and its aftermath on the Kim Wall herself, before she was a victim. As Risa Sarachan for Forbes writes, “Carr includes interviews with people who knew Wall, trial footage and never-before-heard audio to depict the life of a determined journalist just trying to do her job and grappling with sexism before encountering a killer.”
Earlier in her career, Erin directed the critically acclaimed I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth V. Michelle Carter, a two-part documentary that premiered at the 2019 SXSW film festival. The film about the texting suicide case that captured national interest is available for streaming on HBO.
In May 2019, Erin released At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal, which shines a light on the brave survivors of abuse by a former Olympic team physician. CNN’s review of the film states that “by turning the documentary into such a powerful forum for the resolve and resilience of these young women, Carr, in filmmaking terms, really sticks the landing.” The NYT Critic’s Pick premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and is now streaming on HBO.
Erin’s memoir All That You Leave Behind, a reflection on grief, technology, and moving forward without your greatest champion was released by Random House on April 9, 2019. Critics called the debut memoir incisive, dark and her story transformative. Erin spoke with NPR’s Terry Gross and only cried once! You can find links to buy it here.
Prior to that, she directed Drug Short, an episode of Netflix's critically acclaimed series Dirty Money, that focuses on price gouging and unsustainable business practices by the pharmaceutical company Valeant. The Atlantic wrote of the episode, "In Carr’s hands, what could be a predictable story about corporate overreach becomes a gripping entrée into Wall Street excess, studded with compelling characters."
Her break-out film was Mommy Dead and Dearest. The film had its world premiere at the SXSW and Hot Docs Film Festival in 2017 and aired on HBO May 15, 2017. It ignited a passionate discussion on Twitter and was well received by critics and audiences alike. Aja Romano of Vox called the film “a perfect storm of true crime, pageantry, and Southern Gothic tropes." Brian Lowry of CNN wrote, “TV's infatuation with true crime can be traced to Making a Murderer and The Jinx, but precious little rises to that level. HBO scales those heights and then some with Mommy Dead and Dearest." Erin’s mentor Sheila Nevins came up with the title.
Erin's directorial debut was Thought Crimes: The Case of The Cannibal Cop, the documentary premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and Hot Docs in 2015 and aired on HBO that May. Neil Genzlinger of the The New York Times called Thought Crimes "absorbing" and a "primer for the century ahead."
Before working with HBO, Erin hailed from the video team at VICE's Motherboard, where her produced content has amassed over 25 million views. One of her short films for VICE, Click Print Gun, won a 2013 Webby Award. She graduated from University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2010. She knows nothing about football.
Professional Affiliations: ELC is a proud member of the D.G.A. (Directors Guild of America), International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS) and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
Photo Credit: Andrew Walker