The Filmmaker |
Steven Baigel, the producer, director, cameraman, editor and writer of THAT WHICH COLORS THE MIND©: THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF NIKHIL BANERJEE is a film/videomaker and still photographer who has worked on numerous award-winning documentaries as an editor, cameraman and sound recordist. His credits include: AMERICAN MAVERICK: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF PETE MCCLOSKEY, a documentary on the liberal, environmentalist, and anti-war republican ex-congressman from California. AMAZING: THE REBUILDING OF THE MACARTHUR MAZE, A documentary on the remarkably fast rebuilding of a critical freeway structure in the San Francisco Bay Area severely damaged by fire and explosion. KEEPER OF THE BEAT, A documentary on the life and work of Barbara Borden, drummer, performer, teacher, healer, peace activist extraordinaire. DIGITAL DEMOCRACY COMES OF AGE, A documentary on the first ever in-person conference of progressive internet bloggers & activists. THE BRIDGE SO FAR: A SUSPENSE STORY, A documentary that examines the history and controversies that have caused many years of delay and billions of dollars over budget in building of a seismically safe new east span of the Oakland-San Francisco Bay Bridge. PAWO THUPTEN NGODUP, A memorial tribute short in tribute to Pawo Thupten Ngodup, who in April 1998 self-immolated as protest against the lack of international attention to the plight and suffering of Tibet and the Tibetan people under Chinese occupation. It is dedicated to his sacrifice, and to the Tibetan people. FREEWAY PHILHARMONIC, A documentary about the lives of several classical musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area who perform in numerous symphonic orchestras scattered across north/central California, often driving long distances and having same day responsibilities with two or more of these orchestras. OF WIND AND WAVES, A documentary on the life of legendary surfing, gliding, and catamaran/sailing designer-innovator, the legendary 95 year old Woody Brown. MASON WILLIAMS: A CLASSICAL LIFE, a documentary that celebrates the life and achievements of television and recording industry icon Mason Williams. BUTTERFLIES & BULLDOZERS, a documentary that chronicles the history and continuing efforts to save San Francisco Bay Area's San Bruno Mountain from further development environmental degradation. GRANNY D GOES TO WASHINGTON, A documentary on Doris Haddock, aka Granny D, who at the age of 89 walked across the United States from California to Washington, D.C. in an effort to educate and promote for the need for campaign finance reform in the countries elections. LIFE AS CINEMA, A film on Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, aka Khyentse Norbu, a very esteemed, high reincarnate lama and teacher in the Tibetan Buddhist pantheon, who also is the feature film director of The Cup, and Travelers and Magicians. SENIORS FOR PEACE, a profile of residents of a senior retirement home in Mill Valley, California, who have been peacefully & actively protesting the George W. Bush administration's war on Iraq. SURFING FOR LIFE, which addresses attitudes and approaches to healthy aging by examining and celebrating the lives of senior citizens with life-long enthusiasm for the sport of surfing. BOUND BY THE WIND documents the effects of nuclear testing and the tragic consequences and personal stories of people living downwind from nuclear testing facilities in Kazakhistan, the Marshall Islands and in the southwest United States, and the rise of citizen action in protest of the arms race. A QUESTION OF POWER profiles the grassroots campaign in opposition to Diablo Canyon, a nuclear power plant situated just outside the central California coast community of San Luis Obispo, and the manifold dangers of nuclear power. HARVEST OF HOPE takes a critical look at the Caribbean island of Haiti shortly after the violent overthrow and forced exile of democratically elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. LARGE DAMS/FALSE PROMISES examines the problems of building large-scale hydro electric power plants in Brazil, China, and India, and the effects of forced relocation of long- established indigenous communities. TURTLE EXCLUDER DEVICES, An educational film that advocates the use of Turtle Excluder Devices as the best way to halt the indiscriminate slaughter of many species of endangered Sea Turtles by the U.S. and foreign shrimp industries. STOPPING HISTORY profiles a small group of committed activists who band together with several thousand other citizens to commit civil disobedience in opposition to the nuclear bomb research and design facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories outside San Francisco, California. THE PRICE OF POWER investigates the effects of resource development, cultural displacement, and forced relocation of tribal peoples in the Philippines, and the rise of the New People's Army, a grassroots Maoist organization. More recently Steven has edited the work-in-progress THE LAST COLD WAR, a documentary promoting non-violent conflict resolution through dialogue between the United States and Cuba, and the heart-wrenching effects the U.S. travel ban is having on families divided by the conflict. While producing and directing THAT WHICH COLORS THE MINDİ, Steven is also currently producing and directing two other documentaries. WELCOME TO SPACE & MISSILE COUNTRY examines & critiques the U.S. government's National Ballistic Missile Defense weapons programs (aka Star Wars) with a particular focus on the role of Vandenberg Air Force Base in the development & deployment of this system. The film also focuses on the local, national, & international citizens' grassroots nonviolent opposition movement against missile defense and the weaponization of space. WITH UNDIVIDED FAITH: A PORTRAIT OF A TIBETAN EXILE COMMUNITY examines contemporary life in the Tibetan exile settlement of Bir, in Himachal Pradesh state of northern India. Due to the brutal and illegal Chinese occupation of Tibet many thousands of Tibetans have made the arduous and extremely dangerous journey over the Himalayas to freedom in exile. Bir is a Tibetan settlement formed in the mid 1960s primarily by Tibetans from the province of Kham in eastern Tibet. The documentary focuses primarily on three different families, their daily lives and rituals, hopes and fears for the survival of Tibetan culture. As a fine art and travel photographer with a degree in fine arts from the University of New Mexico, Steven has been photographing Tibetan culture in Tibet, Nepal and India (including Ladakh and Sikkim) since 1990. A world traveler, he has traveled extensively in India and Nepal, spending much time among the Tibetan people. For over 30 years Steven has been actively working for social change in the areas of environmental protection, peace, and social/political justice. For many years Steven has supported the causes of Tibetan freedom, self-determination, and preservation of their cultural heritage. In 1997 Steven served as a juror for the National Educational and Media Network Video Festival in the category of Environment- Endangered Species, held annually in Oakland, California, USA. He was asked to serve again in 1998 and 1999. Steven is a guitarist and mandolinist with a life-long love and interest in music. In December 1990, he began studying Indian classical music and his practice of sitar. |
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