The Dangerous Art of the Documentary

Double Elvis Productions, Tiller Russell
  • 4.6 (9)
  • FILM INTERVIEWS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
The Dangerous Art of the Documentary

Filmmaker Tiller Russell (Waco: American Apocalypse, Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer, Operation Odessa, The Last Narc, The Seven Five) exchanges the camera for a microphone, sitting down with other documentary filmmakers for riveting, in-depth conversations about their most successful, iconic or recent films.

  1. MAR 27

    Lauren Stowell and Gabe Honig (Celtics City | HBO)

    HBO’s latest 9-part series “Celtics City” chronicles the remarkable saga of the Boston Celtics, the NBA’s winningest and most storied franchise. Director Lauren Stowell and showrunner Gabe Honig join Tiller to discuss the first steps they took to starting such a monumental project (2:00), the weekly rhythm and delegation of responsibilities (16:00), collaborating through pressurized moments (28:00), the thought behind integrating pre-existing interviews (35:00), and what they hope people take away from this series (43:00). Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    50 min

  2. MAR 14

    Raoul Peck (Ernest Cole: Lost and Found)

    Oscar-nominated filmmaker Raoul Peck’s latest film, “Ernest Cole: Lost and Found”, chronicles the profound life and work of Ernest Cole, one of the first Black freelance photographers in South Africa, whose work revealed to the world the realities of Black life during apartheid, and later, its echoes in New York City and the American South. Raoul shares with Tiller how he sees the difference between convincing an audience versus telling a story (2:30) how he uses his personal background as a medium to tell each story with deep authenticity (2:30), finding the soul of this film (8:00), why he doesn’t call his art “journalism” (19:00), his process of creation and experimentation (26:30), the deep understanding he shares with his editor (32:00), and the suffocating constraints of the doc industry today (39:00).  Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    51 min

  3. FEB 28

    Julian Brave NoiseCat & Emily Kassie (Sugarcane)

    A stunning tribute to the resilience of Native people and their way of life, SUGARCANE, the debut feature documentary from Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, is an epic cinematic portrait of a community during a moment of international reckoning. Nominated for an Academy Award in 2025, it bravely illustrates an investigation into abuse and missing children at an Indian residential school that sparks a reckoning on the nearby Sugarcane Reserve. Julian and Emily share with Tiller how they came together to make this film (2:00), the decision to make Julian an on-camera character (8:00), how they constructed the edit after shooting for 160 days (12:30), using archival as a form of memory and propaganda (19:30), and how it felt screening the film for the first time at the world premiere (28:00). Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    32 min

  4. FEB 14

    Angela Patton & Natalie Rae (Daughters)

    “Daughters” presents the story of four young girls as they prepare for a special Daddy Daughter Dance with their incarcerated fathers, as part of a unique fatherhood program in a Washington, D.C. jail. For most of the daughters, the dance will be the only time they will be able to touch or hug their fathers during sentences, some of which are as long as 20 years. Co-directors Angela Patton and Natalie Rae share with Tiller their experience meeting because of a TED talk (3:00), earning the trust of the mothers and daughters (8:30), working with the fathers inside the prison (15:00), the cinematographer’s vital impact (21:00), why the film took so many years to make (33:00), and how to follow their impact campaign (40:50).  Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    42 min

  5. JAN 31

    Dylan Reeve (Tickled)

    In “Tickled”, a story stranger than fiction, journalist David Farrier and filmmaker Dylan Reeve uncover a strange tickling subculture. Delving deeper into the dark world of a tickling competition, they are with fierce resistance as they uncover a dark empire ensnaring and exploiting vulnerable young men. Dylan shares with Tiller how he and his co-director David Farrier blindly stumbled into this story (1:00), why they had to reshoot virtually everything (11:00, getting threats the deeper they went down the rabbit hole (18:30), the lies and bravery of his main characters (30:00), when they realized the film had transitioned from silly to dark and investigative (34:00), and the enduring legacy of making a film like this (41:00). Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    50 min

  6. JAN 14

    Gilad Baram (Koudelka Shooting Holy Land)

    Gilad Baram is an Israeli photographer, visual artist and documentarian. His 2015 film “Koudelka Shooting Holy Land” follows iconic Czech photographer Josef Koudelka’s journey through Israel and Palestine as he captures the essence of that conflicted land. Tiller begins the discussion explaining how he thinks this film achieves rigorous artistic singularity (2:30), before Gilad shares why this was never meant to be a film (10:30), Koudelka’s surprising documentation of the West Bank border (20:00), how a foreign Czech photographer helped him look at his homeland of Israel in a new way (27:00), and the importance of still photography in our increasingly digital world (35:00). Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    45 min

  7. 12/20/2024

    Josh Greenbaum (Will & Harper | Netflix)

    Director Josh Greenbaum’s latest documentary, “Will & Harper”, depicts an intimate portrayal of friendship, understanding and America as Will Ferrell and his recently transitioned close friend Harper Steele, former SNL head writer, embark on a cross-country road trip. Josh shares with Tiller the experience of being approached by Will and Harper with the initial film idea (2:30), Josh’s multi-step prep process (6:00), how he ensured the road trip felt authentic (12:30), finding acceptance in the most unexpected places (15:30), the grand epiphanies they realized along the way (20:00), how removing the “comedy” was the key editorial breakthrough (25:00), and the fundamental definition of a director (29:00).  Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    35 min

  8. 12/06/2024

    Alexandre O. Philippe (Lynch/Oz)

    The themes, images, and cultural vernacular of Victor Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz continue to haunt David Lynch’s filmography.  Is Lynch trapped in the Land of Oz? Through six distinct perspectives, Alexandre O. Philippe’s Lynch/Oz helps us reexperience and reinterpret The Wizard of Oz by way of David Lynch, delivering new appreciations of both. In his discussion with Tiller, Alexandre speaks about the allure of making films about films (2:00), his jazz-inspired approach to interviews (7:30), how he selected his eclectic cast of characters, including John Waters (15:30), the art of the essay film (19:30), selling the film just on the title (29:00), and crafting the masterful opening scene (32:00). Produced by: Jacob Miller Executive Producer: Tiller Russell Music by: James Carroll, Graham Tracey & Zydepunk Distributed by: Jake Brennan & Brady Sadler, Double Elvis Productions

    37 min
See All (69)

Trailer

4.6
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

Filmmaker Tiller Russell (Waco: American Apocalypse, Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer, Operation Odessa, The Last Narc, The Seven Five) exchanges the camera for a microphone, sitting down with other documentary filmmakers for riveting, in-depth conversations about their most successful, iconic or recent films.

Information

You Might Also Like

Content Restricted

This episode can’t be played on the web in your country or region.

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes, and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada