DOCUMENTARY
FULL LENGTH DOCUMENTARIES
THE REAL WILD WEST - 4-PART DOCUMENTARY SERIES for CURIOSITY STREAM, APPLE TV, AMAZON PRIME, ROKU
A new series revealing the REAL HISTORY of the Wild West. Beyond gunslingers and lawmen we all know from pop culture, meet the diverse pioneers who shaped a country! From Black and Hispanic cowboys, female homesteaders, Asian immigrants, and Indigenous tribal leaders, this is the definitive story of the American West.
ROLE: SEGMENT PRODUCER / EDITOR
Produced scenes and narrative threads that includes securing talent, crew and locations, budgeting gear and travel expenses, acquiring stock assets, and collaborating with a remote post-production team to deliver the final episodes to the network and their partnered distributors. Editor of 4 hour-long episodes along with serving as the lead editor, colorist and sound designer for 4 mini-episodes for online distribution.
CAMO SHARKS - NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, DISNEY +, HULU & ABC
Can sharks change color at will to enhance their predatory abilities? Through groundbreaking experiments, revered shark biologists answer this evolutionary question. Shark scientists Dr. Ryan Johnson and Kenyan shark geneticist Gibbs Kuguru hope to capture real-time pigmentation changes to understand how these apex ocean predators manipulate their skin’s dermal cells to activate camouflage. The film features an exceptional cast of minority scientists and explores the novel reasons why sharks may be adapt to their environment, pointing to climate change-induced coral bleaching as one of the possible factors.
ROLE: EDITOR / ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Worked closely with a tight-knit team of executive producers at Rollercoaster Road Productions to produce and co-edit the one hour Sharkfest 2022 special, with our team operating in a hybrid-remote workflow throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. I brought in my post production management skills after years of National Geographic Sharkfest experience to effectively meet deadlines, hit story beats, and deliver a project on time and under budget.
SHARK SIDE OF THE MOON - NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, DISNEY +, HULU & ABC
This documentary pulls back the curtain on the secret lives of Hammerhead Sharks, revealing new insights and never-before-seen behaviors in these incredible creatures and their lunar-driven migration journey across the Tropical Eastern Pacific.
ROLE: EDITOR / ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Worked closely with a tight-knit team of executive producers at Rollercoaster Road Productions to produce and co-edit the one hour Sharkfest 2022 special, with our team operating in a hybrid-remote workflow throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. I brought in my post production management skills after years of National Geographic Sharkfest experience to effectively meet deadlines, hit story beats, and deliver a project on time and under budget.
THE STARCHASERS
Okeanos - Foundation for the Sea presents "The Starchasers," a feature length film from the producers of Discovery's Racing Extinction, following the epic story of the world's greatest open ocean navigators. With only the stars as their guide, Pacific islanders revive the nearly lost art of wayfinding braving the vast waters of the world's largest ocean on traditional sailing canoes of their ancestors in a race against cultural and environmental extinction.
Role: Producer, Lead Editor, Camera
I spent nearly two months in some of the remote islands of Micronesia documenting indigenous sailors and navigators who brave the open ocean using only the stars and other patterns of nature. While filming aboard a traditionally inspired sailboat, I produced segments in the Marshall Islands on stories involving the Pacific’s nuclear legacy, in which entire islands had been obliterated by decades of US nuclear testing, displacing Marshallese people from their ancestral homeland. Today, some of these atolls are still uninhabitable while nearby communities still suffer from the impacts of radiation while simultaneously combating sea level rise that threatens to drown their islands.
SHARKCANO - NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC/ Disney +
World-renowned shark scientist Dr. Michael Heithaus is on a mission to reveal the mysterious connection between sharks and volcanoes. Throughout the world, sharks seem to be attracted to the hotspots, a puzzle that seems straight out of sci-fi and is baffling scientists. Dr. Heithaus crisscrosses the globe and risks life and limb to uncover the shocking, real-life link between two fearsome forces of nature.
Role: Editor
Edited the 44 minute documentary over the course of eight weeks during COVID-19 quarantine using a home editing suite.
World’s Most Dangerous Shark? - NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC / DISNEY +
The open-ocean predator, the oceanic whitetip shark, has evolved over eons to become what many deem, “the world’s most dangerous shark.” Now, scientists are uncovering the true behavior of these endangered species to better understand how oceanic whitetips follow shortfin pilot whales, not to hunt them, but to help source deepwater squid in a symbiotic relationship that changes public perception on how these sharks feed.
Role: Associate Producer / Editor
BLITZKRIEG SHARKS - NAT GEO WILD
For years the line between predator and prey had been drawn. Animals were safe on the shore and in the air, the sharks ruled beneath the waves, but now that line has been crossed. The film Blitzkrieg Sharks will look at extraordinary predatory shark behavior that seems to reverse conventional thinking on what sharks eat and where they eat. Blitzkrieg Sharks will discover how and why sharks push the limits of the predator and prey dynamic.
Role: Production Coordinator, Associate Producer, VFX Graphics
Coordinated and produced the following scene in the Maldives, hiring an underwater cinematographer and working with local fixers to successfully document black tip reef shark feeding behaviors. Other responsibilities for “Blitzkrieg Sharks” segments included second camera in the Gulf of Mexico with Marcus Drymon’s shark tagging team; assistant editor responsible for cutting the show’s opening teaser. Edited integral map VFX graphics in Adobe After Effects.
SHARKS VS DOLPHINS: FACE OFF - DISCOVERY CHANNEL’S SHARK WEEK
Dr. Mike Heithaus and his team set out into the hostile and dangerous environment to study the relationships between dolphin and shark. What they find during their research could solve one of the oceans deepest mysteries.
Role: Production Coordinator; Associate Producer; Graphics
Also served a second cameraman during a three-day shoot with Dr. Mike Heithaus on a mission to tag bull and tiger sharks off the coast of Miami Beach. Edited integral map VFX graphics in Adobe After Effects.
ANTARCTIC EDGE: 70º SOUTH - NETFLIX, HULU, AMAZON
Antarctic Edge: 70° South is a science-adventure story that combines exploration, dramatic imagery and two decades of scientific collaboration into a compelling character-driven narrative. The filmmakers had unprecedented access to critically important climate research in the fastest winter-warming place on earth: the West Antarctic Peninsula. Funded by the National Science Foundation and the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, the film was made in collaboration with 14 undergraduate film students who served as assistant producers and assistant editors. Antarctic Edge features oceanographer Oscar Schofield.
Antarctic Edge: 70° South is available on iTunes and Amazon and is streaming on Netflix. Antarctic Edge was theatrically released in New York and Los Angeles, was broadcast on Participant Media’s PIVOT channel and is the recipient of several film festival awards.
Role: Co-Producer, Lead Editor
Worked closely between scientists and group of student assistant editors to create a character-driven film that “humanized” climate science and still addressed the STEM learning objectives required by the National Science Foundation.
THE WAR AFTER: FROM COMBAT TO CAMPUS - THE DAILY BEAST / KANOPY
The War After is a powerful, 70-minute documentary featuring nine U.S. veterans transitioning from active duty to the unexpected challenges of civilian life. The story is told through the voices of dynamic young men and women from diverse backgrounds and varied branches of military service, all sharing their surprising journeys into military service, the intense and at times harrowing experiences of active duty followed by the highs and lows of forging their own independent identities. WATCH NOW ON KANOPY.
Role: Field Producer; Cinematographer
Documented the lives of several veterans returning to civilian life as collage students after their deployment in the military. The production required the building of trusting relationships with veterans who were struggling to integrate back into civilian life, many of which were struggling from PTSD. The full length documentary made its festival debut at the Garden State Film Festival.
GENERATION AT RISK
Generation at Risk is a feature documentary film about the complexity of childhood obesity as told by the families who experience the challenges and the community leaders and researchers working to effect change. Filmed in New Jersey and Brazil and featuring Senator Cory Booker, Generation At Risk was produced in partnership with the New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health. Steven collaborated closely with director Seidel over four years filming and interviewing families, experts and scientists to weave together a complex and rich narrative. Portions of the film were featured on the Daily Beast.
Role: Producer, Camera, Co-Editor
DOCUMENTARY SHORTS
The official trailer for the 40 Tons Documentary.
40 tons - social impact documentary
When her husband and his best friend were sentenced to prison for a non-violent cannabis charge, Loriel Alegrete set on a mission to start her own female-run cannabis brand to help free the 40,000 prisoners still locked up for weed. While states continue to legalize recreational marijuana, the 40 Tons mission is to serve those impacted by the social injustices in the cannabis industry: the prisoners and their families. Among them: their friend Corvain Cooper, who faced a life sentence in prison for a non-violent cannabis charge. “When we think about the victims of injustice in our court system, it’s typically the prisoners who take center stage. But we also have to think about the residual consequences for the families and communities left to pick up the pieces. … I am compelled to give a voice to the voiceless; the men and women dying in prison. They aren’t claiming innocence and must still pay their debt to society, but we maintain that no one should spend a lifetime in prison for a plant that many consume and profit from legally. It will not stand.” - Loriel Alegrete
ROLE: Editor, Writer, Story Producer
Apache STRONGHOLD
The Apache community in #Arizona have faced many hardships. In 2018, #NaelynPike began raising money for #NewSanCarlosSkatepark as a way to build kids a strong support system. Find out more in Curiosity Stream’s full length documentary series, "The Real Wild West."
ROLE: Segment Producer / Editor
BLACK LABOR, NATIVE LAND
When University of Pittsburgh's Alaina Roberts dug into her family roots, she learned her ancestors were part of a rare group that were owned as slaves by Native Americans. Discover her full story in "The Real Wild West," streaming now!
ROLE: Segment Producer / Editor
NUCLEAR LEGACY VOYAGE WITH OKEANOS MARSHALL ISLANDS
Traditionally-based, fossil fuel-free sailing canoe Okeanos Marshall Islands travels a total of 1,200 nautical miles to reach one the most remote communities in the Marshall Islands: Enewetak atoll. Enewetak is the ancestral homeland to some of the most skilled boatbuilders in Micronesia, but after decades of forced displacement from US nuclear testing, all of Enewetak’s traditional seafaring knowledge has been lost. Now, Okeanos Marshall Islands allows Enewetak residents to reclaim their voyaging ancestry who are still faced with the impacts of US nuclear testing and the increasing challenges of sea level rise.
ROLE: Co-Director, Field Producer, Cinematographer, Editor
SHARKS UNKOWN WITH JASMIN GRAHAM
Shark scientists Jasmin Graham and Amani Webber-Schultz teach students how to collect data from wild sharks on a shark biodiversity survey off the coast of Miami. They are leading a workshop for Diversifying Ocean Sciences, an initiative to provide research experience to women and gender minorities of color. At sea, the students race to capture and release as many sharks as possible in order to provide data for long-term studies of Biscayne Bay’s ecosystem.
ROLE: Editor
THE LAST CHIEF
After migrating to Texas, the Comanche people became known for being strong warriors and outstanding horse riders. Learn more about their fascinating history in 4-part full-length docu-series by Curiosity Stream, "The Real Wild West."
ROLE: Segment Producer / Editor
THE AMERICAN SONGSTER
Meet @DomFlemons_TheAmericanSongster. A #Grammy-Award winning singer-songwriter who uses his music to bring attention to lesser-known stories of the American West - such as the untold legacy of black cowboys.
ROLE: Segment Producer / Editor
OKEANOS YAP MEDICAL MISSION
Okeanos Foundation’s Pacific-designed sailing canoes join Yap Federated States of Micronesia Emergency Health Task Force to distribute medical supplies to remote island communities during a recent Dengue Fever outbreak. Over two weeks, Okeanos Waaqab and Okeanos Ambassador travelled 1,400 miles to deliver medicine to 17 remote outer islands. These fossil fuel-free sailing canoes are designed to help the most remote Pacific communities who are at the front line of climate change.
ROLE: Producer, Editor
RED TIDE & HUMAN HEALTH
Funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Oceans & Atmospheric Association (NOAA), this film highlights the health impacts that red tide has on coastal Florida residents, along with what increased ocean monitoring can do to mitigate this environmental crisis.
ROLE: Associate Producer, Editor
The land of the high passes
“The Land of High Passes” is a short documentary that highlights the efforts of non-profit organization “Our Ladakhi Sisters” to raise funds and awareness for boarding school program for impoverished Ladakhi girls, called After School.
Role: Editor
Worked closely with clients to draft preliminary scripts and rough cuts that would be most appealing to their audience of international donors.