Doc Walks

Ben Steinbauer & Keith Maitland
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Documentary filmmakers, Keith Maitland (Tower, Dear Mr Brody) and Ben Steinbauer (Winnebago Man, Chop & Steele), are giving the world what no one asked for… Doc Walks. Against their better judgment, they decided to turn their weekly walks into a podcast, stepping into conversation with filmmakers and execs about the art and industry of documentary filmmaking. If you're an up and coming filmmaker, lover of non-fiction, or related to either Ben or Keith, this podcast might be for you.

  1. 2D AGO

    BONUS RE-RELEASE EPISODE 006 - Matt Wolf As Himself

    Consider this a favorite re-wrapped Christmas gift just for you—Matt Wolf's PEE-WEE AS HIMSELF documentary is streaming now on HBO, reminding us all that the best presents are the ones that make us feel like kids again. This holiday season we're celebrating filmmakers who find magic in obsession and who build their own creative communities one passion project at a time. So pour yourself some eggnog, settle in by the fireplace, and unwrap our conversation with Matt—a filmmaker who turned his love of underground artists into a career that spans from cello-playing disco composers to the most beloved man-child in American comedy… It's a walk and talk through Matt Wolf's Lower East Side neighborhood as Ben unspools the making of WILD COMBINATION and Matt's path as a gay teen activist to documentary filmmaker. Matt opens up about why he never puts his own money into projects (and how he's managed to pull that off), the importance of finishing what you start, and finding archives you didn't know existed. We dig into his new soap opera doc filming behind the scenes at THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, and Matt shares his philosophy on building a body of work that surprises even himself. Plus: the secret to finding your creative community in a Melrose Place-style Manhattan courtyard.   Timestamps: 00:00 Walking to Meet Matt Wolf in New York 01:26 Matt's Melrose Place: Building Community in Manhattan 02:33 First Connections: Wild Combination and Arthur Russell 05:11 From Gay Teen Activist to Documentary Filmmaker 08:21 The Documentary That Was Made About Matt (And Why He Hated It) 09:45 Paper Tiger Television and the Experimental Film World 11:46 How Wild Combination Became a Feature (Accidentally) 13:11 Finding Your Niche and Telling Stories That Connect 16:29 The Search for Stories: Archives and Access 20:56 Never Put Your Own Money In: Matt's Golden Rule 23:41 Taking a Break (And Why It Never Really Works) 25:32 The New Project: Behind the Scenes of Soap Operas 28:16 The State of Documentary: Shrinking Budgets and Staying True 31:27 Building a Body of Work That Surprises You 33:19 What Keeps Matt Going: The Love of the Work 35:37 Advice for Filmmakers: Finish What You Start 37:01 Wrapping Up the Walk   Discussion Links: WILD COMBINATION: A PORTRAIT OF ARTHUR RUSSELL (2008) | PEE-WEE HERMAN AS HIMSELF (2025) | WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE (1995) | SPACESHIP EARTH (2020) | THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS (1973-present) | THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL (1987-present)

    41 min

  2. DEC 18

    EP034 - High, Low, Buffalo, Mitzvah w/ Sally O'Grady

    As we close-out of our first year of doc'in & walkin' it's time to take stock in what this podcast is all about. We're excited to welcome self-proclaimed number one fan and Australian-born doc-maker, Sally O'Grady for a year-end, Year in Review episode. This nature-walk snakes through the wilderness behind Sally's North Austin home as Ben intros us to a game of "High, Low, Buffalo, Mitzvah" (a Steinbauer family dinner game) and a chance to reflect on the ups, downs, weird little moments and the true mitzvahs of our first 33 episodes. We'll catch up with some favorite Doc Walks bits, dig into what's working, get schooled on our Bechdel Test failures (eight women out of 33 guests—Sally came with receipts), and navigate the eternal tension between preparation and off-the-cuff authenticity. And Sally shares her 10-year journey making THE TROUBLE I SEE, a film about incarcerated fathers and their daughters, premiering at AFS Cinema on January 14th (tix on sale now!) Along the way: a surprise encounter with an 86-year-old Vietnamese general-turned-crossing guard, a sit-down at Sally's Pond™, and a chance to commune with a magnificent blue heron who refuses to fly. Through the highs, the lows, the birds and the buffaloes, every step we've taken together in 2025 has been a mitzvah… happy holidays to you, and thanks for walking this road with us! Discussion Links THE TROUBLE I SEE (2025) | WINNEBAGO MAN (2010) | TOWER (2016) | HIGH HOPES (2024) | PEEWEE PLAYS HIMSELF (2025)     Timestamps 00:00 Introduction and Sally O'Grady arrives 01:05 Sally as "number one fan" and Doc Walks origin story 02:00 Discovering Copperfield Nature Trail in northeast Austin 03:00 Sally's journey from Sydney to New York to Austin 05:00 Year one reflections and holiday episode setup 06:30 Do Ben-and-Keith-only episodes work? Sally weighs in 08:30 "Gardener Not a Carpenter" and useful documentary wisdom 10:00 Ben's vulnerability about prep vs. free-jazz conversations 11:00 Keith on wanting episodes to feel more like real conversations 13:00 The magnificent blue-painted live oak 14:30 High-Low-Buffalo-Mitzvah game explained 16:00 Sally's HIGH: Diane Quon's sensitive interview and Megan Gilbride's "make fucking cinema" 18:00 The title debate: why "Make Fucking Cinema" got vetoed 20:30 Keith's HIGH: Matt Wolf episode and overcoming fears about solo Ben episodes 23:30 Ben's HIGH: Celebrating Maureen Gosling and Les Blank's legacy 26:00 Sally's LOW: The Bechdel Test reality check (8 women out of 33 guests) 28:30 Ben and Keith respond to diversity critique 31:00 Ben's LOW: The off-camera conflict moment with Keith 34:30 Keith's LOW: Wanting guests to recognize them as fellow filmmakers 38:30 Buffalo: Matt Wolf's vanity and Ben's "tugboat" gaffe 40:00 Keith's Buffalo: Birds and describing the world 42:00 Ben's Buffalo: Embracing new formats amid industry change 43:30 Meeting Sally's neighbor Bowie, the 86-year-old Vietnamese general 46:30 Keith's mitzvah and development deal announcement 47:00 The blue heron finally appears 50:00 Sally's film THE TROUBLE I SEE and 10-year journey 54:00 Working with editor Sandra Guardado 57:30 Sally's next project: MA'AM and scammers targeting women therapists 1:01:00 Closing reflections and 2026 preview

    1h 7m

  3. DEC 11

    EP033 - The Stone Peacock w/ David Modigliani

    What is it with all the doc-filmmakers turning to podcasting?!? No, not us… we're talkin' about David Modigliani—a playwright turned poet turned documentary filmmaker turned podcaster (and Stanley Tucci voice director). This is a fun walk with an old friend at a park rumored to be populated by peacocks! The director of 2008's CRAWFORD (about a small town invaded by George W. Bush) and 2019's RUNNING WITH BETO (a quixotic look at Beto O'Rouke's life on the campaign trail), David is back in Austin for 36-hours to emcee the Home Slice Pizza Carnival and crash his old improv troupe, so naturally we dragged him through rocky trails and past $10 million homes to talk about his winding path from the Michener Center Grad program to doc-making, to his latest creation: PACK ONE BAG, an investigative podcast about his grandparents' escape from fascist Italy that premiered at Tribeca in 2024. David speaks from personal experience (and with his hands) about why improv is basically documentary directing, how hybridized narrative podcasting allowed him to write dialogue for Stanley Tucci as his great-grandfather—and what it means to metabolize democracy's fragility in this troubled time. Plus: bubbling ponds of coy fish, finding a peacock carved in stone, and David voices his Italian grandparents' (as he does in his podcast) with glee. This episode is sponsored by our friends at The Long Time—a 5-acre event-space and playground for your imagination. It's also the home field of The Texas Playboys (the sandlot baseball team that both Ben and David play for) and an ideal location for film productions! For more information go to thelongtime.com and follow along on IG @thelongtimetexas.     DISCUSSION LINKS: CRAWFORD (2008) | DONT LOOK BACK (1967) | RUNNING WITH BETO (2019) | PACK ONE BAG (2024) | BOYHOOD (2014) | MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG (2024) | BLUE MOON (2025) | HIT MAN (2023)     TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Introduction and Setup at Mayfield Park 02:00 Shoutouts: Chris Floyd, Pizza Champion & Austin Sayers' Steve Fromholz Doc 04:00 Finding Our Footing on Rocky Trails 07:00 The Santa Fe Grandparent Babysitting Setup 10:00 From Playwriting to Documentary: The Michener Center Years 13:00 Crawford Origins: Mini DV and Cindy Sheehan 17:00 Improv as Documentary Directing 21:00 The Yes-And of Verite Filmmaking 24:00 Houses Documentary Filmmakers Will Never Live In 26:00 The Grip's Advice: Get Feedback While You Can 30:00 Branded Content as Film School 34:00 Wounded Warrior Project and MSNBC 37:00 Pack One Bag: Fleeing Fascist Italy 42:00 Why Audio? Creative Nonfiction and Invented Archival 46:00 Writing Dialogue for Stanley Tucci 50:00 Playwriting Meets Podcasting 54:00 The HBO Bus Billboard Moment 58:00 Audio's Frictionless Distribution 01:03:00 What's Next: Italian Version and Screen Adaptation 01:05:00 Lightning Round: Don't Look Back, Linklater Dreams, Fatherhood 01:10:00 Metabolizing the Political Moment 01:12:00 David Does His Grandparents' Voices

    1h 3m

  4. DEC 4

    EP032 - Podcasts Are The New Mayonnaise w/ Scott Ballew

    Keith's out this week, so Ben is strutting Travis Heights solo with his good pal Scott(y) Ballew. Scott's a lesson in cutting-against the grain and getting more for it. You might know him from his work as the former Head of Content at Yeti, making 100+ branded docs with one rule: no product placement. Scott's path is pure chaos theory - starting with a UT football national championship ring, spending time as an insurance salesman, working the ol' LA PA grind to end up changing how brands tell stories (all while writing and recording his own songs), Scott's tried it all. We dig into the decade-long golden era at Yeti where he worked with 20 filmmakers at once (including Ben on the TOOTSIE film), and how he learned directing on the job from his inspirations. Scott breaks down Terry Allen's "follow the muse" philosophy (including how it sent him on his own musical journey), the surreal Telluride premiere of ALL THAT IS SACRED (his Jimmy Buffett/Tom McGuane film that premiered the day Buffett died), and why he'd rather make films with friends than chase a Townes Van Zandt-type of obsession (learning in part by documenting Townes' son, J.T.).  Plus: exploring classic Texas cinema with Jeff Nichols, why loving your subjects beats gotcha filmmaking, and the eternal truth that podcasts are the new mayonnaise.  This episode is sponsored by our friends at The Long Time—a 5-acre event-space and playground for your imagination. It's also the home field of The Texas Playboys (the sandlot baseball team that both Ben and Scott play for).  For more information go to thelongtime.com and follow along on IG @thelongtimetexas    Discussion Links: WINNEBAGO MAN (2009) | GREENBERG (2010) | DIG! (2004) | BE HERE TO LOVE ME (2004) | THE DEVIL AND DANIEL JOHNSTON (2005) | NO DIRECTION HOME (2005) | MUD (2012) | ALL THAT IS SACRED (2023) | THE LONG TIME (2018) | TOOTSIE (2016) | ANCHOR POINT (2016) | EVERYTHING FOR ALL REASONS (2019) Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction and Travis Heights Walk 02:00 Defining Yourself as a Creative 05:00 UT Football and National Championship 09:00 LA Dreams: Music Manager to PA 13:00 Podcasts Are the New Mayonnaise 15:00 Starting at Yeti 18:00 Why Branded Docs Work 24:00 Learning to Direct in the Edit Room 31:00 The Golden Era and Going Public 35:00 Writing Songs Out of Necessity 40:00 Tom McGuane, Jimmy Buffett, and Key West 47:00 Loving Your Subjects 53:00 Telluride and Jimmy Buffett's Death 57:00 Moving to Tecovas 01:00:00 Working with Jeff Nichols 01:02:00 Lightning Round: NO DIRECTION HOME (at home) 01:06:00 Dynamic Life vs One-Track Obsession 01:12:00 Closing Thoughts

    1h 17m

  5. NOV 28

    BONUS RE-RELEASE, EPISODE 007: A Story That Went Nowhere with Charlie Shackleton

    Consider this your second helping of the holiday—Charlie Shackleton's THE ZODIAC KILLER PROJECT is now playing in theaters, which means audiences can now experience one of the most twisted, brightest docs of the year. This thanksgiving we're grateful for filmmakers who take big swings and for audiences who show up to support adventurous storytelling. So grab another slice of pie, settle in, and revisit our SXSW conversation with Charlie—a filmmaker who turned rejection into art and morphed failure into near-genius…   Walk and talk with ZODIAC KILLER PROJECT director Charlie Shackleton as he recounts the challenges (& opportunities) of bringing a film to new life after losing access to the subject. We'll explore Charlie's love-hate relationship with true crime and the way his film twists up familiar tropes. Never one to accept creative defeat, Charlie extolls the virtues of having a close collaboration with your entertainment lawyer and takes us back to the inspiration of Nick Broomfield as a basis for overcoming rejection on screen.  We share a lot of laughs and together decide to start a cult! Join us… for this episode of Doc Walks.   00:00 Welcome to Doc Walks: South by Southwest Day 00:49 Meeting Charlie Shackleton: A Unique Filmmaker 02:42 The Zodiac Killer Project: A Film About Failure 04:13 Overcoming Obstacles: The Making of Zodiac Killer Project 07:41 Archival Films and Legal Battles 11:17 Influences and Inspirations: The Filmmakers Who Shaped Charlie 15:28 Pitching and Funding: The Journey to Create Zodiac Killer Project 17:48 A Twist on True Crime: Charlie's Unique Approach 19:56 Starting a New Cult: A Filmmaker's Perspective 20:23 Intentional Critique in Documentary Filmmaking 22:08 Navigating Personal Involvement in Documentaries 25:32 The Reality of Developing Multiple Projects 29:13 Advice for Aspiring Filmmakers 34:24 Concluding Thoughts and Future Episodes

    40 min

  6. NOV 27

    HOLIDAY RE-RELEASE EP09 - The Watering Hole, Live from the Austin Film Society

    Thanksgiving is here and we're thankful for the filmmakers who make our home town of Austin, TX weird and wonderful. So this week, we're serving up a heaping helping of gratitude and indulging in a re-release of one of our favorite community episodes, EP09 - THE WATERING HOLE, LIVE FROM THE AUSTIN FILM SOCIETY. We recorded this one during SXSW at the annual Austin Film Society party. We're grateful to documentary filmmakers, the festivals that bring us all together, AFS for holding down the fort and for you—yes, you—who keep showing up to listen to a coupla turkeys. Most of all, we're grateful we get to do this together. So pull up a chair, loosen your belt, and feast on this Austin film family reunion.   ORIGINAL SYNOPSIS: Drink up the scene like a local as Keith & Ben chat up their fellow Austinites (and a few out of town visitors) at the annual Austin Film Society Parking Lot Party at SXSW. This episode is a veritable smorgasbord of festival conversation including appearances by local filmmakers Cassie Hay, Tracy Frazier & Karen Skloss; festival programmers like Bart Weiss and James Faust; SXSW-premiering CREEDE, USA editor Andrew Saunderson;  producer Mike Blizzard; and an AFS-appreciation conversation with CEO Rebecca Campbell. All that and a literal Rolls Royce car crash makes this bonus episode a unique peek into Austin's film community.    00:00 Introduction and Setting the Scene 00:59 Meeting Cassie Hay: A Filmmaking Journey 03:38 Tracy Frazier: From Documentaries to Gaming 06:39 Bart Weiss: The Evolution of Video Fest 11:56 Andrew Saunderson: Editing Creed USA 15:54 James Faust: Festival Highlights 16:16 Introduction to South by Southwest 16:53 Interview with James Faust 17:12 The State of Documentary Films 19:54 Challenges in the Film Industry 24:16 Rebecca Campbell on Austin Film Society 29:45 Mike Blizzard on Austin's Film Community 31:37 Karen Skloss on the Austin Film Society Party 34:22 Conclusion and Future Episodes

    40 min

  7. NOV 20

    EP031 - Opportunity Calls! w/ Patrick Heaphy

    Join Ben as he walks solo with Patrick Heaphy—a New York producer/director and music doc extraordinaire. Together they saunter across South Congress, past the Continental Club to Arlyn Studios. Pat's the filmmaker behind CHARLEY CROCKETT: $10 COWBOY documentary—now screening at Austin Film Festival—but his career path runs through a Nancy Kerrigan vampire clip (the lav accessory, of course), the 1994 Olympics, and a 9/11 doc compiled from his day-of footage. We dig into the music documentary hustle: multi-cam concert films at the Ryman, working the Springsteen archives, and why answer-the-phone opportunity beats mere aspiration. Pat breaks down his company LCM247 (figure out what it means yourself), eating ramen for 26 odd years before festival recognition, and why the AI his mom uses is top of mind. Plus: Pat spots Will Ferrell's eyeballs and uncovers Willie's old haunt.     Discussion Links: WITNESS TO 9/11: IN THE SHADOWS OF GROUND ZERO (2020) | NEBRASKA CELEBRATION: WORDS AND MUSIC (2024) | CHARLEY CROCKETT: $10 COWBOY (2025)     Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction and Camera Work 01:00 Patrick's Background and Nancy Kerrigan Story 05:00 From Firefighter Family to Filmmaking 08:00 Post-Traumatic Stress Documentary 10:00 Selling Cars and Making Cable Commercials 12:00 Becoming the Music Guy 16:00 Musicians and Documentary Filmmakers 18:00 Charley Crockett's $10 Cowboy Origin 20:00 Arlyn Studios and Willie's Legacy 22:00 Americana Fest and Noah Kahan 24:00 Irish Connection and Multiple Hustles 26:00 9/11 Documentary 27:00 Lightning Round Begins 29:00 Charley Crockett Recording Process 33:00 Advice for Young Filmmakers 35:00 Gateway Drug Question 36:00 Dream Collaborators and AI

    41 min

  8. NOV 13

    EP030 - I'm With the People (and the Butterflies) w/ Rena Effendi

    Meet Rena Effendi—National Geographic photographer, and first-time filmmaker whose SEARCHING FOR SATYRUS just won the top doc prize at the Austin Film Festival. This walk is pure magic—seemingly in honor of her butterfly-hunting film, monarch butterflies flit all around us like they know something the rest of us don't. Rena's film traces her hunt for one of the world's rarest butterflies, named after her father—a Soviet-era lepidopterist who collected 90,000 specimens before his untimely death. This unique species flies only once a year, on a mountaintop, above 10,000 feet, and along the militarized border between Azerbaijan and Armenia—two countries at war for decades. Just five people had ever seen the Satyrus Effendi—and that's when Rena enters the story. She's got a lot to say about complicated family stories, layers of secrets, and life in the collapsing Soviet Union. Rena unpacks her jump from medium-format still photos to motion picture storytelling, building teams vs. working solo, and why neutrality matters when you're documenting war—even when it's your own country.  Plus: a cowboy guitarist on a bicycle, honky-tonk dancing at the White Horse, and why documentary photographers make fearless filmmakers. A woman of the people, and of the butterflies, Rena Effendi is the real deal.   DISCUSSION LINKS: SEARCHING FOR SATYRUS (2025) | PAST LIVES (2023) | HONEYLAND (2019) TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Introduction—Budapest or Istanbul? 01:00 Searching for Satyrus and the Austin Film Festival Win 02:00 Monarch Butterflies and the Rare Satyrus Effendi 04:00 First Time in Austin, First Film 05:00 From Office Job to Photographer—The Magnum Moment 08:00 Collapsing Soviet Union and Standing in Food Queues 10:00 Father's Death and Choosing Butterflies Over Geology 13:00 The Craft of Pinning Butterflies Like a Jeweler 14:00 Early Photography—Documenting Mahala's Transformation 16:00 City Symphonies and Capturing Disappearing Identity 18:00 Story Arcs in Still Photography 19:00 The Dying Mother—Last Picture in the Series 21:00 Austin's Transformation and Tech Bro Architecture 24:00 Birth of the Film—Googling Her Father's Name 26:00 The Butterfly Named After Her Father 27:00 Discovering a Half-Sister at Age 14 30:00 Healing Through Art—Looking at Father Through New Lens 32:00 2020 War and Gaining Access to Habitat 33:00 Building the Team—Producers and National Geographic Grant 36:00 Leadership Challenges of Filmmaking vs. Photography 37:00 Mom's Resistance and Opening Up 40:00 Kevin Andrew—Picking and Pedaling Through Austin 43:00 First Impressions of Austin and White Horse 45:00 Growing Up in War-Torn Culture 47:00 Neutrality and Non-Judgment 49:00 Artists vs. Journalists—The Blurry Line 51:00 Speed Round—Past Lives, Stay True to Story, Kill Your Darlings 54:00 Where to Find the Film

    53 min
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About

Documentary filmmakers, Keith Maitland (Tower, Dear Mr Brody) and Ben Steinbauer (Winnebago Man, Chop & Steele), are giving the world what no one asked for… Doc Walks. Against their better judgment, they decided to turn their weekly walks into a podcast, stepping into conversation with filmmakers and execs about the art and industry of documentary filmmaking. If you're an up and coming filmmaker, lover of non-fiction, or related to either Ben or Keith, this podcast might be for you.

Information

  • Creator
    Ben Steinbauer & Keith Maitland
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    38
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025
  • Show Website
    Doc Walks

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