Oscar-nominated director of sled dog film dies

Alaska — An Oscar-nominated filmmaker who directed and produced a documentary detailing a 1925 sled dog run in Alaska to deliver life-saving serum has died.

Daniel Anker died Monday at age 50. His wife, Donna Santman, says her husband died of pneumonia, a complication of his lymphoma.

Anker's film, Icebound, details the five-day run to Nome following a deadly diphtheria breakout. The film opened the Anchorage International Film Festival in December.

Santman says her husband most recently was working on a documentary about late director Sidney Lumet.

Anker was nominated for an Academy Award in 2001 for another documentary, Scottsboro: An American Tragedy.

The New York filmmaker is survived by his wife of 12 years and their two children.
A funeral is scheduled for Thursday at the Plaza Jewish Community Chapel in Manhattan.