key crew

Rick’s production talents have been honed by a decade of experience on a technically and stylistically diverse set of documentary projects – his body of work includes independent social docs for PBS’s Independent Lens & American Experience, a prime-time reality series on NBC, and wildlife and science programming for clients including BBCs Natural History Unit, National Geographic and Netflix. He has kept up with host Steve Rinella on Netflix’s backcountry hunting series MeatEater, has starved (literally) for weeks while shooting and working as a embedded producer/camera/cast member for NBC’s The Island with Bear Grylls, and filmed grizzly bear behavioral sequences for the Smithsonian Channel’s Epic Yellowstone. Most recently, Rick was one of the series DPs for Connected, a 6-part science focused series produced by Zero Point Zero Productions airing on Netflix in 2020. While not off adventuring with a camera he enjoys a good long run in the mountains, and the comforts of home. Rick lives in Bozeman, Montana, has a B.A. in Biology from Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, and a MFA in Science and Natural History Filmmaking from Montana State University.

Parker Brown has traveled the world as a sound mixer and drone pilot since 2007. He grew up in Texas, but cut his teeth making natural history films in the wilds of Western Montana. Fast forward 12 years and he’s worked with all of the biggest names in wildlife filmmaking. Known as especially skilled in the world’s harshest and most remote environments, Parker has helped tell stories from Antarctica to Zanzibar. When it’s all over he will finally put his master’s degree in Science and Natural History Filmmaking to use as a brooding professor in a dark wood paneled University office.

Stefanie has been editing and co-writing factual shows for over 12 years in both the USA and UK, for the BBC, Discovery, History Channel, Nat Geo, NASA, and PBS. She grew-up in the Colorado wilderness, raised by a wildlife biologist to have a thirst for science and love of the outdoors. Falling into a science degree at university, and with a B.S. in hand, she marched off into the wild blue Montana yonder to earn a Master of Fine Arts in Science and Natural History Filmmaking. Since moving to the UK, she’s been fortunate enough to work with some of the world’s greatest natural history filmmakers, including the creators of series like Planet Earth, North America, and Spy in the Wild, as well as on passion project documentaries like Red Ape: Saving the Orangutan, which earned the team a Best Editing nomination at Wildscreen, informally known as the “Green Oscars”. With a love of music, her passion lies in emotive storytelling, and creating distinctive documentaries ranging from new-chip natural history to op-docs.

Ben is a freelance Editor (also Designer, Director, Producer and Writer) who works across all genres of TV & Film. Over his 25 year career he’s made documentary programmes for the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 and Sky in the UK, as well as Nat Geo, PBS and Discovery Channel, and also has many feature film credits. His keen interest in science and technology helped in the making of The Last Artifact; not least in being able to take the key concepts and help us craft the story for everyone to enjoy and understand. He also loves Wes Anderson films – which was lucky given our choice in production design for the film.

Think of your favorite TV shows and movies – well, there he is: Richard McGonagle. You know them all! On the tube he’s everywhere: playing recurring characters on Rules of Engagement, The Practice, Third Rock From the Sun and Dirty Sexy Money; guest starring on The Middle, Better Off Ted, The West Wing, Six Feet Under, Ally McBeal, The Agency, Seinfeld, Roswell, The X-Files, Star Trek – Next Generation, and Voyager; or check out films like, The Bucket List, Rules of Engagement, Mighty Joe Young, Senseless, The American President and much more. Think you recognize a certain deep, warm voice? Yes, that’s Richard, whose special talents make him a highly popular voice-over actor. In video games you will recognize him as Victor Sullivan in the Sony PlayStation Uncharted series as well as TellTale’s Batman. You’ll also hear him everywhere from documentary narrations, to animation, to national commercials, to audio books.

BAFTA-nominated, Belfast-born composer Sheridan Tongue is one of Northern Ireland’s most successful television composers, best known for working on award-winning drama series and documentaries that have reached a global audience. He has a studio in London and Michigan. Having started his career working in London working in recording studios with icons such as Robert Plant, Johnny Marr and Blur, Sheridan was presented with a gold record for his work on the album ‘Prodigal Sista’ by Beverly Knight. He segued into film and television composition and worked on numerous UK contemporary drama series including DCI Banks (5 series), Sea of Souls (1 series) and Silent Witness (12 series). He has scored the music to five television series for The Discovery Channel, PBS and Curiosity Stream with Professor Stephen Hawking, bringing to life his theories (Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking, Grand Design, Did God Create the Universe, Stephen Hawking’s Favorite PLaces – Series 1 and 2). In 2019 he scored the quirky and fun soundtrack to the feature documentary The Last Artifact for Emmy-Award winning filmmakers Jaime Jacobsen and Ed Watkins, that featured scientists from all over the planet searching for a new way to redefine the Kilogram.

Aaron Pruitt is the Director and General Manager of MontanaPBS. For over 25 years, Aaron has provided leadership in programming, production, fundraising and management at MontanaPBS. He served as Executive Producer for many award-winning productions including 11th & Grant with Eric Funk, Class C: The Only Game in Town, Fort Peck Dam, The Violin Alone, Finding Traction and C.M. Russell and the American West. Pruitt collaborates with independent filmmakers distributing programs to national PBS, such as Wolves in Paradise (PBS PLUS), Before There Were Parks: Yellowstone and Glacier Through Native Eyes (PBS NPS) and two PBS INDEPENDENT LENS documentaries, Butte America and Indian Relay. Aaron serves on several boards, including Montanans for 4-H, the Friends of MontanaPBS, the Montana Broadcasters Association and as chair of Humanities Montana.

Scott Sterling is the director of production at MontanaPBS and a freelance colorist. Scott hails from the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, where exposure to the outdoors, technology, and culture inspired a passion for visual art and storytelling. Scott looks beyond the written words, narrative and photography of a film, seeking to exploit the unspoken ‘terroir’ that adds a deeper level of emotion and complexity to any story. He has been working professionally in television production for 20 years, specializing in documentary, music performance and live production, with special skills in color and broadcast finishing. His color work includes projects airing on The History Channel, National Geographic Channel, PBS, ABC, Smithsonian Channel, and appearing in various festival circuits. He has earned eleven Emmy® Awards from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences – Northwest Chapter, and revels in the juxtaposition of art and technology that is contemporary filmmaking.