The New Fan’s Guide to the Unreal World of Nathan Fielder

Documentary filmmaking now features directors who become active participants in their subjects' reality.

Nathan Fielder, known for his unconventional documentary style, is co-directing a three-hour documentary titled "You Can See Everything" about Elizabeth Holmes. The film, codirected with Lance Oppenheim, explores Holmes's history as the founder of Theranos, a company that defrauded investors with its claims of revolutionary blood-testing technology. Fielder, who visited Holmes in prison, is known for his "heightened unreality" and uses a persona that blurs the lines between himself and his characters, often creating complex and absurd scenarios to examine human behavior. His previous works, "Nathan for You" and "The Rehearsal," showcase his ability to manipulate media and exploit loopholes, mirroring the deceptive tactics employed by Holmes. The directors lived with Holmes and her partner for over a month before she began her 11-year prison sentence for fraud.

Fielder's distinctive approach, characterized by his ambiguous persona and investigative style, suggests "You Can See Everything" will delve into the psychological aspects of deception, mirroring his previous works where he orchestrates elaborate simulations to understand human behavior. His ability to create complex narratives from seemingly simple premises and his knack for uncovering absurdities positions him to dissect the intricate web of deceit surrounding Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos. The documentary's exploration of truth, reality, and the consequences of unchecked ambition is expected to offer a unique, and potentially unsettling, perspective on one of Silicon Valley's most prominent fraud cases.

This film's emphasis on the director's active, almost anthropological, participation in the subject's life before incarceration, combined with Fielder's history of blurring documentary lines, signals a growing trend in non-fiction filmmaking. It challenges traditional observer roles, suggesting a future where directors might immerse themselves more deeply, potentially even ethically navigating the fine line between genuine investigation and elaborate performance art. The documentary's success could encourage further experiments in subjective reality filmmaking, impacting how audiences perceive truth in documentary narratives and how future subjects are approached.