In this episode, we have a conversation with Documentary Director and Producer Sarah Klein. We talk about her partnership at Redglass Pictures, why knowing your audience is essential for making the best documentary films, why she loves short-form docs, her working friendship with Ken Burns, why constantly creating meaningless content for social media is a bad idea, incredible stories from filming the Obama's, JJ Abrams, and Neil Degrasse Tyson, and much, much more.
More On Sarah Klein http://www.redglasspictures.com
Redglass co-founder Sarah Klein is an award-winning producer and director. Her early credits include the HBO documentary, Hard as Nails and the Arte film, The Good Mother. Redglass Pictures was formed in 2006 and since then, Klein has co-directed and produced many notable projects, including History of Memory for HP, and a series of short films for Ken Burns’ Cancer: The Emperor of Maladies, which won a DuPont Award. Among the many hats she wears at Redglass, Klein leads creative development and production. She has had the honor of interviewing: The Obamas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, John Kerry, Michael Chabon, Warren Buffett, and JJ Abrams, to name a few.
When not on location, Klein may be found in her studio creating large-format abstract collages. Links: Imdb Tom Mason (filmmaker) Neil deGrasse Tyson: Science in America (short) Miracle on 22nd Street (short) Hoop Dreams (documentary) Kathy Caldwell jewelry Ken Burns (producer) Hard as Nails (documentary) David Holbrooke (director) Tina Fey (writer) New York Times J.J. Abrams (producer) Errol Morris (director) Spike Lee (director) Jennifer Packer (artist) Alison Bechdel (artist) All About Love: New Visions by bell hooks (book) Valerie Barnhart (animator)
Tom Mason is the co-founder of Redglass, and in addition to co-directing and producing films with Klein, also serves as the principal of photography and post production. Mason’s cinematic approach to shorts comes from his deep roots in film and still photography, which he studied at Syracuse University. After receiving an Alexia Grant, Mason spent a year documenting the world of Russian adoption agencies. Some the projects he has co-directed at Redglass include George Saunders: On Story and Ken Burns: On Story with the Atlantic, and How To Win An Election for The New York Times.
In addition to his work at Redglass, Mason is also an adjunct professor of digital storytelling at Columbia University’s School of Journalism.
About the MAKE IT Podcast The MAKE IT podcast is a platform for the voice of independent filmmaker. We offer a variety of educational, aspirational, and entertaining content that promotes the success of creatives across the filmmaking community and the film industry. Our Conversations with filmmaking professionals are dedicated to sharing the advice, knowledge, and insights of experienced filmmakers while exploring what it truly means to be an independent creative in the highly competitive world of filmmaking. Each filmmaker conversation is backed by thoughtful research that allows us to uncover the raw, authentic truths behind each filmmaker's journey. Through our Indie Talks, we share our thoughts and perspectives on navigating independent film from the perspective of Advisory and Executive Producers. We discuss topics that are relevant to filmmakers across a wide spectrum of filmmaking perspectives, and we do our best to uncover hidden truths and new developments in the film industry. Our goal is to help filmmakers avoid the pitfalls and obstacles on the business side of film so that their filmmaking creativity can thrive. Our Industry Insights provide bite-sized actionable advice that filmmaking professionals and creatives of all kinds can use to keep their heads up as they continue their filmmaking journeys. With advice sourced from the filmmaking community, we build upon the wisdom of our filmmaking guests to provide our audience with truly aspirational and inspirational content. The Mistakes in the Making series gives our filmmaking friends an opportunity to speak directly to our filmmaking audience to share a specific lesson they've learned through a mistake they've made. We are firm believers that mistakes can be the gateway to success when we open our hearts and minds to learning from them, sharing them, and using them to Be Better.