Executive Produced By Oscar^® Winner Laura Poitras

Feature Documentary Will Also Have A Theatrical Release 

LOS ANGELES – January 6, 2018 – Showtime will premiere the feature documentary XY CHELSEA later this year – with a U.S. theatrical run and a subsequent premiere across the network's platforms on-air, on demand and over the internet. Produced by Pulse Films, XY CHELSEA tells the historic story of whistle-blower Chelsea Manning, whose 35-year sentence in an all-male maximum security prison was commuted by President Obama in 2017. Shot over two years and featuring exclusive interviews and behind-the-scenes verité with Manning, the film picks up on the momentous day in May when she leaves prison and follows her through her journey of discovery, while also examining her place in the conversation on national security and the fight of the transgender community for rights and visibility. The feature film, currently in post-production, will also premiere at an upcoming film festival to be announced at a later date.  The announcement was made today by David Nevins, President and CEO, Showtime Networks Inc. at the 2018 Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour.

Since 2014, filmmaker Tim Travers Hawkins has followed Manning and her legal team as they fought to get her out of prison, and for her to receive the necessary medical treatment for her gender dysphoria. Following two suicide attempts in 2016, Chelsea and her team tried to save her life with a long-shot request to President Obama for a commutation of her sentence before he left office. Cameras follow Manning’s fight for release and witness as she reveals herself to the world for the first time. XY CHELSEA is the journey of her fight for survival and dignity, and her transition from prisoner to a free woman.

XY CHELSEA was directed by Tim Travers Hawkins and produced by Pulse Films in association with  First Look Media’s Topic Studios, Field of Vision and British Film Institute.  Thomas Benski, Julia Nottingham and Lucas Ochoa of Pulse Films are producers.  Academy Award^® winner Laura Poitras (RISK, Citizenfour), Mary Burke, Michael Bloom, Adam Pincus, Charlotte Cook, Sharon Chang, Blaine Vess and Christos V. Konstantakopoulos serve as executive producers. 

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME^®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX^®, and also offers SHOWTIME ON DEMAND^®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ ON DEMAND and FLIX ON DEMAND^®, and the network's authentication service SHOWTIME ANYTIME^®. Showtime Digital Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SNI, operates the stand-alone streaming service SHOWTIME^®. SHOWTIME is currently available to subscribers via cable, DBS and telco providers, and as a stand-alone streaming service through Apple^®, Roku^®, Amazon, Google, Xbox One and Samsung. Consumers can also subscribe to SHOWTIME via Hulu, YouTube TV, Sling TV, DirecTV Now, Sony PlayStation^® Vue and Amazon Channels. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks^™, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution, which offers Smithsonian Channel^™, and offers Smithsonian Earth^™through SN Digital LLC. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV. For more information, go to www.SHO.com.

About Pulse Films:

Pulse Films is an award-winning, modern-day studio encompassing the development, production, financing and distribution  of cross-platform content for audiences worldwide. Pulse Films was founded by Thomas Benski and Marisa Clifford in 2005, and is headquartered in London with outposts in Los Angeles, New York, Paris and Berlin. Dedicated to creating moments of culture through innovative storytelling, Pulse Films operates under the following divisions: Film, Television, Branded Entertainment, Music and Commercials. Pulse Films’ credits include feature films such as Andrea Arnold’s Cannes Jury Prize winner and BAFTA nominated American Honey, Sundance Award winners The Witchand All These Sleepless Nights, Kahlil Joseph & Beyoncé’s Emmy^® nominated Lemonade, and 2017’s London Film Festival hit Kingdom of US and Trophy. Recent TV projects include Black Is The New Black, Billion Dollar Deals and the 10-part series Rock And Roll. 

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CONTACT:

Jackie Ioachim                                           

212-708-1220

Jackie.ioachim@showtime.net