Ep. 275 I Erik & Chris Ewers on PBS Funding, AI & Directing Goldblum, Clooney & Streep

From Documentary First by Documentary First | Christian Taylor

April 9, 2026 · 40 min · Season 6 · Episode 275

About this episode

Erik and Chris Ewers discuss the challenges of PBS funding, the impact of AI on filmmaking, and their experiences casting major Hollywood actors for their documentary.

Even with Ken Burns and Don Henley attached, funding a PBS documentary is brutal. So what hope do the rest of us have? Erik and Christopher Ewers get real about PBS funding, AI’s impact on filmmaking, and how they landed George Clooney , Jeff Goldblum , Ted Danson , Tate Donovan and Meryl Streep for their new PBS documentary Henry David Thoreau. In Part 2 of this conversation, the Ewers Brothers open up about the financial realities of documentary funding, even with Ken Burns and Don Henley attached, why Chris sees AI as the next revolution instead of the apocalypse, how broadcast is giving way to streaming, and the stories behind casting some of Hollywood’s biggest voices. This is Part 2 of a two-part conversation. In Part 2, you’ll learn: — Why having Ken Burns and Don Henley as executive producers doesn’t make funding easy and who actually made the Thoreau film possible — Chris’s case for why AI is the digital camera revolution all over again, not the death of filmmaking — The best professional advice Chris ever received and why it will never change — How Chris kept his mouth shut on a commercial set with Jeff Goldblum and how that silence led to Goldblum voicing Thoreau — The…

People in this episode

Host: Christian Taylor

Guests: Erik Ewers, Chris Ewers

Topics covered

PBS funding
AI in filmmaking
documentary production
casting
streaming changes
Hollywood voices

Keywords

PBS
documentary
AI
filmmaking
casting
George Clooney
Meryl Streep
Ken Burns
Don Henley

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Henry David Thoreau