EXCLUSIVE: CNN will be ringing in the New Year with a film on a music superstar.
CNN Films’ award-winning documentary Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over, directed by Dave Wooley and David Heilbroner, will premiere on CNN January 1, 2023 at 9 pm ET and PT, broadcast with limited commercial interruption.
Warwick got her start singing in gospel groups with family members in New Jersey, and became a pop music sensation when she teamed with the songwriting duo of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, beginning with the 1962 song “Don’t Make Me Over.”
“Ms. Warwick’s own velvet-toned voice largely tells the story of her music and life for the film,” CNN Films noted in a release, “underscoring her creative and cultural legacies during six decades of an extraordinary career. The film explores her stunning range of musical styles and versatility.”
CNN Films added, “Her career has soared despite dramatic upheaval within a fickle industry, and flourished through multigenerational social change. Along the way, Warwick has earned six Grammys, amassed an astonishing array of global solo and duet hits, and remains a stalwart advocate and ally for racial equality and justice, women’s rights, and LGBTQ+ rights.”
In addition to directing, Wooley wrote and produced the documentary.
“Working on Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over has been a true labor of love,” Wooley said in a statement. “We wanted to make a film that people wouldn’t just see…we wanted viewers to feel transported. This is the story of a transformational, global icon.”
Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over premiered at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival, where it earned first runner-up for the People’s Choice Award for Documentaries and also earned Warwick a Special Tribute Award. The film went on to screen at the San Francisco International Film Festival, Santa Barbara International Film Festival, DOC NYC, and Annapolis Film Festival. It won the Audience Award for Non-Fiction Feature at the Montclair Film Festival, and Best Feature at the Gene Siskel Film Center’s Black Harvest Film Festival.
The documentary “blends archival footage with personal photographs, and newsreels of Warwick’s career,” CNN Films commented. “Her grace, grit, and singular talent are reflected upon in exclusive interviews with her sons, Damon and David Elliott; music legends Burt Bacharach, Clive Davis, Snoop Dogg, Gloria Estefan, Barry Gibb, Berry Gordy, Elton John, Cissy Houston, Quincy Jones, Alicia Keys, Gladys Knight, Melissa Manchester, Olivia Newton-John, Smokey Robinson, Carlos Santana, Valerie Simpson, and Stevie Wonder.”
In addition, former President Clinton and the Rev. Jesse Jackson are among those who contribute their observations on Warwick’s achievements. “The film also includes the backstories behind the blockbuster hit songs: ‘That’s What Friends Are For,’ ‘Do You Know the Way to San Jose?,’ ‘Alfie,’ ‘Heartbreaker,’ ‘I Say A Little Prayer,’ and so many more.”
“Dave Wooley and David Heilbroner have created a beautiful tribute that shows the enduring impact of Dionne Warwick,” said Amy Entelis, executive vice president for talent and content development for CNN Worldwide, on behalf of CNN Films. “Her trailblazing, humanitarian legacy extends beyond her exquisite songbook, and she’s had a lasting cultural influence.”
During the New Year’s Day premiere, Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over, will stream live for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com and CNN OTT and mobile apps under “TV Channels,” or CNNgo where available. The film will also be available On Demand beginning Monday, January 2, to pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN apps, and Cable Operator Platforms. Following the film’s broadcast on CNN, it will be available on HBO Max.
Executive producers of the film include Raymond F. Schinazi, Geralyn White Dreyfous, Regina K. Scully, Michelle Freeman, Wes Hall, and Artemis Rising Foundation.
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