Errol Morris to Direct Photo Journalist Biopic 'Weegee'

Arthur Fellig was a street photographer who began working in 1930s New York, chasing police cars and ambulances to capture life and death in the city.

Oscar winner Errol Morris will direct biopic Weegee, the story of photojournalist Arthur Fellig.

Self-named Weegee the Famous, Fellig was a street photographer who began working in 1930s New York chasing police cars and ambulances to capture life and death in the city. His work appeared in Vogue and Life, among other newspapers and magazines.

Emmy winner Lawrence Schiller (The Man Who Skied Down Everest) will produce Weegee via his WS Productions banner.

“Weegee may not have singlehandedly invented the noir sensibility, but without him, noir would be unimaginable,” said Morris. “He recognized he was constructing his own vision of reality, replete with vivid characters — rich, poor, depraved and otherwise.”

Schiller added: “Errol and I have wanted to make a film together for many years, and the connections between Weegee’s own obsession in documenting antisocial behavior and our own proved to be the connection we were waiting for.”

Morris earned an Academy Award for his documentary about former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, Fog of War. His other credits include the Stephen Hawking doc A Brief History of Time and wrongful conviction doc The Thin Blue Line.

Morris and Schiller are both repped by WME.