Alistair Mackay

Accomplished editor, writer, and researcher with an extensive track record on a variety of award-winning projects

Film & Television

Margaret & The Dolphin / A24 (2024)

Lead assistant editor. February 2024-July 2024. Dive into Margaret Howe Lovatt’s pioneering dolphin ‘live-in’ experiment, and John Lilly’s controversial, drug-fueled research into interspecies communication. Director: Hannah Olson. In development 2024.

Savior Complex / HBO (2023)

Lead assistant editor, September 2022-February 2023. Jackie Jesko’s three part investigation into the case of Renee Bach, the world of Christian missionaries, and the phenomenon of white saviors. Director: Jackie Jesko. Aired on HBO September-October 2023.

Endangered / HBO (2022)

Assistant editor, July 2021-August 2021. Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady highlight the threats, intimidation and violence facing journalists around the world. Executive producer: Ronan Farrow. Directors: Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady. Official Selection, Tribeca 2022. Premiered on HBO in June 2022.

Remember This: The Lesson of Jan Karski / (2021)

Assistant editor, July-September 2020. Academy Award nominee David Strathairn embodies the story of Polish World War II hero and Holocaust witness Jan Karski, who overcame overwhelming odds to “shake the conscience of the world.” Director: Jeff Hutchens. Starring: David Strathairn. Premiered on PBS in 2023.

Eero Saarinen Documentary / (TBA 2022)

Assistant editor, January-April 2020. Archival heavy documentary following the life and legacy of architect Eero Saarinen, his design of the iconic TWA terminal at JFK, and the terminal’s rebirth as a 21st century hotel. Director: Thom Zimny. Editor: Brian Miele

Homebody / (2021)

Assistant editor, July-August 2019. Homebody tells the story of a boy named Johnny who gets to live as a woman for a day when he sends his spirit into his babysitter’s body. Director: Joseph Sackett. Producer: Cast: Colby Minifie, Tre Ryder, Zoë Chao.

Flood / (TBA 2020)

Additional editor, October-November 2019. A filmmaker tries to fix her problems with her evangelical father in a screenplay with a happy ending. When her plan backfires, she quits writing lines, starts to listen, and becomes a character in her own film. Feature documentary. Director: Katy Scoggin. Producer: Karen Duffin

American Experience: The Mine Wars / PBS (2016)

Archival researcher, 2015. Nominated for the 2017 News & Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Research. Acquired, organized, and digitized assets for The Film Posse (Boston, MA)

Forrest Fenn Treasure Hunt Documentary / Netflix (2024)

Junior editor, February 2023-November 2023. Three part documentary series on the hunt for eccentric millionaire Forrest Fenn’s treasure chest hidden in the Rocky Mountains. Director: Jared McGilliard. Scheduled to air on Netflix in early 2024.

Mind Over Murder / HBO (2022)

Lead assistant editor, September 2021-July 2022. Nanfu Wang’s genre-defying take on true crime, documenting a shocking 1985 murder in a small town in Nebraska, the mystifying investigation that ensued, and the ripple effects that have haunted the town for decades. Director: Nanfu Wang. Executive producer: Marc Smerling. Aired on HBO June-July 2022.

Listening to Kenny G / HBO (2021)

Associate editor, September 2020-June 2021. Penny Lane explores the divisive career of smooth jazz pioneer Kenny G - from his meteoric rise in the 1980s, through his decades as a cultural punchline - and asks what it means to make “bad art.” Director: Penny Lane. Editors: Adam Bolt & Cindy Lee. Official Selection, TIFF 2021. Premiered on HBO in December 2021.

Ace of Cups Documentary / (TBA 2022)

Assistant editor, May-June 2020. Upcoming feature documentary on all-female rock group the Ace of Cups - their place in the 1960s psychedelic San Francisco scene, their fight for recognition, and the recording of a new album and reunion tour. Director: Michelle Esrick. Editor: Taryn Gould

Mayor Mohamed / (2021)

Additional editor, July-August 2019. Mayor Mohamed follows Syrian refugee turned US citizen Mohamed Khairullah, mayor of a small New Jersey town in his ongoing humanitarian relief efforts during the Syrian Civil War. Feature documentary. Director: Jeffrey Togman

On the Verge / Netflix (2022)

Series researcher, 2019-2020. Upcoming documentary series transporting viewers into the future of dozens of topics from love and dating to virtual reality and warfare. Co-produced by Vox Media and 21 Laps.

The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross / PBS (2013)

Researcher and office production assistant, 2012-13. Conducted extensive research, pitched ideas, edited treatments, planned shoots, fact-checked, and managed workflow for this Emmy and Peabody Award winning PBS series. Ark Media (Brooklyn, NY)

Books & Writing

This Land is Our Land: An Immigrant’s Manifesto / Suketu Mehta (2019)

Fact-checker and researcher, 2018-2019. Provided thorough research and comprehensive fact-checking, working hand in hand with the author and editors at Farrar, Straus, and Giroux throughout the editorial process

Education

MA, Journalism / New York University (2015)

Concentration in Literary Reportage

BA, History & Journalism / New York University (2012)

Magna Cum Laude. Dean’s Honor List, Presidential Honor’s Scholar, President’s Service Award (2011)