Laura Ricciardi


Laura Ricciardi is an Emmy Award winning American filmmaker, producer and editor. Ricciardi rose to prominence with her documentary Making a Murderer which she co-directed with filmmaker Moira Demos, in a process that took 10 years to complete.

Education and early career

Ricciardi holds a JD from New York Law School and an MFA in film from Columbia University School of the Arts. Her thesis film was recommended for a National Board of Review student award. In 2007, she received a filmmaking grant from The Peter S. Reed Foundation.
She graduated from Manhattan College in 1992 with a bachelor's degree in English and government.
Prior to working in film, Ricciardi worked as a lawyer.

Film career

Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos met while graduate students in Columbia University's film program in 2005. The two learned about Steven Avery, a convict in Wisconsin released due to DNA evidence, only to be accused of another crime, after reading an article in the New York Times. Both thought the case could make for an interesting documentary. Before meeting with Netflix, the company that ultimately chose to produce the series, Demos and Ricciardi met with executives at PBS and HBO, but neither network was interested in the project.
The series premiered in December 2015 to positive reviews. Review aggregator site Metacritic awarded it a score of 85 out of 100, indicating mostly positive reviews.
Ricciardi went on to win three Emmys for her work on Making a Murderer: Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series, Outstanding Directing For Nonfiction Programming, and Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming all three of which she shared with Moira Demos.
In 2018 Demos and Ricciardi released a second season of Making a Murderer.

Personal life

Ricciardi is in a long-term relationship with director Moira Demos.