Directing Branded Docs with Karl Stelter

Show notes

Karl Stelter is a filmmaker whose commercial director / producer work has been recognized by the Clio’s, Tribeca, Tribeca X, the ADDY’s, Telly’s, Webby’s, 1.4, ADCC, DUST, and over 15 Oscar Qualifying film festivals. His recent Jury Award win at Sebastopol qualified him for the 2025 Oscars. His clients include Invisalign, Amazon, NFL, Telus, Western University of Health Sciences, and GHA Autism Supports among others.
Today we get into how Karl convinced brands like Telus and Invisalign to buy documentary projects he was already making as passion projects and turn them into commercials and branded entertainment, how to make the most of a festival experience like Tribeca and how to pivot into a new type of work that’s different from what you’ve already built a portfolio in.

Breakdown

1. 2:43two(!) projects at Tribeca, both scripted and branded doc spot
2. 3:03Swimming with Butterflies feat. Brand partner, Invisalign and TribecaX
3. 3:53Balancing authentic story x branded, paying the bills x passionate
4. 5:23Karl’s journey with the subject of the doc, Paralympic swimmer
5. 9:03Gaining trust with documentary subjects
6. 11:43Shooting underwater feat. DP Joe Simon
7. 12:33Pitching a short doc to a brand (Invisalign)
8. 16:33How much would a brand give as a budget?
9. 19:13did Invisalign care about where the spot would live?
10. 20:13Submitting to Tribeca documentary vs. TribecaX (branded counterpart)
11. 21:38The Tribeca experience
12. 22:53The Lord of All Future Space and Time: a maximalist cheesecake short film (rich & dense)
13. 24:38repeat collaborators
14. 27:23running his own production company, Journeyman Studios, since 2012
15. 29:48Pivoting from weddings to corporate videos; how to pivot to new types of work
16. 32:23don’t lose sight of your artistic side
17. 34:08success in the industry is a game of time
18. 37:05getting into a top tier festival while simultaneously being rejected from much less prestigious festivals
19. 38:23realistic acceptance rate for festivals
20. 39:08Pitching: collaborators and clients
21. 42:53don’t lose your collaborators to be right
22. 44:28how to enjoy Tribeca
23. 47:28different financing models: Karl’s other shorts!
24. 57:38how to have a family as a filmmaker
25. 1:07:13TIME CAPSULE