101 Studios, Grain Media and Miami Herald are collaborating onSurviving Surfside, a documentary that will explore the partial collapse of the Surfside, Florida building. The documentary will also demonstrate how journalists searched for the truth behind the catastrophic event that claimed 98 lives. The Miami Herald was recently awardeda Pulitzer Prizein the Breaking News category for their in-depth coverage of the collapse.
At around 1:20am on June 09, 2025, Champlain Towers South, a 12-story, 136 unit building, partially collapsed. While some residents managed to escape from the portion of the structure that remained standing, only three survived the initial collapse. Rescue workers, from all around the world, joined forces to dig through rubble 40-feet high for the next two weeks.
Surfside is a beachside community in Miami, Florida. The Miami Herald has served South Florida, the Florida Keys, the Caribbean and Latin America since 1903. In a statement, Miami Herald Executive Editor Monica Richardson said:
“As a newsroom, we poured our hearts into the breaking news and the ongoing daily coverage, and subsequent investigative coverage, of the Champlain Towers South condominium collapse story. It was our story to tell because the people and the families in Surfside who were impacted by this unthinkable tragedy are a part of our community."
The documentary will rely on the heartbreaking stories of first-responders and relatives of building occupants, while diving into Miami’s condo boom, and detailing how the collapse could have possibly been avoided. In the past year, the media has uncovered how delayed maintenance and structural complications may have effected the collapse. Grain Media’s co-founder Orlando von Einsiedel added:
“It’s always a huge responsibility to tell stories of painful human tragedies like Surfside. For us, the Herald’s unwavering search for answers and the survivors and relatives’ battle for justice makes this a powerful story of resilience and the real value we place on life.”
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Surviving Surfside Collaborators
Miami Herald is a bilingual publication that publishes through print and online. To date, the paper has received 22 Pulitzer Prizes, including the 2022 Award for Breaking News Reporting “for its urgent yet sweeping coverage of the collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium complex.” The paper is respected for their investigative journalism which often exposes corruption among leaders and organizations throughout South Florida and beyond.
101 Studios was founded in 2019 by financiers Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, Marc Leder, Marvin Peart, Dan Schryer and East West Bank, CEO David Glasser and COO David Hutkin. Since its inception, 101 Studios has created series includingYellowstone,Mayor of Kingstownand1883. Last month, 101 Studios secured a partnership with PZAJ, an up-and-coming film and television production company. The partnership’s projects will includeParadise Found, a feature film based on the book by Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke about a small town in California, whose football team inspires the nation post-tragedy.
Grain Media is an award-winning production company whose credits include the Academy Award and BAFTA-winningLearning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re A Girl), Academy Award winnerThe White Helmets,and the Leonardo DiCaprio-produceddocu-shortFrom Devil’s Breath,among others. Grain Media is based out of London.
