Jon H. Else (born 1944) is an American documentary

filmmaker Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...

and professor at the

UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism The UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism is a graduate professional school on the campus of University of California, Berkeley. It is designed to produce journalists with a two-year Master of Journalism (MJ) degree. It also offers a minor i ...

. He directs the documentary program.

Biography

Born in Worcester, Massachusetts, Else moved west for college. He earned a B.A. (English, 1968) from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, and an M.A. (Communication, 1974) from

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

. He directed and produced major documentaries beginning in 1980, such as ''

The Day After Trinity ''The Day After Trinity'' (or ''The Day After Trinity: J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb'') is a 1981 documentary film directed and produced by Jon H. Else in association with KTEH public television in San Jose, California. Synopsis ...

'', about the work during World War II at Los Alamos in developing and testing the atomic bomb and ''

Eyes on the Prize ''Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Movement'' is an American television series documentary about the civil rights movement in the United States. The documentary originally aired on the PBS network, and it also aired in the United Kin ...

'' in 1987, a documentary about the civil rights movement from 1954 to 1965, based on the history of the same name. He was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 1988. He created additional documentaries on a wide variety of subjects, as well as working as a writer or cinematographer on Emmy Award-winning works.

Awards

* 1981 Academy Award Nominee Best Documentary Feature - ''

'' * 1988

MacArthur Fellows Program The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and ...

* 1989

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...

- ''Yosemite: The Fate Of Heaven'', director * 1993 Emmy - ''The Great Depression'', writer * 1998 Emmy - ''America's Endangered Species: Don't Say Good-bye'', cinematographer * 1999 Emmy - '' Sing Faster: The Stagehands' Ring Cycle'' * 1999

Sundance A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada * Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States * Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated pl ...

Filmmaker's Trophy - ''Sing Faster: The Stagehands' Ring Cycle''

Filmography

* '' The Day After Trinity: J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb'' (1980) * ''Palace Of Delights: The Exploratorium'' (1982, aired on ''

Nova A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white ...

''), producer, director, cinematographer * '' Eyes On The Prize: America's Civil Rights Years'' (1987, covering 1954–1965), series producer for PBS and cinematographer * ''Yosemite: The Fate Of Heaven'' (1989, aired in '' American Experience (season 2)''), producer, director, cinematographer * ''Eyes on the Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads 1965–1985'' (1990), series producer and cinematographer. * ''Wonders Are Many: The Making of Doctor Atomic'' (2008) * '' Cadillac Desert: Water and the American West'' (1997), director, producer, cinematographer * '' Sing Faster: The Stagehands' Ring Cycle'' (1999), producer, director, cinematographer * ''Open Outcry'' (2001), producer, director, cinematographer * '' The Island President'' (2011), executive producer

References

Living people 1944 births Film directors from Massachusetts MacArthur Fellows Sundance Film Festival award winners University of California, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism faculty UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science alumni Stanford University alumni {{US-film-director-1940s-stub