We sit down with Viridiana Lieberman, an award-winning editor and director behind some of the most acclaimed nonfiction films and series of the past decade. Her work includes The Sentence, Call Center Blues, and most recently The Perfect Neighbor—Oscar nominee for Best Documentary Feature Film, as well as winner of the US Documentary Directing Award at Sundance 2025 and the Critics Choice Documentary Award for Best Editing. With a style marked by precision, restraint, and emotional clarity, Lieberman’s projects consistently push the boundaries of what a documentary can be.

In this conversation, Viridiana shares how she approaches the craft of editing not just as a technician, but as a storyteller and partner in the filmmaking process. She reflects on her years-long creative collaboration with director Geeta Gandbhir, the unique editorial challenges behind The Perfect Neighbor, and why she believes documentaries can feel as cinematic as narrative film. We also talk about the editorial mindset she brings to directing her own work, including her debut feature Born to Play, and how that perspective shapes how she receives footage from other teams.

Throughout the episode, Lieberman opens up about how nonfiction editors help define structure, tone, and trust—on both sides of the screen. For anyone working in documentary or nonfiction production, this is a conversation rich with insight on the power of restraint, the value of long-term collaboration, and what it takes to build stories that last.

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