Roger Nygard

American director, editor and producer

Roger Nygard

Born|  (1962-03-28) 28 March 1962 (age 63)

Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

Occupation(s)| Director, editor, writer, producer, author

Roger Nygard (born March 28, 1962) is an American director, editor, producer, and author. As a director he has worked on Tales of the Unknown (1990), High Strung (1991), Back to Back (1996), Trekkies (1997), and Suckers (2001). He also directed For Whom The Belt Tolls and What Would Jason Do?, episodes of The Bernie Mac Show, and Grief Counseling, an episode from the American television comedy series The Office.

His work as an editor includes Emmy-nominated episodes The Table Read, an episode from the American television comedy series Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Chicklet, an episode from the American television comedy series Veep, and  Episode 102, an episode from the American television comedy series Who Is America?.[1] He also edited episodes of The League, Grey's Anatomy, The Comedy Store, White House Plumbers, and The Residence.

## Background

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Nygard was born on March 28, 1962, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.[2] His introduction into film making started at the age of seven when he found his father's 8mm camera. It had half a film roll left and with it he shot his first film.[3]

## Career

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Nygard directed Trekkies which was released theatrically by Paramount Classics in 1999, as well as its follow up Trekkies 2 in 2004.[4] He directed Suckers, a film which he co-wrote with Joe Yannetty.[5] The film was a 2001 Video Premiere Award Winner in the Screenplay category.[6] It was also an award winner in the "Special Jury Artistic Merit Award" category[7] at the 2000 Cinequest Film Festival.[8]

He directed and produced the 2010 documentary The Nature of Existence, which was described by The Hollywood Reporter as "his earnest attempt to find meaning in the universe." He spent four years traveling the world, conducting 175 interviews with an assortment of people from different backgrounds. Editing from 450 hours of footage was used for the final product.[9]

In 2013, Nygard entered into a deal with Country Music Television to film a reality show pilot episode which would feature the family of Brother Jed an evangelist. Nygard first saw him preach at the University of Minnesota when he was attending the college.[10]

He produced the 2020 documentary The Truth About Marriage, which was accompanied by a companion book. The Cinequest Film Festival called the film "...a powerful documentary steeped in philosophy, history, and psychology...."[11] His next book Cut to the Monkey (2021) is about making and editing comedy series. His third book The Documentarian (2024) shares strategies for turning an idea for a documentary into a successful venture. Both recent books were published by Rowman & Littlefield, a subsidiary of Bloomsbury Publishing.

## Filmography (selective)

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Director  Title  | Year  | Notes #

|
|

Tales of the Unknown
(segment Warped)  | 1990  |
High Strung | 1991  |
Back to Back | 1996  |
Trekkies | 1997  | Documentary
Six Days In Roswell | 1999  | Documentary
Suckers | 2001  |
Trekkies 2  | 2004  | Documentary
CreepTales
(segment Warped)  | 2004  |
The Nature of Existence | 2010  | Documentary
The Relationship Doctrine of Don Blanquito | 2012  | Documentary
The Truth About Marriage | 2020  | Documentary

## References

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1. ^ Television Academy, 2019 - Emmys.com
2. ^ "Roger Nygard". AllMovie. Retrieved 2018-01-27.
3. ^ Den of Geek, Jun 2, 2009 - Interview: Roger Nygard on Trekkies, Trekkies 2 and The Nature Of Existence, Interview - Simon Brew
4. ^ TrekNews.net, May 24, 2013 - Denise Crosby Talks TNG at 25, ‘Trekkies’ and Reprising the Role of Sela
5. ^ Variety, October 31, 1999 - Suckers By Robert Koehler
6. ^ Variety, October 23, 2001 - ‘Snow White’ & Barbie win vid awards, 2001 Video Premiere Award Winners By Scott Hettrick
7. ^ Mubi.com \- SUCKERS, Directed by Roger Nygard, United States, 200, Comedy
8. ^ metroactive, February 17-23, 2000 - Eleven Days In the Valley, Our critics pick out the highs and lows at this year's Cinequest festival, Suckers By Richard von Busack
9. ^ The Hollywood Reporter, 14-10-2010 - The Nature of Existence -- Film Review by Sheri Linden
10. ^ The Maneater, Sep. 25, 2013 - Brother Jed might star in CMT reality show - By Claudia Guthrie
11. ^ The Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival, Cinequest.org Mar. 3, 2019 Cinequest.org

## External links

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* Roger Nygard at IMDb

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roger Nygard.

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