Ep. 274 I I Didn't Know Myself - Erik & Chris Ewers on Ken Burns, PBS & Thoreau

From Documentary First by Documentary First | Christian Taylor

March 26, 2026 · 52 min · Season 6 · Episode 274

About this episode

Erik and Chris Ewers discuss their filmmaking careers under Ken Burns, the challenges of self-discovery, and their latest PBS documentary on Henry David Thoreau.

He's edited nearly every Ken Burns film ever made. But he couldn't edit himself. What does it take to build a filmmaking career inside Ken Burns's world — and what happens when the hardest part isn't the craft, but learning who you are? Erik and Christopher Ewers are brothers who co-direct for PBS under the Ken Burns banner. Erik has been Burns's senior editor for 33+ years. Chris is a DP who's shot for Apple, Coca-Cola, and Tiffany & Co. Their latest project: Henry David Thoreau, a three-part PBS documentary series executive produced by Ken Burns and Don Henley, narrated by George Clooney, with Jeff Goldblum voicing Thoreau, Ted Danson as Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Meryl Streep. Henry David Thoreau premieres on PBS March 30. This is Part 1 of a two-part conversation. In Part 1, you'll learn: — How Erik ended up working for Ken Burns through a real estate deal involving window treatments and carpets — How a 22-minute visitors center film became the doorway to a three-hour PBS series — What it's really like to co-direct a documentary with your brother (even Ken Burns couldn't do it with his) — How Chris balances high-end commercial work with documentary filmmaking to sustain a…

People in this episode

Host: Christian Taylor

Guests: Erik Ewers, Chris Ewers

Topics covered

filmmaking
documentary
self-discovery
brotherhood
PBS
Ken Burns

Keywords

Ken Burns
documentary filmmaking
self-identity
PBS
Thoreau
brothers
Erik Ewers
Chris Ewers

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: PBS, Apple, Coca-Cola, Tiffany & Co.

Books & works: Henry David Thoreau, Walden Pond