The Austin Meyer Podcast
The Austin Meyer Podcast features conversations with leading documentary filmmakers, including directors, cinematographers, editors, producers, writers, and audio experts. Guests discuss how they began their careers and the craft behind telling true stories. The show explores practical and creative approaches to documentary filmmaking. It is hosted by Austin Meyer, a documentary filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer.
Episodes
10 Simple Filmmaking Habits to Save You DAYS in the Edit
I really believe that shooting stories with our final edit in mind is super important. You can have the best idea, and the best access, but if you don't have the shots to piece together the story, you're gonna lose your mind in the edit. So in this video, I share 10 of my favorite habits that help me save days in the edit. Enjoy :)
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14 TRICKS to Find Your Next Documentary Story Idea
Finding the perfect documentary film idea is like being in the world's biggest scavenger hunt! Here are 14 tricks that I use to find my story ideas.
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WHO AM I?
If we haven’t met yet before - Hey 👋 I'm Austin Meyer and I am a documentary filmmaker based in Berkeley, California. I'm a National Geographic Ex
10 Controversial Rules of Documentary Filmmaking You NEED To Know
A set of rules and principles can be incredibly useful to help guide our decision making in the world of documentary filmmaking. That's why, when I saw award winning documentary director Victor Kossakovsky write up the 10 rules he follows in his filmmaking, I had to check them out. In this video, I share those 10 rules, respond to them, and say which 3 have been most helpful to me in my career.
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5 Interview Mistakes New Filmmakers Don’t Know They’re Making
Interviews are the backbone of so many documentaries. They are also very challenging to nail. Especially when you are working as a solo shooter or in small teams, like I do a lot, the amount of things that can go wrong can feel overwhelming. In this video I go over 5 mistakes I see documentary filmmakers, which, if you keep in mind, can dramatically increase the odds that you'll walk away from you
Making PLANET EARTH III with Mike Gunton & Prakash Matada | Ep. 52
Planet Earth III, the world's premiere natural history documentary series, is back with its third installment, presented and narrated by Sir David Attenborough. The series represents five years of work. The eight episodes comprise 134 total shoots across 1,904 shooting days and took place in 43 countries across six continents. In this episode, I interview executive producer Mike Gunton and fre
James Honeyborne & Sophie Todd on Producing Netflix’s Our Great National Parks | Ep. 051
Our Great National Parks is a beautiful five-part Netflix documentary series that invites viewers to experience nature in the world's most iconic national parks. Today on the podcast, my guests are executive producer James Honeyborne and series producer Sophie Todd. James Honeyborne is the creative director of Freeborne Media, having previously worked as an executive producer at the BBC Natural Hi
Vera Krichevskaya on Independent News & Documentaries in Russia | Ep. 50
Vera Krichevskaya is a documentary filmmaker from Russia who co-founded TV Dozhd (TV Rain), which is the only independent private television channel in Russia. Her most recent documentary titled “Fuck This Job,” is an incredibly timely story that documents the ten-year journey of that television station that made it one of the top media targets of Putin's government.
In this conversation, Vera
2022 Documentary Oscars Preview with IndieWire’s Anne Thompson | Ep. 49
The Oscars are coming up on March 27, 2022. To preview the documentary feature category I am joined this week by IndieWire's editor-at-large, Anne Thompson. In this episode we talk about each of the nominated documentaries, reflect on the snubs that missed out on the big show (I see you, The Rescue and The First Wave), and give our predictions on what documentary will take home the Academy Award.
Luc Forsyth On How To Take Your Cinematography To The Next Level | Ep. 048
This week on the show my guest is Luc Forsyth, a cinematographer from Canada who has worked on films for Netflix, National Geographic, HBO, Showtime, ESPN, and many more.
In this conversation Luc and I discuss the lessons he learned as a photojournalist that have helped him develop as a cinematographer, how to think about investing in gear and networking as an up and coming DP, and how he cover
Dawn Porter on Directing Good Trouble & The Way I See It | Ep. 047
Dawn Porter is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose work has appeared on HBO, PBS, Discovery, and Netflix among others. She has had two feature documentaries premiere this year -- John Lewis: Good Trouble and The Way I See It.
Good Trouble explores late Congressman John Lewis’ pivotal role in the Civil Rights movement and decades of political and social activism on important issues incl
The Making of ‘My Octopus Teacher’ with Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed, and Roger Horrocks | Ep. 046
On today’s episode I sit down with the team behind the hit Netflix documentary, and one of my personal favorite films of the year, My Octopus Teacher. Co-directors Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed, as well as cinematographer Roger Horrocks, take us behind the scenes and under the water to reveal how they crafted this incredibly moving story about a filmmaker's unlikely connection with an octopus.
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Jeff Orlowski on Directing The Social Dilemma | Ep. 045
Jeff Orlowski is the director of the newly released Netflix documentary, The Social Dilemma, which explores the dangerous human impact of social networking, with tech experts sounding the alarm on their own creations. He also served as director, producer, and cinematographer of the Sundance Award-Winning and Oscar short listed films, Chasing Ice and Chasing Coral.
In this conversation, Jeff and
Amanda McBaine & Jesse Moss on Directing Sundance Winner, Boys State | Ep. 044
Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss are co-directors of the newly released documentary, Boys State, which premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and was awarded the Grand Jury Prize. The film, which is now streaming on Apple TV+, is a political coming-of-age story, examining the health of American democracy through an unusual experiment: a thousand 17-year-old boys from across the state of Texas g
USC Film School and What Comes Next with Director Tayo Amos | Ep. 043
Tayo Amos is a director and filmmaker from the Bay Area now currently living in Los Angeles. After double majoring at Stanford, Tayo went on to earn her MFA in Film Production at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, where she focused on Directing. She is the winner of USC’s First Look Faculty Award for Excellence in Directing, and her thesis film, “On The Clock” screened at the Cannes Film Festival.
In
Editing The Last Dance with Devin Concannon | Ep. 042
My guest today is Devin Concannon, who was one of 4 editors on ESPN’s mega-hit 10 part documentary series, The Last Dance. The Last Dance revolves around the career of Michael Jordan, with a particular focus on his last season with the Chicago Bulls. The project itself is a beast of an endeavor.. we’re talking 10 episodes, over 100 interviews, and according to director Jason Hehir, 10,000 hours of
Phenomenally Big Ideas with Meena Harris | Ep. 041
Meena Harris is a lawyer, activist, and the founder of the Phenomenal Woman Action Campaign, a female-powered organization that brings awareness to intersectional social causes. And now Meena is also an author, with her new children’s book titled Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea, set to debut on June 2nd. The book is based on a true story from the childhood of Meena’s mom, Maya Harris, and aunt, Kamala
Photographing the 2019 Hong Kong Protests with Laurel Chor | Ep. 040
Laurel Chor is an award-winning freelance visual journalist and National Geographic Explorer from Hong Kong. In 2019, she worked with the New York Times, National Geographic, Getty, AFP, Reuters, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Wall Street Journal, NBC News, the Telegraph, and many more. Laurel also has a lot of experience as a text reporter and video journalist. In the past, she w
Say it Loud with Documentarian Austin Meyer | Ep. 039
Rerunning an episode of the Say It Loud show, in which host and photographer Raul Espinoza invited me on as a guest to talk about my documentary filmmaking, why I am drawn to human-centered stories, and my mission that drives everything I do.
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Austin Meyer is a documentary filmmaker, photographer, and podcast host. He is a National Geographic Explorer and the 2015 winner of the New York Times
How Max Romey Films the World’s Top Endurance Athletes | Ep. 038
Max Romey is an adventure filmmaker and water color artist who, for the past few years, has documented the sport of trail and ultrarunning for Salomon TV. What is it like to film a 200 mile race circumnavigating Lake Tahoe as a one-man production crew? Why is the success of a running film determined by much more than just keeping up with, and filming, a runner? In this conversation, Max and I dig
Rowing 1300km down the Paraguay River with Photographer Henry Maillet | Ep. 037
Henry Maillet is a photographer whose stories focus on conservation and development. After serving for two years as Peace Corps Volunteers in Paraguay, Henry Maillet and his colleague Jeff Wong decided to stay in the country for the adventure of a lifetime. In partnership with WWF, they rowed a handcrafted wooden rowboat down one of the continent's last remaining free-flowing rivers. Over the cour
From School Project to Sundance with Director Patricia Vidal Delgado | Ep. 036
Patricia Vidal Delgado is a film director and writer from Lisbon, Portugal. Only recently having graduated from the MFA program in Production/Directing at UCLA, Patricia has already been featured in some of the world's most prestigious film festivals. Most recently, Patricia's first feature film, La Leyenda Negra, which also happened to be her UCLA thesis project, made its World Premiere at the Su
Leading Creative Teams with Symphony Conductor Francesco Lecce-Chong | Ep. 035
Francesco Lecce-Chong is the music director for the Santa Rosa Symphony and the Eugene Symphony where he has been dedicated to innovative programming, commissioning new music and engaging in community outreach. Described by critics as a “fast rising talent in the music world,” Francesco has conducted orchestras around the world, including the San Francisco Symphony and New York Philharmonic.
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In
Making Plants Cool Again with Botanical Illustrator Nirupa Rao | Ep. 034
Nirupa's Artwork
Nirupa Rao is a Botanical Illustrator and a National Geographic Explorer from Bangalore, India.
In beautiful and precise detail, Nirupa uses watercolor illustrations to record and celebrate the unique flora of India. As a National Geographic Explorer grantee, Nirupa just published a children’s book called "Hidden Kingdom—Fantastical Plants of the Western Ghats" that will help yo
Shining a Light on Neglected Stories with Nicholas Kristof | Ep. 033
Nicholas Kristof is a columnist for the New York Times, an author, and a 2-time Pulitzer prize winner who covers humanitarian crises at home and around the world.
In this conversation, Nick and I talk about how he came up with his wild idea to invite university students (me in 2015) into remote communities and conflict zones, how he builds compelling stories around individual characters and statis
Pursuing the Dream: Reflecting on my 2019 | Ep. 032
Happy New Year! In this special edition of the podcast, I am reflecting on my past year's storytelling journey. I distill the lessons I have learned, discuss my goals as a filmmaker, and reflect on the experiences that impacted me most this year.
Thank you so much for listening to the podcast in 2019. I hope you learned something, felt entertained, and that it helped you on your own storytelling
Music Composition is an Act of Discovery with Paul Bessenbacher | Ep. 031
Paul Bessenbacher, or PB, is an esteemed composer for film and TV, and also the lead of the band Opus Orange. His music has been featured on TV shows like Broad City, Grey’s Anatomy, and The Detour, national ads for Apple, Google, and Samsung, feature films and documentaries, and is the theme song for this very podcast!
In this conversation PB and I talk about the musical and life lessons he lear
Why You Should Be Prototyping Your Stories with Seamus Harte | Ep. 030
Seamus Harte is the cofounder of Only People Media, a media company that helps people working to change our world by making media to share their story. Seamus also teaches story at the Stanford Design School, where he has taught classes such as creative gym and movie design.
In this conversation, Seamus and I talk about how he is found his unique voice as a storyteller, how working on the John Len
The Power of Poetry with Pulitzer Prize Winner Forrest Gander | Ep. 029
Forrest Gander is a poet, novelist, and essayist based in Northern California, whose most recent book of poems, Be With, was awarded the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for poetry.
In this conversation, Forrest and I discuss the life changing moment that made him forego a safe and stable career to pursue life as a poet, what he thinks makes a poem not just good, but great, and why poetry continues to be such
How to Make Your Documentary Stand Out with Charlie Phillips | Ep. 028
Charlie Phillips is the head of video at The Guardian. Before working at The Guardian, Charlie was deputy director at Sheffield DocFest and an editor at FourDocs.
In this conversation, Charlie and I discuss the trends shaping the documentary industry, what kind of access and consent lead to great films, and what qualities make a film stand out from the crowd as one that The Guardian wants to comm
The Dark Side of Sports with Investigative Journalist Benjamin Best | Ep. 027
Trapped in Qatar
Benjamin Best is an award winning investigative reporter, filmmaker, and author whose reporting focuses on the dark side of sports: illegal betting, match fixing, corruption, organized crime, and the human rights violations that are often a byproduct of major sporting events such as the World Cup and The Olympics.
In 2011 Benjamin Best was awarded CNN's journalist of the year aw
Telling Stories with Heart and Humility with Kate Grant | Ep. 026
Kate Grant is the CEO of The Fistula Foundation.
An obstetric fistula, the kind that occurs in many developing countries, is a hole between a woman's vagina and bladder, and it is caused by many days of obstructed labor. It leaves women incontinent and often abandoned and ostracized by their communities.
As the CEO of the Fistula Foundation, Kate is tasked with telling the stories of this stigmati
Unlocking Your Creative Potential Through Improv with Dan Klein | Ep. 025
http://austinmeyerfilms.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Dan-Klein-Social-Promo.mp4
Dan Klein teaches improvisation at Stanford University where he is on the faculty of the Theater and Performance Studies Department and the Graduate School of Business. His beginning improv class is one of Stanford’s most popular courses, and he has been awarded Stanford Teacher of the Year by the Student’s Associati
Reporting on Humanitarian Crises with Josh Estey | Ep. 024
Josh Estey is one of the world’s top humanitarian relief and development documentary photographers. His work for UNICEF, CARE, USAID, World Food Programme, World Bank, Mercy Corps, and others captures moments of dignity and spirit without ever sacrificing truth or context, and has helped lead the transformation of non-profit photography and videography over the past two decades. Josh is a Pulitzer
How to Write Amazing Plays with Lauren Gunderson | Ep. 023
Lauren Gunderson is one of the world’s most prolific playwrights. At 37, she is the most produced playwright in America and has taken home many of the most coveted awards in the business. In 2017, The New Yorker wrote a profile on Lauren and titled it, “You’ve Probably Never Heard of America’s Most Popular Playwright.” Well everybody, it’s about time you heard!
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In this episode Lauren and I discu
Anamorphic Chalk Art with Street Artist David Zinn | Ep. 022
David Zinn's Art: www.instagram.com/davidzinn
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David Zinn is a world renowned street artist based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. David’s temporary street drawings are composed entirely of chalk, charcoal and found objects, and are always improvised on location through a process known as “pareidolic anamorphosis.” This technique makes his chalk art appear three dimensional.
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In this episode, David and I
Creating Art that Butters People Up with Maja Ruznic | Ep. 021
Link to Maja Ruznic’s artwork: http://bit.ly/MajaPaintings
Maja Ruznic is a prolific artist currently based in Roswell, New Mexico. Primarily a painter, her artwork often explores themes related to trauma. A graduate of UC Berkeley and the California College of Arts, Maja has exhibited internationally and is a 2018 Hopper Prize winner.
In this episode, Maja and I talk through the step-by-step pr
Writing Children’s Books with Froggy Author Jonathan London | Ep. 020
Jonathan London is a children’s book author who has over 100 publications to his name.
Jonathan is best known as the author of the Froggy series, which has sold over 20 million copies and has been translated into 7 different languages. The first of the series, which was published in 1992, is called Froggy Gets Dressed, and now there are 29 others.
In this conversation, Jonathan and I discuss how
Developing Stories for Theaters and Smart Speakers with Kat Zdan | Ep. 019
Kat Zdan studied theater at UCSB and got her MFA in ensemble based physical theater from Dell’Arte International school of physical theater. Kat has been performing, teaching, and directing professionally in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond since 2009. Not only does Kat work in scripted theater, she is also a member of Improv Playhouse, one of the top improv troupes in the Bay Area.
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Off the
Amplifying Voices through Art, Tech, and Photography with Aaron Huey | Ep. 018
Aaron Huey is a National Geographic photographer who has contributed dozens of cover and feature stories to the magazine. His photography stories are on a wide range of topics from Sherpas on Everest, to life on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, and most recently, Aaron detailed the fight to preserve America’s national monuments like Bears Ears.
Aaron is also the founder of Amplifier, a design l
Beyond the Box Score with NYT Sports Reporter John Branch | Ep. 017
John Branch is a sports reporter for The New York Times. He won the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing in 2013 for “Snow Fall,” a story about a deadly avalanche in Washington State, and was a finalist for the prize in 2012 for his series of stories about Derek Boogaard, a professional hockey player who overdosed on painkillers.
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John’s work has been featured in The Best American Sports Writing; a
Creating Stories for Radiolab with Latif Nasser | Ep. 016
Latif Nasser is the director of research at Radiolab, where he reports, produces and creates stories on a range of topics. In 2018 he created stories on everything from life at the southern border, to the blue blood of horseshoe crabs, to voting laws, to National Hockey League All-Star games.
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In this episode Latif and I discuss how he went from a theater kid with playwriting aspirations to creat
Meeting the North with National Geographic Explorer Jennifer Kingsley | Ep. 015
Jennifer Kingsley is a National Geographic Explorer and a fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.
She is a winner of the National Outdoor Book Award for Paddlenorth, the story of her 54-day canoeing expedition across the Canadian Arctic, and her writing has appeared in various outlets including National Geographic, the BBC, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
Her radio do
Reporting from Conflict Zones with the PBS NewsHour’s Jane Ferguson | Ep. 014
Jane Ferguson is a Beirut-based Special Correspondent for the PBS NewsHour. She reports from across the Middle East, Africa and beyond, often working in conflict zones.
Some of her reporting highlights include front-line dispatches from the war against ISIS in Iraq, an up-close look at Houthi-controlled Yemen, and reports on the war and famine in South Sudan.
On top of her work at the PBS NewsHo
Leaving a Legacy Through Storytelling with Susan Milstein and Andi Brady | Ep. 013
This week my guests are Susan Milstein and Andi Brady. Susan and Andi a cofounders Personal History Productions, a company that helps an individual capture their life story and family memories as a legacy for future generations. Writing a life story can be daunting, so Susan and Andi come in and make it easy. They handle everything from interviewing the individual, to writing the narrative, to cre
The Three Layers of a Well Told Story with Radio Journalist Jake Warga | Ep. 012
This week my guest is award winning radio journalist, Jake Warga. Jake is a contributor to NPR, Public Radio International, and American Public Media. His stories have been featured on programs such as All Things Considered and This American Life. On top of making his own stories, Jake also teaches storytelling as a lecturer at Stanford University.
In this conversation, Jake and I discuss how one
Taking the Leap: Reflecting on a Life Changing 2018 with Austin Meyer | Ep. 011
Happy New Year! In today's episode I am reflecting on my life changing 2018. 2018 was a year in which I quit my job, moved out of California for the first time to go live in Zambia, and went 100% all in on pursuing my dream of becoming the best documentary filmmaker I can be.
To help guide my reflection, I sat down with my good friend and fellow documentary filmmaker, Joe Alexander-Short, who int
Expressing Love and Understanding Through Documentary Theater with Xandra Clark | Ep. 010
This week on the podcast my guest is Xandra Clark. Xandra is an actor, writer, documentarian, musician, performance-maker, and all-around storyteller. Xandra is currently a 2018-19 Queer|Art Fellow in Performance, a member of The Bats Company at The Flea, a company member of Poetic Theater Productions, and a performer and experience designer with immersive performance company Odyssey Works. As an
What Literature and Language Reveal About Culture with Annalisa Quinn | Ep. 009
This week’s guest on The Austin Meyer Podcast is Annalisa Quinn. Annalisa is a contributing writer, reporter, and literary critic for NPR where she created NPR's Book News column and covers literature and culture. Annalisa also writes about arts and culture for the New York Times and the Financial Times, and is a frequent contributor to the New York Times Magazine section First Words, which includ
Diversity, Representation, and Identity in Documentary Photography with Daniella Zalcman | Ep. 008
This week my guest is Daniella Zalcman, a documentary photographer based between London and New York. She is a multiple grantee of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, a fellow with the International Women's Media Foundation, a National Geographic photographer, and the founder of Women Photograph, an initiative working to elevate the voices of female and non-binary visual journalists. Her ongo
Telling Ethically Responsible Stories on Technology with Lauren Goode | Ep. 007
This week's guest is Lauren Goode, a senior writer at WIRED. Lauren is an Emmy award winning journalist who covers all things tech. Before arriving at WIRED, Lauren was the senior technology editor at The Verge, Managing editor of reviews and consumer tech coverage at ReCode, and a video producer at the Wall Street Journal. In this conversation, Lauren and I talk about her career path, and the les
Discovering What Your Story Is About with Steve Fiffer | Ep. 006
Today on the podcast I am chatting with Steve Fiffer. Steve Fiffer is a prolific author who has written 16 books, several screenplays, and dozens of articles on a range of topics. Steve writes non-fiction, and has written numerous memoirs, not only about his own life, but as co-author for others working on theirs. His as-told-to memoirs include books by Miami Dolphins football star Mercury Morris,
Designing Stories for Impact with Lisa Solomon | Ep. 005
This week on the podcast I am chatting with Lisa Kay Solomon. Lisa does it all. She is a speaker, an author, and an educator focused on helping leaders learn how to be more creative, flexible and resilient in the face of increasing complexity and change. She is a currently a Designer in Residence at Stanford University’s Institute for Design and founding Chair of Transformational Practices and Lea
The Keys to Telling Stories Through Music with Max Cowan | Ep. 004
I'm so excited to welcome our first musician to the show: Max Cowan. Max is a keyboard player based out of Berkeley, California. In his music, Max uses elements of funk and jazz and blends them into grooves that will surely get you up and moving. Max co-leads the East Bay meets New Orleans funk group, Atta Kid, and has played alongside some of the most accomplished musicians out there today. In th
Bringing Community Together Through Local News with Chris Smith | Ep. 003
This week I am joined on the podcast by Chris Smith. Chris Smith is a columnist at my hometown newspaper, The Press Democrat -- a paper which recently won the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news coverage. Chris has been working at the Press Democrat for 41 years, and his role is unique. Chris writes human-interest stories. He is a master of the vignette... of bringing these human-interest stories to
Producing Academy Award Winning Movies with Steve Starkey | Ep. 002
On this week’s episode I am joined by academy award winning movie producer, Steve Starkey. Starkey, who always teams up with director Robert Zemeckis, has produced films such as: Allied, The Walk, Flight, The Polar Express, Cast Away, and Contact. In 1995 he won an Academy Award for Best Picture with Forrest Gump. Early in his career, Starkey was an associate producer and assistant editor on Back
Lisa Rowland and the Power of Improvisation | Ep. 001
"When we're playing really well together but we're also creating characters and moments that make the audience gasp, that's like... the best." Lisa Rowland is a professional theatrical improviser. She is a member of BATS Improv, Northern California's most acclaimed and longest running improvisational theatre company, and in 2012, Lisa was voted Best Actor by the SF Bay Guardian's Reader Poll. Off
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