Body of Work Night Three: The Waiting Room by Peter Nicks

Body of Work Night Three presents Peter Nicks’s documentary *The Waiting Room*, an immersive portrait of a public-hospital emergency room and the patients, medical staff, interns, and residents navigating an overburdened healthcare system. Set over 24 hours at Oakland’s Highland public hospital, the 2012 film examines how limited resources affect everyone involved, from patients who feel manipulated to staff struggling under relentless pressure. The film was shortlisted for an Oscar.

Nicks is an award-winning director and cinematographer recognized for intimate, character-focused nonfiction and cinema vérité filmmaking. His other feature documentaries include *Anthem*, about composer Kris Bowers’s effort to create a new American anthem, and *Stephen Curry: Underrated*. He founded Open’hood, a nonprofit media organization focused on using storytelling to build more active, connected communities, and co-founded Proximity Media with Ryan Coogler. Nicks studied at Howard University and earned a master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.

When: Friday, October 30, 2026

Showtime: 7:00 PM

Film: *The Waiting Room*

Film Details: USA, 2012; 81 minutes

Director: Peter Nicks

Tickets: $5 per evening

Event Type: Screening

Series: Producers’ Forum

Venue: Scribe Video Center

Address: 3908 Lancaster Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19104

Contact: inquiry@scribe.org

Phone: 215-222-4201