Ep92 - Kunhardt Films Documentarians Discuss HBO’s ‘John McCain For Whom The Bell Tolls’

Creative Principles

“I haven’t always done the right thing,” said the subject of 'John McCain: For Whom the Bell Tolls.' “But you will never talk to anyone that is as fortunate as John McCain.” The Senator, who has lost two Presidential elections, survived as a Vietnam POW for five years, and received a brain tumor diagnosis, is surprisingly optimistic, potentially the last of his kind, and the latest subject for Kunhardt Films. As a production company, Kunhardt Films specializes in documentaries “about the people and ideas that shape history.” In the past three years, the directors and producers have made films like 'King in the Wilderness' about Martin Luther King Jr., 'The Newspaperman' about Ben Bradlee, and 'Becoming Warren Buffet.' Producer George Kunhardt said, “We had done a similar documentary [in 2009] when Teddy Kennedy announced that he had brain cancer. Teddy, when he read it in the news that McCain had been diagnosed with this, we thought it was a natural [progression], since McCain was the other line of the Senate and had a long life that paralleled the last half-century of American history.” Three weeks after the diagnosis, the producers started working on the film. Kunhardt Films, which launched in 1987, consists of six-time Emmy Award winner Peter Kunhardt and his two sons, George and Teddy. In this interview, the three creators talk about John McCain as a character, how to gain trust as a filmmaker, and the importance of subjects that you’re willing to spend a year with. In addition to this audio format, the print interview for this conversation is available on Creative Screenwriting Magazine’s website. Stay up-to-date on other creative advice at www.creativeprinciples.live