A Lion in the House

A Lion in the House  (2006)

A Lion in the House follows the unique stories of five children and their families at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center as they battle pediatric cancer. From the trauma of diagnosis to the physical toll of treatment, the film documents the stresses that can tear a family apart, as well as the courage of children facing the possibility of death with honesty, dignity, and humor. As the film compresses six years into one narrative, it puts viewers in the shoes of parents, physicians, nurses, siblings, grandparents, and social workers who struggle to defeat an indiscriminate and predatory disease. A co-production with ITVS, the film won the Primetime Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Nonfiction Filmmaking.

"An astonishing four-hour documentary that takes on a very difficult subject—children with cancer—and renders it with unflinching intimacy, uncommon compassion and, above all, a profound respect for the eternal enigma that is the human body."—Variety

DCP, color, 225 min. Director: Julia Reichert, Steven Bognar.