Filmmaker Richard Whittaker — and his Mom — examine the collapse of crypto exchange FTX in a micro-budget doco now screening on Amazon Prime.
Richard Whittakers day job is editing films about Arctic reindeer and Pacific Ocean killer sharks but when a massive crypto exchange collapsed in 2022 with the blame pointed at its awkward, curly-haired founder, he knew he wanted to make a documentary about it.
Sixteen months later, Whittakers home-grown investigation about the collapse, FTX: When Money Breaks, is streaming for free on Prime Video in the United Kingdom and available for rent or purchase in the United States and Australia. Not bad for a tiny production made with the help of his mom and with a budget somewhere in the vicinity of $2,500.
Whittaker who had never touched cryptocurrency isnt the first person youd think would make this kind of documentary. During the day, Whittaker is a full-time edit assistant for the BBCs documentary department, editing wildlife footage on Adobe Premiere for productions like the Cate Blanchett-narrated Our Living World.
