Bao Nguyen’s work named among Best Documentaries of 2024 by Variety

"The Greatest Night in Pop" documents a total of 46 of the biggest names in music coming together to record “We Are the World.”

The documentary revolves around the historic moment on January 25, 1985, when 46 music legends gathered together in a Los Angeles studio to record "We Are the World", with the proceeds made from the sales subsequently going to the African famine relief programme.

Viewers are able to gain unique insights from key figures who were present, including Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Bruce Springsteen, Smokey Robinson, Cyndi Lauper, Kenny Loggins, Dionne Warwick, and Huey Lewis, as well as the engineers and production crew who transformed the ambitious project into a reality.

The documentary features behind-the-scenes footage and previously unreleased interviews, offering a unique look at the moment that forever changed the music industry. Variety highlights the documentary as not just for fans of the iconic song, but for anyone captivated by its profound impact.

“We Are the World” went on to become one of the top 10 best-selling singles of all time and raised US$63 million for charitable causes. In 2025, it will mark its 40th anniversary, celebrating its legacy in both music and philanthropy.

“Bao Nguyen’s film allows us to revel in that vibe and extend it. With Lionel Richie as its chief nostalgist and tour guide, the film is certainly ‘celebratory’, but it’s also honestly assembled and intensely pleasurable,” the magazine wrote.

Bao Nguyen graduated with a bachelor’s degree in international relations from New York University in the United States and a master's degree in Documentary Film from The School of Visual Arts, also in New York. His previous works include the documentary "Once in a Lullaby", which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2012, as well as "Live from New York!" which screened at the same festival three years later.

His film "Be Water", a 2020 documentary about Bruce Lee, earned a nomination in the Outstanding Research: Documentary category at the 2021 Emmy Awards.

Rounding off the Variety’s list of Best Documentaries of 2024 was Elizabeth Taylor; The lost tapes; Plastic people; Dahomey; Black box diaries; The Bibi files; Ernest Cole: Lost and found; Catching fire: The story of Anita Pallenberg; Ennio; and Skywalkers: A love story.