David Farnor | On 03, Sep 2017

Netflix is unveiling two new documentary shorts this September, Long Shot and Heroin(e).

The streaming giant has increasingly embraced non-fiction shorts, with The White Helmets earning Netflix its first Oscar earlier this year, and Extremis receiving an Academy Award nomination. Now, it’s got a new slate lined up to premiere at this year’s Telluride Film Festival.

Heroin(e), making its world premiere, focuses on the once bustling industrial town, Huntington, West Virginia that has become the epicentre of America’s modern opioid epidemic. With an overdose rate 10 times the national average, the crisis threatens to tear this community apart. West Virginia native Sheldon highlights three women working to change the town’s narrative and break the devastating cycle of drug abuse one person at a time. Heroin(e) shows how the chain of compassion holds one town together.

The film, directed by Peabody award winner Elaine McMillion Sheldon, will be released on 12th September.

Also making its’ world premiere, Long Shot, an improbable story where justice prevails with a series of events that could only happen in Hollywood. An innocent man is accused of murder, leading his dedicated attorney on a wild chase to confirm his alibi among thousands of people in a baseball stadium.

To tell the whole story, the search would lead him from the LA Dodgers, to a cellphone tower, to the office of Larry David. On the night in question, TV cameras happened to be positioned throughout the stadium, and captured a story of remarkable circumstance.

Directed by Jacob LaMendola (Anosmia), Long Shot launches on 29th September.

The films follow this weekend’s premiere of Resurface, which received a special jury mention at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film follows Iraq war veteran Bobby Lane, who finds healing in surfing, as he struggles with trauma and depression after his military service.

“We are delighted to provide a global platform to a particularly innovative and distinct form of filmmaking, original documentary shorts, which requires a very keen eye and skilled editing,” says Lisa Nishimura, VP of Original Documentaries. “Elaine and Jacob have each crafted deeply emotional, impactful stories which will certainly shock, move and inspire viewers around the world.”

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