Ava DuVernay Moves Into Non-Scripted With a Ten-Part Social Experiment, ‘Home Sweet Home,” for NBC
The “When They See Us” filmmaker created Home Sweet Home and she will produce via her production company Array Filmworks with Warner Horizon Unscripted Television.
Each episode of the series follows two families who lead very different lives for a life-changing experience. It explores what it’s like to walk a mile in another person’s shoes by challenging racial, religious, economic, geographic, gender and identity assumptions as participants exchange homes for a week and experience the life of someone unlike them.
DuVernay, who directed Oscar-winning civil rights drama Selma and is producing the fifth season of Queen Sugar, will exec produce alongside Sarah Bremner and Paul Garnes of Array.
“The idea for Home Sweet Home came to me during the strange and important times we’re all experiencing. The premise is that we are farther apart than ever, yet bound by what we have in common – concerns with health, safety, justice and community. These notions manifest in each of us in different ways, but nowhere more striking than in the privacy of our own homes. I’m thrilled that NBC and Warner Horizon embraced the challenge of this moment to celebrate the specificity of our differences as we discover the many beautiful things that we have in common,” said DuVernay.
“We are honored to partner with Ava for the first time to bring Home Sweet Home to life at NBC,” said Meredith Ahr, President, Alternative and Reality Group, NBC Entertainment. “Led by Ava’s powerful and hopeful creative vision, these stories will reveal genuine moments of change that we hope will spark thought-provoking conversations and encourage compassion, empathy and understanding.”
“Ava is an extraordinarily gifted and thoughtful storyteller,” said Mike Darnell, President, Warner Bros. Unscripted & Alternative Television. “This life-changing journey promises to be a rich experience affording families an opportunity to see life through a new lens.”
Brooke Karzen, EVP and Head of Warner Horizon Unscripted Television, added, “It’s a pure joy to be collaborating with Ava on her first primetime unscripted project. Her voice is perfectly suited for this moment in time.”
