Leave Them Laughing

Leave Them Laughing: A Musical Comedy About Dying is a 2010 documentary film directed by Academy-Award-winning director John Zaritsky. It follows the life of singer and comedian Carla Zilber-Smith, after she is diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease, as she blogs and jokes her way through a disease that spells a certain death sentence. The film premiered at Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival on May 6, 2010, winning the Special Jury Prize for best Canadian Documentary. It is nominated for Best Documentary in the 31st annual Genie Awards.
Reception.
The film has received a mainly positive reception, winning the People's Choice Award at the Canadian-American Film Grand Prix, won the People's Choice Award for Best Canadian Documentary at the Vancouver International Film Festival, the audience choice award for best Documentary at the Mill Valley International Film Festival, the Special Jury Prize for Best Canadian Documentary at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, and winning Best of Festival and Best Documentary Over 30 Minutes at the Picture This...International Film Festival in Calgary. It additionally received Best Documentary at the 2011 Sedona International Film Festival, Best Documentary at the 2011 Vancouver Women in Film Festival, Best on the Edge in New Zealand's 2011 "Documentary Edge Film Festival." It is a nominee for best documentary in the 2011 Genie Awards.