Meet Geeta Gandbhir, Indian American with historic Oscar double nomination
Geeta Gandbhir just became the first woman ever to land Oscar nominations for both Best Documentary Feature and Best Documentary Short in the same year.
The Emmy-winning Indian American filmmaker is in the spotlight after the Academy announced its 2026 nominations, with both her films (The Perfect Neighbor and The Devil Is Busy) making the short list.
Gandbhir's journey from Boston to Hollywood
Born in Boston to Indian immigrant parents, Gandbhir crossed paths with Spike Lee at Harvard and later worked with him.
She's already picked up two Emmys for editing documentaries, showing her talent behind the camera.
Both nominated films tackle important social issues
The Perfect Neighbor, on Netflix, looks at a real-life shooting case in Florida that sparked national conversations about race and justice.
Meanwhile, The Devil Is Busy, on Max, follows a day inside an Atlanta abortion clinic as staff and patients face new challenges amid a shifting political and legal climate around reproductive rights.
When the filmmaker woke up to her big news
Gandbhir was actually asleep when her historic double nomination news broke (anxiety kept her up until 3 a.m.!).
Later, she said: she was grateful that both films were being recognized.