Alice Gu SXSW Documentary ‘The Donut King’ Acquired By Greenwich Entertainment

Anthony D'Alessandro
·2 min read

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EXCLUSIVE: Deadline has learned that Greenwich Entertainment has picked up North American rights to Alice Gu’s documentary The Donut King which earned a Special Jury Recognition for Achievement in Documentary Storytelling at SXSW. Greenwich is planning a theatrical release for later this year.

The Donut King tells the story of Ted Ngoy, a Cambodian refugee who arrived in Los Angeles in 1975 and changed everything we know about America’s favorite pastry, the donut. While building a multi-million-dollar empire that effectively kept Dunkin’ Donuts out of Southern California for decades, Ngoy became a hero of the Cambodian community by sponsoring hundreds of visas for incoming refugees.

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“As the child of immigrant parents who came to America to seek a better life for themselves, making this film about Ted Ngoy achieving the American Dream was deeply personal for me,” said Gu. “Though The Donut King’s story takes place in America, the immigrant experience is a common and shared experience by millions of people all over the world. I hope audiences will delight in this new perspective on the sweet treat and, perhaps, open some hearts and minds.”

The Donut King was produced by Gu, José I. Nuñez, Farhad Amid, and Tom Moran with executive producers Ridley Scott, Freida Lee Mock, Jonny Hwang, Juliana Lemus, Andres Rosillo. Gu also wrote and served as DP on her feature directorial debut here. Her cinematography credits include such docs as The Road to El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie, and And Two if by Sea: The Hobgood Brothers. The deal was negotiated by Greenwich’s Andy Bohn and CAA Media Finance on behalf of the filmmakers.

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