( CNN ) Oscar-nominated filmmaker Bruce Sinofsky , whose series on the `` West Memphis Three '' cast doubt on the murder convictions of three Arkansas teenagers , catalyzing a movement that led to their release , died Saturday , longtime collaborator Joe Berlinger said . The Emmy-award winning documentary director died in his sleep of complications from diabetes , Berlinger said . He was 58 . `` Bruce 's humanity is on every frame of the films that he leaves behind , and words ca n't express how graced I feel my life has been by having the extraordinary opportunity of being able to say we were partners and , more importantly , best friends , '' said Berlinger . The duo collaborated on Sinofsky 's debut , the critically acclaimed `` Brother 's Keeper , '' before turning to the `` Paradise Lost '' trilogy , a series of films that drew attention to the case of three teen boys convicted in 1994 of killing three Cub Scouts in West Memphis , Arkansas . The films , released in 1996 , 2004 and 2011 , raised questions about the evidence , drawing attention from musicians including Eddie Vedder , Tom Waits and Henry Rollins , who pushed for a review of the case . After spending 18 years in prison , Jessie Misskelley , Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin were released pursuant to a complicated plea agreement in September 2011 , one month before the final installment , `` Purgatory , '' was released . The film was nominated for an Academy Award . As the case wended though the courts , Sinokfsky and Berlinger turned their attention to metal band Metallica , whose music was featured in the first two installments of `` Paradise Lost . '' The result was 2004 's `` Metallica : Some Kind of Monster . '' Sinofsky also directed PBS ' `` Good Rockin ' Tonight : The Legacy of Sun Records , '' an installment of The History Channel 's `` 10 Days that Unexpectedly Changed America '' and episodes of the Sundance Channel 's `` Iconoclasts '' series . He won multiple Emmys , a Peabody and an Independent Spirit Award for his work . Berlinger recalled Sinofsky 's dedication to his first film `` Brother 's Keeper , '' despite a lack of of financial backing or equipment . `` Bruce encouraged both of us to throw caution into the wind to start capturing what would become 'Brother 's Keeper ' in 1991 with no money in our pockets , in the pre-video 16mm age of documentary-making , when making a no-budget film took a little more ingenuity to get in the can , '' he said in a statement . `` His unique combination of courage and empathy made that possible , as well as everything that came after for us . The extraordinary adventures we had on the road and the deeply stimulating experiences we had in the editing room were life-changing for all of us who knew him thanks to his wisdom and fervor to change the world. `` A memorial service will be held in March . People we 've lost in 2015 .
Bruce Sinofsky 's documentaries covered a range of topics . Comment: